|
 In
Yockey's view one of the unconscious assumptions of the 19th
century's linear history view was the idea of the singularity
of civilization. This concept holds that civilization outside
of the West is imperfect, but stumblingly striving to become
Western.
Again
this was a reflection of cultural egocentricity; also, it was
Rationalism assuming that men made their own history, and whatever
happened was traceable to human excellence or to human mistakes.
To
the 20th century, History is the record of the lives of eight
High Cultures, each an organism, impressed with the principles
of individuality, each thus a member of a Life-form. A High
Culture is a Life-form at the peak of the organic hierarchy
of which plants, animals and men are the lower members. Each
of the Cultures have common characteristics in their life-necessities,
their technic of self-expression etc.
The
differences between the Cultures are in their souls, their individualities
and thus, despite their similar structure, their creations are
in the highest degree dissimilar. Cultures are even more highly
individual than men, and their creations are correspondingly
less capable of any inward assimilation by other cultures.
With
the passing of the Age of Rationalism, the West knows once more
that the development of an organism is the unfolding of a soul.
Matter is the mere envelope, the vehicle of the expressions
of the Spirit. It is this ancient and universal wisdom that
is the primary source of the liberation of our History-outlook
from the darkness and oppression of Materialism.
The
events of a human life are the expressions of the soul of that
individual at his successive stages of unfolding. The identical
outward occurrence is a different experience for each human
being; An experience is a relationship between a soul and
an outer event. Thus no two persons can have the same experience
because the identical event is quite different to each different
soul.
Similarly,
the reactions of each Culture-soul to external events and movements
outside the Culture-area are individual to each Culture. The
religious experiences of each Culture are unique; each Culture
has its own nontransferable way of experiencing and depicting
the Godhead and this religious style continues right through
the respective Age of the Culture determining completely the
philosophy, science, as well as the religious and anti-religious
phenomena of the Culture. Each Culture thus has its own kind
of atheism as unique as its re-
[Page 2]
ligion; the philosophy and science of each
Culture never became independent of the religious style of that
Culture.
Also
the choice of art-form is individual to each Culture and likewise
the state-idea as well as the Nation-idea and the style of the
final Imperium, the last political creation of a Culture.
Each
Culture has a different basic Morale which influences its social
structures, feelings and manners, its intensity of inner imperative
and thus the ethical style of its great men. This basic morale
determines the mode of public life during the last great phase
of the life of the Culture, the "Civilization".
Each
Age of each Culture has its own stamp, which sets it off from
its preceding age and from the succeeding. These differences
loom larger to the people within the Culture than the differences
between one Culture and another. This is the optical illusion
of greater size produced by nearness. To us the differences
between 1850 and 1950 seem vast -- to the history of 2050 they
will, be much less so.
Egypt
and Babylonia both had their periods corresponding to our Crusades,
Holy Roman Empire, Feudalism, Reformation, Enlightenment, Democracy,
Nationalism and Annihilation wars. So did the others.
The
idea that "civilization" was one certain thing rather
than an organic life-phase of a Culture was part of the "Progress"
ideology. This profane religion, its own peculiar mixture of
Reason and Faith, satisfied a certain demand of the 19th century.
Further research will probably discover it in other Cultures.
It seems to be an organic necessity of Rationalism to feel that
"things are getting better all the time".
The
word "history" has until now been employed to cover
all human events, those manifesting the development of a Culture
and those outside of any culture but the two classes of events
have nothing in common. Man as a species is one Life-form, Culture-man
is another.
In
what is man as a species distinct from other life-forms, such
as plants and animals? Simply in his possession of a human soul.
Man's world is a world of symbols. Things that for animals contain
no meaning and no mystery have for man a symbolic significance.
This symbolizing necessity shows itself in the formation of
primitive societies which have an animistic religion, an ethic
of tabu and totem, and social-political forms of the same level.
The
lives of all animals constitutes the process of nourishing and
reproducing themselves, their lives have no spiritual superstructure
above this plane. Primitive man sees hidden meanings in the
world -- but Culture-man regards his High Symbols as the content
of Life.
