The Lost Years of Jesus:

The Life of Saint Issa

Translation by Notovitch

Jesus approaching Ladakh as a youth

Oil painting by J. Michael Spooner

The Best of the Sons of Men

• Ancient scrolls reveal that Jesus spent seventeen years in India and Tibet
• From age thirteen to age twenty-nine, he was both a student and teacher of
Buddhist and Hindu holy men
• The story of his journey from Jerusalem to Benares was recorded by Brahman
historians
• Today they still know him and love him as St. Issa. Their
'buddha'

In 1894 Nicolas Notovitch published a book called The

Unknown Life of Christ. He was a Russian doctor who
journeyed extensively throughout Afghanistan, India, and
Tibet. Notovitch journeyed through the lovely passes of
Bolan, over the Punjab, down into the arid rocky land of
Ladak, and into the majestic Vale of Kashmir of the
Himalayas. During one of his jouneys he was visiting Leh,
the capital of Ladak, near where the buddhist convent Himis
is. He had an accident that resulted in his leg being broken. This gave him the

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 unscheduled opportunity to stay awhile at
the Himis convent.

Notovitch learned, while he was there, that

there existed ancient records of the life of
Jesus Christ. In the course of his visit at the
great convent, he located a Tibetan
translation of the legend and carefully noted
in his carnet de voyage over two hundred
verses from the curious document known as
"The Life of St. Issa."

He was shown two large yellowed volumes containing the biography of St. Issa.
Notovitch enlisted a member of his party to translate the Tibetan volumes while he
carefully noted each verse in the back pages of his journal.

When he returned to the western world there was much controversy as to the
authenticity of the document. He was accused of creating a hoax and was ridiculed
as an imposter. In his defense he encouraged a scientific expedition to prove the
original tibetan documents existed.

One of his skeptics was Swami Abhedananda. Abhedananda journeyed into the
arctic region of the Himalayas, determined to find a copy of the Himis manuscript
or to expose the fraud. His book of travels, entitled Kashmir O Tibetti, tells of a
visit to the Himis gonpa and includes a Bengali translation of two hundred twenty-
four verses essentially the same as the Notovitch text. Abhedananda was thereby
convinced of the authenticity of the Issa legend.

Map of Jesus's eastern travels

Source: Summit University Press

In 1925, another Russian named Nicholas Roerich arrived at Himis. Roerich, was a
philosopher and a distinguished scientist. He apparently saw the same documents
as Notovitch and Abhedananda. And he recorded in his own travel diary the same
legend of St. Issa. Speaking of Issa, Roerich quotes legends which have the
estimated antiquity of many centuries.

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... He passed his time in several ancient cities of India such as Benares. All
loved him because Issa dwelt in peace with Vaishas and Shudras whom he
instructed and helped. But the Brahmins and Kshatriyas told him that
Brahma forbade those to approach who were created out of his womb and
feet. The Vaishas were allowed to listen to the Vedas only on holidays and the
Shudras were forbidden not only to be present at the reading of the Vedas,
but could not even look at them.

Issa said that man had filled the temples with his abominations. In order to
pay homage to metals and stones, man sacrificed his fellows in whom dwells a
spark of the Supreme Spirit. Man demeans those who labor by the sweat of
their brows, in order to gain the good will of the sluggard who sits at the
lavishly set board. But they who deprive their brothers of the common
blessing shall be themselves stripped of it.

Vaishas and Shudras were struck with astonishment and asked what they
could perform. Issa bade them "Worship not the idols. Do not consider
yourself first. Do not humiliate your neighbor. Help the poor. Sustain the
feeble. Do evil to no one. Do not covet that which you do not possess and
which is possessed by others."

Many, learning of such words, decided to kill Issa. But Issa, forewarned,
departed from this place by night.

Afterward, Issa went into Nepal and into the Himalayan mountains ....

"Well, perform for us a miracle," demanded the servitors of the Temple.

Then Issa replied to them: "Miracles made their appearance from the very
day when the world was created. He who cannot behold them is deprived of
the greatest gift of life. But woe to you, enemies of men, woe unto you, if you
await that He should attest his power by miracle."

Issa taught that men should not strive to behold the Eternal Spirit with one's
own eyes but to feel it with the heart, and to become a pure and worthy soul....

"Not only shall you not make human offerings, but you must not slaughter
animals, because all is given for the use of man. Do not steal the goods of
others, because that would be usurpation from your near one. Do not cheat,
that you may in turn not be cheated ....

"Beware, ye, who divert men from the true path and who fill the people with
superstitions and prejudices, who blind the vision of the seeing ones, and who

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preach subservience to material things. "...

