In all of my books, I've emphasized that the fundamental difference between civilized and indigenous ways of being is that, for even the most open-minded of the civilized, listening to the natural world is a metaphor.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
I believe very firmly that indigenous populations had a really good, intuitive understanding of why we're here. And we're trying to gain that same understanding through psychology and intellect in modern civilization.
I love the natural world - it comes from my culture, which grew out of a people enslaved.
In my normal way of doing things, there's a little bit of 'going native' that takes place, where you're in a world long enough, you can't really help but start to see things in a nuanced, more humanistic way. Just because you're with people and you start to, in general, slightly like the people you're with.
Since the beginning, Native Peoples lived a life of being in harmony with all that surrounds us.
The more we study the Indian's character the more we appreciate the marked distinction between the civilized being and the real savage.
The world is a fascinating, difficult place, and in order to take full advantage of what the planet has to offer, we need to see and hear natural things.
Naturalism teaches one of the most important things in this world. There is only this life, so live wonderfully and meaningfully.
I consider that there are different degrees of civilization and there are many different ways of expressing it. But one is civilized or is not.
To me, there is nothing but puerility in a tale in which the human form - and local human passions and conditions and standards - are depicted as native to other worlds and universes.
The naturalist worldview is a good way to feel grounded and feel part of something that isn't based on fairy tales. It's based on observable facts in the human and in the biological history of the planet. I think that can be a source for comfort.