'The Chinese are planning a series of Himalayan dams of such worrying scale that they must be halted'

Widely regarded as one of the most authoritative voices on the Himalayas, John Keay has written about the mountain range since the 1960s. Author of around 20 books, the most recent being ‘Himalaya: Exploring the Roof of the World’, the veteran writer and historian tells Atul Sethi why in a time of increasing commercial activity and change in climate patterns in the Himalayan region, it is all the more important to listen to the mountain and its people:

● If you were to imagine Himalaya as a person, what would the mountain say to the world regarding its present state?

I find it hard to think of Himalaya as a person, easier to think of persons who think of themselves as Himalaya – politicians with unassailable majorities for instance, or Wall Street bankers. In Tibetan mythology, the great peaks are persons, or rather they are deities. They constitute a society of gods who commune, fight and even mate among themselves. And such is their power that they must be revered and placated. Nothing is more characteristically Himalayan than mountain pilgrimage. From Nanga Parbat in the West to Mount Kailas and Tsari in Tibet, Hindus, Buddhists and even Muslims toil round the sacred peaks seeking intercession, merit and guidance.

If one were to look at personalities who personify the spirit of Himalaya the most though, my vote would go to two pioneers, one French, the other Italian, who were defined by their Himalayan experiences. Neither was an explorer in the conventional sense. They had no time for politics and added nothing of note to the maps.