"In this endeavor there is no loss or diminution, and a little advancement on this path can protect one from the most dangerous type of fear. "
Sir Edmund Hillary: On to the next adventure
Heading towards the unknown
Financial Times Jan 10, 2008
- JUSTIN MAROZZI
Everest conqueror Edmund Hillary dies
Sir Edmund Hillary, who has died aged 88, stepped onto the summit of Mount Everest at 11.30am on May 29, 1953, and immediately entered the legend books. Together with the Nepalese Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, the lanky beekeeper from Auckland was the first to set foot on the peak of the world's highest mountain Ð 29,028 feet above sea level .
It was a a feat which had eluded seven major expeditions from 1920-1952 and confounded the predictions of those who believed man could never survive at such altitudes. The moment was captured forever in Hillary's iconic photograph of Tenzing clutching his ice-axe on the summit. go to story
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A spiritual journey
Sir Edmund Hillary gave his life to exploration and adventure. After conquering the peak of Everest, he ventured to the Antarctic and reached the South Pole. He revisited the Himalayas several times again on excursions in the 1960's. In 1977 he led a jet-boat expedition up the Ganges to the source. When he was not exploring, he worked on medical and conservation campaings and founded the Himalaya Trust for developing infrastructure in Nepal. Sir Edmund Hillary continued travelling well into his 80's. Just checking on his name in the VedaBase, I came across a news item in a 1993 Back to Godhead, which is not likely to appear in any mainstream news, but is of interest to devotees:
New Zealand
Sir Edmund Hillary welcomed two devotees to his home last fall. Sir Edmund, the first man to climb Mt. Everest, has served as New Zealand's High Commissioner to India, and he is deeply interested in Indian culture. He is also an advocate for protecting the environment. So he signed a letter encouraging New Zealanders to support the Padayatra, a walk organized by devotees to promote, among other things, a land-based economy and living in harmony with nature.
Now he has gone on to a new adventure, we know not where, but from Bhagavad-gita (8.6) we can have some idea: "Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, that state he will attain without fail. " And in whatever body and circumstances this soul who was Sir Edmund Hillary in this life next finds itself, we are confident that he/she will pick up his/her spiritual journey where left off in this life. "In this endeavor there is no loss or diminution, and a little advancement on this path can protect one from the most dangerous type of fear. " (Bhagavad-gita 2.40) In giving hospitality to two devotees and official endorsement of their spiritual service, Sir Edmund Hillary rendered devotional service to two representatives of Krishna. Whether knowingly or unknowingly, service offered to Krishna or to His representative, never goes in vain, but is rewarded by the favor of the Supreme Lord. So we send our good wishes with the living entity who was in this life Sir Edmund Hillary.
Sri Guru and Gauranga