Imagine crossing thousands of miles of wild seas without a single map or compass, destined for a tiny island you’ve never been to before. Courageous people called Wayfinders navigated the seas in their canoes, using little more than the stars and songs shared by elders. Anthropologists say that Polynesian wayfinding was a far cry from today’s navigation. It was based on more than science. It was an art and a spiritual practice.
Wayfinders fell into a wordless meditative state so that they could detect even the subtlest of navigational clues. They watched the sun, the moon, and the stars very closely. They had to memorize how the sky looked when they first set sail and how it changed each day after, keeping continuous mental notes. They remembered the changing positions of over 200 stars, along with the locations of the sun and moon for the entire trip.
They used songs to help them remember the names of the stars. Without pens or paper, they tracked speed, direction, and time, storing it all in their heads. They had to clear their minds of all other distractions and focus, focus, focus. They slept less than two hours a night for weeks on end. If you were looking for a boat’s Wayfinder in a crowd of people, sleepless bloodshot eyes would give him away.
Now, Wayfinders have all but disappeared. In fact, the last grand master, Micronesian Mau Piailug, passed away in 2010. On one epic voyage, Mau awoke from the middle of a deep sleep to tell the steersman that the canoe was off course. Wayfinders like Mau knew whether the canoe was on course or not by lying down in the hull of the canoe and “feeling” the movements of the water. Even in his sleep, he could feel something was wrong. His skills were so fine-tuned, no living navigator claims to be able to do what he did.
Despite their amazing talents, until the late 18th century, Wayfinders remained a hidden part of history. In 1778, Captain James Cook and a Tahitian priest sailed from Tahiti to a Hawaiian island, 2,500 miles away. Cook was astounded when the priest began to communicate with Hawaiian locals in his native language. This linguistic connection spanned over 16 million square miles of ocean, including more than 1,000 islands.
Amazed, Cook asked the now-famous question, “How shall we account for this Nation spreading itself so far over this vast ocean?” Scholars now have an answer: Wayfinders.
It’s obvious that due to modern technology, ancient arts like wayfinding are dying out. As convenient and helpful as technology is, how many other such artistic and spiritual practices are becoming lost forever?
References:
http://www.pbs.org/wayfinders/polynesian8.html
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/mau-piailug-hokulea-kamea-hadar_n_5482696?ir=India
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-voyage-kon-tiki-misled-world-about-navigating-pacific-180952478/?no-ist
The Wayfinders crossed thousands of miles of wild seas without a single map. These people used little more than the stars and songs. Some say that wayfinding was a far cry from today’s method for finding one’s way. It was not a science. It was spiritual and an art.
Wayfinders watched the sun, the moon, and the stars. They remembered how the sky looked when they first set sail. They watched how it changed each day and kept notes. They remembered the changing positions of over 200 stars, the sun, and the moon for the whole trip.
They used songs to help them remember the names of the stars. Without pens or paper, they recorded speed, direction, and time, keeping it all in their heads. They had to clear their minds and focus, focus, focus. They slept less than two hours a night for weeks on end. If you were looking for a boat’s Wayfinder in a crowd of people, sleepless bloodshot eyes would give him away.
Now, Wayfinders have all but disappeared. In fact, the last grand master, Mau Piailug, passed away in 2010. On one trip, Mau awoke from the middle of a deep sleep, knowing that the ship was off course. Wayfinders knew whether the canoe was on course or not by lying down and “feeling” the movements of the water. Even in his sleep, Mau could feel something was wrong.
Until the late 18th century, Wayfinders were a hidden part of history. In 1778, Captain James Cook and a Tahitian priest sailed from Tahiti to a Hawaiian island, 2,500 miles away. Cook was surprised when the priest began to talk with Hawaiians in his native language. The connections between their languages stretched over 16 million square miles of ocean.
Wayfinding is dying out. With modern technology taking its place, the art may soon be lost forever.
References:
http://www.pbs.org/wayfinders/polynesian8.html
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/mau-piailug-hokulea-kamea-hadar_n_5482696?ir=India
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-voyage-kon-tiki-misled-world-about-navigating-pacific-180952478/?no-ist
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