"There have always been the poetical thinkers and philosophical dreamers, who, when troubled by the social evils around them, or roused to indignation and pity by the crying injustice of the ruling class, and the hopeless condition of the poor, respectively, have given vent to their feelings." ~ Moritz Kaufmann, 1878

Native American societies are based on the concept of interdependence. Interdependence means that all things in the universe are dependent on one another. The idea is that everything in the universe works together to achieve a balance in oneself, the community, and the universe. In Native American societies before their contact with European culture, relationships intertwined both animate beings and inanimate beings (for example trees and water).

Source: "Native American Cultures: Family Life, Kinship, and Gender".

The Nowhere Place

The philosophical construct of Utopia has a long history. Beginning with Plato's "Republic", the idea that we can transcend the political and social realities in search for a high moral ground, speaks not only to our humanity, but also our need to critique the very reality we live in so that we can become better human beings. While most of these philosophical discussions exist in the pages of books, missing from those texts are the Native American philosophers who lived in societies that in many ways reflected the very "utopian" goals western intellectuals were writing about. In a culture that embodied a deep connection and respect for their environment, both in the way they lived, and the legends they handed down from generation to generation, Native Americans understood the spiritual and practical value of striking a balance between nature and humanity.

“If you talk to the animals they will talk with you and you will know each other. If you do not talk to them you will not know them and what you do not know, you will fear. What one fears, one destroys.” ~ Chief Dan George, Tsleil-Waututh Nation, British Columbia, Canada

Iroquois Creation Legend

In the beginning, the world was not as we know it now. It was a water world inhabited only by animals and creatures of the air who could survive without land. Up above, the Sky World was quite different. Human-type beings lived there with infinite types of plants and animals to enjoy.

In the Sky World, there was a Tree of Life that was very special to the people of the Sky World. They knew that it grew at the entrance to the world below and forbade anyone to tamper with the Tree. One woman who was soon to give birth was curious about the Tree and convinced her brother to uproot the Tree.

Beneath the Tree was a great hole. The woman peered from the edge into the hole and suddenly fell off the edge. As she was falling she grasped at the edge and clutched in her hand some of the earth from the Sky World. As she fell, the birds of the world below were disturbed and alerted to her distress. The birds responded and gathered a great many of their kind to break her fall and cradle her to the back of a great sea turtle. The creatures of the water believed that she needed land to live on, so they set about to collect some for her. They dove to the great depths of the world's oceans to gather earth to make her a place to live. Many of the animals tried to gather the earth from the ocean floor, only the muskrat was successful. With only a small bit of earth brought onto turtle's back from his small paws, Turtle Island began to grow.

The Sky Woman soon gave birth to a daughter on Turtle Island. The daughter grew fast. There were no man-beings on Turtle Island, but a being known as the West Wind married the daughter of Sky Woman. Soon the daughter of Sky Woman gave birth to Twins. One was born the natural way, and he was called the Right-Handed Twin. The other was born in a way that caused the death of the mother. He was called the Left-Handed Twin. When their mother died, their grandmother, Sky Woman, placed the fistful of earth that she grasped from the edge of the Sky World, and placed it on her daughter's grave. The earth carried special seeds from the Sky World that were nourished by the earth over her daughter. So from the body of her daughter came the Sacred Tobacco, Strawberry and Sweetgrass. We call these Kionhekwa. The Life Givers.

The Right and Left-Handed Twins were endowed with special creative powers. The Right-Handed Twin created gentle hills, beautiful smelling flowers, quiet brooks, butterflies and numerous creatures, plants and earth formations. His brother the Left-Handed Twin made snakes, thorns on rose bushes, thunder and lightning and other more disturbing attributes of today's world. Together, they created man and his many attributes. The Right-Handed Twin believed in diplomacy and conflict resolution. The Left-Handed Twin believed in conflict as resolution. They were very different, but all that they created is an integral part of this Earth's Creation.

