Wisdom sits in places

Book Report

''The Earth does not belong to man; Man belongs to the Earth. This we know. All
things are connected like the blood which unites one family. Whatever befalls the Earth
befalls the sons of the Earth. Man did not weave the web of life, he is merely a strand in it.
Whatever he does to web, he does to himself.'' These words of wisdom by Chief Seattle are
one of my favourite Native American Indian quotes. As I was reading Wisdom Sits In Places, I
couldn't stop thinking about those exact words. It's all about the Earth and its people. How
does one understand a certain group of people if not living with them? Do we care where we
are from? Does the place of our living define who we actually are?
This particular book takes us through a remarkable journey of landscape, culture and
language among the Western Apaches. For most of the people, place is the symbolic
relationship formed by a group of individuals giving special meanings to a particular part or
piece of land that provides understanding of and relation to the environment. It also includes
cultural beliefs and practices that link people to place. But Western Apaches have a special
connection with land and all within, which gives some special feel or personality and, if I dare
to say the spirit of everything that surrounds us. Sacred for them means things that their
ancestors made or did long time ago. What actually amazed me was the culture and tradition
of giving names to places, which in this case cannot be found anywhere else. That special
connection with nature, animals and the equalness of everything that breathes is the reason
why Indian tribes should always be viewed with respect and enthusiasm.
The moment Basso mispronounces that one Apache name triggeres the whole situation
which tells us that Apache are closely linked to their language and most importantly, their
ancestors. Being disrespectful towards their own beliefs would mean a great insult. The way
they would teach their children about wisdom and spirituality is telling them that the ground
beneath their feet is the ashes of their grandfathers, who settled certain places in order to
survive, while at the same time connecting to them by giving them names and special natural
meaning as well as remembering together, which is now all history transmitted orally.
Simply, teaching their children about particular things leads them to look after their
lands in the future. Being surrounded by nature and living under the clear sky was simple and
best of life for them. I noticed how 'white people' and the way they handle life were brought
up few times. In my opinion, Indians viewed the white man's attitude to nature as the strong
opposition of the Indian. The white man seemed cruel on destroying not just the Indians, but
the whole natural order, cutting down trees, forests, cleaning lands, killing animals for sport
and fun or just expanding the globalization and industrialization, while the Indiands did
everything in accordance with the laws of nature, and with land holding meaning beyond
ownership. Therefore, they were seeing themselves as stewards. Their way of giving names to
all living things or places is a whole another level and cannot be seen as the usual thing
nowadays. They inspired people to think about their names with multiple dimensions, that we
should always be changing and growing, that our identity consists in how we are seen and
judged by others, by what we give not by what we take, so that our descendants will enjoy
what we have. It's important to remember that every human being has a spiritual purpose. But

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the way I understood it, Indians cared about making the world a better place not only by
helping others but also caring for nature.
But not everything that every Indian tribe did was wonderfully earth-wise and
conservation-minded, which takes to us to think about family and tribe relations. Tribes were
usually living off land and growing corn or simply hunting animals. There were however
situations of conflicts between individuals instead of mutual compassion and sharing. For the
Apache, every story is concerned with social acts, with everyday life gone out of control and
concludes with a slight reminder that trouble would not have occured if people behaved in
ways they knew they should. In translation, every story had a meaning and a message. Always
a lesson. However, tribes had their land presence, which is to be remembered. And even
today, that same land tells us the same story. What matters most to Apaches is where
something occured, not when, again reminding us that land and place of living was of a
symbolic and personal meaning. But keeping steady social relations between people meant
peace and order.

