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already done this, the best example being Edwin Bernbaum’s The Way to Shambhala.

h e purpose of my book is dif erent. I want to explore how the Shambhala myth and related prophecies were used in Inner Asia and beyond between the 1890s and 1930s. I draw attention to the fact that the original Shambhala myth with its two sides (the spiritual paradise and the crusade against ini dels) and its later versions served dif erent purposes, depending on circumstances and the people dealing with the legend. Some individuals proi led in this book became more attracted to the image of Shambhala as a country of spiritual bliss and the container of superior knowledge. Others turned to Shambhala as a vehicle to bring about a grand Buddhist theocracy in Inner Asia. At the same time, several people were drawn to the old avenging side of the legend and used it as a tool of spiritual resistance. So the story I am going to tell deals with both the peaceful and avenging sides of the Shambhala myth.

As the account unfolds, I will show why Shambhala suddenly became relevant for a number of groups and individuals inside and outside Asia between the1890s and the 1930s. Prophecies usually stay dormant in times of peace and prosperity. Under normal circumstances, few people believe in utopias, share doomsday dreams of the total renewal of the world, or follow political messiahs. Yet in a time of severe crisis or natural calamity, when the established routine of life falls apart and people feel insecure, prophecies, along with messiahs, multiply and come to the forefront. h at is when people invoke old myths and legends and cling to various utopias promising ultimate salvation. h e period between the 1890s and 1930s was rich in social and political calamities, not only in Asia but all over the world. World War I and the collapse of four large empires (Chinese, Russian, Ottoman, and Austro-Hungarian) followed by bloody revolutions created a fertile environment for various religious and secular prophecies.

Red Shambhala is the i rst book in English that recounts the story of political and spiritual seekers, from the West and the East who used Tibetan Buddhist prophecies to promote their spiritual, social, and xiv

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geopolitical agendas and schemes. h ese were people of dif erent persuasions and backgrounds: lamas (Ja-Lama and Agvan Dorzhiev), a painter-h eosophist (Nicholas Roerich), a Bolshevik secret police cryptographer (Gleb Bokii), an occult writer with let ist leanings (Alexander Barchenko), Bolshevik diplomats and revolutionaries (Georgy Chicherin, Boris Shumatsky) along with their indigenous fellow- travelers (Elbek-Dorji Rinchino, Sergei Borisov, and Choibalsan), and the right-wing fanatic “Bloody White Baron” Roman von Ungern-Sternberg. Despite their dif erent backgrounds and loyalties, they shared the same totalitarian temptation—the faith in ultimate solutions. h ey were on the quest for what one of them (Bokii) dei ned as the search for the source of absolute good and absolute evil. All of them were true believers, idealists who dreamed about engineering a perfect free-of-social-vice society based on collective living and controlled by enlightened spiritual or ideological masters (an emperor, the Bolshevik Party, the Great White Brotherhood, a reincarnated deity) who would guide people on the “correct” path. Healthy skepticism and moderation, rare commodities at that time anyway, never visited the minds of the individuals I proi le in this book. In this sense, they were true children of their time—an age of extremes that gave birth to totalitarian society.

Much has been written about the appropriation of Tibet and Shambhala by conservative and right-wing “cultural workers.” For example, we already know a great deal about Nazi ventures to the Himalayan Forbidden Kingdom that Himmler and his associates envisioned as the motherland of the Aryans. 5 In Politics and the Occult, Gary Lachman has pointed out that popular imagination tends to link the occult to the Right, which is not exactly correct. 6 Red Shambhala proves yet again that people on the Let were no strangers to the occult, and they were equally mesmerized by the light from the East. In fact, it is more so in our day.

Geographically I focus on Inner Asia, which roughly includes areas populated by people who either belonged to the Tibetan Buddhist tradition (Tibetans, Mongols, Tuvans, Buryat, and Kalmyk) or stood on its fringes (such as Altaians, sometimes called the Oirot people). For the xv

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sake of convenience, I call this area the Mongol-Tibetan cultural area.

At the same time, I will be making numerous detours to Russia, the United States, Germany, and India.

First, I will introduce the Mongol-Tibetan cultural area along with its deities and situate Shambhala and related prophecies in the historical context of Inner Asia. I propose that Shambhala, rather than being something unique, was part of the prophetic culture of the Mongol-Tibetan world. What made the Shambhala legend stand out were the ef orts of the Panchen Lamas, spiritual leaders of Tibet who propagated it beginning in the 1700s, and later attempts of Western seekers to single out this legend and disseminate it in the West. My research into Oirot/Amursana prophecy and insights into the Geser legend popular among the Mongols and Buryat convinced me that we deal here with the same prophetic culture. h e legends about Oirot, Amursana, Geser, and Shambhala, which the nomads of Inner Asia frequently conl ated, essentially boil down to a story about a heroic redeemer who would appear when the world neared its end, save the righteous from the evil ones, and bring to life a dreamland of spiritual and material prosperity.

