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Ojibway Heritage
Rarely accessible beyond the limits of its people, Ojibway mythology is as rich in meaning and mystery, as broad, as deep, and as innately appealing as the mythologies of Greece, Rome, Egypt, and other civilizations. In Ojibway Heritage , Basil Johnston sets forth the broad spectrum of his people’s life, legends, and beliefs. Stories to be read, enjoyed, dwelt on, and freely interpreted, their authorship is perhaps most properly attributed to the tribal storytellers who have carried on the oral tradition which Basil Johnston records and preserves in this book.
176 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 1976
43 people are currently reading
357 people want to read
About the author
Basil Johnston
29 books52 followersBasil H. Johnston (13 July 1929 to 8 September 2015) was a Canadian writer, storyteller, language teacher and scholar.
For his work in preserving Ojibwa language and culture, he received the Order of Ontario and Honorary Doctorates from the University of Toronto and Laurentian University. Basil also received the Aboriginal Achievement Award for Heritage and Spirituality.
(from Wikipedia)
For his work in preserving Ojibwa language and culture, he received the Order of Ontario and Honorary Doctorates from the University of Toronto and Laurentian University. Basil also received the Aboriginal Achievement Award for Heritage and Spirituality.
(from Wikipedia)
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
March 23, 2021
Johnson compiles a fascinating and often inspiring survey of the myths, worldviews, ways of life and common sense of a great civilization in our midst.
March 22, 2015
What would it be like to wake up every day in a sane, healthy, life of wildness and freedom? Imagine stepping outside at dawn, and observing a landscape that remained as the creator made it, undefiled by the catastrophe of industrial civilization — a gentle misty morning of peace, fresh air, and good energy. You pause and offer a prayer of gratitude, giving thanks for the gift of another day to celebrate the perfection of creation.
This is not easy to imagine, because we no longer live like human beings. Our culture provides us with almost no information about living in harmony with the land, because that is not the nature of our culture. Memories of our own wild ancestors have been erased by the passage of time, and by the sharp turn we made when we surrendered our freedom. We have forgotten who we are, and how to live. We are lost. Our entire way of life is lost.
Basil Johnston’s book, Ojibway Heritage, pulls back the curtains, and allows us to explore a healthy way of life. It’s disturbing to read this book, because it illuminates how far we have strayed from the path of balance and good life. It carries us to a sacred mountain, far above the toxic smog of civilization, and helps us remember things of great importance.
Johnston is an outstanding storyteller. His book describes Ojibway culture to those who are not close to it, in a manner that outsiders can easily comprehend and appreciate. We learn about wild freedom — a way of life similar to how our wild ancestors once lived. It’s a world of sharing and cooperation, honor and morality, a world of overwhelming reverence and respect for the natural world and the family of life.
The Ojibway people inhabit a vast region in the middle of North America, on both sides of the US-Canadian border. They have always avoided the political unification of all Ojibways because they cherish independence. Nothing was more abhorrent to them than the notion of submitting to control. They were free people who enjoyed living in free communities.
Community had greater importance than the desires of the individual. Each individual was entitled to food, clothing, shelter, personal inner growth, and freedom. For all other matters, the permission of the community was sought. The people were consulted for guidance, so that the custom and will of the community was respected.
Each community had chiefs for various purposes, and they became chiefs based solely on their merits. If anyone lost respect for a chief’s abilities, they could ignore him. His influence was based on persuasion, not authority. Those who followed his lead did so voluntarily.
Stories were powerful cultural tools. They encoded the moral principles of the society. Always tell the truth. Respect your elders. Always be thankful for food, for life, and for your powers. Seek wisdom and peace.
Stories provided guidance on hunger, courage, generosity, fidelity, creation, death, transformation, history, and all matters that related to life and being. On a simple level, a child could find meaning in them, but they could also be understood on deeper levels by adults and elders.
