Light at the Edge of the World

Wade Davis was in Delhi and we made sure we did not miss his programme. It was April 21st 2007 and by 7 pm, we were already seated inside the Gulmohar Hall at the India Habitat Centre. I did not know about Wade Davis until that evening. This celebrated anthropologist, writer and National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence was on tour to promote his film 'Light at the Egde of the World' a 4 series film on cultures in struggle in the face of modernization.

His voice was smooth and strong with conviction as he spoke about his work and the film he made. He said that 'power' was threatening to wipe culture away, but that just as we humans can wipe away cultures, so can we nurture them. By power, he was referring to the social, economic, political and spiritual forces of the 'modern/civilised' world that are impacting and destroying other cultures that are (viewed by the modern/civilised world as) not 'modern' or 'civilised'. Davis pointed out that there was also a significant part played by missionaries who were brought by the European explorers, which contributed to a rapid erosion of unique cultures. He gave the example of the ancient Polynesian civilization that was subjected to these external forces to the extent that within one generation, almost the entire ancient practices and customs of people slipped from history into the realm of myth and ultimately disappeared.

After his talk, there was an exclusive screening of his film 'The Wayfinders'. The film is about the Wayfinders of Polynesia who inhabited the largest culturesphere in the human history, spanning 1/5th of the surface of the planet. Navigators of the sea, Wayfinders used wave pattern 'fingerprints' and the stars to travel thousands of islands. However this culture that once flourished over 25 million square kilometres of ocean has seen mush of its history and tradition die out. The film also tells about one Hawaiian native trying to preserve and learn this art form of Wayfinding, and designing a traditional Polynesian canoe (Hokule'a) to sail across the islands.

Hokule'a, the Polynesian sea-faring canoe.

(Picture taken from http://www.pbs.org/wayfinders/polynesian8.html)

The pictures below were taken from the website:

http://www.theconnection.org/photogallery/wade

The front cover to "Light at the Edge of the World," by National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence Wade Davis, published by National Geographic Books in February 2002.

National Geographic Exlorer-in-Residence Wade Davis.

The eyes of Rara at the town of Desdunnes, Artibonite Valley, Haiti.

A Yagua shaman from the northwest Amazon region of Peru.

Note: The other 3 film series in 'The Light at the Edge of the World' are:

-> Hunter of the Northern Ice: About the Inuit of Canada and Greenland who have survived for thousands of years in the harshest climate on earth. But will global warming bring an end to the Arctic hunt and the Inuit way of life?

-> Sacred Geography: Wade accompanies villagers from the town of Chinchero, Peru, as they make the trek to the annual Qoyllur Rit'i festival, which attarcts more than 25,000 people a year across the Andes mountains. A rich illustrations of beautiful rituals dating as far back as the ancient Incas and Spanish Conquistadors, this festival showcases the cultural fusion of pan-Andean culture.

- > Science of the Mind: Wade goes on a spiritual trek through the Himalayas of Nepal, looking at Buddhism as a science of the mind.