Next my attention shit s to Leningrad (St. Petersburg) and Moscow of the 1920s as the Shambhala myth looms in the background. Here, I introduce English-speaking readers for the i rst time to a fascinating story about the unusual partnership between the esoteric scientist and writer Alexander Barchenko and his patron Gleb Bokii, the chief Bolshevik cryptographer who wanted to supplement a secular utopia (Communism) with a spiritual one (Shambhala). Driven by their desire to construct a new, nobler type of human being—a popular ideological fad among the early Bolsheviks—both wanted to tap into the Shambhala myth and Kalachakra tantra, an esoteric Tibetan Buddhist teaching. h e goal was to reinforce the Communist cause by using Asian wisdom.

From Red Russia I shit back to Inner Asia and show how in the i rst three decades of the twentieth century Shambhala, Geser, Oirot, and Amursana prophecies fed the rising nationalism of the Tibetans, xvi

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Mongols, Buryat, and Altaians. I explore the world of Bolshevik revolutionaries and their fellow travelers (Shumatsky, Borisov, and Rinchino) who tried to use popular Buddhism, including the mentioned prophecies, to anchor Bolshevism within Inner Asia. h e fact that the Bolsheviks learned well how to massage nationalist sentiments explains why Red Russia was able to sway some indigenous people in this area to its side, at least in the beginning of the 1920s. Here I also discuss Roman von Ungern-Sternberg, a notorious baron with occultist leanings, who briel y highjacked Mongolia in 1921. I propose that both his rise and then quick demise could be attributed to his attitude to Mongol nationalism.

h en from Inner Asia I move to New York City and explore the world of two Russian émigré h

eosophists, the painter Nicholas Roerich and his wife, Helena, companions in the quest for Shambhala. In the mid-1920s, Nicholas, along with Helena and their son George, ventured to Tibet, posing as a reincarnation of the i t h Dalai Lama. With equal zeal he courted Red Russian diplomats and spies, American presidents, and Japanese politicians, promoting himself as a cultural celebrity destined to deliver an important spiritual message to humankind. While many present-day Russian seekers treat the Roeriches as patriots and powerful spiritual teachers, American literature portrays them as dangerous gurus who at one point seduced FDR’s Secretary of Agriculture Henry Wallace, costing him the presidential nomination in 1948.

My research for Red Shambhala at i rst took me to the St. Petersburg Museum of Anthropology (Kunstkamera), where in 2007 I explored archival materials on Oirot and Amursana prophecies. Two years later, in order to better understand how the Bolsheviks used Tibetan Buddhism to promote their agenda in Inner Asia in the 1920s, I visited the Russian Archive of Social and Political History in Moscow. h ere I mined the papers of Comintern, a Moscow-based organization that had been preoccupied with sponsoring Communism all over the world. Another source, the recently published spiritual journals of Helena Roerich, gave me deeper insight into the minds of the Roeriches. 7

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However, I do not want to create the impression that I am the i rst trailblazer to touch upon these topics. I have several important predecessors, mostly from Russia, and I drew heavily upon their valuable works. I owe much to the historian Alexandre Andreev, who was the i rst to track Bolshevik advances into Tibet. 8 I am equally indebted to another historian, Vladimir Rosov, whose two volumes on Roerich are the most complete biography of this painter and spiritual seeker. 9 I also used Barchenko’s correspondence and the records of his interrogation from formerly classii ed documents i rst brought to light by Moscow investigative reporter Oleg Shishkin. 10 During the early stages of this project, I also greatly benei ted from John McCannon’s and Markus Osterrieder’s essays, which provide the best overviews of Nicholas Roerich’s activities available in English. 11 For thought-provoking ideas that helped me situate Tibetan Buddhist prophecies and Bolshevik relations with Asian nomads, I am indebted to Sarkisyanz and to Terry Martin. 12

Sarkisyanz has not only discussed Soviet Marxism as a form of a surrogate secular religion, but also was the i rst to show how the Bolshevik prophetic message was customized to the aspirations of traditional and tribal societies in Russia and Asia. Although lengthy and not exactly easy to read, Martin’s book provides a brilliant analysis of the Bolsheviks’ policies in the 1920s that allowed them to woo to their side various non-Russian nationalities, including nomadic societies of Asia.

h e last but not least words of gratitude go to the people who made this book possible. First of all, I want to mention Richard Smoley from Quest Books, who liked the idea of Red Shambhala from the very beginning and encouraged me to put it into a book form. Sharron Dorr and Will Marsh, two other editors from the same press, made sure that this project was put into a good shape. Moreover, Will went as far as immersing himself into my topic and giving me valuable tips that saved me from several embarrassing inconsistencies. I also want to thank the Department of History at the University of Memphis, and especially its chair, Dr. Jannan Sherman, who created wonderful writing opportunities for me, made sure that I had funding for my research, and helped xviii

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make my i rst two years in Memphis as smooth as possible. At the i nal stage of the project, Daniel Entin, director of the Roerich Museum in New York City, generously provided all necessary photographs and cop-ies of rare articles that I urgently needed to complete this book. To be honest, I have never experienced such prompt help in any other librar-ies and archives. And, i nally, I am grateful to A. E. G. Patterson, who suddenly, as if by magic, emerged on the horizon and of ered me rigorous editorial assistance in improving the text.

