In Praise of Spirit

About the Book

This book celebrates life-not my life, not just life on this planet, but life itself. Not just the life that we can see but life that is everywhere-as far away as we can imagine it. The book is a synthesis of Native American philosophy and evolutionary biology. Although science is very important and enriches our knowledge, we must still turn to spirituality for a sense of where we are in the universe.

I begin with an "Opening Prayer" and two other poems that set a spiritual tone. Next, I provide a Creation Story-one of many that are as varied as the world cultures they come from but that is more expansive than others because it takes into account man's origins in the Sea. Next, the "Odyssey" is a poetic interpretation of the journey from man's roots in Africa 200,000 years ago to the paths (both land and sea) by which Homo sapiens colonized the globe. I then include several poems that express my own spirituality, which is very much congruent with Native American philosophy. Finally, there is an Afterword that goes into considerable detail about my merging of that philosophy with science.

About the Author

Robert Whitcomb is a biologist with more than 300 scientific publications to his credit. Since retiring from the US Department of Agriculture in 1997 he has been able to devote his writing to other subjects, as well. In 2000 he published his first volume of poetry, Love, Stars and Deity.