Shangri-La

Shangri-La
Shangri-La
Lost Horizon location
Genre	Novel
In-universe information
Type	Valley

Shangri-La is a fictional place in Tibet's Kunlun Mountains,^[1] described in the 1933 novel Lost Horizon by English author James Hilton. Hilton portrays Shangri-La as a mystical, harmonious valley, gently guided from a lamasery, enclosed in the western end of the Kunlun Mountains.^[1] Shangri-La has become synonymous with any earthly paradise, particularly a mythical Himalayan utopia – an enduringly happy land, isolated from the world. In the novel, the people who live in Shangri-La are almost immortal, living hundreds of years beyond the normal lifespan and only very slowly aging in appearance.

Ancient Tibetan scriptures mention the existence of seven such places as Nghe-Beyul Khembalung.^[2] Khembalung is one of several Utopia beyuls (hidden lands similar to Shangri-La) which Tibetan Buddhists believe that Padmasambhava established in the 9th century CE as idyllic, sacred places of refuge for Buddhists during times of strife.^[3]

^ ^a ^b Hilton, James (1933). Lost Horizon. Macmillan. Archived from the original on 17 November 2022. Retrieved 20 November 2022. Uses the spelling 'Kuen-Lun'.
^ Shrestha, Dr. Tirtha Bahadur; Joshi, Rabindra Man; Sangam, Khagendra (2009). The Makalu-Barun National Park & Buffer Zone Brochure. Makalu-Barun National Park.
^ Reinhard, 1978.

[Lost_Horizon_1933-1] Hilton, James (1933). Lost Horizon. Macmillan. Archived from the original on 17 November 2022. Retrieved 20 November 2022. Uses the spelling 'Kuen-Lun'.

[National_Park_brochure-2] Shrestha, Dr. Tirtha Bahadur; Joshi, Rabindra Man; Sangam, Khagendra (2009). The Makalu-Barun National Park & Buffer Zone Brochure. Makalu-Barun National Park.

[3] Reinhard, 1978.

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Shangri-La
Lost Horizon location
Genre	Novel
In-universe information
Type	Valley