Luther Standing Bear was a Native American writer, educator, and activist who dedicated his life to preserving and promoting the culture and traditions of his Lakota Sioux tribe. His profound wisdom and deep connection with nature are reflected in his powerful quotes, which continue to inspire and resonate with people from all walks of life.
Standing Bear firmly believed in the importance of preserving the natural world and living in harmony with it. He understood that nature holds the key to our spiritual and emotional well-being. His quotes serve as a reminder to reconnect with nature and embrace its teachings.
In this article, we have compiled a collection of Luther Standing Bear quotes that will inspire you to appreciate the beauty of nature, embrace your true self, and live a more meaningful life.
Read these Luther Standing Bear quotes
“The old Lakota was wise. He knew that a man’s heart, away from nature, becomes hard; he knew that lack of respect for growing, living things soon led to lack of respect for humans, too.”
“Man’s heart away from nature becomes hard.”
“In his youth, the Indian is wild like the buffalo; the slightest thing awakens his suspicion.”
“Of all the animals, man is the only one who is cruel. He is the only one who inflicts pain for the pleasure of doing it.”
“The American Indian is of the soil, whether it be the region of forests, plains, pueblos, or mesas. He fits into the landscape, for the hand that fashioned the continent also fashioned the man for his surroundings.”
“The old Lakota was wise. He knew that a man’s heart, away from nature, becomes hard; he knew that lack of respect for growing, living things soon led to lack of respect for humans, too.”
“We do not want riches, but we do want to train our children right. Riches would do us no good. We could not take them with us to the other world. We do not want riches, we want peace and love.”
“Kinship with all creatures of the earth, sky and water was a real and active principle.”
“The Indian’s is a unique civilization in that it is spiritual and earthy.”
“Knowledge was inherent in all things. The world was a library and its books were the stones, leaves, grass, brooks, and the birds and animals that shared, alike with us, the storms and blessings of earth. We learn to do what only the student of nature learns, and that is to feel beauty. We never rail at the storms, the furious winds, the biting frosts and snows. To do so intensifies human futility, so whatever comes we should adjust ourselves by more effort and energy.”
“The old people came literally to love the soil and they sat or reclined on the ground with a feeling of being close to a mothering power. It was good for the skin to touch the earth and the old people liked to remove their moccasins and walk with bare feet on the sacred earth. Their tipis were built upon the earth and their altars were made of earth. The birds that flew in the air came to rest upon the earth, and it was the final abiding place of all things that lived and grew. The soil was soothing, strengthening, cleansing, and healing.”
“When a child my mother taught me the legends of our people; taught me of the sun and sky, the moon and stars, the clouds and storms. She also taught me to kneel and pray to Usen for strength, health, wisdom, and protection. We never prayed against any person, but if we had aught against any individual we ourselves took vengeance. We were taught that Usen does not care for the petty quarrels of men.”
“The true Indian sets no price upon either his property or his labor. His generosity is limited only by his strength and ability. He regards it as an honor to be selected for difficult or dangerous service and would think it shameful to ask for any reward, saying rather: ‘Let the person I serve express his thanks according to his own bringing up and his sense of honor.'”
“Silence is the absolute poise or balance of body, mind, and spirit. The man who preserves his selfhood ever calm and unshaken by the storms of existence – not a leaf, as it were, astir on the tree; not a ripple upon the surface of the shining pool – his, in the mind of the unlettered sage, is the ideal attitude and conduct of life.”
“The Indian knew how to live without wants, to suffer without complaint, and to die singing.”
“We did not think of the great open plains, the beautiful rolling hills, the winding streams with tangled growth, as ‘wild.’ Only to the white man was nature a ‘wilderness’ and only to him was it ‘infested’ with ‘wild’ animals and ‘savage’ people. To us it was tame. Earth was bountiful and we were surrounded with the blessings of the Great Mystery.”
“The white man’s God cannot love our people or He would protect them.”
“The Indian loved to make his children laugh, and they loved him for it. The white people loved their children, but they did not often make them laugh. They tried to teach them to be serious.”
“The Indian was a true conservationist. He worshipped the ground he walked upon and he knew the importance of taking care of it.”
“The white man’s ways are strange to us. They take no notice of the little things, the insects and the flowers, the small animals that live in the woods. They never tell the birds how pretty they are, or ask them to sing. They never notice the good things of the earth, or learn to love them.”
“The old people came literally to love the soil and they sat or reclined on the ground with a feeling of being close to a mothering power.”
“When you sit in the dark, you are in the presence of the unknown. You wait for the unknown, and you do not fear it, because you do not know what it will be like. It could be good or it could be bad. But you do not fear it because you do not know it. You do not know it because you have not experienced it. You cannot experience it because you do not sit in the dark.”
“It was good for the skin to touch the earth and the old people liked to remove their moccasins and walk with bare feet on the sacred earth.”
“The old people came literally to love the soil and they sat or reclined on the ground with a feeling of being close to a mothering power. It was good for the skin to touch the earth and the old people liked to remove their moccasins and walk with bare feet on the sacred earth.”
These Luther Standing Bear quotes offer a glimpse into the wisdom and spirituality of this remarkable Native American leader. They remind us of the importance of living in harmony with nature, respecting all living beings, and embracing the teachings of the earth. Let these quotes inspire you to connect with your surroundings, find peace within yourself, and strive for a better world.
