Wisdom Sits In Places

Sunset from Santorini

From Wisdom Sits in Places by Keith Basso, an excerpt of the core essence of the Western Apache wisdom tradition:

"Do you want to have a long life? Well, you will need to have wisdom. You will need to think about your mind. You will need to work on it. You should start doing this now.

You must make your mind SMOOTH. You must make your mind STEADY. You must make your mind RESILIENT.

If your mind is not SMOOTH, you will fail to see danger. You will trust your eyes but they will deceive you. You will be easily tricked and fooled.

If your mind is not RESILIENT, you will be easily startled. You will be easily frightened. You will try to think quickly but you won't think clearly. You yourself will be in the way of your own mind. you yourself will block it.

If your mind is not STEADY, you will be easily angered, and upset. You will be arrogant and proud. You will look down on other people. You will envy them and desire their possessions. You will speak about them without thinking. You will complain about them. You will gossip about them, criticize them. You must learn to forget about yourself.

If you make your mind smooth, you will have a long life. Your trail will extend a long way. you will be prepared for danger wherever you go. you will see it in your mind before it happens.

How will you walk this trail of wisdom? Well, you will go many places. You must look at them closely. you must remember all of them. You must do this because no one can help you but yourself. If you do this, your mind will become smooth. It will become steady and resilient. You will be wise. People will respect you.

WISDOM SITS IN PLACES. It's like water that never dries up."

This page is dedicated to Dr. Tiffany Kershner