Black Elk Speaks: Being the Life Story of a Holy Man of the Oglala Sioux, the Premier Edition

Black Elk, John G. Neihardt, Raymond J. DeMallie

SUNY Press, Oct 16, 2008 - Biography & Autobiography - 334 pages

Widely hailed as a spiritual classic, this inspirational and unfailingly powerful story reveals the life and visions of the Lakota healer Nicholas Black Elk (1863 1950) and the tragic history of his Sioux people during the epic closing decades of the Old West. In 1930, the aging Black Elk met a kindred spirit, the famed poet, writer, and critic John G. Neihardt (1881 1973) on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. The Lakota elder chose Neihardt to share his visions and life with the world. Neihardt understood and today Black Elk is known to all.

Black Elk s remarkable great vision came to him during a time of decimation and loss, when outsiders were stealing the Lakotas land, slaughtering buffalo, and threatening their age-old way of life. As Black Elk remembers all too well, the Lakotas, led by such legendary men as Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull, fought unceasingly for their freedom, winning a world-renowned victory at the Little Bighorn and suffering unspeakable losses at Wounded Knee.

Black Elk Speaks however is more than the epic history of a valiant Native nation. It is beloved as a spiritual classic because of John Neihardt s sensitivity to Black Elk s resounding vision of the wholeness of earth, her creatures, and all of humanity. Black Elk Speaks is a once-in-a-lifetime read: the moving story of a young Lakota boy before the reservation years, the unforgettable history of an American Indian nation, or an enduring spiritual message for us all.

The premier edition features the first ever annotated edition of Black Elk s story, done by renowned Lakota scholar Raymond Demallie, the original Standing Bear illustrations and new commentary on them, new maps of the world of Black Elk Speaks, and a revised index.

What people are saying

LibraryThing Review

User Review  - CatherineBurkeHines - LibraryThing

I've read and re-read this book about yearly since I-don't-know-when. One of the few books - Man's Search for Meaning is another - that is life-changing.

LibraryThing Review

User Review  - Stahl-Ricco - LibraryThing

A powerful book, and a sad book. Black Elk tells of his life and in that story we learn so much! His peoples names for the months, the significance of circles to the native people, their customs and ...

Contents

• 1 The Offering of the Pipe: 1
• 2 Early Boyhood: 7
• 3The Great Vision: 17
• 4 The Bison Hunt: 37
• 5 At the Soldiers Town: 47
• 6High Horses Courting: 53
• 7 Wasichus in the Hills: 61
• 8 The Fight with Three Stars: 73
• 9 The Rubbing Out of Long Hair: 83
• 10 Walking the Black Road: 103
• 11 The Killing of Crazy Horse: 111
• 12 Grandmothers Land: 115
• 13 The Compelling Fear: 123
• The Horse Dance: 129
• 15 The Dog Vision: 141
• 16 Heyoka Ceremony: 149
• 17 The First Cure: 155
• 18 The Powers of the Bison and the Elk: 163
• 19 Across the Big water: 171
• 20 The Spirit Journey: 179
• 21 The Messiah: 185
• 22 Vision of the Other World: 193
• 23 Bad Trouble Coming: 201
• 24 The Butchering at Wounded Knee: 207
• 25 The End of the Dream: 213
• 26Neihardts Postscript: 219
• Appendix 1: 223
• John G Neihardt and Nicholas Black Elk: 289
• References: 317
• Index: 325

Bibliographic information

• Title: Black Elk Speaks: Being the Life Story of a Holy Man of the Oglala Sioux, the Premier Edition; A Bison book, 119; Volume 119 of Bison book
• Authors: Black Elk, John G. Neihardt, Raymond J. DeMallie
• Edition: illustrated, annotated
• Publisher: SUNY Press, 2008
• ISBN: 1438425406, 9781438425405
• Length: 334 pages
• Subjects: Biography & Autobiography / Cultural, Ethnic & Regional / Native American & Aboriginal