“…the tracker’s instinct is always to go into the unknown. We live with an intense curiosity. It is the means by which life pulls us to a destiny bigger than what we could have imagined for ourselves”
Boyd Varty has lived a remarkable life, though I wouldn’t expect anything less from someone who has “Lion Tracker” as a job title.
In his book, The Lion Trackers Guide To Life, Boyd recounts a day-long excursion in the South African bush where he tracks a Lion with his mentors Renias and Alex. He lures you into the journey with masterful storytelling and sneaks in timeless wisdom from a life spent in apprenticeship to the natural world along the way.
When he`s not tracking lions or surviving crocodile attacks, Boyd is a tracker of purpose. He has been working for years as a life guide and apprentice to a Peruvian Shaman in ceremonial spaces.
The Lion Trackers Guide To Life is a beautiful melding of the natural and spiritual worlds. Boyd`s unique gift is the application of the timeless art of lion tracking to the process of human transformation. This short, entertaining book lays down the basics of the tracker mindset and shows how we can all benefit from applying those principles in our own lives.
If you feel with conviction that there`s something that you were meant to do but is yet to be discovered, this book is for you.
“Use the skill of the tracker to connect with your wild self. Notice the small things that make you feel alive and follow them down the path. You will be pulled to the life that is calling.”
Boyd was born into the tracking trade. He was raised on Londolozi Game Reserve, a previously desolate, over-farmed hunting ground in the wilderness of South Africa that was acquired by his grandfather after a night of drinking over 90 years ago.
After his passing, the land was handed down to his teenage sons, Boyd’s father, and uncle. Despite their young age, the wild patch of land had already left an important impression on the boys. Against all odds, they decided to keep it and became stewards of the reserve. As a result of their efforts, Londolozi was transformed from an arid, parched expanse, home only to dense scrub, into a thriving ecosystem teeming once again with elephants, leopards, lions, and other iconic animals.
The process of restoring the land not only transformed its landscape and fauna, it changed its owner’s relationship with nature. Boyd’s father and uncle became devoted conservationists and transitioned from Lion hunters to lion trackers.
Growing up on Londolozi meant co-existing with all of its natural inhabitants. Boyd has had his share of close calls in the bush. This closeness with the natural world in combination with a lifetime of apprenticeship under a renowned tracker from the Shangaan tribe has thought him how to read the signs of animals. He was shown the ancient art of tracking lions.
I will not go deeper into Boyd’s remarkable life story here. It is not mine to tell. Believe me, Boyd is as good a storyteller as he is a lion tracker. I will not rob you of the joy of reading his experience firsthand in this beautiful book, or his memoir Cathedrals of the Wild.
“I don`t know where we are going, but I know exactly how to get there.”
Tracking lions is a skill that’s as old as humanity itself. As humans evolved on the African plains, they learned to track lions out of subsistence. Apex predators that they are, lions were better at killing big game than humans could ever dream to be. Humans are clever though. They learned to track lions, sneak up on them and spook them away from their kill so that they could steal some nutritious meat for themselves.
The times have changed, the art of tracking has not.
A tracker can only learn by doing. The knowledge and skill are absorbed by proximity to expert trackers and time spent on the track, there is no substitute. The Lion Tracker’s Guide to life illustrates this beautifully.
Tracking a lion, or anything really begins with opening the senses and noticing the first track. A paw print in the mud, compressed blades of grass or a pile of fresh dung are all examples of good first tracks.
Detecting the first track that you are looking for amongst all the tracks laid down by other animals while in the field requires the expert tracker to become 100% committed to the process and channel all his attention to the task. He must believe that he will succeed while focusing solely on what is directly in front of him. Getting caught up in the expectations of the desired outcome instead of the track is a distraction that will surely throw him off course.
Boyd found his approach to transforming his own life while practicing this ancient art form. Using the skills and attention developed in the bush to open his curiosity and find the first track of his true calling.
“We are part of nature, and inside each of us is a wild self that knows deeply what it is meant to do.”
It’s easy to forget that humans are first and foremost animals. Our society and technology have evolved by leaps and bounds over the past millennia, but our bodies remain mostly unchanged. We still have all the same parts that the first lion trackers did.
As they learned to harness their senses and the intuition that guided them on the track, we have learned to tune them out.
By showing the ways of the lion tracker, Boyd reminds us that this body knowledge is still with us. It is accessible with a bit of intentional practice. He invites us to reconnect with our emotions and listen to what our physiology is telling us.
We`ve all had the feeling in our gut before when we know intuitively that we are doing something that we shouldn`t be doing, just like we’ve had the good physical feeling that comes from spending time in nature or making a positive connection with someone.
Getting reacquainted with the wild self begins with paying attention to these emotions. Invite them in and listen instead of tuning them out. When you are not sure what to do, your body will guide you in the right direction.
“Be in tune with your body`s emotions and reactions like the lion tracker is in tune with his surroundings in nature. Watch for hints of your track. Find the first track and follow it to the next one.”
Being open to this internal dialogue doesn’t mean that we will automatically know what to do with our lives to feel fulfilled. What it can do, is allow us to see the first track when it comes.
Safety is largely sought after in modern society. It was indispensable to bring us to this amazing time in history. When our ancestors lived in nature and had to compete with other animals to survive and maintain their status on the food chain, safety had to be the number 1 priority.
We still carry this evolutionary trait with us even when our basic survival needs are under control. If we have the luxury of asking ourselves “What is my true purpose in life”, we are most likely not under any serious threat to our individual safety. Yet this instinctual need is still there. It will keep us in a job that we hate because of the financial security it provides. It will get in the way of trying new things by making us afraid to look foolish.
“Too much uncertainty is chaos, but too little is death.”
Living like a lion tracker means that we need to re-learn to listen to our body`s queues. We need to tune in to our emotions and open ourselves to curiosity if we want to notice the first track in our lives when they show up.
We will give ourselves permission to be open-minded and follow this track without expectations of success or knowing where it leads, simply to see where it goes.
Just like the art of tracking lions can only be learned through action, the first track towards our own purpose can only be uncovered by reaching out into the world and searching for it.
I’ve really enjoyed The Lion Tracker`s Guide to life. It is a short, yet powerful book that I believe to be an important one. It has the potential to change how people think for the better. I strongly suggest that you give it a look.
Who knows, this book could be the first track on your path to becoming who you were meant to be.
More About Boyd Varty
Long-form interview on the Tim Ferriss Show: https://tim.blog/2022/02/15/boyd-varty/
Boyd Varty`s website: https://boydvarty.com/