NATIVE AMERICAN WISDOM
A Spiritual Tradition At One With Nature
This is truly a gem, a little pocket-size book edited by Alan Jacobs. The Introduction by Mick Gidley, Emeritus Professor of American Literature and Culture, University of Leeds, tells a brief history of the native people of North America, setting the scene for a rich and rare treat, an insight into the spiritual life and rich culture of a people who were brutalised, branded savages, uprooted, dispossessed, and treated as dispensable commodities.
Here's a litte taster by Alex Posey, a 19th Century Creek Indian Chief:
Nature's Blessing
'Tis mine to be in love with life,
And mine to hear the Robins sing
'Tis mine to live apart from strife
And kneel to flowers blossoming -
To all things fair
As at a shine -
To drink the air as I would wine
To love I've built a temple here,
Beneath the boughs of oak and pine,
Beside the spring that all the year
Tells of a harmony divine.
I own no creed
Sweet love beside. -
My spirit's needs are satisfied.
Native American Wisdom is published by Watkins Publishing London. Hardback 186pps, ISBN 978-1-905857-72-2
Price £7.99