Over the years I have tucked away little bits of this and that - good stuff worth rereading or sharing. Don't have a clue who put this up or where but it has been years ago.
full of advice, native or not...
I found this sheet of paper that was simply titled "Native
American Indian Traditional Code of Ethics" a couple weeks ago. It's from
'94, so it was crazy finding it just when I was thinking about peacemaker
principles. And that I still have it since I've moved about a dozen times since
then.
NATIVE
AMERICAN INDIAN TRADITIONAL CODE OF ETHICS
This
article is from the "Inter-Tribal Times" - October 1994
Each
morning upon rising, and each evening before sleeping, give thanks for the life
within you and for all life, for the good things the Creator has given you and
for the opportunity to grow a little more each day. Consider your thoughts and
actions of the past day and seek for the courage and strength to be a better
person. Seek for the things that will benefit others (everyone).
Respect.
Respect means "To feel or show honor or esteem for someone or something;
to consider the well being of, or to treat someone or something with deference
or courtesy".
Showing respect is a basic law of life. Treat every person from
the tiniest child to the oldest elder with respect at all times.
Special respect should be given to Elders,
Parents, Teachers and Community Leaders.
No person should be made to feel "put down" by you, avoid
hurting other hearts as you would avoid a deadly person.
Touch
nothing that belongs to someone else (especially sacred objects)
without
permission, or an understanding between you.
Respect
the privacy of every person, never
intrude on a person’s quiet moment or personal space.
Never
walk between people that are conversing.
Never
interrupt people who are conversing.
Speak in
a soft voice, especially when you are in the presence of Elders, strangers or
others to whom special respect is due.
Do not
speak unless invited to do so at gatherings where Elders are present
(except to
ask what is expected of you, should you be in doubt).
Never
speak about others in a negative way, whether they are present or not.
Treat the
earth and all of her aspects as your mother. Show deep respect for the mineral
world, the plant world, and the animal world.
Do nothing to pollute our mother,
rise up with wisdom to defend her.
Show deep
respect for the beliefs and religion of others.
Listen
with courtesy to what others say even if you feel that what they say is
worthless. Listen with your heart.
Respect the wisdom of the people in council. Once
you give an idea to a council meeting it no longer belongs to you. It belongs
to the people. Respect demands that you listen intently to the ideas of others
in council and that you do not insist that your idea prevail. Indeed you should
freely support the ideas of others if they are true and good, even if those
ideas are quite different from the ones you have contributed. The clash of
ideas brings forth the Spark of Truth
Once a
council has decided something in unity, respect demands that no one speak
secretly against what has been decided.
If the
council has made an error, that error will become apparent to everyone in its
own time.
Be
truthful at all times, and under all conditions.
Always
treat your guests with honor and consideration. Give of your best food, your
best blankets, the best part of your house, and your best service to your
guests.
The hurt
of one is the hurt of all, the honor of one is the honor of all.
Receive
strangers and outsiders with a loving heart and as members of the human family.
All the
races and tribes in the world are like the different colored flowers of one
meadow. All are beautiful. As children of the Creator they must all be
respected.
To serve
others, to be of some use to family, community, nation, and the world is one of
the main purposes for which human beings have been created. Do not fill
yourself with your own affairs and forget your most important talks. True
happiness comes only to those who dedicate their lives to the services of
others.
Observe
moderation and balance in all things.
Know those things that lead to your
well-being, and those things that lead to your destruction.
Listen to and follow the guidance given to your
heart.
Expect guidance
to come in many forms; in prayer, in dreams, in times of quiet solitude, and in
the words and deeds of wise Elders and friend
