“… to recreate balance in the world.”
Has there ever been balance between the sexes? Has there ever been true equality between the sexes? And if so, what is the recipe for it? If we look back a few thousand years, or even in societies today which are still living close to nature, away from cities, we will find, what I feel, is the main ingredient. Necessity for survival. When dealing with nature, it is imperative that everyone does what they are best at, for the survival of the tribe.
In her book, Women Warriors, Jeannine Kimball-Davis shared her studies of modern Mongolian societies. They are one of the few, lasting societies who still live by the traditions of their ancestors. Through these people, Ms. Kimball-Davis saw how children start learning, at the age of about 3, all the duties of the society. By about 5 years old, they begin to show their talents and abilities. If a boy is good at cooking, he learns to take care of the hearth. If a girl is good at riding, she learns to take care of the cattle. And so on. When fighting was necessary, it didn’t matter if the child was a girl or boy, that’s what they would be trained in, if they showed talent.
Just imagine if we used that recipe for success in our modern world. I believe that there wouldn’t be as much depression and other psychological imbalances, if we support each other to recognize and develop the skills we are innately born with.
Increasing not only our awareness of, but also our belief in the existence of women warriors, is a way to truly open our minds and change the collective consciousness. Women have been fighting and hunting alongside men since humankind began. That is a fact, and every year, more and more evidence is coming to light to prove it. The reason I can confidently state this is because the analysis of archeological findings took a big turn not so long ago: The automatic assumption of a skeleton being male just because it was buried with a sword. This was questioned by experts such as Jeannine Kimball-Davis in the 1990’s. She noticed other artifacts such as earrings, mirrors and beads were in some of the gravesites. Before her questioning and challenging the system, the procedural protocol was not to check the sex of the skeleton. When they actually did check, they found that at least a third of the “warrior graves” were female.
Because the study of archaeology had begun in the 1700’s, when women and men had very different roles in society, researching historical findings was influenced by the societal norms of the time. It is relatively recent that these practices have changed. It takes a long time to change the narrative of something that has been based on a misconception for hundreds of years. Classical history books written thousands of years ago have been interpreted, or misinterpreted, to fit the common understanding of the roles of the sexes of both the author and the researcher. Women who fought and hunted in ancient times had been misunderstood by the patriarchal Greek and Roman historians and then again by their readers. Thus, the myth of the Amazons was born and kept alive. However, anthropological and archeological researchers have discovered other ancient writings that describe more accurately, and in depth, ancient societies with women who hunted and went to war. And, they have taken off their norm-colored glasses.