PREFACE

I have been asked by several people to justify why I should publicly share spiritual teachings and secrets that have long been kept hidden in the remote regions of the Gobi Desert where they originated—information that has only been passed down from teacher to apprentice. So I want to address this concern at the outset. Gil-Hamesch, the spiritual elder of the Kashi people with whom I stayed, told me that the greatest and truest knowledge could never be bought, sold or stolen. Wise words in the hands of foolish people would only make them more foolish, he said. Furthermore, he directly asked me to share the ancient teachings of his people’s Song of Eternity with people in the West. I was asked to have faith that there was a higher purpose to his request. To this end, he personally initiated me into the ancient Kashi traditions of the Gobi Desert and provided me with the assistance of an English-speaking guide named

Thod. This is the story of how I came to discover and then study the Song of Eternity with the help of three remarkable men. I truly owe them a lifetime of gratitude: Thod, Gil-Hamesch, and “the Cook.” I have chosen to refer to them by their nicknames and to change the names and traits of several other people in this book, including the Tibetan monks who escorted me on a clandestine flight across the Himalayas in hopes of meeting the Dalai Lama. This is necessary not only out of respect for their privacy, but from a real concern for their safety.

 My Kashi informants dwell within the region of Xinjiang, a semi-autonomous part of China, yet like Tibet, still governed harshly by the Chinese central government. I learned first-hand the fierce determination of the Chinese government to eliminate all forms of religious or cultural expression, which they see as a threat to Eastern China’s hold on the untapped gas, oil and water resources.

In Xinjiang the only officially permitted religion is Islam, and it is strictly regulated. In spite of this, some native residents along the edge of the Gobi Desert continue a sacred way of life brought to them by their ancestors, the ancient nomadic bards. Secretly, they keep alive the poetic wisdom of the Song of Eternity, believing that in the greater cycles of time the foolishness of men has no ultimate reality, and wisdom alone prevails.

If there had initially been an element of objective research to my journey it soon became an expedition into spiritual terrain, a voyage into the roots of all of our stories and myths, whether we were born in the East or the West. There are a number of individuals I mention only briefly, because I knew little about them at the time this journey took place.

After I returned I learned a great deal more about the man I refer to as “the Gardener,” as well as Father Franck. Their stories will be told in subsequent books, along with deeper explorations of the self-empowerment  techniques that were taught to me during my sojourn in their world.

As for the events described in this book, I have recorded them as accurately as possible. However, my conversations with my hosts were often long and involved—many lasting through the night—as I sought to understand a view of life so different from my own. I have tried to resist interpreting their words or comparing them to other beliefs, except where they themselves made comparisons. The Song of Eternity is ancient, yet its message has never been more relevant. The remarkable heart of its teachings is that there is a little-known and hidden all-pervading source of power that is available to each of us—and more importantly, that it is possible to awaken ourselves to this essential life force and to work with it to bring greater power into our everyday lives.

The Kashi people believe that events do not happen randomly. They would say that if this book has appeared in your hands, it is a gift to you from the hidden mysteries of Spirit. They would say that this is a unique opportunity for new understanding and a new awakening at a deeper level, meant especially for you. As Thod once said to me: “For those who are ready to wake up, contemplating the verses of the Song of Eternity can become a doorway on the journey to the Valley of Miracles.”

Larry Andrews