This article takes a critical look at the social work literature that views Indian people as a social problem group and fails to recognize the unique contributions that American Indian tribal and shamanic-based traditions of help and healing can make in shaping social work theory, practice, and social policy at a foundational level. The article examines the centrality of tribalism, which emphasizes the importance of kinship bonds or interconnectedness of all reality in Lakota thought and philosophy, and shamanism, which emphasizes the role and dimensions of spirits as powerful resources in the helping and healing processes for individual and for community health and well-being. The article looks at how the older, traditional ways of the Lakota resonate with Jungian psychology, Kohut's self-object theory, and Saleebey's strengths perspective in social work practice. The authors conclude that Lakota philosophy can reshape social work practice, theory, and policy by offering a fresh perspective based on very old American Indian ideas from the Great Sioux Nation.