Discussion with Lakota author, actor, storyteller, wilderness survivalist, and bowmaker, Joseph Marshall III. Through plenty of wit, humor, and masterful storytelling, Joseph regales us with many tales. Joseph tells us about growing up on the banks of the Little White River on the Rosebud reservation in South Dakota, detailing many lessons learned from his grandparents who raised him in the traditional ways of the Lakota. We learn a brief history about the Lakota and their relationship with the land in coexisting with nature instead of trying to conquer it. Joseph describes the role of the traditional storyteller and we discuss the beauty and integrity of oral tradition and how it compares to the written tradition. We learn about the Lakota perspective of accepting the natural world for what it is and living within that understanding as one creature among many. Joseph explains how all of us can help honor and protect indigenous rights and ways of being through proper learning and awareness of indigenous peoples. Joseph shares his experience and love of the skills of wilderness survival and offers stories and philosophical perspectives behind the quintessential Native American weapon and tool, the bow and arrow. Finally, we are advised by Joseph on ways we can reconnect with the natural world right where we are.
“Man’s heart away from nature becomes hard” –Luther Standing Bear
Contact for Joseph
Books by Joseph:
The Lakota Way: Stories and Lessons for Living
The Journey of Crazy Horse: A Lakota History
Keep Going: The Art of Perseverance
The Day the World Ended at Little Big Horn
and more on Joseph’s Amazon Author Page
Book Recommendations
God is Red: A Native View of Religion
Any book by Roger Welsch