The Wayfinders: Why Ancient Wisdom Matters in the Modern World

This is a wonderful book. I found it was so beautifully written and thought provoking I could not put it down. Wade Davis has distilled years of research and interest into a single volume. The book demonstrates why we should not dismiss all traditional practices as mere superstition and why we should pay more attention to wisdom that has evolved socially over thousands of years. He highlights the travesty of the disappearing cultures and languages which far exceeds (and is related to) the rate of biodiversity loss. I am a scientist and a rationalist but I was utterly convinced by his explanations of how seafaring Polynesians navigate by skill and instinct and the intimate relationships that various peoples of the forest, desert and ice have with their worlds. The western worldview is only one among many and does a lot of harm when imposed on cultures that it doesn't fit.

Wade Davis is a fantastic writer (also get One River if you can). This book is very informative, especially for people who have been to Australasia and South America. It gives us a great insight into how most of us have lost ancient skills because we rely too much on tools, rather than our own bodies and minds. Unfortunately, those who still have the skills are a dying breed.This is not an easy read, but the way Wade Davis writes makes the whole story and the information accessible and enjoyable.

I first heard about this from a book group and right away knew that I would want to read it and wanted my husband to read it too. This is a very important book - powerful and easy to read.

There are books that you come back to time and time again. This is one of them. My wife and I have each read it three or four times, and each time it inspires us anew. One of those books that may - warning - rid you of your preconceptions and make you rethink some of your most closely held views. Reading this, you understand that our behaviours and values are learnt - all of them. Just wonderful.

Wade Davis - heard him on the radio - had to get the book. Ordered it and have been blown away by his vision, his integrity, his knowledge and his love of language and cultures. This is a book that could save the world if only EVERYONE could read it!

Tremendously important book. Beautifully written. It is not about what you might imagine; crops circles and mysterious cults for example. It is about real cultures, real people, getting to grips with the world and understanding it with intelligence and generosity. Should be required reading in all schools.

amazing book. seller sent out in good time with no quarms.

As with all Wade Davis' writing this is an intelligent and thought provoking work. I read it with my lap top to hand so that I could further research some of the cultural beliefs and practices he writes about

Magnifico libro que recomiendo mucho a los que les interesa la historia de las culturas en el mundo

Birdcalls echo in the rainforests of Borneo as the Penan hunter crouches before a kill. Inuit glide across the wind-scoured ice. Kogi priests traverse Colombian coral reefs and cloud forests to learn contours of the landscape entrusted to their care. In the published edition of his five Massey Lectures, Wade Davis seeks to answer the question “What does it mean to be human and alive?” with portraits of culture spanning centuries and terrain. It’s a rare work of anthropology illustrating the vitality of human imagination from Himalayan peaks to the southern sea; Davis brings new attention to peoples still practicing ancient arts and writes with the voice of a lyrical novelist. Anything but a detached textbook, it remains a work as fascinating as it is beautiful to read. And in depicting new dreams of the Earth, Davis presents one of his own.Why do we speak the languages we do? How did humanity journey out of Africa millennia ago and come to settle every corner of the habitable world? In examining the planet’s constellation of cultures, Davis argues that thousands of languages and millions of lifeways are as threatened as species comprising the biosphere. The loss of either has equal significance for the flourishing of our world. To read his book is to discover a love letter to our species and develop a new understanding of the diversity of human endeavor. The images are robust: San sipping water from ostrich eggs beneath the sweltering Kalahari sun, a steadfast wayfinder aboard the open-decked Hokule’a crashing through waves on a journey across the Pacific and into the Polynesian spirit, travels into the jade canopy of the Amazon rainforest - realm of the jaguar shaman. A former National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence, Davis writes from firsthand experience based on decades of fieldwork and creates a sense of eyewitness any travel writer would envy while never deviating from scholarly precision.As a historical text, the book is exhaustively researched and includes an annotated bibliography with years of reading material for those interested in anthropology and natural history. While acknowledging Western culture’s triumphs and contributions, Davis also explores the consequences of colonialism. Losing connection with other ways of living carries environmental and psychological costs, and the character of culture is inextricably linked to the spirit of place. The Tendai marathon monks of Japan, Andean pilgrimages, or Songlines of Aboriginal Australia represent exquisite achievements in human thought, and Davis interrogates the extent to which a singular culture produces a singular mindset. Yet the book remains hopeful. Why does Davis have faith in our ability to mend ages of destruction? Because of the tenacity and ingenuity of the human journey he himself celebrates. An unforgettable read both for the energy of its author and the poetry of its language, The Wayfinders inspired me to pursue anthropology more than any other text.

This was an incredibly thought provoking and fascinating read. I’m particularly interested in worldviews and how they can change over time and this book describes in wonderful detail how indigenous cultures express the "human spirit," as Davis says. What is perhaps most incredible about these cultures is that despite unbelievable odds -- including the theft of lands, language, culture, and even children -- many have managed to persist even today. Wade Davis' book is important for so many reasons but for me it is particularly salient given our current trajectory toward annihilation -- fuelled by our addiction to endless growth on a finite planet. A change in worldview (here in the west) that incorporates ancient (and current) indigenous knowledge and honours our relationship with the living world will be essential in order to reverse the damage we've already done. This book is essential reading if you're interested in a livable future.

This is the second time I bought this book. I have it away immediately after reading it the first time, as I think everyone should read it, but I actually mourned not having it. First time thats happened. It completely changed my perspective on humanity in this world and priorities of the planet. If I could meet Wade Davis in person, I would thank him profusely.

Great read, excellent source for the high school course used in.