Customer Reviews

Souls in the Sea: Dolphins, Whales, and Human Destiny

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This is a wonderful and much-needed piece of work. At last The Legend of the Golden Dolphin has broken free of the oral tradition and found a good home in this elegantly researched and beautifully written book. Although, of necessity brief, it is nothing more than an alternative history of the world--life seen as a complex braiding through time of cetacea and humanity--the ultimate goal, the fullfillment of our mutual destiny. Firmly titling the book, 'Souls in the Sea', makes sure the reader knows the author's viewpoint is both wide-ranging and spiritual in outlook. According dolphins and whales high intelligence is the first step in understanding that these ocean-going mammals, our genetic cousins (we are, as the book points out, genetically closer to cetaceans than we are to the higher primates) also have lives of the Spirit. Grasping this is a far cry from loving dolphins because they are cute (although for some it's a good start) and demands that we radically review our whole approach to the other species. This book will open eyes, blow minds, reassure some and antagonize others. Thousands of years of cultural conditioning, of implicit species domination, needs be dispensed with in the far deeper realization that we share this planet with other intelligent sentient beings with spiritual realities of their own. Time is short...Will the willing sacrifice of cetacea finally awaken old OGO The Fox to our species true responsibilities? Hold to your center and open your heart.

Brilliant. A rollicking, sometimes breathless combination of mythology and science. Though it may take a bit of squinting effort now and then to bring your brain around this whole new way of thinking, its worth the effort. Indeed, Taylor will crack your mind wide open ... and the possibilites will flood right in, like a rising tide. Anyone who's experienced a profound awakening at the side of a dolphin will find some explanations here, and anyone wishing to take a new look at human history will appreciate Taylor's bravery in tackling such a panorama. Anyone want to start a chat board on this one? Bet we could get Taylor to join in ...

If you like all creatures of this world and are interested in the oceans/rivers for their unusual variety of living things and all that they [oceans and the creatures] can teach you, you'll like this book: an extraordinary concept for modern man in its historic context. A rare treasure. Not to be missed. Buy this book and read it! It will change your life, or, at least, your perception of your life and environment. A must for all sailors and those who spend their lives, or part of their lives on, or near, the sea.

Scott Taylor's book "Souls In The Sea" is the best researched & well-written book about cetaceans that I have read. Taylor explores and blends science, mythology,literature, biology, medical research and current events which enables one to better understand the contributions and sacrifices that the cetaceans have made for humanity. Read this book...you will be touched, inspired and very grateful that Earth still has such magnificent 'souls in the sea'. Taylor has lit a huge bonfire for us to see the Light and to guide our conscience. If we will only follow.

SOULS IN THE SEA, by Scott Taylor.
Since the 65 species of whales / dolphins may have been consciously evolving for over 30 million years; it does not surprise me that this well researched "ground/wave breaking" treatise on the role cetaceans play in the mythology, history and destiny of humankind ( a single species mind you only 1 million years old) may take a few more months to rise 20,000 leagues from the ocean depths and become a "best seller" here on land! Bravo Scott Taylor, this conscious work is a no nonsense masterpiece offering a vision of interspecies collaboration for a sustainable world community married to the intention for ecological correctness.
An easy, enjoyable read with profound implications for all ages and interest levels.

This is a book that made me wonder why it was not written earlier. It slaked my thirst for more information on these lines as I typed feverishly on the keyboard, for more material on the same lines. For this book opened up, at least for me, a portal to a world that cannot possibly coexist in the same world that we live in today. After having read this book, it became clearer for me that we are being cornered into a choice, i.e., if we truly wish to understand its message, to make a silent affirmation as to what we stand for, whether it is the small scale subsistence and ambitions of a bourgeois lifestyle, or the larger one of fruitful interaction in collective harmony with all of creation.

