THE FOOTHILLS OF THE HIMALAYAS

Heart of Asia; Memoirs from the Himalayas 
by Nicholas Roerich
( excerpts printed with permission of the publisher)

On the summits of Sikkim, the foothills of the Himalayas, among the blooming rhododendrons and the fragrant Balu - the healing plant - a lama who looked like a carved image from the middle ages told us, pointing towards the five summits of Kanchenjunga: 'There is the entrance to the holy land of Shambhala. By passages through wonderful ice caves under the earth, a few deserving ones have, even in this life, reached the holy place where all wisdom, all glory, all splendor are gathered.'"

Another lama of the Red Hat sect told us about wonderful Asaras, Hindu in appearance, with long hair and white attire, who often appear in the Himalayas, 'wise men who know how to master the inner energies and to unite them with cosmic energies.' According to this lama, the head of the Medical School in Lhasa, a learned old lama, knew such Asaras personally and was in touch with them.

"The Statesman, the most accurate newspaper in India, published the following experience related by a British major:

Once before sunrise, while camping in the Himalayas, the major went from his camp to the neighboring cliffs to see the majestic snowcapped outlines of the mountains. On the opposite side of the gorge rose a high rock. Great was his astonishment when, through the morning mist, he noticed on the rock the figure of a tall man, almost naked and with long black hair. The man was leaning on a tall bow, attentively watching something behind the rock. Then, apparently noticing something, the silent figure, with great strides leaped down the almost vertical slope. Amazed, the major returned to the camp and asked the servants about this strange apparition. To his surprise, they took it quite calmly and with reverence told him: 'Sahib has seen one of the snowmen who guard the forbidden region.'

"We asked a lama about the snowmen and again the answer came in a surprisingly calm and affirmative way: 'These snowmen are very rarely seen. They are the faithful guardians of the Himalayan regions where the secret Ashrams of the Mahatmas are hidden. Formerly, even in Sikkim we had several Ashrams of the Mahatmas. These wise Mahatmas of the Himalayas direct our lives through unceasing work and study. They master the highest powers. And, as perfectly ordinary people, they appear in various places, here, beyond the ocean, and throughout Asia.' "(pp. 88-90)

Legends and Mysteries of the Trans-Himalyas

"(But) traversing the Trans-Himalayas you discover that there is not one mountain range, but a whole mountain country with a peculiarly complicated design of ranges, valleys, and streams. At every step, you are convinced that existing maps are only relatively correct. Because of their complexity, these regions have still not been fully explored. The hermit, hidden in a cave, the dweller in a remote valley, may rest undisturbed.

"Having personally wandered through these labyrinths, you are aware of hidden places, accessible only through some happy "chance."

Old volcanoes, geysers, hot springs, and the presence of radioactivity offer unsuspected, happy discoveries. Often, next to a glacier you can see rich vegetation in a neighboring valley apparently nourished by a hot spring. In the barren uplands of Dungbure we saw boiling springs and next to them, magnificent vegetation. Strawberries, hyacinths, and many other flowers were in bloom. There are several such valleys in the Trans-Himalayas." (pp. 124-125)

"Approaching the Brahmaputra you can find more indications and legends about Shambhala. A further circumstance impresses one even more convincingly. In these regions in the direction of Mount Everest lived the seer, the hermit Milarepa.

"Near Shigatse, on the picturesque banks of the Brahmaputra and further, in the direction of the sacred lake Manosaravar, several ashrams of the Mahatmas of the Himalayas still existed quite recently. When you know this, when you know the facts surrounding these remarkable sites, you are filled with a special emotion. Old people are still living who remember personal meetings with the Mahatmas. They call them Asaras and Khathumpas. Some of the inhabitants remember that here there was - as they call it - a religious school founded by the Mahatmas of India. In the courtyard of this Gompa occured the episode of the letter that was destroyed and miraculously restored by a Master. They stayed in these caves. They crossed these rivers. And in these jungles of Sikkim stood Their outwardly modest Ashram. To outsiders who have not been in these places personally, this question of the Mahatmas cannot seem materially possible." (p. 124)

"I do not wish to persuade anybody of the existence of the Mahatmas. A great many people have seen Them, have talked to Them, have received letters and material objects from Them. 'If someone asks in ignorance, 'But, is it not a myth?' advise them to study the book by Professor Zelinsky of Warsaw University on the realtiy of the origin of the Greek myths.

"However, generally speaking, do not try to convince people. Real knowledge will enter only open doors. If prejudice exists, it must be outgrown through inner development.

"For us it is important to prove, by the existing facts, what immense distances one living consciousness covers and how strongly it is open, ready for the future evolution.

"In the entire East, the deep veneration for the Teacher has surrounded the concept of the Guru with a sacred solicitude and impregnability. The concept of the Guru-Teacher is understood with such veneration only in the East.

"Let me remind you of the legend from "Agni-Yoga" about the small Hindu boy who had found his Teacher:

'We asked him: 'Is it possible that the sun would darken for you if you were to see it without the Teacher?'

'The boy smiled: 'The Sun would remain the same, but in the presence of the Teacher, twelve suns would shine for me.'

'The sun of wisdom of India shall shine because upon the shores of a river there sits a boy who knows the Teacher.

'There are conductors of electricity, and also there are unifiers of knowledge. If a barbarian should make an attempt against the Teacher, tell him how humanity named the destroyers of libraries.'

"The foundations of the East are fortified by the concept of the Guru. What wonderful words and dignified gestures can be found in India with regard to the Teacher!

"Many Hindu, Chinese, and Japanese scholars know many things about the Mahatmas. But reverence before the Master, which is so characteristic of the East, prevents them from showing this knowledge to the uninitiated. The sacred meaning of the word Guru, the Teacher and Spiritual Guide, makes the subject of the Mahatmas almost unapproachable throughout Asia. Thus, it is quite easy to understand why many have passed through Asia without meeting this question. Either ignorance of the languages or divergent interests or bad luck in not meeting the right people prevented them from seeing the idea of the most precious. You know how very often we visit museums of temples, but without special permission we cannot examine the sacristy and the hidden storerooms of museums where sometimes the most precious things are preserved.

"One can mention many people still living who have personally met Mahatmas. This has happened as often in India as in England, France, America, and other countries.

"As we followed the banks of the Brahmaputra, we remembered how a Tibetan representative in Ulan-Bator advised us to visit an unusual hermit of untold age who lived in a mountain retreat, as he called it, several days' journey west of Lhasa. The Tibetan insisted that the hermit was most extraordinary for he was not a Tibetan but, according to what was said of him, a Westerner.

"And we remembered again how a respected inhabitant of Sikkim told us of a strange hermit living north of Kanchenjunga." (pp. 125-127)

The Treasure of the Himalayas

 
"(Again), we are in Sikkim. Again, the splendor of the Himalayas is behind us to the north.
"All eyes are attracted to the majestic white summits rising above the clouds. They tower, like a transcendental realm. From all sides, the best aspirations are directed to the Himalayas.
"Kang-chen-dzod-nga - Five Treasures of Great Snows. And why is this sublime mountain so called? Because it contains a store of the five most precious things in the world. What things are there - gold, diamonds, rubies? By no means. The old East values other treasures. It is said that there will come a time when famine will overcome the whole world. At that time a man will appear who will unlock the giant gate of these vast treasuries and nurture all mankind. Certainly you understand that this man will nourish humanity not physically, but with spiritual food. 

"On ascending the Himalayas, you are greeted by the name of Shambhala. On descending, the same great concept blesses you. Shambhala will nourish humanity with spiritual food attained by mastering the cosmic energies. "(p. 128)

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