The
differences between the history of man as a species and the
history of man in the service of a High Culture is that the
first is devoid of grand meaning and that only the second is
the vessel of high significance. In High History men risk all
and die for an Idea; in primitive history there are no super
personal ideas of this force, only individual striving.
Genghis
Khan let loose events considerable in size, but in the cultural
sense they had no significance whatever. There was no Idea in
this sweeping descent of the followers of an adventurer. His
conquests were fatal to hundreds of thousands, the empire he
erected lasted generations beyond him, but it was simply there
-- it stood for nothing, represented nothing beyond itself.
Napoleon's Empire on the other hand, brief though it was, was
laden with symbolic meaning that is still at work in the minds
of Western men and was as we shall see. pregnant with the Future
of the West. -- High Cultures create the greatest wars, but
their significance is not merely that they open rivers of blood,
but that men fall in a struggle of Ideas.
After
a High Culture has fulfilled itself the populations in its former
area return to the conditions of primitivity. The abandoned
world-cities return once more to the landscapes which they just
recently dominated. World-cities that were as proud as Berlin,
London and New York disappeared. This was the fate of Luzor,
Thebes, Babylonia, Uxmal
and Tezcoco;
even the names of these great cities have perished and it is
an unimportant detail whether they lie dead under jungle vegetation
or the sands of the plains.
* * *
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[Page 3]
GENIUS AND THE COMMON
MAN
The Kinship
A
truth, though it performs its functions masterfully, lies hidden
from the eyes of ordinary man, for hundreds, perhaps thousands
of years. Genius finds it. Then, uncovered and made the property
of all, it appears simple and natural. Why could no ordinary
man have found it?
It
seems that all truly great things are also truly simple. But
it takes an equally great man or woman to recognize them in
both their greatness and their simplicity. It takes Genius.
And
if because of this, Genius was at one time considered God-like,
this has changed in interpretation only. For Genius, aside from
all superior rank in intellect, is distinguished from other
men, learned and unlearned, by a seemingly illimitable capacity
of intuitive insight, wings of spontaneity forever hovering
near to bear the yearning spirit to the lonely heights where
the secrets of the All are unlocked to him.
Thus
Genius does indeed become God-like because it becomes God-illumined.
-- Was he perhaps God-called? We do not know. We can only wonder
-- looking back upon history -- why so often Genius appeared
as if summoned by some force greater than the intellect can
contemplate to bring light into a world gone dark. But what
we also see is that Genius is a medium between this greater
force and his people as the formative agent of a developing
culture.
As
we have said before, Genius does not stand alone, though it
may walk alone. For Genius is but the zenith derived from that
broader-based genius in a people's unique character, from which
all values are drawn as from the life-reservoir of its soul,
securing an ever-present potential for greatness.
As
Genius is unthinkable without the background of his birth, so
culture creation is unthinkable without the natural affinity
between Genius and people. For Genius will, by wakening a resonance
to
its own achievements, activate dormant creative energies in
the lower ranks of a kinship that widen and deepen the general
scope of cultural activity, together determining its nature
and format.
This
does not mean that the process of culture-creation as here depicted,
proceeds without pain, without conflicts or crisis or adversaries.
But these reflect only the internal struggles, the passions
and despair of the human soul on its path to ascendancy. .Once
this process is completed, it can be seen, in retrospect, as
the crystallization of a movement in which Genius and all the
people in their graduated levels had their part.
For
this is the role that Genius plays, whatever its variations
and whether one or more share in the evolvement of a cultural
fragment in the history of a people. In seeking to be the perfect
eyes and ears, the perfect hands of the Godhood, Genius makes
audible and visible in perfect form, what in the maelstrom of
a people's heart is darkly felt but never clearly voiced or
seen. And so, not by command or force but by the magnetism radiating
from a Super-Personality, through whom all things dark and troublesome
become light, order is made where there was chaos, and beauty
becomes the standard-bearer of life. And so is a people not
only drawn upward but together, voluntarily and in perfect freedom,
and its natural bond of unity assured.
