Yuria Celidwen

Yuria Celidwen, Ph.D., I am a native of Indigenous Nahua and Maya lineages from the cloudforests of Chiapas, Mexico. I am of Earth; my heart is on fire. My family is one of mystics, healers, poets, and explorers of the soil and the soul of life’s strength, tenderness, and fragility. I grew up with one wing in the wilderness and another in the magical realism of Indigenous dreamlands and stories. My Elders’ songs enthralled my childhood and enhanced my mythic imagination and emotional intuition. They’ve become the fertile soils and waters where the seeds of reverence, play, and wonder dig their roots. I am a Truth-bearer, trickster dreamer, and culture-shifter. As a scholar, I research Indigenous forms of contemplation and the transcendent experience embodied in prosocial behavior (reverence, ethics, compassion, and a sense of awe, love, and sacredness). I call my research broader statement the “Ethics of Belonging,” encouraging awareness, intention, and relational actions toward planetary flourishing and a path of meaning and participation rooted in honoring Life.