Francis
Bacon was
the 1st Viscount of St. Alban, an English philosopher, statesman,
scientist, jurist, orator, and author.
He served as Attorney General and as Lord Chancellor of England. In 1625 he publish his third book of essays,
entitled, Essayes or Counsels, Civill and Morall. In Chapter 12 of this edition, Bacon framed
an aphorism, a version of which is still used today:
“If the hill will not come to
Mahomet, Mahomet will go to the hill.”
Today, the related phraseology we hear most often is, “If the mountain
won’t come to Muhammad then Muhammad must go to the mountain.” When Francis Bacon coined the phrase, the
first recorded instance of its use, he set it in context.
“Mahomet made the people believe that he would call a hill to
him, and from the top of it offer up his prayers, for the observers of his law.
The people assembled; Mahomet called the hill to come to him, again and again;
and when the hill stood still, he was never a whit abashed.
Instead of
being befuddled, perturbed, or embarrassed, without missing a beat, Mahomet
pivoted, and uttered the phrase referenced above…
“If the hill will not come to
Mahomet, Mahomet will go to the hill.”
Bacon, called the father of empiricism, was popular both
during life, and after his death. He
considered his Essays mere recreations of his other studies, though his
contemporaries yielded them critical acclaim.
In fact, one 19th century literary historian, Henry Hallam, wrote of
them:
"They are deeper and more discriminating than any earlier,
or almost any later, work in the English language.
The Essays
were translated into French and Italian during his lifetime. The 1999 edition of The Oxford
Dictionary of Quotations includes no fewer than 91 quotations
from his various Essays. That’s
more than an adequate set up for Sir Francis Bacon.
Today’s real
conversation does pertain to a mountain, and of course to one of the aphorisms
popularized by Bacon, but obviously not directly to him. Instead this is a discourse about Mt. Everest
and the array of individuals who have been, and who may be in the future, drawn
to scale it…or to attempt to do so.
Everest is
located in the Mahalangur Himal section of the Himalayas, which is in
northeast Nepal
and south-central Tibet
(China) extending east from the pass Nangpa La between Rolwaling Himal and Cho Oyu, to the Arun River. It is the tallest peak in the world, and has
been measured at 8,848 metres (29,029 ft) above sea level. The current official height as recognized by
China and Nepal was established by a 1955 Indian survey and later revalidated
by a Chinese survey in 1975. In 1865,
Everest was given its official English name by the Royal
Geographical Society upon a recommendation by Andrew Waugh, the
British Surveyor General
of India. Waugh chose the
name in honor of his predecessor, Sir George Everest, disregarding Everest’s
objections.
As the tallest
mountain in the World, Everest is like a video game character festooned with a
target on its back, or as the dynamic Janet Jackson put it in her Standard, That’s The Way Love Goes, “Like a moth
to a flame.” And, just like that moth,
too often, the result will be tragic.
The next line is the song is “Burned by the fire.” On the positive side roughly 5,000 people from
all around the world have successfully reached the summit of Mt. Everest. However, by the end of the 2014 climbing
season at least 265 people died trying to reach the summit, and/or just as
important, descend.
Avalanches
alone have killed 35 people in the last two years, including 16 in one day in
2014. At least one person has died
trying to climb Everest every year since 1900.
Now, the 2016 count of individuals who did not survive their effort to
climb Everest commences. At least four
people have died on the mountain since last Thursday.
In the words
of geographer and climber Jon Kedrowski, who successfully reached the summit in
2012, “Everest is a mountain of extremes.
At altitude, the body
deteriorates on
a certain level.” In 2012, the year
Kedrowski reached the summit, 10 climbers died.
April 2016 was the first month of climbing since all ascent was stopped
after a catastrophic
earthquake that struck Nepal in 2015 and the avalanche that killed 16 Sherpas in one day in
2014.
The four
deaths over the past week have rattled climbers who are just starting their
descent as the climbing season comes to an end.
April and May are the months most attempts are made due to there
typically being less wind. Wind or not,
the temperature is always a factor, ranging from -31 to -4 degrees Fahrenheit.
And yet, the
climbers just keep coming. Over 400
individuals challenged Everest during this season. According to the director of Nepal’s National
Tourism Department, Sudarshan
Dhakal, the total included 288 foreigners and over 100 Sherpas and guides. That is more than the average of previous
seasons. The two-year hiatus undoubtedly
created an element of pent up demand for the experience. As a result of the weather related
interruptions, 2016 was the first time in two years any one reached Everest’s
summit.
On four
consecutive fateful days, beginning last Thursday, “Like a moth to a flame,”
four brave souls were “Burned by the fire” of Everest. May their souls rest in eternal power and
peace! In their honor, see a summary of
their individual stories below:
Thursday:
Phurba Sherpa – An Everest crew member, Phurba fell to his
death. He was 25-years old and had been
working to fix a route near the summit when he fell. The Sherpa people
are an ethnic group from Nepal who have lived in the high altitudes
of the Himalayas for many generations.
They serve as guides and their local familiarity and experience has been
invaluable, especially for foreigners trying to climb Everest.
Friday:
Eric Arnold – A 36 year-old from the Netherlands, he died at
night while heading back down after succeeding in reaching the summit on
Everest. It is believed he had a heart
attack. Eric was a triathlete. While the cause of his heart attack has not
been determined, one of the key steps in preparing for an Everest trek is to
consult a physician for a full evaluation and screening to detect any
pre-existing conditions. When high
altitude is the goal, cardio, rather than strength, is the emphasis.
Saturday:
Maria Strydom – A 34 year-old Australian woman, Maria began
suffering from altitude sickness. She
reached Camp IV, the final camp before the summit. She was unable to climb any higher and a
rescue attempt failed to reach her. She
had a high altitude cough and acute mountain sickness, which can mean headaches
and shortness of breath. These are
common symptoms among Everest climbers.
Maria had aspired to climb the tallest peaks on all seven continents. Before taking on Everest, she had climbed
Denali in Alaska, Aconcagua in Argentina, Mount Ararat in Eastern Turkey, and
Kilimanjaro in Africa. A finance
professor at Monash Business School in Australia, she died before she could
descend to Camp III.
Sunday:
Subash Paul – A 44 year-old, died of altitude sickness. He was part of a team of four Indian climbers
and four Sherpas. The team also had two
other members go missing Saturday night.
It is believed that the weather deteriorated suddenly and resulted in
the team losing direction. According to Nepalese
officials, a helicopter search was not possible because the climbers were too
high up the mountain.
Of the four
casualties noted above, three died chasing a dream; the fourth fell to his
death helping them. All four were in
effect, “Like a moth to a flame…Burned by the fire.” Rescue efforts are still underway for two
missing climbers. The death toll
presents a chilling reminder of the enormous hazards Everest poses, even for
the most experienced of climbers.
As moths
are innately drawn to the light of the flame, humans as a species are drawn to
the challenge, thrill, and exhilaration defined by our individual beings. For some, it is Everest. I for one surely can’t even begin to explain
it, but that’s a moot point. Those who
feel the yearning do what they must.
Some folks go to Vegas, and role the dice. Mountain climbers of the highest order go to
Nepal and Tibet where they challenge “Everest:The Highest Gamble!”
I’m done; holla back!
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