Native American Wisdom

Joseph, Sitting Bull, Red Cloud, Black Elk, Ohiyesa, and many others share their insights on Native American ways of living, learning, and dying. There is something archetypal about the philosophy of the original Americans, especially to the sensibilities of modern European Americans. We recognize it as coming from the earth we walk on, from those who preceded us. As we read the wisdom of these peoples, it is possible to feel a reconnection with our land and ourselves. Taken from orations, recorded observations of life and social affairs, and other first-person testimonies, this book selects the best of Native American wisdom and distills it to its essence in short, digestible quotes that are meaningful and timeless -- perhaps even more timely now than when they were written.

Kent Nerburn is an author, sculptor, and educator who has been deeply involved in Native American issues and education. He developed and directed an award-winning oral history project on the Red Lake Ojibwe reservation in northern Minnesota. In addition to being a program evaluator for the Minnesota Humanities Commission and serving on their selection board, he has served as a consultant in curriculum development for the American Indian Institute in Norman, Oklahoma, and has been a presenter before various groups, including the National Indian Education Association and the President's blue-ribbon panel on Indian Education. Nerburn has edited three highly acclaimed books on Native American subjects: Native American Wisdom, The Wisdom of the Native Americans, and The Soul of an Indian. Nerburn is also the author of Letters to My Son; Neither Wolf Nor Dog, winner of the Minnesota Book Award for 1995; The Wolf at Twilight; Simple Truths: Clear and Gentle Guidance on the Big Issues of Life; Small Graces: The Quiet Gifts of Everyday Life; and Ordinary Sacred: The Simple Beauty of Everyday Life. Kent Nerburn holds a PhD in both Theology and Art and lives with his family in northern Minnesota.