Agni Yoga issues from the timeless Source of Good and Wisdom, the White Brotherhood of the Himalayas. More specifically, it comes from the Ashram of the great Teacher, known by the name ''Morya''. It includes discourses, instructions and remarks, which the wise Master addressed to two of His disciples, who undertook the heavy burden of presenting the Teaching to the people. These disciples are the inseparable companions in life and in work too, Helena Ivanovna and Nicholas Roerich.

Helena Ivanovna-Roerich (1879-1955), from infancy showed unusual talents: extra ordinary inclination towards knowledge and great ease in learning, thoughtfulness and sensitivity in art. But mainly she was of a profoundly spiritual nature. From the first years of her life she remembered the existence of her Teacher. Later, under His guidance and under the shield of the whole of the Brotherhood, she undertook the burden of a great mission: To test on herself the application of the fiery trial, and to implant the seeds of the Teaching into the world! The latter was achieved by founding Agni Yoga societies in different places of the world and by the publishing of the Teaching in a series of books and precious notes.

In the books of the Teaching she is mentioned as Sister Urusvati or Ur.

Nicholas Roerich (1874-1947) was also of an especially charismatic nature. He was an extremely talented painter. Untiringly, he painted a few thousand pictures of unrivaled beauty and most high inspiration. A good number of these paintings are kept and exhibited at the Roerich Museum in New York, stimulating to the spectator - beyond the mere esthetic pleasure - a strong feeling of spiritual purification and exaltation.
Except for his paintings, he dealt with archeological and botanical research. He also made great efforts for the establishment of peace and the enhancement and spreading of culture. His spiritual work includes several books, as Shambhala, Heart of Asia, The Invincible etc, which radiate a strong essence of spirituality, sensitivity and nobility.
Together with Helena, he labored for the establishment and spreading of the Teaching, and was a wonderful guide of people.

Great has been the spiritual achievement of these two fiery bearers of the Teaching.

 

All the books of Agni Yoga, in which the Teaching is given directly from the great spirit of the Teacher ''Morya'', have on their cover this design-the sign of the Teaching. The sanscritic inscription inside the square frame reads:''Maitreya's Sangha'', which means ''Community of Maitreya''. Maitreya is the Buddhist name of the One whom the West calls Christ, the Leader of the Great White Brotherhood, and means ''Friend of all beings''.

The three red spheres surrounded also by a red circle is a symbolic design which can be found painted or engraved in many places on the planet, in Europe, Russia, Asia etc. It can be seen in India as the symbol of happiness (Chintamani) or as an ornament on the chest of inhabitants of the Himalayas* in the Temple of Heaven, in China* in the Three Treasures in Tibet* on the chest of Christ, in the famous painting ''The Worship of Christ''* in Madonna of Strasbourg* on the sleeves of the Knights of the Temple* on the blades of the Caucasian swords* on ancient Russian icons* on rocks of Mongolia* on Buddhist banners* on pots of the Neolithic Age.

The sign depicts the Trinity or triad which underlies all existence e.g.:
Spirit — Soul — Body, Life — Consciousness — Form, Goodness — Beauty — Truth, Past — Present — Future etc. The circle indicates the unbreakable unity of the three elements, which, finally, are nothing but aspects of the same thing.

The Roerichs adopted this sign because of its universality and antiquity, calling it the ''Banner of Peace and Culture''. In it, the surrounding circle symbolizes the great unity of Culture, (Cult — Ur: Worship of Light or Spiritual Cultivation), while the three spheres represent the three basic branches of Culture: Religion — Science — Art. They also symbolize the three great planetary centers: Shambhala — Hierarchy — Mankind, as well as the triad of the worlds: Fiery — Subtle — Material, inside the unbreakable circle of the supermundane unity.