The way of Western Apache placemaking became legendary just as Basso compares it
to a historical theater in which the 'pastness' of the past is stripped away where longelapsed
events are made to unfold as if before one's eyes. History given largerly in the active present
tense. Apache places on their lands had names and many of these names named places were
associated with stories. And most probably many of these stories had ancient roots. Some
stories were telling about the cultural heritage which was of a great importance. A simple set
of rocks can symbolize how nature works. So there was this idea or belief that nature looks
after people and not the other way round like the rest of the world thinks. Everybody in
Cibecue knew the named places, and their stories. The voices of their ancestors could be
heard whenever the stories were told. Therefore, their words were always conveyed in the
present tense, as like as their ancestors were still living within them. And that's what's really
fascinating. Their idea of wisdom deriving from way of life which is as fragile as nature.

For Apache, life is seen in features of the earth - in lakes, mountains, fields, rocks
shaping the way they think and who they are. Thus, knowledge of places is closely linked to
knowledge of the self. The stories were of special meaning, like treasure of wisdom,
providing moral messages that taught people how to live and how to lead themselves. They
helped people to live well and reflecting on their own history. ''All these place have stories.
We shoot each other with them, like arrows,'' a statement which is a core of this whole book.
What exactly do Apaches have in mind when they assert the historical tales that may establish
relationships between individuals and features of the natural landscape? In order to answer
that question we must explore a closer examination of Apache ideas about the activity of
storytelling and power of oral narratives, to actually change people's attitudes toward their
responsibilities as members of a moral community. And as mentioned, historical tales make
you think about your life. You are what you know. The way Apache name places or do things
or communicate speaks about how they understand themselves and their land in the fullest
sense.

Apache believe that their ancestors are guiding forces and are living among them as
part of nature, such as rocks, trees, wind or mountains which explains why they treat nature
with such dignity and respect. They also believe they live among supernatural powers, where
most likely are some members given healing powers. Of course, from ethnographic point of
view, the source lies in the geographical landscapes which are more than a valuable resource
for exploring conceptions of the surrounding material universe. I think it's a way of describing
the awareness of what place can mean to people or our sense of place when we think about
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the nature or what we call a home. There's a special part of the book explaining how Apache
actually regard those who speak too much, saying they're an insult to the imaginative
capabilities of other people, believing how they block someone's thinking. We actually see
how they look on their self identity and manners. Once again, everything is connected to how
they feel themselves in places and how every place has a story to tell and that everything that
happens must have happened somewhere. There's a slight comparison between Aborigines
and Apache, discussing their similarities. The land gives history, cultural indentity, moral
guidance and self identitiy. The land is linked to people from birth to death, whereas human
life and death affects the land and vice versa. Also, the way that Apache are discussing their
relationship to the land, they find lessons in everything surrouding them, while Aborigines
gain understanding through art and song.

The main point is that Apache see things through the place names of their land. Places
possess a capacity of self-reflection, inspiring thoughts about someone who's present,
someone who's used to be or the one who might become. One particural place can link us to
other places, other people, other times. If there's a special attention or feelings attached to a
place or physical landscape, it actually becomes alive, crawling from our own imagination
where we can see the aspects of the external world. The knowledge on which wisdom
depends is gained from observing different places. It consists in linking, places, events and
stories, but it is a state of mind. It is having a clear mind, where one must see connections
between places and knowledge.

''Wisdom sits in places. Its like water that never dries up. You need to drink water to
stay alive, dont you? Well, you also need to drink from places. You must remember
everything about them. You must learn their names. You must remember what happened at
them long ago. You must think about it and keep on thinking about it. Then your mind will
become smoother and smoother. Then you will see danger before it happens. You will walk a
long way and live a long time. You will be wise. People will respect you.''

Indeed, we are the place-worlds we imagine. Places can therefore indentify us and
those before us as well as those who are yet to come. Apache are sharing one amazing era
with all of us, teaching us how to link yourself with other people and your surroundings in
order to understand life. Beliefs can change our ways of living . Our present way of life is
laying waste to environment that supports us. New beliefs can help us to change that way of
life and in arriving at those beliefs, we can learn a lot from the beliefs of the Indians. And that
is what we need. New hope.

Trii Edna