Page
2 of Native American Wisdom
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There are many things to be
shared with the Four Colors of humanity in our
common destiny
as one with our Mother the Earth. It is this sharing that must be
considered with great care by
the Elders and the medicine people who
carry the Sacred Trusts, so
that no harm may come
to people through
ignorance and misuse of these powerful forces.
Resolution of the Fifth
Annual Meetings of the Traditional Elders Circle, 1980
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Even the seasons form a great circle in their
changing,
and always come
back again to where they were.
The life of a person is a circle from
childhood to childhood,
and so it is in everything where power moves.
Black Elk, Oglala Lakota
Be
careful when speaking. You create the world
around you with your words.
from the
Diné (Navajo)
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The people who are living on this planet need to
break with the narrow
concept of human liberation, and begin to see liberation as
something that
needs to be extended to the whole of the natural world. What
is needed is the liberation of all things that support life--the air, the
water, the trees--all the things which support the sacred web of life.
from the Haudenosaunee address to the western world, 1977
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Training began
with children who were taught to sit still and enjoy it. They were taught to use their organs of smell, to look where there
was
apparently nothing to see, and to listen intently when all
seemingly was
quiet. A child who cannot sit still is a half-developed
child.
Luther Standing Bear, Lakota
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Every
step you take should be a prayer. And if every step you take is a
prayer,
then you will always be walking in a sacred manner.
Oglala
Lakota Holyman
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Humankind must
be a steward of the Earth;
Caretakers for
all that dwells upon it;
To be of one heart with all things.
Human beings
must learn
to share
the
tears of every living
thing,
To feel in our hearts the pain
of the wounded animal,
each crushed blade of grass;
Mother
Earth is our flesh;
the rocks, our bones;
The rivers are the blood of our veins.
We are all
children of God.
Traditions are open to anyone
who wants to learn.
Huichol
Holy Man |
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Treat the earth well:
it was
not given to you by your parents,
it was loaned to you
by your children. We do not inherit the
Earth from our Ancestors;
we borrow it from our Children.
Native American Proverb
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What
is life? It is the flash of a firefly in the
night. It is the breath of a buffalo in the
wintertime. It is the little shadow which runs
across the grass and loses itself in the sunset.
Crowfoot, Siksika/Kainai |
When
it comes time to die, be not like those whose hearts are
filled with the fear of death, so when their time comes they
weep and pray for a little more time to live their lives
over again in a different way. Sing your death song, and die
like a hero going home.
Chief
Apumut, Mohican
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We
must protect the forests for our children, grandchildren and
children yet to be born. We must protect the forests for those who
can't speak for themselves such as the birds, animals, fish and
trees.
Qwatsinas, Nuxalk |
I am poor and naked, but I am the chief of the
nation. We do not
want riches but we do want to train our children right.
Riches
would do us no good. We could not take them with us to the
other world. We do not want riches. We want peace and love.
Red Cloud, Oglala Lakota
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Among the Indians there have been no written laws.
Customs handed down from generation
to generation have been the only laws to guide them. Every one
might act different from what
was considered right did he choose to do so, but such acts would
bring upon him the censure
of the Nation . . . . This fear of the Nation's censure acted as a
mighty band,
binding all in one social, honorable compact.
George Copway (Kah-ge-ga-gah-bowh), Mississisaugas Ojibwa |
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Traditional
people of Indian nations have interpreted the two roads that
face the light-skinned race as the road to technology and the road
to spirituality.
We feel that the road to technology. . . . has led modern society to
a damaged and seared
earth. Could it be that the road to technology represents a
rush to destruction,
and that the road to spirituality represents the slower path that
the traditional
native people have traveled and are now seeking again?
The earth is not scorched on this trail. The grass is still
growing there.
William
Commanda, Algonquin
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Once
I was in Victoria, and I saw a very large house. They told
me it was a bank
and that the white men place their money there to be taken care
of, and that
by and by they got it back with interest. We are Indians and
we have no such
bank;
but when we have plenty of money or blankets, we give them away
to
other
chiefs and people, and by and by they return them with
interest,
and
our hearts feel good. Our way of giving is our bank.
Chief
Maquinna, Mowachaht
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Page
2 of Native American Wisdom
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Once you have heard
the meadowlark and caught the scent of fresh-plowed earth,
peace cannot escape you.
