Boyd Varty — A Lion Tracker’s Guide to Presence, Purpose, and Self Transformation

In this episode, Niall speaks with Boyd Varty, a wildlife tracker, storyteller, and author of the bestselling books “Cathedral of the Wild”, and “The Lion Tracker’s Guide to Life”. Boyd grew up at Londolozi Game Reserve in South Africa, where he learned the ancient art of tracking from master Shangaan trackers. In this conversation, they explore: — How a near-death experience at eighteen revealed a state of consciousness beyond fear — Why tracking animals can teach us how to track our own lives and find what we’re truly looking for — The link between disconnection from nature and the search for meaning — Why transformation begins with saying, “I don’t know, but I want to” — How to follow a sense of aliveness in the body as a guide for decisions And more. You can learn more about Boyd’s work, retreats, and books at boydvarty.com and boydvarty.com/course-listing/track-your-life-masterclass. --- The wildlife and literacy activist Boyd Varty, author of the memoir Cathedral of the Wild, had an unconventional upbringing. Born to a family of conservationists, Boyd grew up on Londolozi Game Reserve in the South African wilderness, a place where man and nature strive for balance, where perils exist alongside wonders. Founded more than 90 years ago as a hunting ground, Londolozi was transformed into a nature reserve beginning in 1973 by Varty’s father and uncle, visionaries of the restoration movement. But it wasn’t just a sanctuary for the animals; it was also a place for ravaged land to flourish again and for the human spirit to be restored. When Nelson Mandela was released after 27 years of imprisonment, he came to the reserve to recover. Since childhood, Boyd shared his home with lions, leopards, snakes, and elephants and has spent his life in apprenticeship to the wisdom of nature. Boyd survived a harrowing black mamba encounter, a debilitating bout with malaria, even a vicious crocodile attack, but his biggest challenge was a personal crisis of purpose. As a university student, he studied psychology and ecology, supplementing his education by learning martial arts in Thailand, hiking through the jungles of the Amazon, and apprenticing to a renowned tracker from the Shangaan tribe deepening his intimate knowledge of the natural world. Boyd grew up speaking the local language and learning the true meaning of coexistence between people and with nature. Boyd continues to, like a tracker, follow unconventional pathways. He has worked intensively over the past 7 years in ceremonial spaces as an apprentice to a Peruvian shaman while generating his own system of coaching called “track your life” with draws lessons from the ancient art form of tracking to help people find more meaning, purpose and motivation. At the core of his work is the impulse of life towards healing, wholeness and wildness. He works in both the USA and South Africa to connect people to nature and to their own true inner nature. Boyd Varty is a major voice of the new consciousness. He engages audiences across the world on the subject of forging connections in ourselves, in our communities and with the earth. He speaks to those who long for a way of interaction both simpler and more profound than the way most of us live in the world today. Boyd has a psychology degree from the University of South Africa. He is a certified Master Life Coach, the author of two books and a TED speaker. Boyd has spent the last ten years refining the art of using wilderness as a place for deep introspection and personal transformation. Having taught his philosophy of “Tracking your Life” to companies and individuals all over the world he has been featured in the New York Times and NBC. --- Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro 01:37 - The Night at Gunpoint: A Doorway to Awakening 07:21 - The Reality Beyond Reality: Making Sense of the Mystical 09:23 - Growing Up in the African Wilderness 12:19 - Meeting Martha Beck: A Turning Point 14:28 - The Evolution of Track Your Life 18:47 - Following the Energy: Track Awareness 22:26 - The Writer's Path: Following Aliveness 26:04 - Expressing Your Gifts as Medicine for the Collective 30:33 - Nature as a Storytelling Machine: Finding Meaning Through Relationality 37:31 - The Intelligence of Nature and the Subtractive Path of Healing 44:44 - What Keeps Us Out of Presence 47:47 - Cultivating Presence as a Daily Practice 49:05 - Developing Awareness and Embodied Knowing 50:42 - Removing Boundaries and Quality of Life After Inner Work 01:00:00 - Closing and Where to Find Boyd --- Interview Links: — Boyd’s website: http://boydvarty.com — Track Your Life Masterclass: https://boydvarty.com/course-listing/...