Seeing Far or Seeing Near; Different Cultures’ Orientations
March 26, 2026
The Oglala Lakota holy man Black Elk recounted a vision he had at the age of nine, when he suddenly became ill. Lying down in
Comparisons of Chinese and Western Ways of Thinking about Emotion
February 8, 2026
A common definition of emotion according to Western Psychology is: A psychological system that appraises internal or external, context-related causes in terms of their significance
Stones and Abundance in Native American Cultures in California
October 12, 2025
The archaeologist Paul MacKendrick wrote a book about ancient Italy called The Mute Stones Speak. But for First Americans in California, stones aren’t mute; they
In Navajo Light; Different Cultures’ Concepts of Light and Creation
January 27, 2025
Different cultures develop fascinatingly diverse ideas about light. Some of the makers of stained glass in medieval European cathedrals followed the third-century CE Egyptian-Greek philosopher
Hiking to the Heavens; Approaching Creation from Ohlone and Miwok Points of View
November 1, 2024
After exploring the Ohlone and Miwok worlds on Mt. Diablo’s lower slopes, I ventured to its summit. A lot of Ohlone and Miwok Indians thought
Hiking to the Center of the World; Ohlone and Miwok Indians in the San Francisco Bay Area
October 27, 2024
I hiked to Mt. Diablo’s summit two weeks ago, and it was one of the most spiritual hikes I’ve ever done in the SF Bay
The World in an Infant’s Mind; Exploring the Depths of Cultures’ Assumptions
March 29, 2024
He’s young and chill, but he probably knows things about his culture’s heritage that AI systems don’t. The psychologist Jerome Bruner, in The Culture of
The Universe in the Home; Cosmic Symbolism in Native American Architecture
January 18, 2024
A house is more than a building in many Native American societies. For example, the seemingly simple Plains Indian tipi sometimes expressed its residents’ ideas
Different Ways that Cultures Construct Emotions
January 1, 2024
Emotions can seem self-evident, but they come in a lot of varieties which emerge in cultures. It will be a big challenge for AI to
How Native American Cultures Can Deepen Your View of Your Neighbor-hood
December 18, 2023
My perspectives of my own turf transformed when I attended a gathering of Ohlone Indians in Fremont, California. They haven’t been as well known