Sequichie, Cherokee |
Take
the breath of the new dawn and
make it part of you. It will give you strength.
from
the Hopi
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Everywhere is the
center of the world. Everything is sacred.
Black Elk, Oglala Lakota
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Hills are always more beautiful than stone
buildings. Living in a city
is an artificial existence. Lots of people hardly ever feel
real soil under
their feet, see plants grow except in flower pots, or get far
enough
beyond the street light to catch the enchantment of a night sky
studded
with stars. When people live far from scenes of the Great
Spirit's
making, it's easy for them to forget his laws.
Walking Buffalo, Stoney-Nakoda |
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It
was our belief that the love of possessions is a weakness to be
overcome. Its
appeal is to the material part, and if allowed its way, it will in
time disturb one's
spiritual balance. Therefore, children must early learn the
beauty of generosity.
They are taught to give what they prize most, that they may taste
the happiness of giving.
Ohiyesa, Lakota
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[The
White Man] says we're warlike when we're peaceful. He calls
us savages, but he's the savage. See, he calls this
headdress a warbonnet.
Sure, we use it in war, but most of the time it was for ceremony,
not war.
Each feather stands for a good deed and I have thirty-six in
mine. It's not
about war; it's about who we are. When we sing songs he
calls them war
songs. But they're not war songs, they're prayers to
God. We have drums,
so White Man calls them war drums; but they're not for war,
they're for
talking to God. There's no such thing as a war drum.
He sees how
warriors paint their faces, so he calls it war paint. But
it's not for war,
it's to make it so God can see our faces clearly if we have to
die. So
how can we talk to the White Man of peace when he knows only war?
Mathew King, Lakota
Wisdomkeepers |
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The promise
Creator gives us
Comes with every new day,
The gift of breath, the gift of life,
Opportunities in a vast array.
How do we count our blessings,
Through the choices life can bring?
Is it through joyful lessons?
Or the fears to which we cling?
Are we learning to show gratitude,
For the victories over human pain?
By honoring the feeling choices,
We grasp the will we've regained.
Can we change our focus,
With no need to defend?
Acknowledging joy and sorrow,
Without judging foe or friend?
Tomorrow promises the fullness
Of every human way to know:
How we master each challenge
Determines our balance -
reflecting how we grow.
The Promise of Tomorrow
Jamie Sams, Cherokee
"Earth Medicine" |
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Flowers
do not force their way with great strife.
Flowers open to
perfection slowly in the sun. . . .
Don't be in a hurry about
spiritual matters.
Go step by step, and be very sure.
White
Eagle, Ponca
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May the sun
bring you new energy by day.
May the moon
softly restore you by night.
May the rain
wash away your worries.
May the breeze
blow new strength into your being.
May you walk gently through the world
and know its beauty all the days of your life.
Apache blessing
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The
beauty of the trees, the softness of the air,
the fragrance
of the grass, they speak to me.
The summit of the mountain, the thunder of the sky,
the rhythm
of the sea, speaks to me.
The faintness of the stars, the freshness of the morning,
the dewdrop on the flower, speaks to me.
The strength of the fire, the taste of the salmon,
the trail
of the sun, and the life that never goes away,
they speak to me.
And my heart soars.
Chief
Dan George, Tsleil-Waututh
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Everything
on the earth has a purpose, every disease an herb to cure it,
and every person a mission. This is the Indian theory of
existence.
Mourning
Dove, Humishuma |
Page
2 of Native American Wisdom
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A
problem of recent times is that we do not have a set of values by
which
we can live. If we are to live well and be reasonably happy, we
have to
have an idea of who we are and where we are going. There
must be rules
to guide us. Tsu gv wa lo di i to the Cherokee means a
definite standard
by which to live, even when the values of others
change by the hour. Without it, we are rafts on a high tide with no
direction and no
control. If the standard is missing we go with
whatever comes along. Even if rules are self-made and are late in
coming, if they come at all,
it is worth the effort. And if we hold to
them with a passion, they will
be worth whatever we had to do,
whatever we have to give up, to follow.
Joyce Sequichie Hifler
A Cherokee Feast of Days: Daily Meditations
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quotations
- contents
-
welcome
page
-
obstacles
the
people behind the words
-
our
current e-zine
-
articles
and excerpts
Daily
Meditations, Year One - Year
Two - Year Three
- Year Four
Sign up
for your free daily spiritual or general quotation ~ ~ Sign
up for your free daily meditation
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