Between Xanadu and Shambhala (Part III)
Shambhala and the Kalachakra Tantra
It is time for the third and final introductory installment in our series.
So far we have examined the Occidental perspectives regarding Agartha/Shambhala, a mythical realm existing within the earth and yet inextricably bound to a geographic location in Central Asia. The Western authors and mystics came to their knowledge of this place through occult channels, either through visions/oracles (Sant Yves, Blavatsky, Fille, etc), or through engaging with second-hand ethnographic sources (Ossendowski, Guenon).
Let us now turn our attention to the Eastern conceptions of Agartha/Shambhala. If this legend has any truth to it, then there should certainly be an abundance of folk traditions concerning Agartha within Central and East Asia. And while the term “Agartha” does not present itself with any real frequency, the term Shambhala does. In fact, in the Vajrayana tradition of Tibet, Shambhala is not a fringe topic confined to the village campfire—no— it is a crucial element of the Kalachakra Tantra.
Let us resume with Godwin. (From Arktos The Polar Myth)
This is an extraordinary passage and one we shall return to in the next installment, when we finally get to Coleridge.
To summarize, Tibetan Buddhists believe Shambhala is both an immaterial location and a physical one. It cannot be entered unless one has the karmic capacity to do so—but— as the Dalai Lama explains in an enigmatic passage, it could indeed be entered by purely physical means, “if one had a spacecraft that could proceed faster than light.” Indeed, the UFO theme seems to coil around the Shambhala myth like a snake. Another interesting element in the Shambhala myth is that if one were to be granted a glimpse of the place, “its appearance,” would “depend on the viewer’s spiritual status.” If we are to follow this line of reasoning, we are left with a very neat justification for the tremendous variety in western occultists’ descriptions of inner earth. To some, it resembles a kind of monstrous hell, to others a paradise, or something in between.
You may have noticed a peculiar term appears within the context of Shambhala discussions— the Kalachakra Tantra. Again, it is beyond the scope of this article series to supply a comprehensive introduction to Tantra, as I am only trying to just supply the bare minimum of information to understand my upcoming discussion of Coleridge. But let us review this description of the Kalachakra Tantra found in the book “The Shadow of the Dalai Lama” by Victor Trimondi.
The Kalachakra Tantra (Time Tantra) is considered the last and most recent of all the revealed tantra texts (c. tenth century), yet also as the “highest of all Vajrayana ways”, “the pinnacle of all Buddhist systems”. It differs from earlier tantras in its encyclopedic character. It has been described as the “most complex and profound statement on both temporal and spiritual matters” (Newman, 1985, p. 31). We can thus depict it as the summa theologia of Buddhist Tantrism, as the root and the crown of the teaching, the chief tantra of our “degenerate era” (Newman, 1985, p. 40). Tsongkhapa (1357-1419), the significant reformer and founder of the Tibetan Gelugpa order, was of the opinion that anybody who knew the Kalachakra Tantra mastered all other secret Buddhist teachings without effort.
The Kalachakra Tantra is the “highest of all Vajrayana ways,” and “the pinnacle of all Buddhist systems.” (at least according to the Tibetan tradition).
The ritual consists of a public part and a secret part, staged by the participants behind closed doors. Pupils with little prior knowledge or even people with none may participate in the public initiations. In contrast, the secret initiations are only accessible for the chosen few.
If interested in Buddhism you may have heard of these mass initiations that the Dalai Lama participates in from time to time. But only a few of the westerners who participate in these public initations are aware of what they truly represent, or what occurs in the secret sections.
