Many of the gift shops we visited on our trip to southern Utah held books and cards featuring Native American proverbs. I thought their wisdom would be fun to share with you.“Even your silence holds a sort of prayer.”
Apache
“The Great Spirit gave us each a song.”
“Wisdom comes only when you stop looking for it and start living the life the Creator intended for you.”
“Thoughts are like arrows; once released, they strike their mark. Guard them well or one day you may be your own victim.”
Navajo
“To gossip is like playing checkers with an evil spirit; you win occasionally but are more often trapped at your own game.”
Hopi
“First you are to think always of God. Second you are to use all your powers to care for your people and especially the poor.”
Sioux
“It makes no difference as to the name of the God since love is the real God of all the world.”
Apache
“Remember that your children are not your own, but are lent to you by the Creator.”
Mohawk
“Don’t walk behind me; I may not lead. Don’t walk in front of me; I may not follow. Walk beside me that we may be as one.”
Ute
“The soul would have no rainbow if the eyes had no tears.”
Minquass
“Every fire is the same size when it starts.”
Seneca
And for my fellow writers:
“The one who tells the stories, rules the world.”
Hopi
Which one spoke to you?
Thanks for stopping by Julie, I really enjoyed discovering this wisdom in their culture. Yes, if only we really grasped and lived these words.
Aren’t they fun to read and ponder? I was fascinating how similar some were to other wise saying found in other cultures. Wisdom is wisdom I guess!
yes lots of wisdom in their culture. Thanks for commenting Mia
Hi,
Stopping by to say thanks for linking up with Faithful Fridays. Wow, this was a great post…I loved the proverbs, especially the Apache one saying the name of God wasn’t what was most important since love is the real God. I think if people grasped this, it would be so much easier to have interfaith discussions. Thanks for sharing!
Blessings,
Julie
The Minquass quote resonated with me, about the necessity of tears in order to experience rainbows. It’s true: The experience of sadness heightens our joy when it comes. Thank you for sharing these, Jean!
Hi Jean
The one about God is love spoke to me very much! They are wise people.
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