The Earth asks for our gratitude, not just our consumption.
In the indigenous worldview, the Earth gives to us, and we give back through our gratitude and care.
Book summary
Perennial SellerGoodreads Favorite
Braiding Sweetgrass
by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Indigenous wisdom, scientific knowledge, and the teachings of plants
Indigenous wisdom meets scientific knowledge about plants
4.9(11.2k)Published 2013
Topics
Indigenous WisdomEcologyBotanyReciprocity
Reading companion
How to read Braiding Sweetgrass with Readever
Read this book slowly, ideally outdoors or with natural elements nearby. Treat each chapter as a meditation on a specific plant or ecological principle. Use Readever to highlight passages about gratitude, reciprocity, and the Honorable Harvest, then create action plans for implementing these principles in your daily life. After each section, pause to observe your local environment with new eyes and document what you notice about nature's teachings.
Things to know before reading
- Approach this book with openness to different ways of knowing—both scientific and indigenous
- Be prepared to challenge Western assumptions about nature as resource rather than relative
- Have a notebook ready to record moments when you feel gratitude for nature's gifts
- Consider your own relationship with the land where you live and what indigenous peoples traditionally cared for it
Brief summary
Braiding Sweetgrass in a nutshell
Robin Wall Kimmerer, a botanist and member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, weaves together indigenous wisdom and scientific knowledge in this beautiful exploration of our relationship with the natural world. Through stories of sweetgrass, pecans, salamanders, and more, she shows how plants and animals are our oldest teachers and offers a vision of reciprocity and gratitude that could heal our broken relationship with the Earth.
Key ideas overview
Braiding Sweetgrass summary of 3 key ideas
Kimmerer braids together indigenous wisdom, scientific knowledge, and personal stories to reveal a more beautiful and reciprocal way of relating to the natural world.
Plants and animals are our oldest teachers if we learn to listen.
In the indigenous way of knowing, all beings are recognized as persons—as intelligences other than our own.
The Honorable Harvest: take only what you need and give back.
The Honorable Harvest: know the ways of the ones who take care of you, so you may take care of them.
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Book summaries like Braiding Sweetgrass
Discover similar journeys
Learn to see the natural world as family rather than resource.
This summary reveals Kimmerer's powerful framework for transforming our relationship with nature from exploitation to reciprocity. You'll learn indigenous principles of gratitude and giving back, understand how to listen to nature's teachings, and discover practical ways to live in right relationship with the Earth. These insights help heal both ecological and spiritual disconnection.
Deep dive
Key ideas in Braiding Sweetgrass
Key idea 1
The Earth asks for our gratitude, not just our consumption.
In the indigenous worldview, the Earth gives to us, and we give back through our gratitude and care.
Unlike the Western model of nature as resource for human use, indigenous wisdom teaches that the Earth gives us gifts that deserve gratitude and reciprocal care. This shifts our relationship from taking to receiving, from exploitation to partnership. When we approach nature with gratitude, we naturally want to protect and nurture it.
Remember
- Practice daily gratitude for nature's gifts, from clean water to food.
- Look for ways to give back to the Earth through conservation and care.
- Shift from seeing nature as resource to seeing it as relative.
Key idea 2
Plants and animals are our oldest teachers if we learn to listen.
In the indigenous way of knowing, all beings are recognized as persons—as intelligences other than our own.
Indigenous knowledge recognizes that plants, animals, and even landscapes have their own intelligence and can teach us if we approach them with respect and humility. Sweetgrass teaches about reciprocity, pecans about generosity, salamanders about adaptation. This perspective transforms nature from object to subject, from resource to teacher.
Remember
- Approach nature with humility and willingness to learn.
- Observe natural patterns and cycles as sources of wisdom.
- Recognize that intelligence exists throughout the natural world.
Key idea 3
The Honorable Harvest: take only what you need and give back.
The Honorable Harvest: know the ways of the ones who take care of you, so you may take care of them.
This indigenous principle guides sustainable harvesting: ask permission, take only what you need, use everything you take, minimize harm, share with others, and give back. This ethical framework ensures that our taking doesn't deplete but actually strengthens ecological relationships and future abundance.
Remember
- Before taking from nature, consider whether you truly need it.
- Use resources completely and waste nothing.
- Always look for ways to give back and support regeneration.
Context
What is Braiding Sweetgrass about?
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants represents Robin Wall Kimmerer's unique synthesis of her training as a botanist and her heritage as a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. The book weaves together scientific understanding of plant ecology with indigenous teachings about reciprocity, gratitude, and our relationship with the natural world.
Through personal stories, scientific observations, and indigenous wisdom, Kimmerer explores how different ways of knowing can complement each other. She argues that combining the best of Western science with indigenous knowledge offers the most promising path toward healing our relationship with the Earth and addressing environmental crises.
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Review
Braiding Sweetgrass review
Braiding Sweetgrass is a profoundly beautiful and important book that has transformed how many readers see their relationship with nature. Kimmerer's lyrical prose, deep scientific knowledge, and indigenous wisdom create a reading experience that is both intellectually rich and spiritually nourishing. The book doesn't just present information—it invites transformation, encouraging readers to see the world with new eyes and develop more reciprocal relationships with the natural world.
- Beautiful synthesis of scientific knowledge and indigenous wisdom.
- Transforms how we see our relationship with the natural world.
- Offers practical guidance for living in right relationship with Earth.
Who should read Braiding Sweetgrass?
Anyone interested in ecology, sustainability, and environmental ethics.
Readers seeking to deepen their spiritual connection with nature.
Scientists and environmentalists looking for new perspectives.
Individuals interested in indigenous wisdom and ways of knowing.
About the author
Robin Wall Kimmerer is a mother, scientist, decorated professor, and enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. She is a SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor of Environmental Biology and the founder and director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment. Her research interests include the ecology of mosses and restoration ecology, and she is active in efforts to broaden access to environmental science education for Native students. Kimmerer lives in Syracuse, New York, where she is a mother and grandmother.
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Final summary
Braiding Sweetgrass offers a transformative vision of our relationship with the natural world—one based on gratitude, reciprocity, and seeing plants and animals as relatives and teachers rather than resources. Kimmerer's beautiful weaving of indigenous wisdom and scientific knowledge provides both practical guidance and spiritual inspiration for healing our broken relationship with the Earth. The book reminds us that the Earth gives us everything we need to live, and asks only that we receive these gifts with gratitude and care for future generations.
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