Dennis Tedlock and Barbara Tedlock, Editors

Teachings from the American Earth

"A much needed book. It not only provides the proper orientation to its material, but its humanistic approach is more perceptive and illuminating than technical scholarship." —Theodore H. Gaster, Columbia University

One thing unites all the authors represented in this book: they are either Indians who have tried to make themselves heard or whites who have tried to hear Indians and were changed by this experience. In fact, the book presents the first conspectus of the veriety of American Indian religious experiences and philosophical beliefs, largely from the Native American point of view.

Part One, "Seeing and Curing," emphasizes the practical and includes Isaac Tens' "Career of a Medicine Man," Knud Rasmussen's brilliant account of "A Shaman's Journey to the Spirit," and classic essays by Ruth Underhill and James Mooney. Part Two, "Thinking About the World," concentrates on the theoretical and contains Benjamin Lee Whorf's famous "American Indian Model of the Universe," Paul Raudin's "Monotheism Among American Indians," Alfonso Ortiz's remarkable "Tewa World View," and authoritative chapters on Indian metaphysics, among other things. In addition to a searching introductory essay on the Indian's stance toward reality, the editors have contributed special chapters on "The Clown's Way" and "An American Indian View of Death."