NATIVE AMERICAN WISDOM

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Subtitled 'A Spiritual Tradition at One with Nature', this is yet another beautiful collection of poems from the anthologist, Alan Jacobs, whose `Poetry for the Spirit' is already a modern-day classic after four editions.This awe inspiring collection of prose and poetry, songs and speeches draws from the words of the great Native American Indians - chiefs, medicine men and members of their Nations. The book is also greatly enhanced by a scholarly introduction from Dr Mick Gidley, Emeritus Professor of American Studies at the University of Leeds.In recent years, there has been a resurgence of interest in American Indian spirituality: what sets this exquisite volume apart is its return to the ancient traditions of the Americas, a genre that is often overlooked. And yet, many of the poems and prose extracts are surprisingly modern:

SONG OF AN INITIATE

I climbed the blue staircase up to the sky,
I climbed where the roses were opening,
where roses were speaking,
I heard nothing nothing to hear,
I heard silence.

I climbed, the roses were singing,
where the gods were waiting,
a blue staircase up in the sky,
but I heard nothing nothing to hear
I heard silence silence.

[Anon]

This book is highly recommended by the American Libraries Association..