The Secret of Shambhala : In Search of the Eleventh Insight (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "The phone rang and I just stared at it..." (more)
Key Phrases: outer cultures, synchronistic process, conscious alertness, Lama Rigden, Fourth Extension, Wilson James (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Author James Redfield takes readers to the mountains of Tibet in search of the mythical place called Shambhala, otherwise known as Shangri-La. Like his previous bestselling books, Redfield holds the tension between an adventure travel story (in this book, armed Chinese soldiers doggedly pursue him) and divine encounters. Rather than preach his spiritual beliefs, Redfield likes to portray himself as a naive pilgrim, receiving wisdom and insights from the various guides and teachers he meets on his metaphysical journeys.

Shambhala is indeed a paradise, just as it was lovingly portrayed in the famous James Hilton novel Lost Horizon. It is also a spiritual utopia, and Redfield takes great pleasure in pondering the possibilities of living in a culture that is entirely "focused on the life process." Residents explain their lifestyle, which has emerged from a completely spiritual culture, including some rather sensible opinions about technology, parenting, and even genetic testing. Meanwhile, Redfield remains the wide-eyed observer. Those who loved the characters, writing style, and epiphanies in The Celestine Prophecy will not be disappointed with Redfield's latest inspirational portrait of a new world order. --Gail Hudson

From Publishers Weekly

The third book in the Celestine series, this slight fable begins with an appealing spiritual quest, but is soon burdened with Redfield's millennial concerns. Still, readers who made bestsellers of The Celestine Prophecy and The Tenth Insight are not likely to be deterred, especially those who are interested in Eastern wisdom. Instructed by a neighborhood girl to seek a place of total enlightenment, the narrator makes an imaginary journey to Tibet in search of Shambhala (also known as Shangri-La). Under constant threat by Chinese soldiers, he makes a harrowing passage with the help of human and spirit guides, ultimately reaching the kingdom where the secrets of "the eleventh insight" are revealed in stages. Based on the notion that we attract the events in our lives, the 11th insight reveals that prayer in the form of affirmations and positive energy can empower not only individuals, but whole societies. Readers will find value in Redfield's simply stated comments about building energy through nutrition, posture and thought, and refusing to erode one's energy through negative thinking, including hatred, anger and evil. Redfield believes that baby boomers, with their interest in the human potential movement, have the power to fulfill their generational mission (as their parents did with WWII) by using the 11th insight to counter negative social forces, such as lack of community, youth alienation, environmental destruction, terrorism, the power of centralized technology and genetic engineering of all stripes. (Nov.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 238 pages
• Publisher: Warner Books; F edition (November 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446523089
• ISBN-13: 978-0446523080
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (63 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #477,386 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Redfield no longer such a superstar, but has staying power, February 26, 2001

By	Lucius Ringwald (a Nonordinary State of Awareness) - See all my reviews

The Celestine Prophecy was a great idea for a way to get spirituality across to the public: a synthesis of the most popular threads of 'New Age' thought that were circulating in the mid-1990s, packaged as a fast-paced action-adventure novel. The underlying metaphysics claimed to embrace all religions, yet also professed to be based on an empirical approach to life.

Sales show that a lot of the sensationalism which surrounded Celestine faded with Redfield's consecutive books. Some of this is just the nature of trends: anyone who has such monumental success with their first publication has little chance of producing a sequel that achieves the same results. On the other hand, there are some factors that could account for this decline in popularity.

In his second book, The Tenth Insight, Redfield compromised part of his original formula by introducing themes like reincarnation and animal omens--subjects that departed from the religious middle ground which initially let many people stay open to his theories. He also told his readers that human beings have abilities which are a good stretch further away from Pop Mysticism than communing with nature or perceiving auras. His third book, The Celestine Vision, was nonfiction, and discussed progressions in science and social thought that Redfield believes are precursors to a major revolution in global consciousness; it did well enough, but didn't come near to his early success.

