Ways and Travels of the Sacred Feminine from Brazil to Central Europe Feminine Power and Agency in the Contemporary Umbanda Community Ilê Axé Oxum Abalô

This study examines the Afro-Brazilian theology of the Orixás (Yorùbá deities from West Africa) as practised in a translocated and diasporic Umbanda community in the Central European region of Switzerland, Austria and Germany, the Ilê Axé Oxum Abalô / Terra Sagrada. In contrast to religious traditions of the Candomblé from Brazil (Cf. the definitions of Umbanda and Candomblé in its religious field: Gonçalves da Silva (Candomblé e Umbanda. Caminhos da Devoção Brasileira. Selo Negro, São Paulo, 2005), which are based on the interpretation of the West African Ilê Ifé oracle deciphering the deities’ influence on people through the Orixás, this spiritual community refers its way of learning about the deities to the effects of music, dance and the inner knowledge of one’s own body. Particularly, change and renovation is sought in the oral transmission of knowledge production by a feminist liberation from shameful and powerless attributions in the mythology of the goddess Obá, among other female goddesses. Spiritual tourism of the community to Brazil encourages these new ways. This text argues that these feminist activists expressed in contemporary performances in Central Europe select certain historical precursors in the religious field of the Afro-Brazilian religions

ECPPA: Randomised trial of low dose aspirin for the prevention of maternal and fetal complications in high risk pregnant women

Objective To determine the effectiveness of low dose aspirin in women at high risk of adverse outcomes associated with pre-eclampsia.Design A collaborative randomised trial comparing the effects of low dose aspirin (60 mg) with placebo on pre-eclampsia and other materno-fetal complications associated with hypertension.Setting Twelve teaching maternity hospitals and 182 obstetricians' offices in Brazil.Subjects One thousand and nine women considered to be at high risk for the development of preeclampsia, or its complications, entered the study between 12 and 32 weeks of gestation. They were randomly allocated to receive aspirin (498 women) or placebo (511 women) until delivery, and follow up was obtained for 96%.Results There were no significant differences between the treatment groups in the incidence of proteinuric pre-eclampsia (6.7% aspirin-allocated compared with 6.0% placebo-allocated women), of preterm delivery (22.3% compared with 26.1%), of intrauterine growth retardation (8.5% compared with 10.1%), or of stillbirth and neonatal death (7.3% compared with 6.0%), nor were there significant differences in the incidence of proteinuric pre-eclampsia in any subgroup of women studied, including those who had systolic blood pressures of 120 mmHg or above at entry (8.5% compared with 7.3%) or those who were chronically hypertensive (10.0% compared with 7.1%). Aspirin was not associated with a significant excess of maternal or fetal bleeding.Conclusion The results of this study do not support the routine prophylactic administration of low dose aspirin in pregnancy to any category of high risk women (even those who have chronic hypertension or who are considered to be especially liable to early onset pre-eclampsia).ESCOLA PAULISTA MED,DEPT MED,MED CLIN D,RUA BOTUCATU 740,BR-04023900 SAO PAULO,BRAZILESCOLA PAULISTA MED,DEPT MED,MED CLIN D,RUA BOTUCATU 740,BR-04023900 SAO PAULO,BRAZILWeb of Scienc