Then Pilate, ruler of Jerusalem, gave orders to lay hands upon the preacher
Issa and to deliver him to the judges, without however, arousing the
displeasure of the people.

But Issa taught: "Do not seek straight paths in darkness, possessed by fear.
But gather force and support each other. He who supports his neighbor
strengthens himself

"I tried to revive the laws of Moses in the hearts of the people. And I say unto
you that you do not understand their true meaning because they do not teach
revenge but forgiveness. But the meaning of these laws is distorted."

Then the ruler sent to Issa his disguised servants that they should watch his
actions and report to him about his words to the people.

"Thou just man, "said the disguised servant of the ruler of Jerusalem
approaching Issa, "Teach us, should we fulfill the will of Caesar or await the
approaching deliverance?"

But Issa, recognizing the disguised servants, said, "I did not foretell unto you
that you would be delivered from Caesar; but I said that the soul which was
immersed in sin would be delivered from sin."

At this time, an old woman approached the crowd, but was pushed back.
Then Issa said, "Reverence Woman, mother of the universe,' in her lies the
truth of creation. She is the foundation of all that is good and beautiful. She is
the source of life and death. Upon her depends the existence of man, because
she is the sustenance of his labors. She gives birth to you in travail, she
watches over your growth. Bless her. Honor her. Defend her. Love your wives
and honor them, because tomorrow they shall be mothers, and later-
progenitors of a whole race. Their love ennobles man, soothes the embittered
heart and tames the beast. Wife and mother-they are the adornments of the
universe."

"As light divides itself from darkness, so does woman possess the gift to divide
in man good intent from the thought of evil. Your best thoughts must belong
to woman. Gather from them your moral strength, which you must possess to
sustain your near ones. Do not humiliate her, for therein you will humiliate
yourselves. And all which you will do to mother, to wife, to widow or to
another woman in sorrow-that shall you also do for the Spirit."

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So taught Issa; but the ruler Pilate ordered one of his servants to make
accusation against him.

Said Issa: "Not far hence is the time when by the Highest Will the people will
become purified and united into one family."

And then turning to the ruler, he said, "Why demean thy dignity and teach
thy subordinates to live in deceit when even without this thou couldst also
have had the means of accusing an innocent one?"

From another version of the legend, Roerich quotes fragments of thought and
evidence of the miraculous.

Near Lhasa was a temple of teaching with a wealth of manuscripts. Jesus was
to acquaint himself with them. Meng-ste, a great sage of all the East, was in
this temple.

Finally Jesus reached a mountain pass and in the chief city of Ladak, Leh, he
was joyously accepted by monks and people of the lower class .... And Jesus
taught in the monasteries and in the bazaars (the market places); wherever
the simple people gathered--there he taught.

Not far from this place lived a woman whose son had died and she brought
him to Jesus. And in the presence of a multitude, Jesus laid his hand on the
child, and the child rose healed. And many brought their children and Jesus
laid his hands upon them, healing them.

Among the Ladakis, Jesus passed many days, teaching them. And they loved
him and when the time of his departure came they sorrowed as children.

Click here to read 'The Life of Saint Issa' Translation by

Notovitch

Chapters
Introduction | I-V | VI-VIII | IX-XI | XII-XIV

Research Links
• The Aquarian Gospel of Christ
• The Lost Years of Jesus, Heart magazine, Spring 1983
• Excerpt from Chapter 4 of In Search of the Loving God

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• Re-examination of the "Lost Years" evidence
• Nicolas Notovitch
• The Missing Years of Jesus (Urantia Book)
• Tibetan Gospel
• The Life of Saint Issa
• Jesus' Missing Years (Opposing View)
• The Jesus of the New Age Movement (Opposing View)
• Christian Research Journal (Opposing View)
• Did Jesus go to India? (Opposing View)
• The Lost Years of Jesus: Documentary Evidence of Jesus' 17-Year Journey to the East
• The Lost Years of Jesus

Related Links
• Traditions of Jesus
• Tomb of Jesus Website
• Jesus Messiah, Isha Masih, Issa Mashiha, Hazrat Issa, Yuzu Asaph, Yesu, Esus
• Where did Jesus go?
• Jesus lived in India
• Did Jesus survive the crucifixion?
• Jesus in India
• The Crucifixion of Jesus in View of Muslim Theology
• Qur'an does not categorically say; Jesus was substituted with another man
• Jesus in the Quran and Bible
• Jesus(pbuh): Dead or Alive?

Really wild stuff

• The Talmud of Jmmanuel

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