With the release of The Secret of Shambhala, Redfield returned to the ongoing fictional storyline, continuing where The Tenth Insight left off. In this book, he posits that the energy generated by our thoughts and emotions actually goes out into the world as a force that he calls 'prayer,' and influences both outer events and the awareness of the people with whom we interact. I found his theories (which are embedded in the text as elaborate monologues followed by scenarios which illustrate them) to be as applicable to my own experiences as any other book in the series. The concepts were more advanced--and therefore, more challenging--than those in Celestine. This has probably contributed to its (relatively) low sales up to this point.

42 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Powerful Spritual messages, May 5, 2000

By	Sumeet Gill (Reston, VA USA) - See all my reviews

I don't always buy everything that Redfield has to offer. I LOVED the Celestine Prophecy, but didn't care for the Tenth Insight. But this one is a MUST buy, and a MUST read. For anyone out there that is looking for spiritual growth, and ways to enhance or broaden perspectives through life, this is IT. Some of the ideas I have heard before, but I have never absorbed them as completely because it's never been presented in this riveting way. People are offended by the constant use of government as an enemy, but do remember, that this is a fictional book, and the author has an artistic license. Look for the message(s), and you'll be a bigger better more enlightened person.

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A story with an agenda, July 31, 2000

By	Joseph H Pierre "Joe Pierre" (Salem, OR USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

By the author of the number one New York Times bestseller, The Celestine Prophecy, this book will appeal to a great many readers, I am quite sure. It is fiction, although many readers will see it as "based on fact." It rather depends upon the reader's own belief system, how they will view the book.

Redfield has used the book as a vehicle to expose his own philosophy, in much the same way as Ayn Rand used Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead, but of course their philosophies are different. In fact, one could almost say that they are diametrically opposed to each other. Where Rand was a rationalist, Redfield is, well. . .

To best describe Redfield's premise, and the theme of the story, perhaps it would be best to describe the readers who will probably most enjoy the book: those who will exclaim over its probity and the integrity--nay, saintliness--of the author.

They will look you in the eye fiercely and argue against adding fluorides to water, genetic manipulation of, or adding "chemicals" to, food; or eating "dead" food. They will be vegetarians. They will be certain that large corporations are evil, and that "materialism" is the bane of human existence. They will be persuaded of the positive power of love, and convinced that anger, the lust for power over others, and violence are the ultimate destroyers of civilization.

These are the people who will most enjoy this book, because Redfield is a champion for all of those causes.

The secret of Shambhala (Shangri-La) is the "Power of Prayer." That becomes obvious at once. But, prayer is not simply wishing, or hoping, or idly asking God for a boon. It is a strong expectation. It is the belief that something good (or bad) will happen. This is the force by which we shape our world, with the help of angels, according to James Redfield's protagonist, whose name is never given. The book is written in the first person. He and his alter-ego, Wilson James-who suddenly appears in the story without explanation, with cryptic allusions to other adventures (and insights) of which the reader is assumed to be aware--go to Tibet because a teen-aged girl tells them they ought to, where the protagonist (and the reader) hope to discover their reason for going to Tibet.

In Tibet, their spiritual quest leads them into conflict with the all-powerful atheists of the Chinese government, who shamelessly apply force and violence and fan their paranoia, which, of course, weakens their spiritual strength. The government agents who dog their every move, seem to know more about their quest than they do, and yet they are supposedly motivated by the need to learn from our clueless friends their purpose and destination. It must have been tough for Chinese intelligence to explain their mission to the comptroller and get funding for the project!

In all candor, the book held me to the end. I read it in one sitting. (Although there are 238 pages, the type is large and well spaced out, so it reads quickly (particularly if you skip over the sermons lightly.) The plot is airy-fairy, and the conflict is too improbable to engage your critical intelligence. Yet, read it I did. As in all good fiction, there is enough of a germ of truth in the underlying premise it to make it, if not plausible, at least entertaining. Do I recommend it? Sure!

A most unusual novel.