And
so had nature willed it. For as nature did not create individuals
but species, it has created not men, singly and alone, but races
and nations, striving ever for organic oneness. And as in a
troop or herd or any other animal formation, the range includes
both the Alpha and the Omega, so in any human kinship it includes
Genius and the common man, and the difference is not one of
kind, but of degree in rank.
Hence
the common man may be the lowly brother of Genius, but brother
he is. -- And where the common man may not be aware of any personal
value of identity, it is bestowed upon him by the Great of his
people. Thus may he say to himself: "Had I but the ability
of this Great One of my people, that is how I would say it --
write it -- paint, compose or build it. But I of little stature
can only stand in awe and yet what I see, what I hear, is part
of myself."
And
so Shakespeare, a Beethoven, a Michelangelo, a Cervantes, is
hailed by his nation as its own, not because citi-
[Page 4]
zen papers or his birth-place mark him with
the name of a nation, but because kinship makes him so.
Without
such resonance from below, Genius can "find" no recognition,
neither among contemporaries nor in future generations. Genetically,
Genius stands aloof as the utmost potential of the common man
of his people. Spiritually and intellectually Genius reflects
back upon common man an image of a loftier self; -- from both
sources therefore comes the malleable material with which life
builds the culture of a nation.
Such
processes of culture-building are possible only in a reasonably
homogeneous people because, for reasons given, understanding
wells up from deep recesses of the soul, and a common language
is no more than shared symbolism of this understanding.
This
then is assembled into being a true community, an organism structured
upon laws devised long before the coming of man, and grounded
in the very basis of love which is affinity.
Yet,
while the laws upon which nations are built are known to us,
and our acquaintance with the role of genius in building of
cultures was unfolded to us in our reflections upon the past,
nothing would be more foolish than to assume that from such
observations a fixed plan for a culture of the future could
deliberately be designed. Surely, if it can be said that a nation's
destiny depends upon more than the will of men, then this is
so if and when Genius partakes in the shaping of such a destiny
-- Genius, from whose ever-ready spontaneity springs the wisdom
of the Gods into the reality of the world of men. For spontaneity
is that moment of contact with the creative forces of the universe
when in the soul of man from nebulous feelings -- so like the
cosmic mists from which a star is formed -- a new concept of
coalesces into an idea, setting aflame the creative resources
of Genius, touching off a blaze of inspiration in the kinship.
If
such an idea has the magnitude of transforming the world of
kinship, then indeed, with the activated inspiration of the
whole, a new age may be born. For rarely can such spiritual
fires be contained in one kinship, sparks will fly beyond borders
into identical cultures signaling the coming of the New Age.
A
truly great age as the time-spaced vehicle of a culture cannot
come into being where such spontaneity as the creative impulse
of Genius, re-echoed by his people, is no longer possible. For
it is only from commonly shared visions that in overpowering
yearning life-structures will be realized in which the noblest
features of a people are reflected.
Such
are the conditions for a premise on which life will allow a
people to build a culture of the future. But it cannot be designed
beforehand. Like a secret given in sacred trust it will unfold
itself gradually in actions seeking the objective, labours revealing
the features of the guiding Genius, whatever the imprint of
the times.
Where
such conditions no longer prevail, a culture will perish.
What
then causes a kinship to fall in to disarray, a culture into
decay? What brings "societies" such as the communist
where individuals are called "brother" yet are strangers
unto each other or exiles in their own lands? When does a nation
cease to be a people and become a population, a mass, where
the individual is no longer weighed but counted, no longer named
but numbered?
We
shall look for answers in our next article in this series:
"Genius:
Good and Evil."
* * *
WESTWARD
Traditionally,
the Viking discoveries of Iceland, Greenland and America are
believed to be accidental; that it of course has happened that
some boats were driven off course and thus unknown lands were
sighted is true. As it has been told, Bjarni Herjolfson found
America in this manner in the year 985 (or 986); but it is doubtful
if it entirely was so.
The
British Isles were certainly well known in Scandinavia long
before that time, and in Ireland where many of the Vikings settled,
particularly those from Norway, Iceland had been visited by
many sailors on their fishing expeditions.