Many thousands of years ago, the cetaceans filled the seas and oceans of the earth. Today only a handful of them remain. Dolphins and whales, are in great danger today, not least because of getting enmeshed in the nets of fishing trawlers tracking tuna shoals, but also because of the sonar waves created by military submarines in the depths of the ocean, thus polluting their natural habitat with alien frequencies that can mislead them into unsafe areas. Not to mention the extensive pollution of the seas and the wanton slaughter of Cetaceans by humans.

There is, however, more to the Cetacean story than just the need for saving these magnificent and sensitive creatures from extinction by the depraved nature of the human race, just like any other endangered species. There is much, much more. Dolphins and whales form the stuff of legends; as sentient beings, they have communicated with and inspired mankind for times immemorial, starting with the aborigines of Australia, to the early civilizations of Sumeria, Egypt and India and going onto the present day where they have been known to have successfully helped autistic children make substantial improvement with their handicap, when all other conventional methods have not yielded results.

This is where this book comes in. It presents a concrete framework, seldom seen before, a golden thread through which one can 'see' the evolution of our human understanding of the cetacean soul over the last few thousand years, since man arrived on the scene. Scott Taylor presents concrete evidence, of the respect that the people from the ancient civilizations of Sumeria, India and ancient Egypt, felt for the Cetaceans. The same goes for the Australian aborigines and the Dogon tribes of East Africa, among others. According to the author, the Fall came with the advent of the Middle Ages and the rise of religious fundamentalism (e.g. the Inquisition), which militated against the Gnostic spirit of free enquiry and individual knowing, gleaned from accessing the wisdom within, from one's inner core as propounded by Jesus. Jesus' teachings were modified and rewritten so that all ultimate authority was invested in the Pope and/or the ruler of the country, in order to allow them to wield power over the masses. In this book, Scott Taylor discusses the role of the Dolphin in these times of transition, ranging over a thousand years.The narrative content, as I see it, is just enough to let the big picture emerge without going into too many specifics of detail.

The story of the Dolphin proceeds to modern times, with the extensive research of John C. Lilly, one of the author's main collaborators. In these and related chapters, the author talks about the brain structure of both whales and dolphins, making a clear case for their consciousness to be at least as advanced as humans and possibly more. This is where the main thrust of the book comes up, here the author makes a well argued case for the Cetacean as spiritual beings, waiting in the wings, to help us make a transition - to a world where beauty and harmony set the rules, instead of avarice, greed and conflict. This is an issue that is mined territory, there are plenty of scientists who have been instrumental in bunking just this particular myth of "the divine nature of the dolphin". Scott Taylor handles this issue with delicate and persuasive aplomb, illustrating the veracity of his facts, with incidents from his own life and his colleagues. This book is replete with quotes from people from all walks of life, some well-known, some less so. It is the handling of this particular subject, that makes this book the eye opener that it is. For me, personally, the decades long conditioning of bourgeois values, the need to go higher up in the hierarchy, appeared, at least for some golden moments, to be something unworthy to strive hard for. Scott Taylor's worldview is contagious, it is a picture where equal rights are granted to all, including our animal relatives.

An important question that is also discusses in this book, in some detail is that of the freedom enjoyed by wild dolphins, being compromised by humanity, when they are captured and either, made to perform tricks for the benefit of a paying audience, or being confined to a smaller sized tank where they are studied for purposes of research. Mention is also made of the animal's rights activists, who in the name of freedom, set captive dolphins free from their enclosures and force the bewildered creatures out to sea, to fend for themselves. Scott Taylor puts himself in the category of those who allow dolphins to interact with humans in a mutually beneficial and synergistic manner. Especially interesting to investigate is the sonar waves that dolphins send out, autistic children have shown remarkable improvement with dolphin sonar therapy. This issue is where the author seems to have taken a clear stand against die hard animal rights groups.

