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I looked below and saw my people there, and all were well and happy except one, and he was lying like the dead – and that one was myself.

Black Elk

Everywhere is the center of the world. Everything is sacred.
BLACK ELK

Country Native Sacred World
If I thought that I was doing it myself, the hole would close up and no power could come through. Then everything I could do would be foolish.
BLACK ELK

Close Doing Everything Foolish
And I saw that the sacred hoop of my people was one of many hoops that made one circle, wide as daylight and as starlight, and in the center grew one mighty flowering tree to shelter all children of one mother and one father. And I saw that it was holy.
BLACK ELK

Children Daylight Flowering Hoops Shelter
I cured with the power that came through me.
BLACK ELK

Advertising Agencies Country Dream Native Power
Out of the Indian approach to life there came a great freedom, an intense and absorbing respect for life, enriching faith in a Supreme Power, and principles of truth, honesty, generosity, equity, and brotherhood as a guide to mundane relations.
BLACK ELK

Country Honesty Inspirational Native True
Everything an Indian does is in a circle, and that is because the power of the world always works in circles, and everything tries to be round.
BLACK ELK

Circles Country Native Strong
I cured with the power that came through me. Of course, it was not I who cured,it was the power from the Outer World.
BLACK ELK

Cured Outer Power Two Vision World
Hear me, four quarters of the world-a relative I am! Give me the strength to walk the soft earth, a relative to all that is! Give me the eyes to see and the strength to understand, that I may be like you. With your power only can I face the winds.
BLACK ELK

Eye Giving Hear Quarter Wind
All over the sky a sacred voice is calling your name.
BLACK ELK

Inspirational Life Sky
Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing, and always come back again to where they were.
BLACK ELK

Circles Country Moving Native
Crazy Horse dreamed and went into the world where there is nothing but the spirits of things. That is the real world that is behind this one, and everything we see here is something like a shadow from that world….
BLACK ELK

Behind Crazy Dreamed Horse Hurt Nothing Real
The Great Spirit is everywhere; He hears whatever is in our minds and our hearts, and it is not necessary to speak to Him in a loud voice.
BLACK ELK

Country Heart Mind Native Voice
The sky is round, and I have heard that the earth is round like a ball, and so are all the stars. The wind, in its greatest power, whirls.
BLACK ELK

Country Native Stars Wind
The life of an Indian is like the wings of the air. That is why you notice the hawk knows how to get his prey. The Indian is like that.
BLACK ELK

Air Animal Country Native
And when I breathed, my breath was lightning.
BLACK ELK

Breath Country Lightning Native
We should understand well that all things are the work of the Great Spirit. We should know the Great Spirit is within all things: the trees, the grasses, the rivers, the mountains, and the four-legged and winged peoples; and even more important.
BLACK ELK

Animal Great Heart Important Rivers Spirit
But I think I have done right to save the vision in this way, even though I may die sooner because I did it; for I know the meaning of the vision is wise and beautiful and good; and you can see that I am only a pitiful old man after all.
BLACK ELK

Beautiful Save Sooner Thinking Wise
When we do understand all this deeply in our hearts, then we will fear, and love, and know the Great Spirit, and then we will be and act and live as the Spirit intends.
BLACK ELK

Deeply Great Intends Love Spirit
Any man who is attached to things of this world is one who lives in ignorance and is being consumed by the snakes of his own passions
BLACK ELK

Ignorance Men Passion
I might have been less good to the people than some man who had never dreamed at all, even with the memory of so great a vision in me.
BLACK ELK

Good Memory People Some Vision
It’s in the darkness of men’s eyes that they get lost.
BLACK ELK

Darkness Eye Lost Men
Now suddenly there was nothing but a world of cloud, and we three were there alone in the middle of a great white plain with snowy hills and mountains staring at us; and it was very still; but there were whispers.
BLACK ELK

Clouds Mountain Whisper White
The Universe is circles within circles, and everything is one circle, and all the circles are connected to each other.
BLACK ELK

Circles Community Together
A good nation I will make live.This the nation above has said.They have given me the power to make over.
BLACK ELK

Given Make Nations Over Said
If I thought that I was doing it myself, the hole would close up and no power could come through. Then everything I could do would be foolish.
BLACK ELK

Country Everything Foolish Native
They told me I had been sick twelve days, lying like dead all the while, and that Whirlwind Chaser, who was Standing Bear’s uncle and a medicine man, had brought me back to life.
BLACK ELK

Dead Lying Men Standing Uncle
Everything tries to be round.
BLACK ELK

Education Statistics Trying

I looked below and saw my people there, and all were well and happy except one, and he was lying like the dead – and that one was myself.

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I looked below and saw my people there, and all were well and happy except one, and he was lying like the dead – and that one was myself.

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