Family and Childhood of Jeanne Marie Guyon and Nanny of the Maroons

Christian mystic - Jeanne Marie Guyon Guyon was the daughter of Claude Bouvier, a procurator of the tribunal of Montargis, 110 kilometers south of Paris and 70 kilometers east of Orléans. She was sickly in her childhood, and her education was neglected. Her childhood was spent between the convent, and the home of her affluent parents, moving nine times in ten years. Guyon's parents were very religious, thus they gave her an especially pious upbringing. Other important impressions from her youth came from reading the works of St. Francis de Sales, and being educated by nuns. Prior to her marriage, she had wanted to become a nun, but this desire did not last long.[2] In 1664, when she was 15 years old, after turning down many other marriage proposals, she was forced into an arranged marriage to a wealthy gentleman of Montargis, Jacques Guyon, aged thirty eight. During their marriage, Guyon suffered at the hands of her mother-in-law and maidservant. Adding to her misery were the deaths of her half-sister, followed by her mother, and her son. Her daughter and father then died within days of each other in July 1672. She bore another son and daughter shortly before her husband's death in 1676. After twelve years of being unhappily married and after the birth of five children, of whom three survived, Madame Guyon became a widow at the age of 28. Non christian mystic - Nanny of the Maroons According to a Maroon legend espoused by the Maroons of Accompong Town, Nanny was born into the Akan people in Blue Mountains of Jamaica, but it is also possible that she came from West Africa. Her father was allegedly one of 600 Akan people who came to Jamaica on a trading excursion with the Spaniards, when they were betrayed and sold into slavery in 1642. The legend claims that they eventually escaped and found refuge in the Blue Mountains, where they encountered the existing Taino Maroons who had been there since the time of Columbus. However, Nanny is associated with the Moore Town Maroons in the east, and not Accompong in western Jamaica. The notion that there are several versions of her early story stems from the fact that Maroons, like most Africans, deify their ancestors and use them as characters in folk tales. She is often the subject of many Maroon stories, and therefore there are numerous origin stories. In one Maroon story, Nanny came to Jamaica as a slave but then escaped, perhaps even jumping off of the ship while it was offshore, while her sister Sekesu was enslaved. The legend states that Queen Nanny became mother of all Maroons and her sister Sekesu became mother of all enslaved in Jamaica. The oral traditions about her arrival in Jamaica maintain that she was always free, while Sekesu eventually died free in the mountains with Nanny.[3] In another story, she came as a free woman who may have even had her own slaves. Another version of her life tells that she was of royal African blood and came to Jamaica as a free woman. She may have been married to a Maroon man possibly named Adou, and had one Son name Kwashkwaku, nicknamed Granfara Puss.[5][6] Relatives of poet John Agard claim descent from Nanny. According to one Maroon legend, Nanny's name was also Sarah "Matilda" Rowe, but that has not been verified. The Rowe family of Jamaica claim direct descent from Nanny. According to oral history, her second husband was named Swipplemento, later known by the Anglicised name of Rose Harris, affectionally called Pa Rose then Pa Ro, Queen Nanny was known as Shanti Rose or Ma Ro. Oral tradition states that Ro eventually became anglicized as Rowe, though many Maroons of the late 18th century changed their African names for European ones, as they converted to Christianity. Maroon legend states that Nanny was known to have gone by the name Sarah, and sometimes Matilda. Oral history states that she had three children with Swipplemento; two sons Kojo Rowe and Ampong Rowe, and a daughter called Nanny as well. Both mystics went through adversities at young ages, having to endure cruel injustices, and as women no less. Despite the challenges that they were faced with, they stood tall as shining examples of how individuals can shpae their own destinies and serve as a beacon of hope for others going through similar challenges. Finally, these mystics are also inspiring for women of all races and ethnicities because they come from completely different societies but still chose similar outcomes for their lives and by extension the lives of others around them.