本书是作家詹姆斯·希尔顿所著一本小说的情节，书名叫《消失的地平线》（Lost Horizon），首版发表于1933年。正是由于这本书的发表，在英语中多了一个新的词汇——“shangri-la”——香格里拉，这个词成了永恒宁静和平的象征。随着希尔顿的小说1937年后多次被拍成电影，那片神奇的土地和香格里拉的名字更是家喻户晓，引得半个多世纪以来无数探险家、旅游者、考古者，甚至淘金者纷纷寻找这个似乎是虚幻存在的地方，几乎忘记了那只是一部虚构小说中的地名。新加坡华侨巨商郭鹤年将他遍及全球的酒店集团命名为“香格里拉”。位于滇藏川地区东南部的云南省迪庆藏族自治州的中甸县甚至将自己的县名就改为“香格里拉”。

二十世纪三址年代，四名西方人闯入了神秘的中国藏区，经历了一系列不可思议的事件。这部书是终造就了西方乃至世界的“世外桃源”。

PROLOGUE

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWE

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

EPILOGUE

Cigars had burned low, and we were beginning to sample the disillusionment that usually afflicts old school friends who have met again as men and found themselves with less in common than they had believed they had. Rutherford wrote novels; Wyland was one of the Embassy secretaries; he had just given us dinner at Tempelhof--not very cheerfully, I fancied, but with the equanimity which a diplomat must always keep on tap for such occasions. It seemed likely that nothing but the fact of being three celibate Englishmen in a foreign capital could have brought us together, and I had already reached the conclusion that the slight touch of priggishness which I remembered in Wyland Tertius had not diminished with years and an M.V.O. Rutherford I liked more; he had ripened well out of the skinny, precocious infant whom I had once alternately bullied and patronized. The probability that he was making much more money and having a more interesting life than either of us,gave Wyland and me our one mutual emotion--a touch of envy.

The evening, however, was far from dull. We had a good view of the big Luft-Hansa machines as they arrived at the aerodrome from all parts of Central Europe, and towards dusk, when arcflares were lighted, the scene took on a rich,theatrical brilliance. One of the planes was English, and its pilot, in full flying-kit, strolled past our table and saluted Wyland, who did not at first recognize him. When he did so there were introductions all around, and the stranger was invited to join us. He was a pleasant, jolly youth named Sanders. Wyland made some apologetic remark about the difficulty of identifying people when they were all dressed up in Sibleys and flying-helmets; at which Sanders laughed and answered: "Oh, rather.I know that well enough.Don't forget I was at Baskul." Wyland laughed also, but less spontaneously, and the conversation then took other directions.P3-4