Grandmothers Counsel the World Women Elders Offer Their Vision for Our Planet

by SCHAEFER, CAROL

• ISBN13: 9781590302934
• ISBN10: 1590302931
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-11-14
• Publisher: Trumpeter

Summary

We are thirteen indigenous grandmothers. . . . We are deeply concerned with the unprecedented destruction of our Mother Earth, the atrocities of war, the global scourge of poverty, the prevailing culture of materialism, the epidemics that threaten the health of the Earth's peoples, and with the destruction of indigenous ways of life. We, the International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers, believe that our ancestral ways of prayer, peacemaking, and healing are vitally needed today. . . . We believe that the teachings of our ancestors will light our way through an uncertain future. In some Native American societies, tribal leaders consulted a council of grandmothers before making any major decisions that would affect the whole community. What if we consulted our wise women elders about the problems facing our global community today? This book presents the insights and guidance of thirteen indigenous grandmothers from five continents, many of whom are living legends among their own peoples. The Grandmothers offer wisdom on such timely issues as nurturing our families; cultivating physical and mental health; and confronting violence, war, and poverty. Also included are the reflections of Western women elders, including Alice Walker, Gloria Steinem, Helena Norberg-Hodge, and Carol Moseley Brown.

Author Biography

Carol Schaefer is a writer, editor, journalist, and photographer who has appeared on Good Morning America, CNN, and MSNBC. She is the author of  The Other Mother, and she lives in New York City.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix
Foreword	xi
Note to the Reader	xiii
Statement of the International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers	1	(2)
Introduction	3	(12)
PART ONE The Grandmothers
Agnes Baker Pilgrim (Oregon)	15	(6)
Bernadette Rebienot (Gabon, Africa)	21	(6)
Flordemayo (Central America/New Mexico)	27	(8)
Margaret Behan (Montana)	35	(8)
Rita Pitka Blumenstein (Alaska)	43	(8)
Tsering Dolma Gyaltong (Tibet)	51	(4)
Mona Polacca (Arizona)	55	(6)
Rita Long Visitor Holy Dance and Beatrice Long Visitor Holy Dance (South Dakota)	61	(8)
Maria Alice Campos Freire (Brazil)	69	(8)
Clara Shinobu Iura (Brazil)	77	(6)
Aama Bombo (Buddhi Maya Lama) (Nepal)	83	(4)
Julieta Casimiro (Mexico)	87	(6)
Other Women Elders	93	(22)
PART TWO Guidance for Our Times
Prophecies	115	(18)
Women's Wisdom	133	(12)
Sacred Relations	145	(16)
Our Mother Earth	161	(12)
Oppression	173	(16)
Nature's Pharmacy	189	(16)
Prayer	205	(6)
Appendix	211