Altruistic World Online Library

Quest Books encourages open-minded inquiry into world religions, philosophy, science, and the arts in order to understand the wisdom of the ages, respect the unity of all life, and help people explore individual spiritual self-transformation.

Its publications are generously supported by The Kern Foundation, a trust committed to Theosophical education.

Quest Books is the imprint of the Theosophical Publishing House, a division of the Theosophical Society in America. For information about programs, literature, on-line study, membership benefits, and international centers, see http://www.theosophical.org or call 800-669-1571 or (outside the U.S.) 630-668-1571.

Praise for Andrei Znamenski's RED SHAMBHALA

"The lines between mystical seekers, secret policemen, spies, and charlatans constantly cross and blur in this fascinating, and at times astounding, story about the interplay of mysticism and politics in the shadow of Stalin's Russia."

-- Richard Spence, Professor of History, University of Idaho

"An amazing story, told by a fine scholar but written accessibly. It has 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."

-- Mark Sedgwick, author, Against the Modern World: Traditionalism and the Secret Intellectual History of the Twentieth Century

"This groundbreaking investigation makes us aware that the sacred and the profane can share the same mythical milieu. A must-read book for people interested in the fuzzy area among mystique, esotericism, and politics."

-- Marcello De Martino, Ph.D., Istituto Italiano per l'Africa e l'Oriente, Rome, and author of Mircea Eliade Esoterico

"Reads like the best of thrillers."

-- Willard Sunderland, Professor of History, University of Cincinnati