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The Sacred Hoop: Recovering the Feminine in American Indian Traditions

This book delves into the historical and cultural perspectives of American Indian traditions, emphasizing the importance of the feminine in these societies. It examines the contributions and influence of women in various aspects of Native American life, including spirituality, art, and community. more

Author

Paula Gunn Allen
Paula Gunn Allen

Paula Gunn Allen was an American poet known for her profound understanding and engagement with Native American culture. Her poetry blends Native American mythology with modern poetic techniques, showcasing rich imagination and profound emotion. more

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“What the Indians are saying is that they are recognizing the right of wilderness to be wilderness. Wilderness is not an extension of human need or of human justification. It is itself and it is inviolate, itself. This does not mean that, therefore, we become separated from it, because we don't. We stay connected if, once in our lives, we learn exactly what that connection is between our heart, our womb, our mind, and wilderness. And when each of us has her wilderness within her, we can be together in a balanced kind of way. The forever, we have that within us.”

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“Some feminist critics debate whether we take our meaning and sense of self from language and in that process become phallocentric ourselves, or if there is a use of language that is, or can be, feminine. Some, like myself, think that language is itself neither male nor female; it is creatively expansive enough to be of use to those who have the wit and art to wrest from it their own significance. Even the dread patriarchs have not found a way to 'own' language any more than they have found a way to 'own' earth (though many seem to believe that both are possible).”

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“Breath is life, and the intermingling of breaths is the purpose of good living. This is in essence the great principle on which all productive living must rest, for relationships among all the beings of the universe must be fulfilled; in this way each individual life may also be fulfilled.”

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Book:The Sacred Hoop: Recovering the Feminine in American Indian Traditions
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“Truth, acceptance of the truth, is a shattering experience. It shatters the binding shroud of culture trance. It rips apart smugness, arrogance, superiority, and self-importance. It requires acknowledgment of responsibility for the nature and quality of each of our own lives, our own inner lives as well as the life of the world. Truth, inwardly accepted, humbling truth, makes one vulnerable. You can't be right, self-righteous, and truthful at the same time.”

WorldWellsSelfTruthCultureQualityResponsibilityAcceptanceTruth IsImportanceAcceptedVulnerableArroganceRighteousTruthfulSuperiorityRipInner LifeBindingHumblingSelf RighteousTranceAcknowledgmentSelf-importanceShatteringShroudsSmugness
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