Spirits of the Earth: A Guide to Native American Nature Symbols, Stories, and Ceremonies

Wonderful, easy to understand information on some Native Indian culture and beliefs. I believe!Will definitely purchase the other books he has written. Thank you Bobby Lake-Thom

What an incredible book! I learned so much from it and it was worth every penny I paid for it. It is filled with useful information that sometimes seems far-fetched but when I started doubting, I'd remember just who wrote this book and remembered that this author is a holy man, shaman, medicine man, whatever you want to call him. He knows. He's been taught all of this since he was a child and has been brought up in the traditional ways.I took the time to do the exercises with the stories that were told and after I looked back at what I had written, it was like an epiphany. I had to read some of them several times, which he recommends you do anyway, and I was like, "I get it!" I was able to make the connection on most of them. A few of them, I am still thinking about.In the book, he talks about birds, animals, insects, reptiles and what they mean when you see them and how to handle them if they make a sudden, unwanted appearance inside your house. I will give you two examples of my own personal experiences:Just yesterday, I was standing out in my garage smoking a cigarette when a tiny little spider lowered himself into my line of vision. My first instinct was to give him a fatal thwack. But no. After reading that part of the book, I knew he might be trying to tell me something. Spiders are messengers so as insane as this is going to sound, I asked him what was going on. Of course, he didn't answer me but now I am looking for something that I may have blown off before. He lingered there for a minute then he went back up and I haven't seen him since. But not all spiders are good.Another thing that totally made sense to me is the section on cockroaches. Never in my life had I had to live with cockroaches until I bought this house and then they came into my house from next door after the exterminator had gone in there and done his job after the slothful people who'd lived there before had been evicted and moved out. We definitely had a problem with them so we called the exterminator...twice. He came and he did his thing and they were gone for a little while but then they came back but not as badly. We took matters into our own hands then and got ourselves some Roach Prufe and sprinkled that around. That seemed to do the trick, too. But while all of this was going on, people were coming and going out of our house and some of them weren't the good kind of people. Once we got rid of the bad people, the roaches went away. A few of them were friends of our sons and one was a person who just pretended to be a friend of my mine and my husband's. Once these people were out of our lives, the roaches were gone and we haven't seen any since.I took this book very seriously and I learned so much from it. I now understand the sacredness of certain places on Earth even though I had a great idea before. I understand how we are all connected which really wasn't a revelation to me but this reinforced it for me. I no longer think that animals are a step beneath us. They are our equals and they are our relatives and should be treated with respect. They will talk to you if you choose to listen. Nature will talk to you if you listen.I also understand some of the ceremonies and someday hope to make my own medicine wheel. I also want to dream creatively. All of this and more is in this book.Yes, I am part Indian but probably not enough to make a big difference. But you don't have to be to understand this book. You just have to open your mind and your heart and be open to what's being said. Some will think it's hokey or just a big put-on but these stories have been passed down from generation to generation and have substance and standing.This is a life changing book and I know I will be referring back to it often.While I'm preaching this, I guess I would recommend Native American Wisdom, too. My oldest son is 11 and just got done reading his copy of Native American Wisdom and told me it was probably the greatest book he's ever read. Native American Wisdom is required reading for both of my sons when they turn 12 and I'm thinking I might be adding this book to their short list of required reading.

Since I was captivated by the beginning and end of "Spirits of the Earth: A Guide to Native American Nature Symbols, Stories, and Ceremonies," I gave it 4-stars. Toward the middle of the book, which explored spiritual connections to animals and insects, it seemed to drag a bit.Occasionally, I found the stories involving animals and insects unrealistic. It was clear to me that the stories had symbolic meaning and messages. The factual information about the animals and insects was much more interesting to me. As an example, "...whales ramming themselves up on the beach is a bad sign from Nature (Lake-Thom, 1997) It usually means that a tidal wave or hurricane is forthcoming. Another example, "All the signs in Nature were warning that an early winter was coming, but still she paid no attention (Lake-Thom, 1997).Most cultures have ancient stories about birds serving as messengers and omens to humans (Lake-Thom, 1997). My familiarity with Noah's Ark had grown over time.I found the information about the subconscious and archetype interesting.I was unfamiliar with Native American religion and spiritualism, but I found this book very interesting. Among the book's chapters, I found "Power Centers and Sacred Places" to be the most profound.Bobby Lake-Thom's, "Spirits of the Earth: A Guide to Native American Nature Symbols, Stories, and Ceremonies," would be recommended to other readers.

Well written and easy to understand conceptually. Very relatable

I got this book for my trip home. Although I had gone home many times over the course of my lifetime I had never experienced home like I did with this book in my hand. I had the most fascinating encounters with the dog, bat and some other small crawly creatures I cannot name. As I was walking to the store a butterfly started fluttering around my shoulder. At first I didn't know what it was brushing up against me until it rested on my purse. By the time I got to the store the butterfly still hadn't moved so I started talking to it. I was letting him know I was about to enter the store and that he would have to stay still until I left back out or be lost in the store. Then I'm narrating my movements to the butterfly as I made my way to the back of the store and back to the front to the checkout counter. The woman standing behind the counter was staring at me like I lost my mind because all she can see is me talking to the air. But then I tell the butterfly I'm about to go in my purse for my wallet and that we will be out of the store soon. That's when the woman looked down at my purse and noticed the butterfly. The look she gave me I couldn't described. It was like she had never seen a person talking to a butterfly before. I was half-way back to house before the butterfly flew away. A blue-tailed lizard hung around one the houses I stayed at. And while at another house a couple of family members who had passed visited.My cousin believes the butterfly was her father, my uncle, who came to watch over me as I walked the road to the store. The butterfly made its presence while I was passing where he used to live and left when I got back near it. My uncle was one of the family members that had passed who visited. It was the trip of a lifetime.The book isn't as detailed as I would like it to have been but it definitely served the purpose needed for the time.

A gift

what an amazing book! so much information about north american indian ways. recommended if your interested in how things were done by north american indians

good book really interesting

Great book

Der indianische Doktor Medicine Grizzley Bear schreibt über das traditionelle Wissen der Stämme, von denen er selbst abstammt und mit denen er bisher zu tun hatte.Das Buch ist ein Augenöffner für die Botschaften der Natur, die bisher schon um einen herum waren, die man aber nicht zu deuten wusste. Die Deutung der Bienen fällt etwas knapp und einseitig aus, auch fehlen einige Tierarten, die womöglich bei uns häufiger vorkommen als in seiner Gegend. Ansonsten hat bisher sehr viel übereingestimmt mit dem, was später wirklich stattgefunden hat. Es hilft einem, achtsam und mit offenen Augen durch die Welt zu gehen und einen neuen Bezug zur Natur zu finden, sowie zu weiteren Ebenen, die ständig präsent sind. Die Tiergeister existieren und sie übermitteln uns Botschaften durch ihre körperlichen Wesen.Interessant sind auch die Geschichten seiner Verwandten und die indianischen Mythen.Alles zu wissen und dass alles, was er schreibt allgemeingültig wäre, behauptet er gar nicht. Das Buch bleibt trotz einer größeren Ausmistaktion in meinem Regal, evtl. ersetze ich es mal durch die Kindle-Edition. Für mich persönlich ist es das brauchbarste Buch des Autors.

Robert Lake-Thom has masterfully created a book of teachings that will be of use for not only Indigenous Peoples on a journey to discover their own identity but also for non indigenous people to gain insight into the worlds indigenous people live in. This book offers a bridge to a greater way of thinking and living. I was fortunate to read the book while on the land and feel my connection with the ancestors has grown stronger as a result.