Males were expected to quest for a vision. “No man begins to be until he has seen his vision.” Every person had different gifts and powers, and the self-discovery of vision provided purpose and meaning for their existence. Women fulfilled their existence by bringing life into the world, so a vision was optional for them.
Boys were ready to begin questing for their vision by the age of 12 to 14. They would be ceremonially purified, and then spend four days alone in a remote quest lodge, with no food. Rarely was the first attempt a success. Sometimes nothing happened, and sometimes the vision was incomplete. Quests were made every year, until a complete vision was finally received. A man was not considered to be an adult until he received his vision. One fellow didn’t receive his vision until he was 50. This was not a cause for shame.
Your vision was personal and private, not to be shared. You had a sacred obligation to pursue and complete your vision. Straying from your path was not unusual, but it was seen as betraying your vision, and “such a state was tantamount to non-living in which acts and conduct had no quality.” To avoid this, men and women went on annual retreats to review their lives, and verify that they were still on their true path. The Ojibway were big on living with integrity. I like that.
They were also big about personal independence. “The individual and his individuality were inviolable; his vision was equally inviolable. No person was to surrender to another; no person was to seek dominion over another man or woman.” They weren’t into playing master and servants. Likewise, no person could own the land.
Johnston talked at length about healers. There were both medicine men and medicine women. A few boys and girls displayed special gifts of curative power, and they were trained in the art of healing. Part of the training process was observing what animals ate when ill, because they possessed knowledge of medicinal plants. Some of the trainees became herbalists, and others advanced to become philosophers. Illness was seen to be a punishment for a failure to live a good life, so healers attempted to guide patients back to upright living. They analyzed dreams, and provided advice.
Every year, healers gathered for the Midewewin ceremony, by invitation only. The initiation process took at least four years, before a healer earned the full rights and privileges of membership. An important component of the healer’s initiation was learning the history of the Ojibway people, so that they had a solid understanding of the path of life, and the gifts received from the grandfathers and grandmothers. People couldn’t enjoy good health and good life if they were disconnected from their history.
This book reminds us of who we once were, in the days of our wild ancestors. It allows us to gaze into a mirror and observe the wounded beings that we have become. It presents us with a portrait of a coherent culture, living intimately in harmony with nature. We see a beautiful picture of what life could be like, following the collapse of industrial civilization, several generations down the road. It’s precious information for people who are in contact with reality, and seeking dreams for a better tomorrow.
A better tomorrow will not come to our descendants automatically. It must be envisioned, and then the vision must be fulfilled. “A man or woman begins to learn when he seeks out knowledge and wisdom; wisdom will not seek him.”
This is a small book, but it’s loaded with fascinating information. I have just scratched the surface here. It’s an important message.
This is not easy to imagine, because we no longer live like human beings. Our culture provides us with almost no information about living in harmony with the land, because that is not the nature of our culture. Memories of our own wild ancestors have been erased by the passage of time, and by the sharp turn we made when we surrendered our freedom. We have forgotten who we are, and how to live. We are lost. Our entire way of life is lost.
Basil Johnston’s book, Ojibway Heritage, pulls back the curtains, and allows us to explore a healthy way of life. It’s disturbing to read this book, because it illuminates how far we have strayed from the path of balance and good life. It carries us to a sacred mountain, far above the toxic smog of civilization, and helps us remember things of great importance.
Johnston is an outstanding storyteller. His book describes Ojibway culture to those who are not close to it, in a manner that outsiders can easily comprehend and appreciate. We learn about wild freedom — a way of life similar to how our wild ancestors once lived. It’s a world of sharing and cooperation, honor and morality, a world of overwhelming reverence and respect for the natural world and the family of life.
The Ojibway people inhabit a vast region in the middle of North America, on both sides of the US-Canadian border. They have always avoided the political unification of all Ojibways because they cherish independence. Nothing was more abhorrent to them than the notion of submitting to control. They were free people who enjoyed living in free communities.
