I watched the first episode of the brilliant new BBC documentary series by Simon Reeve - Sacred Rivers - last night.
Simon makes travel documentaries in little-known areas of the world and has written books on international terrorism, modern history and his globe-trotting adventures.
In his new series, Sacred Rivers, first shown last night on BBC Two, Simon explores three of the world's great waterways - the Nile, Ganges and Yangtze - to see how these three mighty rivers shaped those civilisations which grew up alongside them and their religions.
Simon himself explains more:
Simon Reeve's latest series, 'Sacred Rivers', explores three of the world's great waterways - the Nile, Ganges and Yangtze Photo: Craig Hastings
Outside a small hillside shrine at Gish Abay in the lush highlands of Ethiopia a large crowd had gathered under the sweltering midday sun. They were waiting patiently by a shack with a tin roof for Christian Orthodox priests to bless them with water from an unimpressive little stream. But as it dribbles through a grassy meadow and tumbles down a rocky hill, hundreds of other trickles and torrents join it, and the stream is transformed into the mighty Nile.
I was visiting Gish Abay, revered by millions as the source of the world’s longest river, while filming Sacred Rivers, a new TV series for which I travelled the length of the Nile, the Yangtze and the Ganges.
The three journeys were rollicking adventures and an opportunity to explore remote and magnificent areas of the world, while having my brain fed with stories about the cultures, religions and countries that have emerged along some of our greatest rivers. They were also eye-opening experiences and often extremely moving.
Hundreds of pilgrims had travelled from across Ethiopia to the source of the Nile, either to give thanks for the holy waters, or to seek good fortune or healing for a depressing list of ailments. There was both wailing and joy. One young woman told me, with the certainty of the pious, that her kidney infection had just been cured by contact with the water.
The shrine at the source is underwhelming, but the veneration of the water made absolute sense to me. The Nile is life-giving. In the arid regions of north-eastern Africa, human existence would be virtually impossible without it. The same is true of the Ganges and Yangtze. Rivers have helped to shape the development of human civilisation. What could be more normal than to thank and praise God or the gods for the magical, mysterious gift of a river that has nurtured and sustained vast numbers of humans for aeons of time?
EPISODE ONE
THE NILE
Adventurer Simon Reeve travels from source to sea along the world's longest river, the Nile. His journey will take him from the holy source of the Blue Nile in the Ethiopian highlands, through the desert of Sudan and onwards through Egypt to the Mediterranean Sea. The life-giving river has forged some of our earliest civilisations and influenced some of our greatest religions. But with populations along its banks rising fast, Nile countries are demanding an ever-greater share of the sacred waters, threatening the stability of the entire region.
Watch it here: BBC iPlayer - Sacred Rivers with Simon Reeve - 1. The Nile
Simon makes travel documentaries in little-known areas of the world and has written books on international terrorism, modern history and his globe-trotting adventures.
In his new series, Sacred Rivers, first shown last night on BBC Two, Simon explores three of the world's great waterways - the Nile, Ganges and Yangtze - to see how these three mighty rivers shaped those civilisations which grew up alongside them and their religions.
Simon himself explains more:
Simon Reeve's latest series, 'Sacred Rivers', explores three of the world's great waterways - the Nile, Ganges and Yangtze Photo: Craig Hastings
Outside a small hillside shrine at Gish Abay in the lush highlands of Ethiopia a large crowd had gathered under the sweltering midday sun. They were waiting patiently by a shack with a tin roof for Christian Orthodox priests to bless them with water from an unimpressive little stream. But as it dribbles through a grassy meadow and tumbles down a rocky hill, hundreds of other trickles and torrents join it, and the stream is transformed into the mighty Nile.
I was visiting Gish Abay, revered by millions as the source of the world’s longest river, while filming Sacred Rivers, a new TV series for which I travelled the length of the Nile, the Yangtze and the Ganges.
The three journeys were rollicking adventures and an opportunity to explore remote and magnificent areas of the world, while having my brain fed with stories about the cultures, religions and countries that have emerged along some of our greatest rivers. They were also eye-opening experiences and often extremely moving.
Hundreds of pilgrims had travelled from across Ethiopia to the source of the Nile, either to give thanks for the holy waters, or to seek good fortune or healing for a depressing list of ailments. There was both wailing and joy. One young woman told me, with the certainty of the pious, that her kidney infection had just been cured by contact with the water.
The shrine at the source is underwhelming, but the veneration of the water made absolute sense to me. The Nile is life-giving. In the arid regions of north-eastern Africa, human existence would be virtually impossible without it. The same is true of the Ganges and Yangtze. Rivers have helped to shape the development of human civilisation. What could be more normal than to thank and praise God or the gods for the magical, mysterious gift of a river that has nurtured and sustained vast numbers of humans for aeons of time?
EPISODE ONE
THE NILE
Adventurer Simon Reeve travels from source to sea along the world's longest river, the Nile. His journey will take him from the holy source of the Blue Nile in the Ethiopian highlands, through the desert of Sudan and onwards through Egypt to the Mediterranean Sea. The life-giving river has forged some of our earliest civilisations and influenced some of our greatest religions. But with populations along its banks rising fast, Nile countries are demanding an ever-greater share of the sacred waters, threatening the stability of the entire region.
Watch it here: BBC iPlayer - Sacred Rivers with Simon Reeve - 1. The Nile
