July 14, 2006
Book Review - "The Heart of the World"
It’s one of mankind’s oldest quests – the belief in, and search for Utopia, Paradise or Shangri-La - a secret place of great beauty, often hidden or remote. This belief in a secret place is practiced by many different cultures and religions throughout the world, particularly those in the mysterious East. Tibetan Buddhists have long believed in ‘beyul’, or ‘hidden lands’, - places not only of spectacular beauty, but places where, it is said the physical and spiritual worlds overlap. In Tibet, now part of China, this belief goes back many centuries and is well documented in writings, drawings and passed on by word of mouth.
One such secret place is said to lie at the eastern edge of the Himalayas, a region still largely unexplored and unpenetrated. Tibetan prophecies tell of a spectacular series of waterfalls along the Tsangpo Gorge, one of the deepest and most spectacular chasms in the world. For centuries, Tibetan pilgrims and European explorers have sought this gorge. In 1924, the British Royal Geographical society firmly declared the waterfalls to be nothing more than a religious myth, after a British expedition failed to find them.
‘The Heart of The World’ is part travel book, part historical detective story, part study of Tibetan beliefs and customs. The author, acclaimed explorer Ian Baker, first learned of Tibet’s ‘hidden lands’ while studying in Katmandu on a summer semester program. He has spent the past 20 years trying to establish if the waterfalls actually exist, and their possible whereabouts. His painstaking and fascinating research takes him to many places throughout China and Nepal - from a meeting with the Dalai Lama, to dusty manuscripts in ancient libraries, and finally along the gorge to the falls themselves.
To further his quest, Baker has many adventures – a month spent alone in a cave in the wilderness to ‘find himself’ and a brief sojourn in university in New York, before realizing he was not suited for the academic life. Ironically, considering his exciting and often dangerous journey in Tibet, Baker recounts how he was almost mugged while in New York. Baker overcomes various tangles with the Chinese authorities and the notorious ‘red tape’ concerning travel permits in this part of the world. Eventually Baker succeeds in getting sponsorship from National Geographic, to undertake the trip of a lifetime.
Apart from the author’s description of the fascinating and often dangerous journey along the river, the book also offers a unique and knowledgeable insight into Tibetan Buddhism and some of its rituals and beliefs, making this much more than just an everyday travel book. As befitting the epic journey, it is a long book – some 450 pages, illustrated with photographs not only of the stunning mountain scenery but also some of the fascinating people the author met. The book contains an introduction from the spiritual leader of Tibet, the Dalai Lama.
This is a wonderful book, which like the very best travel books will make you want to pack a suitcase and go there yourself. But as most of us will never do that, the next best thing is to vicariously live the adventure through this fascinating story.
The Heart of the World (A Journey to the Last Secret Place) by Ian Baker