Another
fact that is not generally known is that from certain hills
on Iceland -- the island where Eric the Red settled --- the
mountains of Greenland can through some special mirage effect,
be sighted during a few weeks in the summer time. And if you
are first familiar with Greenland, the existence of Labrador
would naturally suggest itself because of certain cloud formations
that usually form over large land areas.
[Page5]
It
is therefore a fair deduction that the Viking-sailors knew all
these northern islands and land areas at a very early stage.
That they of course were apprehensive when sailing the dangerous
waters of the North Atlantic is understandable; weathering the
formidable storms of the northern seas was certainly not child's
play.
Adam
of Bremen reiterates a description given by Archbishop Adalbert
of a voyage undertaken in the 8th century in the waters north
of Iceland thus: "Of a sudden they fell into that numbing
ocean's dark mist which could hardly be penetrated with the
eyes. And behold, the current of the fluctuating ocean whirled
back to its mysterious fountainhead and with most furious impetuosity
drew the unhappy sailors who in their despair now thought only
of death, on to chaos; this they say is the abysmal chasm --
that deep in which, reports have it, all the back flow of the
sea, which appears to decrease, is absorbed and in turn re-vomited,
as the mounting fluctuation is usually described." To be
sure, it took true grit together with expert seamanship to negotiate
those strong currents and stormy waters.
Already
well before the 8th century, the first Scandinavians, mostly
from Norway, came to the Shetland and Orkney Islands, to the
north of Britain, and later also to the Hebrides, Scotland and
Ireland. It seems that most of them were more interested in
settling than in raiding, particularly in the early years; the
attacks on the Christian holy places, such as the famous raid
on Lindisfarne in the year 793, were probably more unfortunate
by-products than organized raiding parties. As the Norwegian
kings in the 9th century usurped more and more power, many of
their subjects went looking for new lands where they could build
their homes and live in freedom, without heavy taxes and other
restrictions (and we can certainly sympathize with that!). To
the people coming from Norway these forbidding islands and rocky
shores looked almost like home; the sounds and straits between
them reminded of the sea around Norway and even the treacherous
currents, heavy tides and strong winds seemed familiar, almost
inviting.
That
they settled and lived in these areas for a considerable time
is shown in the any place names of Norse origin; for example
the word "ness" is Scandinavian for 'headland' and
can still be found in Caithness in North Scotland, Stromness
on the Orkney Islands and Port of Ness on the Hebrides. That
the settlers came mainly from Norway can be seen in the name
given to the Hebrides, they were at that time called the "Southern
Islands", clearly testifying to the direction from which
the Vikings came. In fact, a part of Northern Scotland is still
today called Sutherland, revealing its Norwegian origin.
The
northern islands, Scotland and Ireland were, as we have seen,
settled as well as raided by Vikings coming mostly from Norway,
but in England it was mainly the works of Danish Vikings. Already
in the year 835 the first attack is known to have taken place,and
after that there were few summers in the 9th century where raids
were not reported.
As
early as the year 850 some of the raiders wintered in Kent and
in the following years a veritable army of Vikings came, not
only determined on plundering but also looking for new homes
they ravaged and gutted large parts of the country over a period
of ten years before they finally split up in several groups,
some settling in Northumbria, some in the Midlands and some
in East Anglia.
A
part of this so-called "Danish Army" tried unsuccessfully
to settle in Wessex where the defense against the invaders was
led by the kings of Wessex, the best known of whom is Alfred
the Great. In the years after 880 this great warrior king gathered
a large number of armed men and successfully defeated the Danes
at Ethandun.
After
his victory Alfred decided to win back some of the areas held
by the Danes and in 886 he re-conquered London. A treaty was
worked out between Alfred and the Danish king Guthrun in which
borders were set up and for some time the kings of Wessex reigned
in England together with the Danish Kings.
Towards
the end of the 9th century the southern coast of England was
threatened by another group of Vikings, coming from the shores
across the channel. These Vikings used flat, shallow boats that
allowed them to surprise the unsuspecting inhabitants, attack,
plunder and get away again before Alfred was able to reach the
affected area. The invaders soon conquered land areas where
they established camps and many sea and land battles were fought.
