Blackfoot Physics: A Journey into the Native American Worldview [Paperback]

F. David Peat (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 2002

One summer in the 1980s, theoretical physicist F. David Peat went to the Blackfoot Sun Dance ceremony in Alberta, Canada. Having spent all his life steeped in and influenced by linear Western science, he was entranced by the Native American worldview and, through dialogue circles between scientists and Native Elders, he began to explore it in greater depth.

"Blackfoot Physics" is the account of his discoveries. In an edifying synthesis of anthropology, history, metaphysics, cosmology and quantum theory, Peat compares the medicines, the myths, the languages, indeed the entire perceptions of reality of the Western and indigenous peoples. What becomes apparent is the amazing resemblance between indigenous teachings and some of the insights that are emerging from modern science, a congruence that is as enlightening about the physical universe as it is about the circular evolution of humanity's understanding. Through Peat's insightful observations, he extends our understanding of ourselves, our understanding of the universe, and how the two intersect in a meaningful vision of human life in relation to a greater reality.

"Blackfoot Physics" is a book that will captivate anyone with an interest in the relationship between science, spirituality, and the different ways of knowing.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Born in a suburb of Liverpool, England, just before the Second World War, David Peat remembers frequent trips to the damp and smelly air raid shelter. His interest in science was awakened by the magnesium casings of incendiary bombs--the magnesium could be lit by playing a bunsen burner on it. This interest was strengthened by his physics teacher at school, who encouraged his pupils to work things out from first principles. Peat frequented the Cavern jazz club in Liverpool, but didn't take the new beat groups who began to appear there (including the Beatles) too seriously.

Interest in experimental physics gave way to theoretical and philosophical concerns in such areas as quantum theory. Density matrices brought him to Canada, where he stayed 30 years, teaching and writing and following the work of thinker David Bohm.

Product Details

• Paperback: 328 pages
• Publisher: Phanes Pr (November 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1890482838
• ISBN-13: 978-1890482831
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #874,693 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Welcome to my Amazon page. One of the most enjoyable tasks of my life has been writing books. Or rather lying in bed dreaming about what I want to write tomorrow then jumping out of bed in the morning and rushing to my computer to get it all down before I forget! And what a pleasure it was to see my latest book in print "A Flickering Reality" which was such a joy to write because it combined by interests in the changing nature of reality along with the chance to revisit so many films I had enjoyed in the past along with some very new ones.

I was born and grew up in Liverpool. My father was an electrician and when his apprentice announced that he would quit to go to Germany with his band my father told him, "George Harrison, one day you'll come crawling on your hands and knees to get your job back." I was also a little annoyed when my closest friend, Dot, told me she was seeing a really fascinating student at art college - John Lennon!

After university I moved to Canada to carry out research in theoretical physics. Then while on a sabbatical with Roger Penrose I met the physicist David Bohm and began a friendship that lasted until his death. Indeed, we were working on a second book together when he died.

I had also been involved in documentaries for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and was responsible for a twenty one-hour series on the development of physics in the 20th century. After leaving the National Research Council of Canada I turned to writing both books and plays for radio and the stage. I also made contact with Native American groups which ended up as a circle of Native Elders and Western Scientists sponsored by the Fetzer Institute. Some these experiences found themselves in "Blackfoot Physics".

From Ottawa we moved briefly, and totally by chance, to the medieval hilltop village of Pari in Tuscany, and from there moved to London so I could write
"Infinite Potential: The Life and Times of David Bohm". In London I made contact with the artists Anish Kapoor and Antony Gormley and ended up organizing a weekend where artists and scientists could meet and talk informally.

From London I moved back to Pari and in 2000 opened the Pari Center for New Learning in order to run courses and conferences and have writers and artists come to visit for a month or so. Pari has also been an ideal place in which to reflect and write and to meet new people. It has also been a time when I have developed my idea of Gentle Action which can be found at www.gentleaction.org and well as in my book "Gentle Action: Bringing creative change to a turbulent world".

My latest book is "A Flickering Reality: Cinema and the Nature of Reality". The shows how everthing from Freud and Jung, quantum theory and chaos theory, the neurosciences and postmodernism have changed the way we look at ourselves and the world, and the most direct way to experience this is via films. I also have a blog on this at http://aflickeringreality.blogspot.com.

If you'd like to learn more then why not buy my biography, "Pathways of Chance" or look at my website www.fdavidpeat.com or www.paricenter.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating Stuff, August 4, 2003

By 

C. Robinson (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Blackfoot Physics: A Journey into the Native American Worldview (Paperback)

It takes a while to get into this book because the first chapter is a bit boring (needs some serious editing, in fact). But once past that hurdle, there's not a dull moment. While one might take issue with the author's apparent attitude that the Native American version of science is superior to that of the Western world's, there's no doubt that the Western world has missed a lot of vital information about the nature of reality. The Native Americans were shoved aside by the Western invaders, who seldom had the sense to acknowledge the wisdom (not to mention the mathematics and the astronomy and the way to make a decent canoe) that the natives had to offer; now we're learning that much of what the natives believed is echoed in the new physics that is still being examined.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars disappointed, February 13, 2009

By 

R. Thompson "brokenkachina" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Blackfoot Physics (Paperback)

I like the book, however, I'm just slightly irritated that this is just a reprint of an earlier book entitled "Lighting the Seventh Fire: The Spiritual Ways, Healing, and Science of the Native American".

I didn't need another copy of the book.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Blackfoot Physics, August 6, 2009

By 

Pleasant Anna Griffith "Anna" (San Miguel de Allende, Mexico) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Blackfoot Physics (Paperback)

Being read with great interest by my Book Club in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. We are all, in the group, quite stunned by the conjunctions taking place here and in the U.S. with regard to the 2 arches of: (1) indigenous approaches to the world and (2) the findings of quantum mechanics and physics, getting nearer and nearer to one another. We would recommend it to any seeker or thinking individual. Our next book, because of the questions this book has raised, may be Karen Armstrong's, The Great Transformation. It was recommended by Paul Hawken at the 2004 Bioneers Conference, as a way to discover how and why we are where we are philosophically/spiritually/religiously speaking.