Red Shambhala: Magic, Prophecy, and Geopolitics in the Heart of Asia
The above [Alexander Barchenko, Ja-Lama and Nicholas Roerich]are only three out of the eleven figures historian Andrei Znamenski introduces at the beginning of "Red Shambhala," and in their oddness and ambition — and the oddness of their ambitions — they are representative of the eccentric would-be messiahs (sincere and otherwise) who populate Znamenski's lively account of the ways traditional beliefs common in Tibet, Mongolia, and surrounding areas came into play in the competition between Russia and England for dominance in that region.-David Cozy,Japan TimesI’ve been waiting for a good excuse to bring up Andrei Znamenski’sRed Shambhala: Magic, Prophesy, and Geopolitics in the Heart of Asia.The coming exhibition of Buddhist art at New York’s Asia Society has provided one. Published by Quest Books (the publishing house of the Theosophical Society), Red Shambhala is a serious work of scholarship, that explores attempts to co-opt and manipulate Buddhism in Tibet and Mongolia by Russian Bolsheviks after the October Revolution, as well as other curious characters.—European Son blogZnamenski describes the myths and prophecies in some detail, but the story itself starts in the immediate aftermath of the Russian Revolution. The Bolshevik secret police, and none other than Gleb Bokii, the chief cryptographer, had become interested in mysticism, telepathy and in the “ancient science” of Shambhala, whose existence they did not entirely discount...Znamenski tells a good story, balancing research with storytelling.—Asian Review of BooksThose lacking specialized knowledge of arcana have not learned much of this story, for until the fall of the Soviet empire, many records have been sequestered or linger in Russian-language academic journals. A few very minor slips in English usage reflect the author’s Russian origins, but these occasions are far outweighed by the valuable contributions he provides so the rest of us can learn about these events and their scholarly sources. The transcripts forced out of doomed prisoners about their role in thisRed Shambhalaproject make for poignant reading.—PopMatters.comRed Shamballahenters a maze of intrigue with a colourful cast of Bolshevik secret police officers, spies, occultists, Mongolian warlords and Buddhist monks.  Andrei Znamenski shows how Soviet Communists in the 1920s sought geopolitical influence over Mongolia and Tibet, projecting their world revolution onto ancient messianic prophecies amongst Inner Asian tribesmen.   Inspired by the myth of hidden sages directing the world's destiny, the Roerichs add visionary adventure amid the great game of competing powers, England, Russia, China, for mastery of the East.   A first-rate espionage story, all from recently opened Soviet archives.--Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke, author ofThe Occult Roots of NazismandBlack SunRed Shambhalais a rare, rigorous exploration of a landscape where occult drama and political intrigue meet, and where human hopes and ideological schemes inevitability, and tragically, collide. Andrei Znamenski handles all of this delicate material with depth, poignancy, and the drama of great historical writing.-- Mitch Horowitz, author ofOccult AmericaRed Shambhalais a fascinating, and at times astounding, story about the interplay of mysticism and politics in the shadow of Stalin's Russia.  The lines between mystical seekers, secret policemen, spies and charlatans constantly cross and blur and the story, not surprisingly, ends tragically for almost everyone.-- Richard Spence, Professor of History, University of IdahoFascinating, compelling and erudite,Red Shambhala, utterly readable yet a work of impressively pioneering scholarship, is a history of Western mysticism, Mongolian/Tibetan Buddhism and imperial geopolitics, filled with stories of derrring-do and a cast of unforgettable mystics, monsters and adventurers. A wonderful read.-- Simon Sebag-Montefiore, author ofYoung Stalin and Jerusalem: The BiographyAndrei Znamenski’sRed Shamabaladraws on wide-ranging research but reads like the best of thrillers.  Anyone interested in the complicated history of Russia’s relationship with the worlds of Tibet and Mongolia should read this fascinating and engaging book.--Willard Sunderland, Professor of History, University of CincinnatiAn amazing story, told by a fine scholar, but writing accessibly rather than just for other scholars. Larger-than-life characters against the background of a myth of Shambhala that haunted the Russian imagination as it did the Western, but with rather different consequences. Sometimes worrying, sometimes entertaining, and always informative.-- Mark Sedgwick, Associate Professor, Aarhus University and author ofAgainst the Modern World: Traditionalism and the Secret Intellectual History of the Twentieth CenturyZnameski’s new book is a challenge for everyone who refuses to accept connections between legend and politics. Red Shambhala gives a solid piece of evidence that the atheist communist ideology of the 20th century did not disdain to use a Tibetan Buddhist myth as a sort of instrumentum regni, actually a political tool for propaganda; Russian left and right thinkers, and spiritual seekers as well, were united in an old-fashioned idea of rebirth, dreaming of an egalitarian Land – a Red Shambhala –, where a changed humankind could live in a New Era of peace. Prof. Andrei Znamenski provides a ground-breaking investigation, through which we are aware that the Sacred and Profane can share the same mythical milieu: a must-read book for people interested in that fuzzy area between Mystique, Esotericism and Politics.-- Marcello De Martino, PhD, Istituto Italiano per l’Africa e l’Oriente, Rome, Italy and author ofMircea Eliade esotericProfessor Znamenski pursues the improbable merging of two prophesies after the Russian Revolution, the future Commmunist utopia with the ancient Buddhist myth of Shambhala, the return of a redeemer who would lead suffering people into a golden age of spiritual and sensual bliss. Combining Victorian parlour mysticism, a cast of  eccentrics, the rise of modern nationalism, the intrigues of the Bolshevik secret police and a Comintern bent on world revolution, and an arena as big as all Asia -- this is high drama indeed.--Max J. Okenfuss, American EditorJahrbücher für Geschichte Osteuropas