Resources for Reclaiming Our
Indigenous Soul

I am frequently asked to suggest reading materials related to the topic of reclaiming our indigenous soul. Here is a partial listing of books and individuals whose work has deeply influenced my understanding of this topic over the past years. ~ Francis

Resources

Here is a listing of new resources in our efforts to reclaim our indigenous soul. Each of these works touches the core of our being. May they nourish the dry places in your heart.

The Vegetarian Myth: Food, Justice and Sustainability. Lierre Keith. A wonderfully written book of insights and depth. She explores the shadow of agriculture and its devastating impact on the planet. Her proposals are sane and necessary. Derrick Jensen wrote, "This book saved my life." It just might be that important. A remarkable read.

The Wayfinders: Why Ancient Wisdom Matters in the Modern World. Wade Davis. Anthropologist and explorer Wade Davis makes an impassioned plea for the preservation of the remaining indigenous cultures in the world. He shares that the rate of extinction is vaster and more rapid than the loss of any animal or plant species.

Can Poetry Save the Earth: A Field Guide to Nature Poems. John Felstiner. An exquisite collection of reflections on the place of poetry in deepening our bond with the earth. He traces a line of poets that beseech us to reconnect with nature and find our place in the world. Get this book!

Evidence. Poems by Mary Oliver. What can I say. Taste and enjoy one of our most beloved poets. She continues to stun the heart awake.

The Barbaric Heart. Curtis White. This is an article in the May|June issue of Orion Magazine. I seldom suggest running out and buying an issue of a magazine, but this is an important article. It reflects many of the perspectives that WisdomBridge is trying to support.

What We Leave Behind. Derrick Jensen. The latest offering from one of our leading voices for cultural change. This book focuses on a topic we'd rather ignore, how human waste has ceased to be a gift to the soil and has become a toxic material instead. A very powerful read.

Mothers and Others: The Evolutionary Origins of Mutual Understanding. Sarah Blaffer Hrdy. An anthropologist's exploration of our need of one another. A beautifully written book with deep support for our longing for village. 

One Square Inch of Silence. Gordon Hempton. A bold reminder of our need for silence and the sounds of the natural world. Hempton is a pioneer in recording the sounds of the world as they slowly disappear from our lives. Read this and be reminded of our primal need for the songs of the world.

Grace Eventually: Thoughts on Faith. Anne Lamott. A collection of essays from a wise and thoughtful Bay Area woman. Her honesty and transparency reveal her desire to be an authentic woman in the midst of a very challenging time. I thoroughly enjoyed her writings. 

What Matters Most: Living a More Considered Life. James Hollis. I read very little psychology these days due to the lack of soul in the writing. Hollis is someone who honors the deep story of the soul. He is not afraid to venture into the dark hallways we all must walk.   

Touching Enlightenment: Finding Realization in the Body. Reginald Ray. One of the most profound works honoring the body as the core of our connection to the sacred.

Nature and the Human Soul: Cultivating Wholeness and Community in a Fragmented World. Bill Plotkin. An original work integrating the world of nature and psyche. Loaded with exercises to increase the intimate connection between the worlds.

Original Instructions: Indigenous Teachings for a Sustainable Future. Edited by Melissa Nelson. A collection of essays from the Bioneers Conference by Native elders. A rich compilation of indigenous wisdom.

Orion Magazine. One of the most elegant and beautiful magazines available today. Filled with writings, poetry and imagery that celebrates the wonders of this world. Go to www.orionmagazine.org for more information.

Finding Beauty in a Broken World. Terry Tempest Williams. Her new book is poignant and painful. A work of courage.

How Shall I Live My Life? On Liberating the Earth From Civilization. Derrick Jensen. A collection of interviews exploring life after civilization. Features dialogues with Thomas Berry, David Abram, Vine Deloria, Kathleen Dean Moore and others. A beautiful and hopeful work.

What A Way To Go. Life at the End of Empire. DVD. Described as "A disturbing, compassionate, sometimes humorous personal essay about coming to grips with climate change, resource crises, environmental breakdown, and the demise of the American lifestyle." The film features interviews with many of the minds who have informed the work of WisdomBridge. A powerful and challenging documentary. Contact www.whatawaytogomovie.com for information.

The Inner Journey: Views from Native Traditions. Edited by Linda Hogan. A rich and wideranging collection of essays regarding the inner life as attended to by diverse indigenous traditions on the North American continent.

Other Books and Resources

Abram, David. The Spell of the Sensuous: Perception and Language in a More-Than-Human World,  Pantheon Books, 1996  (This is an extraordinary book and I highly recommend it to each of you)

Berman, Morris. Coming To Our Senses: Body and Spirit in the Hidden History of the West, Simon and Schuster, 1989

Cowan, James G. Letters From A Wild State: Rediscovering Our True Relationship With Nature, Bell Tower, 1991

Diamond, Stanley. In Search of the Primitive: A Critique of Civilization, Transaction Publishers, 1975

Glendinning, Chellis. My Name Is Chellis & I’m in Recovery from Western Civilization, Shambhala Publications, 1994

Hogan, Linda. Dwellings: A Spiritual History of the Living World, Simon & Schuster, 1995

House, Freeman. Totem Salmon: Life Lessons From Another Species, Beacon Press, 1999

Jensen, Derrick. A Language Older Than Words, Context Books, 2000 (Derrick is a wonderful writer with much to say)

Jensen, Derrick. Listening to the Land: Conversations about Nature, Culture and Eros, Sierra Club Books, 1995 (A potent collection of interviews with many of the leading thinkers in the recovery of our deep story as humans)

Keeney, Bradford. Bushman Shaman, Destiny Books, 2005

LaChappelle, Delores. Sacred Land, Sacred Sex: Rapture of the Deep, Kivaki Press, 1988

Liedloff, Jean. The Continuum Concept, Addison Wesley, 1977

Mander, Jerry. In the Absence of the Sacred: The Failure of Technology and the Survival of the Indian Nations, Sierra Club Books, 1991

Prechtel, Martín. Secrets of the Talking Jaguar, Tarcher, 1998 (All of Martin’s books speak eloquently for the indigenous soul)

Shepard, Paul. Coming Home to the Pleistocene, Island Press, 1998

Shepard, Paul. Nature and Madness, Sierra Club Books, 1982

Shepard, Paul. Traces of an Omnivore, Island Press, 1996

Snyder, Gary. The Practice of the Wild, The Gary Snyder Reader has bits and pieces of everything from him

Somé, Malidoma. Of Water and the Spirit, Tarcher, 1994 (All of Malidoma’s books, especially his autobiography)

Turner, Jack. The Abstract Wild, The University of Arizona Press, 1996 (A powerful rant against the loss of the wild)

Van der Post, Laurens. The Heart of the Hunter: Customs and Myths of the African Bushman, Harcourt Brace, 1961

Zerzan, John. Against Civilization: Readings and Reflections, Feral House Books, 2005 (A must read collection)