Wisdom from a Rainforest: The Spiritual Journey of an Anthropologist

I have spoken at length and with deep feeling in several places -- notably in my book, WISDOM FROM A RAINFOREST -- that I received a phone call in 1971 from a close friend in the Philippines that the entire Teduray community of Figel where I did research in the late 1960s had been massacred -- every man, woman, and child. This devastated me and I called another friend who confirmed that it was correct.

Just a few days ago -- some 46 years later -- a knowledgable new Teduray friend informed me that, in fact, Figel still exists, that he visits there regularly, and that there had been some survivors in 1971. The forest trees are now all gone, but Figel has a school and some descendants of Balaud, the esteemed legal sage, are still living there.

I am overjoyed beyond words to learn this, but embarrassed that I had misinformed my many readers. I am now trying to reach as many as possible to set the record straight. Please help me spread this happy news. 

Thank you very much,

Stuart A. Schlegel 

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In the mid-sixties, Stuart Schlegel went into a remote rainforest on the Philippine island of Mindanao as an anthropologist in search of material. What he found was a group of people whose tolerant, gentle way of life would transform his own values and beliefs profoundly. Wisdom from a Rainforest is Schlegel's testament to his experience and to the Teduray people of Figel, from whom he learned such vital, lasting lessons.
Schlegel's lively ethnography of the Teduray portrays how their behavior and traditions revolved around kindness and compassion for humans, animals, and the spirits sharing their worlds. Schlegel describes the Teduray's remarkable legal system and their strong story-telling tradition, their elaborate cosmology, and their ritual celebrations. At the same time, Schlegel recounts his own transformation―how his worldview as a member of an advanced, civilized society was shaken to the core by a so-called primitive people. He begins to realize how culturally determined his own values are and to see with great clarity how much the Teduray can teach him about gender equality, tolerance for difference, generosity, and cooperation.
By turns funny, tender, and gripping, Wisdom from a Rainforest honors the Teduray's legacy and helps us see how much we can learn from a way of life so different from our own.