Bernard Wheatley, Hermit

image

The man depicted above is Dr. Bernard Wheatley who, after the deaths of his family, chucked a flourishing career to live as a hermit on the Hawaiian island of Kauai.

Read a long and fascinating article about him here.

In 1957 Dr. Bernard Wheatley - an African American physician from the Virgin Islands - made a pilgrimage to Kalalau Valley. Distraught after the death of his wife and son in a car accident, he kept questioning the meaning of life and other ontological problems until the answers finally came. In a remarkable religious conversion-like revelation he realized that life is eternal. He abandoned his medical practice, sold all his worldly possessions and sought a quiet, secluded place where he could earnestly seek truth without distraction. He arrived on the remote Island of Kauai and after seeing Kalalau from a ridge-top lookout in Kokee, he knew that he had found his home.... He passed on December 3, 1991 at the age of 72. His ashes were spread in Kalalau.
     Posted By: Paul - Wed Apr 10, 2013
     Category: Death | Religion | Hermits | 1950s | 1960s | South Pacific





Comments
In the right hands, this would be a good basis for a movie script. Sort of like "Old Man and the Sea".
Posted by KDP on 04/10/13 at 12:36 PM
He lost his family, how sad. I hope he found some peace in his seclusion.
Posted by Patty in Ohio, USA on 04/10/13 at 10:39 PM
can't find anything in the article about him losing his family. It says he found God and went nutso and was found wandering naked in a park, then we went hermit.
Posted by mikeUK on 04/11/13 at 06:29 AM
mikeUK--that pull quote came from a different source:

http://thegardenisland.com/news/island-history/article_8405c3e9-9c16-5e21-b0f0-242060d44937.html
Posted by Paul on 04/11/13 at 11:01 AM
Commenting is not available in this channel entry.