Their Grandmother, Sky Woman, now came to the end of her life. When she died, the Twins fought over her body and pulled it apart, throwing her head into the sky. As part of the Sky World, there her head remained to shine upon the world as Grandmother Moon. The Twins could not live together without fighting. They agreed to dwell in different realms of the earth. The Right-Handed Twin continued to live in the daylight and the Left-Handed Twin became a dweller of the night. Both of them continue their special duties to their Mother the Earth.

Source: https://www.firstpeople.us/FP-Html-Legends/TheCreationStory-Iroquois.html

“The land is sacred. These words are at the core of your being. The land is our mother, the rivers our blood. Take our land away and we die. That is, the Indian in us dies.” ~ Mary Brave Bird, Lakota

She Who Bathes With Her Knees

Pictured above is the lovely Tisseewoonatis, wife of the Cheyenne chief Wolf on the Hill, who in 1832, South Dakota, met an artist named George Catlin. While ageeing to sit for a portrait, Tisseewoonatis was described by Catlin as a “comely, and beautifully dressed woman". In the Cheyenne language, her name roughly translate into "She Who Bathes with Her Knees" and represents someone who values truth and justice. While I'm not sure how the literal translation connects with truth and justice, I admire the notion of giving names to people that represent their character. For example, I would not mind going through life with a name like "girl who likes to cook". In fact, apart from the fanciful aspect to it, there is a practical one as well. Now suppose we named those who poison the land, "soul-less profit driven destroyer of our earth”? A bit wordy, perhaps, but I think the practice has a satisfying utilitarian purpose.

I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing

A much talked about ending to a series that enjoyed critical acclaim as well as a devoted following, I was among many who were left scratching their heads over what felt like a superficial resolution to Don Draper's life. After the dust settled, I realized that hoping we would see Don evolve into an emotionally present father was never who he was. Instead, true to the character's narrative arc, Matthew Weiner (creator of Mad Men) positioned his damaged anti-hero protagonist in an EST like retreat, where just as he's getting in touch with the emptiness of his life, rather than benefit from the experience in a meaningful way, the idea for the greatest "Coke" commercial pops into Don's head. It is a defining example of the opportunist in Don, once again, plucking his own life experiences out of his psyche and plopping them into ads. Neatly packaged emotional truths that are coming from a place that's both real and superficial at the same time. Much like the Coke commercial itself, the sentimental idealism wraps us up in a warm glow of reassurance as it effectively manipulates us. At a time when the experience of war, death, assassinations, riots, and racial hatred was bursting into our living room every evening through the television, it's not difficult to imagine why this wildly popular Coke commercial resonated with so many of us who deep in our hearts wanted to stand on a mountaintop alongside our friends, neighbors, and strangers and sing together in harmony.

Which brings me to my idea of Utopia. A place where we not only sing together, but a place where the world works for everyone.

Utopia by Alanis Morissette

We'd gather around all in a room,
Fasten our belts engage in dialogue.
We'd all slow down rest without guilt,
Not lie without fear disagree sans judgement.
We would stay and respond and expand and include
And allow and forgive and enjoy and evolve
And discern and inquire and accept and admit
And divulge and open and reach out and speak up

This is utopia this is my utopia
This is my ideal my end in sight
Utopia this is my utopia
This is my nirvana
My ultimate

We'd open our arms.
We'd all jump in.
We'd all coast down
Into safety nets.
We would share and listen and support and welcome,
Be propelled by passion, not invest in outcomes,
We would breathe and be charmed and amused by difference,
Be gentle and make room for every emotion.

This is utopia this is my utopia
This is my ideal my end in sight
Utopia this is my utopia
This is my nirvana
My ultimate

We'd provide forums.
We'd all speak out.
We'd all be heard.
We'd all feel seen.
We'd rise post-obstacle, more defined, more grateful,
We would heal be humbled and be unstoppable,
We'd hold close and let go and know when to do which,
We'd release and disarm and stand up and feel safe...