Nicholas and Helena Roerich: The Spiritual Journey of Two Great Artists and Peacemakers

In her latest title, Ruth Drayer provides a factual account of the two Russian visionaries who believed beauty could solve the world's problems and unify humanity. Partners in all things, charismatic Nicholas (1874-1947) was an internationally acclaimed artist (responsible for over 7,000 paintings), author, daring explorer, conservationist, archeologist, humanitarian and peacemaker, while his wife, Helena (1879 - 1955), was a teacher and healer as well as the inspired co-author of the Agni Yoga (www.agniyoga.org) series. This is the first book in English to interweave the Agni Yoga writings and the Roerichs' relationship with their spiritual teacher in with their fascinating travels, disclosing the long-hidden story of the Roerichs' connection with Tibetan Buddhism. Though it may read like a tale, Drayer takes us on the real-life adventures of the Roerichs as they travel to the most remote and dangerous regions of India, China, Mongolia, the Gobi, Tibet and Siberia. We bear witness as the couple flees the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 Russia and as they arrive in New York City in the fall of 1920 where they later founded the first school that teaches all of the arts under one roof. We experience their trials and tribulations as the Roerichs trek through the following years, which were marked by spy charges, political upheaval and even captivity. Though the courageous couple reached the border of Tibet by 1927 in their search of the sacred Buddhist site, Shambhala, which was to complete their mission of peace by establishing a true “heaven on Earth,” their journey was again met with conflict. Sadly, Nicholas Roerich died before this dream could be fully realized. From the 1935 Roerich Pact and Banner of Peace (introduced to the world under FDR’s administration in an effort to preserve the world's artistic treasures) and the 27-story Roerich Museum (www.roerich.org) that still proudly sits on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, to the recently released British Secret Files detailing their unjust incarceration, these are but mere symbols of the Roerichs’ immense contributions to the art, humanitarian and spiritual worlds. Drayer unlocks the door to these worlds and provides us with a never-before-seen account of the complete story that is the legacy of Nicholas and Helena Roerich.

312 pages

About the author: Writer, painter and intuitive numerologist, Ruth Abrams Drayeris known throughout many artistic and mystical groups around the globe. Her eclectic, spiritual approach to life and her strong love of design and color is reflected in all that she does. Drayer was born and raised in Washington, D.C., where she attended Wilson Teacher's College and developed her belief in the world as a global community. She began her career as a numerologist in 1978, which led her into teaching, writing for various newspapers and magazines, appearing on television and radio programs, and speaking at trade and consumer shows across the country. Drayer was invited to become the numerologist for the State of Karnatika after moving to India to work with Svetoslav Roerich in 1986. Emulating the adventurous life of the Roerichs, Drayer’s artistic studies and her own personal love of exploration have taken her to such exotic places as India, Singapore, Bali, Indonesia, Europe, Israel, Egypt, Mexico, and even the University of Texas in El Paso. In 1987, she returned to America and wrote Numerology: The Language of Life, which was released under her own publishing company, Jewels of Light Publishing, under the name Numerology: The Power in Numbers, A Right & Left Brain Approach. In 1990, Drayer began creating acrylic paintings with mystical, abstract themes, and writing Wayfarers: The Spiritual Journey of Nicholas & Helena Roerich, which was also self-published in 2004. Now being released by Quest Books under the new title, Nicholas & Helena Roerich: The Spiritual Journey of Two Great Artists and Peacemakers, Drayer draws from more than fifteen years of work and research based on the mysterious lives of the Roerichs, as well as interviews with the Roerichs’ son in India, their travel diaries, scrapbooks in the Nicholas Roerich Museum in New York City, and reports held in the British Secret Files, Library of Congress, National archives and through the Freedom of Information Act. Drayer has received the Award of Excellence in The Healing Power of Art Competition in Manhattan, and was also part of the 2003-2004 New Art International, a compendium of recent works by world contemporary artists, and was nominated for PNM's Rural Entrepreneur of the Year Award and the 2005 Annual Author Award by Friends of the Branigan Memorial Library. Drayer has four children and six grandchildren, and teaches at the Las Cruces Community College in New Mexico, where she currently lives with her two cats. Wayfarers: The Video and Cybernumbers Pro, numerology software Drayer recently produced, are also currently available.