Two faces of “Briar Rose”. The fairy tale of Sleeping Beauty in psychoanalytical interpretation by Stefanie Bornstein

The paper shows the scientific and private life of Stefanie Bornstein, a forgotten Freudian of Polish descent, the author of, among others, a psychoanalytical study on the fairy tale of Sleeping Beauty published in 1933 in “Imago”. It is a precursory text in regards to the approach proposed forty years later by Bruno Bettelheim in the famous monograph The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales. The comparative analysis shows that Bornstein’s essay Das Märchen vom Dornröschen in psychoanalytischer Darstellung was for Bettelheim without a doubt, despite being only barely acknowledged, a source of inspiration; it also proves that the author, writing and publishing in the American reality of the 70s, in many regards “tamed” the much braver, from today standpoint almost feminist interpretation proposed by his predecessor.

The woody figures of Jan Szczepański’s biography, that is on mediation between time of nature and time of culture

This article’s purpose is to present in what ways a well-known sociologist and humanist Jan Szczepański from Ustroń shapes his biography in private notebooks and essays, including it in some key figures or metaphors. The aim of his efforts seems to situate his own life in view of the irreversible historical time as well as the cycle of vegetation – in other words, to confirm a connection with culture so as not to lose an union with nature and its creative power. A main figure making for mediation between these both spheres in Szczepański’s works is the forest tree. It’s development means an actualization of inborn potency in line with Aristotle’s conception of entelechy. A notion of the tree is associated with the metaphors of roots and land, which refers both to nature and “this land”, namely to cultural region (in Szczepański’s case: his native Cieszyn Silesia). The authoress shows, how this article’s hero – especially in his Diaries – “inscribes” himself in nature’s duration and also intentionally “settles in” the culture in which he grew. In light of his attempts to reconcile historical and cyclical time in his existence as well as to fi nd the raison d’être for it, roots appear not to be a trivial symbol of attachment the place of one’s birth, but the imperative of eff ort of putting down roots in the word, and in that way – in the world of the sense which grants that sense to human’s passing away.

Religious and ethnic pluralism in Indonesia. The case of Lombok

Indonesian national motto Bhinneka Tunggal Ika, “unity in diversity” is not only attractive, but also challenging. Does this slogan regulate the relationships between religious majority and religious minorities in the archipelago? It is a highly complex question. The aim of the article is to examine a small fraction of this matter issue, to describe practical reality of managing religious diversity in Lombok. Lombok, eastern neighbour of Bali, is a relatively small island, inhabited by 3.3 million people. Muslims account for over 95 per cent of the population, and indigenous Sasaks make up around 90 per cent of it. However, the island cannot be described as  religiously or ethnically homogenous.
The article is divided into two parts pertaining to two locations, the village of Lingsar and the region of Bayan. The annual temple festival in Lingsar celebrates and connects two ethno-religious identities, characteristic of: Balinese Hinduism and Sasak Islam. According to Erni Budiwanti, Pujawali is a perfect showcase of the “unity in diversity” motto. Nevertheless, the relations between Hindus and Muslims in the framework of this famous religious festival have been complex and often contentious. The second part concerns the northern region of Lombok. In Bayan traditional religious practices and beliefs of syncretic Islam wetu telu are still vivid. Islam wetu telu intersects with orthodox Islam waktu lima frequently, local Muslims are being subjected to missionary purification campaigns. In the framework of tourism wetu telu traditions can be both, modified and emancipated from homogenization.

The article aims to examine the extent to which the present day mobility of dance professionals and global, cultural flows hybridize Kathak art and practice in India. It focuses on innovative approaches and cross-cultural productions of selected Indian artists, highlighting the signifi cance of their entanglement in the global networks of dance professionals and cultural markets as key factors of refashioning Kathak tradition. I shall explore the emerging pursuit of these artists toward pluralistic aesthetics, juxtaposing it with the phenomenon of the colonial mimicry (Bhabha 2004). I intend to address the following questions: What motivates the choreographers to use the hybrid language of dance? Is this language a strategy of innovation, consciously and willingly chosen by the artists, or rather the inheritance of colonial past, nowadays unwittingly reproduced through globalization? Does the cultural hybridity facilitates liberation of the dance from Orientalist and colonial discourses? What is its potential to reproduce national identity and to raise intercultural dialogues through the dance? Are these two objectives irreconcilable?
This essay is based on fieldwork conducted primarily in Kolkata in 2015. Among several leading metropolitan centers of Kathak development, that I have researched (New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Bangalore), Kolkata appears to provide an environment particularly susceptible to the influx of concepts,   techniques and practices from other cultures. This is apparent in the stage productions of Padatik, Rhythmosaic Dance Company, and Anurekha Ghosh Company, which will be discussed here as examples illustrating the dynamics of cultural hybridization and contextualized against changing, socio-cultural and economic conditions.

The issue of equal rights viewed by women Muslim intellectuals in Western Europe

The idea of reforming Islam is gaining more and more popularity with West European and American Muslim intellectuals. Although the kind and magnitude of the suggested changes may vary, yet the necessity to alter the status of women in Islamic societies and communities is being widely admitted. In this context the studies and analyzes prepared by the Muslim women, who by exploring the sources of Islamic religion and legislation indicate the direction of such changes, deserve a special attention. By living in the Western Europe they rely on Muslim and European tradition alike, thus adding a new dimension to the discussion upon the role and position of women in Islam. The article deals with the pro equal rights activity undertaken by Amina Wadud, Leila Ahmed, Zahra Ali and Fadela Amara.