Las cortes históricas en el culto a María Lionza en Venezuela: Construcción del pasado y mitologías de los héroes

parting from the magical experiences associated with the maría lionza cult, the author examines the studying of the past and the way it is represented by social groups and individuals, with special reference to aspects not always incorporated into the nationalist iconography, but permanently re-elaborated by a popular oral tradition. tales about the past can identify the characteristics of group representations and, in a stratified society, hegemonic and subordinate versions associated with power relations. in order to change the future, the present must also be changed but, in order to change the present, it is also necessary to change the past.