Magic and Mystery in Tibet

The author of the book, known researcher and expert on Buddhist philosophy Alexandра David-Néel, spent almost fourteen years in Tibet (see more below in the ABOUT THE AUTHOR tab). Remaining a genuine representative of the West—without yielding to prejudice and dogma, without changing in anything her calling as a scholar and researcher—she introduced the general public to the sacred world of lamas and various kinds of sorcerers surrounding them.

“This book began for me with the personality of the author: Alexandra David-Néel—a singer, poet, and traveler who lived to a hundred years old and went to such corners of the world that even now, with mobile phones, tour equipment and all the other benefits of civilization, not everyone would go. It turned out she also writes thoroughly. Tibet through Alexandra’s eyes is a beautiful country that can’t help but be loved. Even though the author writes with restraint and great sobriety, “Mystics and Magicians of Tibet” sometimes still reminds you of a fairy tale—though the book also contains fairy tales and yarns. The narration is very dense—you can’t just tackle it at a run; you have to immerse yourself gradually and savor it. Even then, it doesn’t guarantee that you will understand and remember everything—it’s something you have to live through, take into yourself. But I clearly remember trainings on warming practices, funeral rituals, and message transmission over distance. The last (and the first) happened also with Alexandra, who, for all her love of the East and her fascination with its complex way of life, nonetheless accepted nothing on faith—she wanted to study and understand everything. I liked her approach: if you properly study Tibetan practices, you can understand a lot about the psyche and discover that in the ‘wonders’ there is nothing supernatural—just something that hasn’t been studied.”