The University of Massachusetts will host Sioux author Arvol Looking Horse tomorrow. Looking Horse will meet with religious leaders at a gathering open to the public at 10:30 a.m. in room 905 of the Campus Center.

Looking Horse is the nineteenth in a line of holders of the sacred C’anupa, or white buffalo calf pipe, which he received from his grandmother at the age of 12. He is also the author of the book White Buffalo Teachings, and has lectured across the world on the importance of peace and environmental protection.

The 10:30 gathering is a continuation of the monthly UMass Religious Affairs Committee meeting. At the assembly, Looking Horse will meet with chaplains, advisors, and representatives from UMass faith communities. Students are especially encouraged to attend.

“Arvol Looking Horse is, in some ways, the Dalai Lama of the Sioux people,” says Chaplain Jonathon Rhemus, a member of the Committee. “He’s a religious leader who strongly encourages a path of peace. In his recent book, White Buffalo Teachings, he spoke about humanity at a crossroads – both in terms of its relation to itself and to the earth.”

This topic, Rhemus explained, will be discussed at tomorrow’s meeting.

Rhemus feels that it is important for anyone with an awareness of religious traditions to attend the gathering.

“He’s a 19th Generation keeper,” he said. “We’re dealing with ancient religious teachings here. This is a must for anyone with an interest in that subject.”

Looking Horse was born in South Dakota’s Cheyenne River Reservation in 1954. Since receiving the C’anupa, he has spoken in many prominent arenas. In 1994, he traveled to the United Nations, where he presented the opening prayer at the Cry of the Earth Awareness Conference. Four years later he again spoke at a United Nations event, when he delivered a lecture at the Conference on Sacred Sights. He has been on the board of Society of Peace and Prayer, and has won numerous awards from peace organizations.

Looking Horse will not be the only prominent author in attendance tomorrow morning. He will be accompanied by his co-editors on White Buffalo Teachings, Paula Horn and Harvey Arden. Horn is a staff writer for National Geographic, and is noted for her attempts to establish the Summer Solstice [June 21] as an international day of unity and prayer. She is known to her people as H’e Sapa winyan [or, “Black Hills Woman”]. Arden is the editor of incarcerated Native American activist Leonard Peltier’s Prison Writings, and the author of Wisdom Keepers: Conversations with Native Spiritual Leaders.

The Campus Center meeting is not Looking Horse’s only stop in the Five College area. On Thursday, Nov. 15, he will speak at Hampshire College’s Franklin Patterson Main Lecture Hall at 7:00 p.m. At the conclusion of his lecture, he will participate in a book signing. He will also speak at the Fare Thee Well Wellness Center in Huntington, Mass., on Wednesday, Nov. 14, at 2:00 p.m., where he will deliver a prayer and a lecture, followed by a reception.