In their (American Indian) languages, as well as in their religion, traces may still be found of the prehistoric migration
of men from the primitive Asiatic to the American continent; either across the stepping stones of the Aleutian bridge (in the North) or by drifting with favorable winds from island to island (in the South) – Professor Max Mueller, the noted German Orientalist.
Polynesia is the term given to a group of islands falling with the Polynesian Triangle formed by New Zealand, Easter Island and Hawaii. Rarotonga (in the Cook Islands) – and many other places in Polynesia – still bears traces of South Indian temples and other Hindu customs… Migration by sea was possible in ancient times. The Malayan kingdom of Srivijaya (between the 7th and 13th centuries) is commonly cited as the origin of these migrations. The peopling of Polynesia is now an established fact; why should emigration to America not be possible as well?
Driven out of their homes, or driven by the spirit of adventure & discovery, these ancient mariners were skilled enough – and bold enough – to cross the ocean. Both the Tonga Islands and the Samoa Islands were uninhabited when these travelers first landed there. Most of the major expeditions that (subsequently) set out, either set out from Samoa or from Tahiti (in French Polynesia).
Given the vast distances involved, the accounts that remain of these migrations are isolated and incomplete.
The author says that these Polynesian explorers were no less daring (in braving the sea storms) and no less skilled (in setting their course by the stars) than Christopher Columbus! The difference being that they sailed not in ships, but in large seaworthy canoes... These were double canoes joined together by stable platforms. These canoes were suitable for long maritime voyages. In fact, the larger of these canoes could carry upto one hundred and fifty warriors! Their knowledge of the sea routes was later encoded in maps, as well as in sacred songs.
The Tessan current and the (Japanese) Black Stream offer a viable sea route for bold navigators. These currents often carry abandoned junk to the shores of California even in our times; why should it be impossible for them to carry stable and sturdily built canoes to the American shore in earlier times? It is no wonder that the people of the New World seem so familiar to the people of the Old World in race, culture and custom? In fact, this proposition is easier to believe than in the independent evolution of similar customs all across the world!
These ancient travelers and explorers were skilled enough to have explored and settled almost every island in the vastness of the Pacific Ocean. Their boats remained at sea for many months, and traversed thousands of kilometers. These Polynesians were colonists, as well as explorers, for their women and children often accompanied them on these trips. The possibility that some of them traveled further - and reached the coasts of Peru is one that cannot be dismissed out of hand by serious researchers.