Community had greater importance than the desires of the individual. Each individual was entitled to food, clothing, shelter, personal inner growth, and freedom. For all other matters, the permission of the community was sought. The people were consulted for guidance, so that the custom and will of the community was respected.
Each community had chiefs for various purposes, and they became chiefs based solely on their merits. If anyone lost respect for a chief’s abilities, they could ignore him. His influence was based on persuasion, not authority. Those who followed his lead did so voluntarily.
Stories were powerful cultural tools. They encoded the moral principles of the society. Always tell the truth. Respect your elders. Always be thankful for food, for life, and for your powers. Seek wisdom and peace.
Stories provided guidance on hunger, courage, generosity, fidelity, creation, death, transformation, history, and all matters that related to life and being. On a simple level, a child could find meaning in them, but they could also be understood on deeper levels by adults and elders.
Males were expected to quest for a vision. “No man begins to be until he has seen his vision.” Every person had different gifts and powers, and the self-discovery of vision provided purpose and meaning for their existence. Women fulfilled their existence by bringing life into the world, so a vision was optional for them.
Boys were ready to begin questing for their vision by the age of 12 to 14. They would be ceremonially purified, and then spend four days alone in a remote quest lodge, with no food. Rarely was the first attempt a success. Sometimes nothing happened, and sometimes the vision was incomplete. Quests were made every year, until a complete vision was finally received. A man was not considered to be an adult until he received his vision. One fellow didn’t receive his vision until he was 50. This was not a cause for shame.
Your vision was personal and private, not to be shared. You had a sacred obligation to pursue and complete your vision. Straying from your path was not unusual, but it was seen as betraying your vision, and “such a state was tantamount to non-living in which acts and conduct had no quality.” To avoid this, men and women went on annual retreats to review their lives, and verify that they were still on their true path. The Ojibway were big on living with integrity. I like that.
They were also big about personal independence. “The individual and his individuality were inviolable; his vision was equally inviolable. No person was to surrender to another; no person was to seek dominion over another man or woman.” They weren’t into playing master and servants. Likewise, no person could own the land.
Johnston talked at length about healers. There were both medicine men and medicine women. A few boys and girls displayed special gifts of curative power, and they were trained in the art of healing. Part of the training process was observing what animals ate when ill, because they possessed knowledge of medicinal plants. Some of the trainees became herbalists, and others advanced to become philosophers. Illness was seen to be a punishment for a failure to live a good life, so healers attempted to guide patients back to upright living. They analyzed dreams, and provided advice.
Every year, healers gathered for the Midewewin ceremony, by invitation only. The initiation process took at least four years, before a healer earned the full rights and privileges of membership. An important component of the healer’s initiation was learning the history of the Ojibway people, so that they had a solid understanding of the path of life, and the gifts received from the grandfathers and grandmothers. People couldn’t enjoy good health and good life if they were disconnected from their history.
This book reminds us of who we once were, in the days of our wild ancestors. It allows us to gaze into a mirror and observe the wounded beings that we have become. It presents us with a portrait of a coherent culture, living intimately in harmony with nature. We see a beautiful picture of what life could be like, following the collapse of industrial civilization, several generations down the road. It’s precious information for people who are in contact with reality, and seeking dreams for a better tomorrow.
A better tomorrow will not come to our descendants automatically. It must be envisioned, and then the vision must be fulfilled. “A man or woman begins to learn when he seeks out knowledge and wisdom; wisdom will not seek him.”
This is a small book, but it’s loaded with fascinating information. I have just scratched the surface here. It’s an important message.
Read
February 10, 2021Turns out when you listen to indigeneous knowledge, you learn something. I learned about a harmonious relationship with land, plants, and animals from these allegories/traditional historical narratives. I read great stories about the dangers of greed, the importance of visions gained after days long solitary retreats in nature, and our responsibility for stewardship of the land for future people.
None of this jives with a Canadian national economy stubbornly centred on unsustainable resource extraction so I suppose this will stay a little known favourite among "woke", middle-class people like myself.
