Roerich Elena Ivanovna: biography and photos

Truly great is seen only from a distance. This is exactly what happened with the creative heritage of the Russian writer and philosopher Elena Ivanovna Roerich. All that she created in the first half of the twentieth century, entered the spiritual and cultural life of Russia quite recently. The works of EI Roerich aroused genuine and profound interest among our compatriots who tried to find answers to many questions of existence. This article will describe a brief biography of this outstanding woman.

Childhood and study

Roerich Elena Ivanovna was born in St. Petersburg in 1879. The father of the girl was a famous architect - Ivan Ivanovich Shaposhnikov. On the maternal line Elena was a distant relative of the greatest composer M.P. Mussorgsky and great-uncle of the commander M. I. Kutuzov.

Since childhood, the girl showed extraordinary talents. So, by the age of seven Elena already wrote and read in three languages. And becoming a teenager, she seriously became interested in philosophy and literature. Music education Shaposhnikov received at the Mariinsky Gymnasium. All teachers have predicted her career as a pianist, but fate decreed otherwise.

Marriage

In 1899 Elena Ivanovna met the young and talented artist N. K. Roerich. He became like-minded to the girl and shared all her beliefs. Thanks to high ideals and mutual love this union was very strong. Their whole life was spent in joint creativity. In 1902, Nicholas and Helen's son Yury was born (in the future he will become a famous orientalist), and in 1904 - Svyatoslav, who followed in the footsteps of his father.

Moving to the USA

After the revolution, the Roerich family was cut off from the motherland. Since 1916, they lived in Finland, where Nikolai Konstantinovich corrected his health. Then they were invited to London and Sweden, where the Roerichs took part in exhibitions and prepared scenery for the opera house. In 1920, Nikolai Konstantinovich and Elena Ivanovna arrived in the United States. The spouse immediately engaged actively in cultural activities. Over time, she had students who helped a woman to open several institutions in New York - the Crown Mundi art center, the Master Art Institute, and the Nicholas Roerich Museum. Soon, under the aegis of these organizations, many educational institutions, creative clubs and various societies have rallied, striving to improve life and the embodiment of humanistic ideals.

Arrival in India and expedition

Roerichs for a long time wanted to visit this country, rich in its cultural and spiritual traditions. And in December 1923 they arrived there. A couple of years Elena Ivanovna took part in a unique three-year expedition on the little-explored and hard-to-reach places in Central Asia. The organizer of this event was her husband.

The starting point of the expedition was India (Sikkim). From it travelers traveled to Ladakh, Kashmir and Chinese Xinjiang. The Soviet border in the Tien-Shan region - that's where the three members of the expedition - Nikolai Konstantinovich, Yury Nikolaevich and Elena Ivanovna - went from there. Moscow became the next point of arrival of the Roerich family. In the capital, they held a number of important meetings, and then joined the main expedition bound for Mongolia through Buryatia and Altai. Then the travelers entered Tibet to visit Lhasa. But right before this city district they were stopped by representatives of local authorities. The expedition had to live for about five months in summer tents on the snowy and frosty Chantang plateau. It was here that the caravan died, and all the guides died or fled. And only by spring authorities allowed the expedition to move on. The travelers went to Sikkim through the Trans-Himalayas.

Writing books

In 1926, Elena Ivanovna lived in Ulan Bator (Mongolia). There she published the book "Fundamentals of Buddhism." In this work, Roerich interpreted a number of fundamental philosophical concepts of Buddha's teaching: nirvana, the law of karma, reincarnation and the deepest moral side. Thus, she refuted the main Western stereotype of thinking that in a given religion a person is considered an insignificant, God-forgotten being.

The picturesque valley of Kulu (Western Himalayas) - that's where, in 1928, Elena Ivanovna moved with her family. The activity of the writer at that time was entirely devoted to a series of books on Agni Yoga (the philosophical and ethical Teaching of Living Ethics). The works were created in close cooperation with a number of anonymous philosophers who called themselves Teachers, or Great Souls, or Mahatmas.

Living Ethics Books

They have become a desktop for many people. In these works, ethical problems are brought to the forefront, addressed to the real, earthly conditions of life of each person.

The appearance of the books of the Living Ethics was directly related to the processes taking place in the spiritual life, culture and science of the first half of the twentieth century. But the main impulse was the "scientific explosion", which laid the foundation for an innovative holistic approach to the study of reality. At that time, many outstanding minds (philosophers NA Berdyaev, PA Florensky and IA Il'in, as well as scientists AL Chizhevsky, KE Tsiolkovsky, VI Vernadsky) spoke of the inseparability The fate of mankind from the life of the Cosmos. They also stated that in a new era people will cooperate with other worlds.

Based on the modern achievements of Western science and the ancient teachings of the East, the Living Ethics creates a system of knowledge and reveals the specifics of the cosmic evolution of mankind. Its key component is the Laws. They determine the development of the universe, human behavior, the birth of stars, the growth of natural structures and the motion of planets. Nothing exists in the Cosmos outside these Laws. These rules also determine the social and historical life of mankind. And while people do not realize this, they can not improve their being.

"Cryptograms of the East"

This work by EI Roerich was published in Paris in 1929. But on the cover there was not her surname, but a pseudonym - J. Saint-Hilaire. "Cryptograms" described historical and legendary events of the past, revealing to people unknown aspects of life of the four Great Teachers - Apollonius of Tian, Christ, Buddha and Sergius of Radonezh. Elena Ivanovna devoted the latest work to the latter. In her, the writer's deep love for the ascetic united with a beautiful knowledge of theology and history.

"Letters"

In the heritage of EI Roerich, they occupy a special place. If the teaching of the Living Ethics, Elena Ivanovna, whose photo is in many philosophical encyclopedias, was created in cooperation with teachers, the "Letters" became the product of her individual creativity. Roerich had the amazing gift of an enlightener. Not trying to simplify the problem, it made it accessible even for little-trained people. In a simple language, Elena Ivanovna explained to her correspondents complicated questions about the relationship between matter and spirit, the influence of cosmic laws, the place of man in the universe. The content of these letters is striking not only by the deep knowledge of Roerich ancient philosophical systems, treatises of European and Oriental thinkers, but also by a clear, broad understanding of the foundations of being.

The heroine of this article answered people with different levels of consciousness, but always in the spirit of goodwill and tolerance. For many, her cordial, warm attitude has become a true support in difficult life moments. In Riga in 1940 a two-volume edition of the Letters EI Roerich was published. This work is only a small part of the great epistolary heritage of the writer.

The last period

1948 - this is the year in which Elena Ivanovna left the Kulu Valley. The philosopher together with his son Yuri went to Khandala and Delhi (the writer's husband had already died). After staying there for a while, they decided to settle in the resort town of Kalimpong (India).

Elena Ivanovna made repeated attempts to return to Russia. She wrote many times to the Soviet Embassy with a request for a visa, but she was constantly denied. Until the very end of her life, Roerich hoped to return to Russia to bring all the treasures she had collected and work for several years for the good of her homeland. But this did not happen. In October 1955, the heroine of this article died in India.

Conclusion

More than sixty years have passed since Elena Ivanovna passed away. The work of this outstanding woman can be described as heroic without embellishment. The more you become acquainted with him, the clearer and deeper you understand the meaning of the works created by her. The heritage left by Roerich is truly inexhaustible. Through its philosophical and scientific discoveries, it is directed to the New World, to the Future, in which heroic creativity will become the rule, not the exception.