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Description
Many native North American cultures have origins that predate Confucius, who lived 500 years before the birth of Christ. For generations the people of these traditions have thrived under conditions that many view as harsh, if not hostile. Through their close association with nature, members of native communities have created complex systems for cooperating with one another and living within their environments. This book explains how to nurture a society by closely observing the traditions of various native cultures. It explores the need to live sustainably, in harmony with the land, in order to preserve our cultures, communities, and humankind itself. The book asserts that all cultures are subsistence cultures: urban or rural, all humans depend on the land and its provisions for survival. Humankind faces a convergence of forces: climate change, oil depletion, loss of water, loss of topsoil, and species die-off of proportions that exceed those of the past 65 million years.
Publication Date
2008
Publisher
The University Press of Kentucky
Place of Publication
Lexington, KY
ISBN
978-0-8131-2487-2
eISBN
978-0-8131-4148-0 (pdf version)
eISBN
978-0-8131-4149-7 (epub version)
DOI
https://doi.org/10.5810/kentucky/9780813124872.001.0001
Keywords
North America, Confucius, Native cultures, Harmony, Communities, Humankind, Land, Survival
Disciplines
Cultural History | Indigenous Studies
Recommended Citation
Holthaus, Gary, "Learning Native Wisdom: What Traditional Cultures Teach Us about Subsistence, Sustainability, and Spirituality" (2008). Cultural History. 27.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/upk_cultural_history/27
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