Side note: To my memory, nothing kind is said about the Sioux people in this book. The rivalry between the Sioux and Anishnabeg was strong!
None of this jives with a Canadian national economy stubbornly centred on unsustainable resource extraction so I suppose this will stay a little known favourite among "woke", middle-class people like myself.
Side note: To my memory, nothing kind is said about the Sioux people in this book. The rivalry between the Sioux and Anishnabeg was strong!
April 10, 2015
Perhaps what I like most about oral tradition cultures is the sheer difficulty of getting the same stories told in similar detail more than once. Basil Johnston, in this fantastic little dive into Ojibwe society, gives his version of the accounts told to him by his teachers and elders (he actually did grow up in the thick of Anishinaabe reserve life) and emphasizes throughout the importance of interpreting one's own sense of meaning and value from the stories, as everyone in the culture is meant to grow with individuality.
Basil explains much about the roles of different professions, and what those professions typically were in Ojibwe society, and does no sugar-coating in explaining the establishment of gender roles to each profession. This is something I dislike about all cultures, but I'd rather have an honest account than a fluffy one, and I do appreciate that he is forthcoming about it.
He also covers a few of the actual ceremonies required for certain events and traditions, though these are kept relatively brief, as he wrote another book detailing them at length. but even so, one does feel as though one is getting a clear image of the structure and nature of life in the clan.
Anyone looking for a studying companion or introduction to the culture should tack this onto the reading list.
Basil explains much about the roles of different professions, and what those professions typically were in Ojibwe society, and does no sugar-coating in explaining the establishment of gender roles to each profession. This is something I dislike about all cultures, but I'd rather have an honest account than a fluffy one, and I do appreciate that he is forthcoming about it.
He also covers a few of the actual ceremonies required for certain events and traditions, though these are kept relatively brief, as he wrote another book detailing them at length. but even so, one does feel as though one is getting a clear image of the structure and nature of life in the clan.
Anyone looking for a studying companion or introduction to the culture should tack this onto the reading list.
February 7, 2019
This was such an interesting and different read, and it introduced me to so many new things about the Ojibway people. I have always been fascinated by mythologies and trying to understand why people believe the things they do. I found the stories and the culture of the Anishnabeg to be extremely compelling, and extremely peaceful. Instead of having main themes of violence, lust, and greed like Greek myth, these stories were filled with respect, moderation, and loyalty. I think that the way the Ojibway view the world is the way that we should strive to view the world. They have immense respect for all living things, and they do not view themselves as superior to all others. By respecting and honoring the earth and the animals, the Ojibway people found a way to live in moderation and in general peace.
When reading this book I found it important to remember that these stories are sacred to the Ojibway people, and they are not something that they needed to be shared with others. The Ojibway tell their history through oral stories, so it is important to be respectful and grateful for this view into a different culture. Basil Johnston is an amazing storyteller and he wrote about his people and his culture in a way that was easy to understand, and very interesting. This is only a taste of what makes the Ojibway people who they are, and I really enjoyed getting a close look into their customs and their stories.
When reading this book I found it important to remember that these stories are sacred to the Ojibway people, and they are not something that they needed to be shared with others. The Ojibway tell their history through oral stories, so it is important to be respectful and grateful for this view into a different culture. Basil Johnston is an amazing storyteller and he wrote about his people and his culture in a way that was easy to understand, and very interesting. This is only a taste of what makes the Ojibway people who they are, and I really enjoyed getting a close look into their customs and their stories.
September 22, 2017
I read this book for research into a character I'm developing for a novel. I hoped that I would learn a bit about his background when I picked this up; I never expected to be so inspired by the stories in this wonderful book that the entire plot of my novel would come rushing at me in a great epiphany after struggling with its direction for months. I found answers to questions that I didn't know I was seeking. In reading these stories of vision quests and personal journeys, you could say the book took me on a kind of vision quest of my own.
