Joe,
We continue to be in sync these days. I just finished the attached section of my book, where I am arguing for a metamodern sensibility ala Lene that emphasizes we can draw from the best of the best of the four major cultural codes/sensibilities of (a) oral/indigenous; (b) traditional/formal; (c) modern; (d) postmodern. Guess who I use to highlight the key principles of oral-indigenous thinking?
Also, let me share that Greg Thomas recommended I check out Developmental Politics by Steve McIntosh, which I did and it is great. I think it could be merged well with Mike's vision of Creating Common Ground. It does an excellent job of highlighting the strengths and limitations of the latter three sensibilities. If we add the oral/indigenous and then adopt a metamodern integrative pluralistic sensibility, then we really have a good way of framing cultural consciousness.
Best,
Gregg
From: tree of knowledge system discussion <[log in to unmask]> On Behalf Of Joseph Michalski
Sent: Friday, October 30, 2020 11:37 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: TOK and Indigenous Knowing
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Hi folks. If interested, I'm following up with some info/quotes from a book I just received today and could not put down until I'd finished! The book is titled Sand Talk: How Indigenous Thinking Can Save the World (2020), by Tyson Yunkaporta, who belongs to the Apalech clan in the far north of Queensland, Australia. Spoiler alert, if you have any interest in reading the book! But I got hooked early on with quotes that echoed what I had learned (and a bit of which I shared with the group a couple days ago) from the female Elder whom I'd been working with over two years. Tyson writes: "In Aboriginal Australia, our Elders tell us stories, ancient narratives to show us that if you don't move with the land, the land will move you." And: "there is a pattern to the universe and everything in it, and there are knowledge systems and traditions that follow this pattern to maintain balance, to keep the temptations of narcissism in check." And, "Our knowledge endures because everybody carries a part of it, no matter how fragmentary. If you want to see the pattern of creation, you talk to everybody and listen carefully. Authentic knowledge processes are easy to verify if you are familiar with that pattern -- each part reflects the design of the whole system. If the pattern is present, the knowledge is true, whether the speaker is wearing a grass skirt or a business suit or a school uniform."
Now, here's the real spoiler alert, so stop reading if you want to discover the work for yourself. If you don't have the time & yet still have an interest, here is Tyson's brief summary of the four key principles to Indigenous way of knowing (p. 246):
1. What we can know is determined by our obligations and relationships to people, Ancestors, land, Law, and creation.
2. What we know is that the role of custodial species is to sustain creation, which is formed from complexity and connectedness. (He views humans as the custodial species, but only for the present moment.)
3. The way we know this is through our cultural metaphors (read "Justification Systems").
4. The way we work with this knowledge is by positioning, sharing, and adapting our cultural metaphors.
He then describes the whole logic as embodied in an ontology that consists of "spirit, heart, head, and hands" (note the almost exact replication of my Elder friend's description of "spirit, heart, mind, and body"). And Tyson talks about another key figure, Muma Doris, who uses the parallel terms Respect, Connect, Reflect, Direct -- in that order. And concludes that (p. 247) "Everything in creation is sentient and carries knowledge, therefore everything is deserving of our respect."
Best to one and all, -Joe
Dr. Joseph H. Michalski
Professor
King's University College at Western University
266 Epworth Avenue, DL-201
London, Ontario, Canada N6A 2M3
Tel: (519) 433-3491
Email: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
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