Personally, I guess that this particular change in worldview, is what the much talked about transition in Dec.2012, commemorating the end of the Mayan calendar, is all about. The end of the Mayan Calendar signifies the birth of a new kind of human being, a being who lives in harmony with all other sentient beings on this planet - as equal beings with equal rights. My own opinion, for what it is worth, is that this is where we are headed, if we allow our heart's wisdom to prevail. And this is where the Cetaceans, the dolphins and whales, are waiting to help us, waiting for us to re-member, so that we can forgive the past, forget and start living anew.

Read this book, it will go a long way to opening your heart.

I place Scott Taylor's "Soul in the Water" next to Moby Dick on my Cetacean book shelf. He has done a vast amount of research and followed some of the tantalyzing loose ends surrounding Cetacean studies. This book dares to go "deeper" (no pun intended) than other books on this subject. For those of you who have stared into the deep and made contact with whales and dolphins and felt the great mystery ....this book is for you.

Yours truly,
Allan Armstrong
Senior Editor of Scholarisland

Excellent and very informative! This book goes where no book has gone before -- detailing the very long history of human-dolphin relations.

Using historic texts, Scott Taylor has pieced together a remarkable chronicle of how the human race seems to have been guided throughout our development by the cetaceans. Remarkably, Taylor shows that the delphic wave is still deeply influencing our lives today. As someone who has been involved with dolphins for many years, I can attest to this fact. "Souls in the Sea" helped me to gain a larger perspective of our role on this planet, and a better understanding of my own role with dolphins.

This book will likely push some panic buttons in our culture, though. Some people will not be comfortable with issues raised in the book. A re-thinking of our view of history will be necessary for us all. (I was particularly fascinated by the link between Christianity and the Delphic Wave. The pictures of the Pope's mitre in comparision to images on ancient coins symbolizing the priests/kings being guided by the Delphic Spirit are amazing.)

The chapters on whaling, and the dolphin-tuna issue are painful for any thinking, feeling person to contemplate. Our collective crimes against cetacea are indeed significant. However, we must be grateful that the author included them. No longer can we afford to turn a blind eye to the events in our oceans.

Surprisingly, Taylor presents a balanced view of the issue of cetaceans in captive environments. It is rare that we find such an all encompassing perspective. I believe, Taylor is able to present this viewpoint because of the larger picture that emerges throughout "Souls in the Sea" -- a picture of cetaceans helping humans to live up to our full potential.

"Souls in the Sea" has just added volumes to our awareness. Thank you Scott Taylor!

P.S.The "Souls in the Sea" website is an outstanding companion resource to the book.

This book somehow manages to put together some of my favorite subjects. It includes chapters on Gnosticism and spirituality and ancient earth history. The author is knowledgeable on these subjects and weaves them in well with the core subject of dolphins and other cetaceans. I will highly recommend this book to people with similar interests.

Scott Taylor writes a book full of anecdotal stories to support his own beliefs of dolphin behavior, cognition, and physiology.
I thoroughly enjoyed his recounting of dolphin mythology and legend along with some of the personal experiences others have had with dolphins.
As far as his his other claims, however, I am quite disappointed. He attempts to back up some of his theories of dolphin intelligence with factual information, but leaves out significant details that would otherwise disprove his theory. Oftentimes he draws wild conclusions that don't quite make sense, with a tendancy to compare two completely unrelated things. Many of the facts he lays out to support certain claims are far from accurate. Also, he tends to include only information that supports his beliefs, while ignoring parts of a text that make his claims appear more insignificant.
For example, he cites Karen Pryor's studies into dolphins demonstrating creativity, saying dolphins and humans are the only ones who can do this sort of behavior. He has, in fact, ignored her other story in the same book about successfully performing the exact same experiment with chickens.
Another example is his claim that dolphins (and other cetaceans) are the only other animals other than humans to mate face to face. Off the top of my head, I know that cuttlefish and seahorses do the same. I'm sure there are other members of the animal kingdom to mate this way.
If you're looking for a feel good book about dolphins, this is for you. If you're looking for a text based in fact, this one misses the mark by far.