The only reason I didn't rate a solid five stars is because there were a few points where the author switched between telling a story and analysing that story without any marker to indicate the shift and so I sometimes got confused and had to re-read a paragraph here and there. Considering both the practical and spiritual value I got out of the book, that's hardly even an issue to complain about.
I learned a lot about Ojibway culture, but I learned a lot about myself as well. I recommend this book to anyone of any cultural background who feels like they lack a sense of direction, whether it's with a specific project or with life as a whole.
The only reason I didn't rate a solid five stars is because there were a few points where the author switched between telling a story and analysing that story without any marker to indicate the shift and so I sometimes got confused and had to re-read a paragraph here and there. Considering both the practical and spiritual value I got out of the book, that's hardly even an issue to complain about.
I learned a lot about Ojibway culture, but I learned a lot about myself as well. I recommend this book to anyone of any cultural background who feels like they lack a sense of direction, whether it's with a specific project or with life as a whole.
January 15, 2021
A slim volume with timeless stories of Kitche Manitou, Nanabush, Sky-Woman, and many others. The words on the back say that it summarizes the "wonder and mystery at the heart of the Ojibway experience".
As a plant ecologist, I found "The Nature of Plants" particularly meaningful and new to me.
Of particular meaning to me was the detail about acquiring and then staying connected to a vision for your life. I appreciated the gentleness of the recognition that we adult humans have and then stray from our personal visions. And I appreciated the firmness in the urging to reflect and return to it to fulfill our vision and commitment.
As a plant ecologist, I found "The Nature of Plants" particularly meaningful and new to me.
Of particular meaning to me was the detail about acquiring and then staying connected to a vision for your life. I appreciated the gentleness of the recognition that we adult humans have and then stray from our personal visions. And I appreciated the firmness in the urging to reflect and return to it to fulfill our vision and commitment.
May 16, 2023
Originally written in 1976 & republished in 1990, Basil Johnson's "Ojibway Heritage" is a rather unique book that gets into the mythology of the Ojibway people. The book itself is a fascinating read as it is told in the form of a story that would be passed down from generation to generation. Each chapter is as fascinating as the one prior & is definitely a book that anyone with an interest in these peoples will enjoy.
September 4, 2023
I purchased several of Basil Johnston's books on Ojibwe/Anishinaabe culture, trying to piece together different stories I'd heard as a child (my Aunt's a librarian and often gave me books on different topics, and one of them included a book on Native teachings and stories--which spurred me on a journey of interest in other cultures). Of all his books, this is my favorite -- not only did he consolidate the different stories into a very digestible format, but he is a masterful storyteller.
April 29, 2022
Some really cool stuff in here. Kind of like a religious text in that you know it would take on more meaning if someone were to animate it for you. And in fact the more meaningful and alive-seeming bits were stories and traditions I already knew something about like the Windigo (weendigo in Johnston's spelling)
September 23, 2024
This was so beautiful and I love Johnston’s writing style. The stories about animals and plants were my favourite, especially the one about the rose. The one about the wolverine has a great message too. It was also fascinating to learn about Ziigwan and Bebon’s battles and about Waaban, the arrogant pupil of Ningabiianong.
June 20, 2021
My family has Ojibway Heritage. It was nice to connect to these stories and learn them to share with my family. A lot of things fell into place while reading it. Unfortunately, it does not speak much to Two Spirited people and I wish there were more of their stories included here.
May 17, 2022
This is a great companion book for Indigenous Peoples Within Canada: A Concise History.
June 27, 2019
The information was good. Well written.
Read
July 9, 2020Diss
December 2, 2025
Johnston's Ojibway Heritage was an excellent companion to his Ojibway Ceremonies. Taking you into the ceremonies, allowing you to better understand the heritage.
March 4, 2017
This was a really good read and very informative. Basil's books are always well done.
May 10, 2012
Basil creates a very engaging account of Ojibway culture.
January 7, 2016
This book speaks to my heritage.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews