MITAKUYE OYASIN "WE ARE ALL RELATED" by Dr. A. C. Ross
America before columbus, based on the oral history of 33 tribes.
$12.00
PREFACE
Mitakuyapi - "My Relatives"
On August 16, 1987, a group of concerned Native Americans organized a conference during the Harmonic Convergence. Approximately 1000 people attended this three-day conference. I had the opportunity to present my entire lecture series there. Numerous requests were made for written material on my series. Up to that point, I had deliberately kept the information oral/visual because I felt that this method of presenting it was a whole-brain approach to learning. But the conference participants argued that an oral/visual presentation limits the number of people who can benefit from the material. With this in mind, I decided to prepare a manuscript for publication. This book, Mitakuye Oyasin, grew out of my need to illustrate how we are all related.
I was born at Pipestone, Minnesota on October 25, 1940 at 1:40 p.m. Pipestone is known as a place of peace among the tribes who went there to mine the red stone for their sacred pipes. I'm a member of the Mdewakantonwan tribe. This tribe is one of original seven tribes of the Dakota Nation. (The Dakota Nation is more commonly known as the Sioux.) Mdewakantonwan, translated into English, means "spirit water people." I was born of Santee, Sicangu, Ponca, Irish and Scottish blood. My earlier years were spent on the Flandreau, Rosebud, and Pine Ridge Reservations in South Dakota. The people of these reservations were at one time considered part of the Great Dakota Nation. Dakota translated into English, means "Related People." (The Dakota Nation is also known as the Seven Campfires. It contains three linguistic dialects -- the Dakota, the Lakota, and the Nakota. Out of respect for the two largest dialects, I have used various designations throughout the text -- D/Lakota, Dakota/Lakota, Dakota, and Lakota.)
During the past twenty years, American Indians have experienced a renaissance of their language, culture, and religion. Many tribes have become conscious of their original names which, when translated into English mean "The People." The fact that we are all one people is the wholistic view I wish to present in this book.
Ehanamani Emaciyapi
"My name is Walks Among"
a.k.a. Allen (Chuck) Ross