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Major Characters

Alexander Barchenko: (1881–1938) Dropout medical student and popular mystery writer. Inspired by the ideas of French occult writer Saint-Yves d’Alveydre, he wants to master the sacred wisdom of the mysterious land Shambhala-Agartha. He believes that by introducing the elite of Red Russia to Tibetan Buddhism and to the knowledge of Shambhala-Agartha, he will be able to make the Communist project in Russia less violent. Barchenko’s esoteric quest is sponsored by Gleb Bokii, his powerful secret police patron.

Gleb Bokii: (1879–1937) Marxist revolutionary and one of the spearheads of the 1917 Bolshevik revolution. As chief of the Special Section of the Bolshevik secret police, he creates Soviet ciphers and breaks Western codes. In his work, he also draws upon the help of graphologists, mediums, hypnotists, and esotericists.

Ja-Lama: (1860-1923) Kalmyk native from southern Russia, a spiritual drit er and adventurer who apprenticed a few years in a Tibetan monastery. In the early 1900s, in Western Mongolia, he poses as a reincarnation of Mahakala (an avenging Buddhist deity) and as the grandson of Prince Amursana (eighteenth-century ruler who fought against Chinese domination) to stir nationalist feelings among Mongol nomads and draw them together.

Nicholas Roerich: (1874-1947) Émigré Russian painter and h eosophist. In 1920, he moves to the United States, where, along with his wife, he establishes an art school and himself as an enigmatic and mysterious sage. In the 1920s, upon a call from his spiritual master Mahatma Morya, he ventures to Tibet, Mongolia, and the Altai to xxi

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establish a Buddhist-Communist theocracy, posing as a reincarnation of the i t h Dalai Lama, who came to cleanse Tibetan Buddhism from modern evils.

Helena Roerich: (1879–1955) Wife of Nicholas Roerich and founder of Agni-Yoga, which merged some h eosophical ideas and her own spiritual insights. She is a constant companion to Nicholas in all his geopolitical ventures. As a spiritual medium, she is in charge of communicating with their otherworldly teacher Mahatma Morya, who guides her, her husband, and other members of their inner circle in all their quests.

George Roerich: (1902–60) Son of Nicholas and Helena Roerich and an accomplished Orientalist scholar, l uent in Tibetan, Mongol, and several other languages of Central and Inner Asia. An expert on indigenous cultures and languages of Inner Asia, he is indispensible to his parents in their geopolitical ventures.

Baron Roman von Ungern-Sternberg: (1885–1921) Russian cavalry of-i cer of Baltic German origin with family roots tracing back to an old lineage of Teutonic knights. He lives by warfare and for warfare, and is also fond of Tibetan Buddhism. Harboring a deep hatred of modern Western civilization, Ungern believes that salvation will come from the East. At er 1917, he embarks on a utopian project of restoring monarchies from the East to the West.

Boris Shumatsky: (1886–1938) Seasoned Bolshevik of Russian-Jewish origin who grew up in Siberia, where he learned to speak l uent Buryat, in addition to his home-spoken Yiddish and Russian. He is a self-taught worker-intellectual who spent many years in the Marxist underground.

At er 1917, Shumatsky is the head of the Communist International’s Eastern Secretariat, spearheading the Communist gospel in northern and Inner Asia.

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Sergei Borisov: (1889–1937) Indigenous intellectual from the Altai who grew up in family of a Christian missionary. At er 1917, he becomes a Bolshevik fellow traveler, head of the Eastern Secretariat’s Mongol-Tibetan Section, and then deputy chair of the Eastern Department in the Soviet Commissariat for Foreign Af airs. Along with Shumatsky and Rinchino, Borisov works hard to turn Mongolia Red and later to bring the Communist prophecy to Tibet. In 1925, disguised as a Buddhist pilgrim, he travels to Lhasa, where he tries to sway the Dalai Lama to Red Russia’s side.

Elbek-Dorji Rinchino: (1888–1938) Ambitious indigenous intellectual with a law degree from St. Petersburg University; a Bolshevik fellow traveler, and the i rst Red dictator of Mongolia. He is obsessed with the idea of bringing together the Buryat, Mongols, and all other people of the Mongol-Tibetan culture into a vast pan-Mongol socialist republic that would be a beacon for all people of the Buddhist faith.

Agvan Dorzhiev: (1858–1938) Accomplished Buddhist monk from Siberia and chief tutor for the thirteenth Dalai Lama in the 1890s. In the early 1900s, he is His Holiness’s ambassador to the court of the Russian czar. An ardent advocate of the unity of all Tibetan Buddhist people, he dreams about creating a large pan-Buddhist state under Russian protection. At er 1917, Dorzhiev sides with Red Russia, naively expecting that the Bolsheviks would help him fuli ll his geopolitical dream.

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All that we are is a result of