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19188458 No.19188458 [Reply] [Original]

This is unironically a great intro to Evola's work. Should have been published in English sooner.

>> No.19189681

What's it about? Tell us. How does it compare to Revolt Against the Modern World?

>> No.19189720

>>19188458
Wish a hard copy was affordable

>> No.19189740

>>19188458
quick rundown? I've already read some of his other works

>> No.19190031

>>19189681
>>19189740
He basically goes through all of the modern spiritual currents of his day (it was first published in the late 20s but updated frequently up to the early 70s before his death) and he explains his position in relation to all of them. Specifically, theosophy, mysticism (seances to "talk to the dead" which were very popular in his day), psychic research, Freud (who he rips apart, which I enjoyed) and Jung, Crowley, Satanism/LaVey, and where they all go wrong from the Traditional standpoint. He also talks about Nietzsche and Dostoevsky (specifically Kirillov in Demons), so you get an introduction as to where he stands in relation to Nietzsche. He ties this all this into esoteric laws and influences of what he would later call the "occult war". He also explains some of the philosophical and spiritual dangers modern man encounters, and how to effectively confront them, which I found particularly insightful and helpful. Near the end he focuses on initiation and magic, and some modern currents that he saw as being on the right track.

One important thing that is made very clear is the difference between spiritually ascending to the "superpersonal" ("supraconsciousness," divine intuition) and descending to the subpersonal (dissolving of the ego and handing it over to subtle forces which usually do not have the best intentions, which is the case for mystics), the latter being more common in our times. So this was good at showing where the real spiritual dangers are. He talks about possession, whether conscious or unconscious, and possible ways of this occurring today (losing yourself to "negro jazz" lol). I wish he could have written about computers and the internet and AI, because I know it would be relevant to the topic.

It differs from Revolt considerably, since it is focused on these modern currents and the dangers to be aware of, while the focus on ancient Traditions is minimal and political/economic issues are basically ignored. I wish I had read this before Revolt (which was only published a few years after this) since it clarifies his core spiritual concepts, like the idea of spiritual virility, which is the force conducive to the aforementioned "ascending" path, which was a key to understanding Revolt. And as I said before, this provides some very good guidance for modern man, whether he is delving into spirituality or facing existential or nihilistic dilemmas.

>> No.19190044

>>19190031
Another important thing I forgot, he talks about Catholicism and how it stands in relation to his worldview, and how it might be rectified to save the West. He was very anti-Christian when he was younger but warmed up to it more later which this book shows.

>> No.19190081

>>19190044
>>19190031
Thanks for the summary anon, I have been meaning to get this and you just pushed me over the edge. Is it still out of print and impossible to find though? Anyone know where I can get a pdf at least?

>> No.19190102

>>19190081
It was published by Inner Traditions in August but here is a pdf to the Arktos edition:

https://largepdf.net/the-mask-and-face-of-contemporary-spiritualism/

It isn't that long, just under 200 pages.

>> No.19190668

>>19188458
It's a good book but I wouldn't read it as an introduction to his work, that's still Revolt. If you haven't read Revolt you might wonder why he dismisses what he does and why his own philosophy is supposed to be better.
But it probably works very well if you read it after Revolt.

>> No.19191572

>>19190031
Thank you very much anon. I will be reading this book today.

>> No.19191648

>>19190031
>Freud (who he rips apart, which I enjoyed)
We rejected God's gift to us, had we not rejected Freud and taken on the lies of that demon Jung we would not be in the apocalyptic state we are today. Anything less is copium.

>> No.19192470

>>19191648
what

>> No.19193428

bump

>> No.19193440

>>19190668
no

>> No.19193992
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[ERROR]

I just started reading Evola. I'm finished with The Mystery of the Grail, and nearly finished with The Metaphysics of War. Would it be good to read now, or should I wait and read it before Revolt?

>> No.19194324

>>19193992
Doesn't matter that much, it's shorter and less complicated than Revolt so maybe worth reading first so you get the most out of Revolt. I'm surprised this list says Hermetic Tradition is mandatory, I don't know why it would be unless you're interested in the esoteric, because then it's a must read, and then I don't know why you'd leave out Intro. I don't really understand most of that guide to bh. Mystery of the Grail is great, I like in when he gets into the conspiracies near the end, which seems to be a theme of his.

>> No.19194443

>>19191648
>trading a mystic hack for a jewish atheist
>God's gift to us

>> No.19194479

>>19190044
I wouldn't call recognizing a tradition's esoteric layers as "warmed up". To Evola, it doesn't matter how rich in d metaphysical epth Catholicism is, but as long as it remains to be a dogmatic exoteric religion for the masses that refuses to acknowledge its esoteric center, then it'll stay cucked for all eternity.

>> No.19194581

>>19194479
Ok, sure, but he disavowed most of Pagan Imperialism later on, which was very anti-Christian, didn't he?

>> No.19194711

>>19194581
Yeah and? What's your point?

>> No.19194871

>>19194711
That he warmed up to Christianity as he got older.

>> No.19195043

>>19194871
Again, he didn't. He appreciated the esoteric side of it and even thought highly of Meister Eckhart, but he still criticized the Church for its egalitarian, bourgeois, and moralistic sentiments, which the man of Tradition would find no value. Do you remember the last few passages he said in that chapter? He roughly said if the Church would only recognize its esoteric dimension, then there would be an opportunity for initiation there, which is the bottom line for Evola and Guenon, but there isn't one as it currently stands. It's a walking corpse of a Tradition.

>> No.19195117

>>19195043
piss

>> No.19195245

>>19194324
Thanks, fren. I tend to overthink things (like which order to read books), and figured some random guide from the internet would be better than just randomly reading his books.

>> No.19195258

>>19193992
>he actually follows the chart

>> No.19195529

>>19195258
What's wrong with that?
t. midwit

>> No.19195554

>>19195529
It doesn't really make sense, idk why you would read hermetic tradition that early unless you are really interested in the esoteric because it is very complicated and abstract and not really related to his overall work. Still a great book though, one of his best, but most people won't get it, it needs to be studied.

>> No.19195574

It has its birth in the earth; its strength it doth acquire in the fire...

>> No.19195604

>>19188458
he didn't know as much about abrahamic religions as he thought he did

>> No.19195905

>>19195604
what did he get wrong?

>> No.19196589

>>19193440
no what
>>19194581
He didn't, at least not for the reason you imply. He regretted it because of the style, not the content.
>>19195043
This. Evola never "secretly converted" to Catholicism at the end of his life as some anon likes to claim. Shortly before his death he completed the revision of his major works and these give no indication of this whatsoever compared to his earlier versions.
>>19193992
Don't follow that chart. If you got through Grail and War, you could probably read either.

>> No.19198357

bimp

>> No.19198855

>>19195905
That they are supposed to be retarded

>> No.19199210

Did Evola ever touch upon Bataille and his thought? Seems like someone he'd feel compelled to comment on or react against

>> No.19199269

>>19199210
I don't think so, at least not specifically, but I wouldn't be surprised if he has mentioned him in passing somewhere

>> No.19199295

>that first chapter of intro to magic III
absolutely fucking based

>> No.19199301
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[ERROR]

>>19198855