What is man without the beasts? For if all the beast were gone, man would die of a great loneliness of the spirit.
Chief SeattleRead
To us, the ashes of our ancestors are sacred and their resting place is hallowed ground.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the importance of honoring our ancestors and the sacred nature of their resting places.
Chief Seattle expresses a profound respect for the ancestral lineage and the deep spiritual connection that individuals share with their forebears. The 'ashes' symbolize the physical remnants of those who have passed, while 'hallowed ground' indicates a sacred space deserving of reverence. This underscores the belief that honoring our ancestors is not only an act of remembrance but also an acknowledgment of the values and traditions they have imparted to us.
Themes
AncestorsSacredRespectHeritageSpirituality
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about preserving cultural heritage, one might say, 'To us, the ashes of our ancestors are sacred and their resting place is hallowed ground.'
More from Chief Seattle
All quotes →We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children
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Let him be just and deal kindly with my people, for the dead are not powerless. Dead, did I say? There is no death, only change of worlds.
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All things are connected, like the blood that runs in your family "The water's murmur is the voice of my father's father." 1854 The rivers are our brothers. They quench our thirst. They carry our canoes and feed our children. You must give to the rivers the kindness you would give to any brother.
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Revenge by young men is considered gain, even at the cost of their own lives, but old men who stay at home in times of war, and mothers who have sons to lose, know better.
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The Indian prefers the soft sound of the wind darting over the face of the pond, the smell of the wind itself cleansed by a midday rain, or scented with pinon pine. The air is precious to the red man, for all things are the same breath - the animals, the trees, the man.
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