Creature Teachers: A Guide to the Spirit Animals of the Native American Tradition [Paperback]

Grandmother Twylah Nitsch (Author), Yehwehnode (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 1997

The wild creatures of the North American continent play an important role in Native American spiritual life. First and foremost there are the animals who come to you as your teachers when you embark upon a vision quest. Secondly, there are those animals whose life you take in gratitude in order to provide sustenance. Thirdly, there are those animals who in their own way explain and give information about the shifting shapes of the natural world. Grandmother Twylah Nitsch reveals a full panoply of 52 animals, from ant to wolf, heron to snake, dragonfly to weasel, buffalo to porcupine - one for each week of the year - and shows how you can ascertain which nine animals are most suitable as teachers to enable you to manifest your intuitive energy. She then explores the sacred and natural lore that the Seneca discovered in their communications with each creature, offering fables and poems that describe each animal's deeds and its role in the greater landscape of Mother Earth.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 104 pages
• Publisher: Continuum (February 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0826410235
• ISBN-13: 978-0826410238
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,216,202 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Must Have for anyone seeking answers on a spiritual path, June 13, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Buffalo, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Creature Teachers: A Guide to the Spirit Animals of the Native American Tradition (Paperback)

As a long-time student of Grandmother Twylah Nitsch, I cannot begin to express how valuable a tool she has given us with her book, Creature Teachers. There is so much we can learn from our fellow inhabitants of Mother Earth, the animals. This book will aid all in finding their kinship to their own personal "Creature Teachers".

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Response to the Nasty Reviewer a "Chicago Indian", August 27, 2009

By 

J. Kilpatrick "Helen Kilpatrick's Daughter" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Creature Teachers: A Guide to the Spirit Animals of the Native American Tradition (Paperback)

My mother went to high school with Twyla, graduating around 1932, and my mother met Twyla's medicine man grandfather. My mother was telling me about the grandfather when I was in elementary school in the 1960's and totally impatient with being taught about Seneca history. Twyla was very far from a "new ager" as the nasty reviewer writes. Twyla was talking about the information in her books long before the concept of new agers even existed. In the late 1980's I began to see the criticism of Twyla by Seneca MEN who were primarily interested in controlling the tribe through the U.S. Government imposed democratic system of government, rather than the historical clan mother dominated Seneca system. The reason for these MEN's desire for control was money, pure and simple. The wanted Indian gaming just like California tribes. The tribe is now secular and corrupt, run by people whose only interest is money. Of course, the nasty reviewer didn't bother to disclose those facts, but the Tonawanda Seneca, Cattaraugus Seneca and Salamanca Seneca know all about them.

9 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Silly Nonsense From a New Ager Posing as a Native Elder, December 13, 2002

By 

Arlene Itsehili (Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Creature Teachers: A Guide to the Spirit Animals of the Native American Tradition (Paperback)

This book should come with a warning or disclaimer: Silly New Age Nonsense Within, Does Not Represent or Tell the Truth About Native Beliefs".

Nitsch is NOT a Seneca elder at all. The Seneca can't stand her and have barred her and her New Age businessses from the reservation. She's made a lot of money from selling "adoptions" of ceremonies to every gullible New Ager that she could pull in. She's also branched out by "commissioning" white New Agers to act as her salespeople. A lot of pay to pray offensive nonsense from her. Avoid at all costs, unless you want to wind up a victim too.