After
many unsuccessful attempts to defeat the Vikings, Alfred finally
learned how to fight these "wolves from the sea" and
he won a decisive victory at Appledore in South Kent, one of
the Danish strongholds, and the attacks by the Danes were halted
for some time.
[Page 6]
CRISIS IN HEAVEN
It
is not often we bring reprints, but we think you will enjoy
this find in the Sept. 1972 issue of FRANCHISE JOURNAL, by Philip
Pyrrho.
Ah,
good morning, Sir, May I bother you for a moment?"
"Of
course, Gabe. What is it?"
"Well,
Sir, we have a bit of a problem involving Earth."
"That
hardly comes as a surprise, Gabe we've been having problems
on Earth ever since Dad took a week off and created it. What's
the latest flap?"
"Well,
this problem is a bit different in that it directly involves
You, Your Father and biographers who worked on Your best seller,
notably Matthew, Mark, Luke and John."
"Come
to the point, Gabe."
"Sir,
I have here an order from the Federal Trade Commission to `submit
data substantiating advertising claims and to make the substantiating
material available to the public.'"
Advertising
claims? Substantiation? Federal Trade Commission. What in Heaven's
name is a Federal Trade Commission.
"The
Federal Trade Commission, or FTC, is a group of mortals appointed
by the President of the United States to oversee and regulate
trading within the U.S. This commission tries to prevent venal
merchants from laying shoddy goods on the people in the market
places."
"Admirable.
A worthy endeavor. But what has the workings of this FTC to
do with the Heavenly Host?"
"We
wondered the same thing, Sir, so we sent someone down to check
into it. His investigation, while very complete, still leaves
us confused. That's why I thought it should be brought to your
attention. I don't think I should disturb your Father with it."
"Knowing
Dad as I do, I'm sure He knows about it and is disturbed by
it, but He'll want me to handle it. What did your investigator
learn?"
"Well,
as You know, Christianity and other faiths have been steadily
eroding under the onslaught of what the mortals call the `New
Morality.' The mortals of the United States have been particularly
susceptible to these incursions and the keepers of the faith
were dealt and especially severe blow by a ruling of the United
States Supreme Court on saying prayers in public schools. While
that decision has been grossly misinterpreted..."
"Please
Gabe, we've been through all that with what few lawyers we get
up here."
"Yes,
Sir. As I was saying, the mortals of the United States are growing
increasingly skeptical of things they once took for granted.
And it's not only skepticism of the faith of their fathers,
but of all things they read in their newspapers and magazines
and hear and see on radio and television. It has gotten to the
point that every four years 51 percent of the mortals of the
United States elevate one of their number to be their terrestrial
leader and the remaining 49 percent spend the next four years
being skeptical of him. At the end of this time, they often
change leaders and the other side gets a chance to be skeptical
for four years."
"I'm
aware of this strange system, Gabe, go on."
"As
You know, radio and television stations throughout America reserve
Sunday morning for churches and synagogues to spread the faith
over the airwaves. Even the rock and roll and top 40 stations
part with a block of time so that a minister, priest or rabbi
can bring the Message to the faithful."
"Top
40? Block of time? Gabe, I fear your messenger duties to Earth
are overly secularizing you."
"Sorry,
Sir. Anyway, a while back the Federal Communications Commission..."
"Wait,
I thought you called it the Federal Trade Commission."
"No
. . . I mean, I did . . . but this is another commission, one
that oversees and regulates the broadcast airwaves."
"Lord."
"Anyway,
the Federal Communications Commission, or FCC, handed down what
its members called the `equal time' ruling. It dealt primarily
with all of the promising made over the airwaves when the mortals
of the United States are elevating one of their number to be
their terrestrial leader. The ruling, however, has been applied
to other forms of promising, notably the advertising of cigarettes."
"An
interesting parallel. Go on."
"Many
of those who detest cigarette smoking got together and convinced
the government that if tobacco companies could use the airwaves
to tell people to smoke their products, they should be able
to use the airwaves to tell them not to. This idea has since
grown into what the mortals call `counter-advertising.'"
"Now,
let me get this straight, Gabe. Do you mean if someone uses
radio or television to tell someone to do something someone
else has the right to use radio
[Page 7]
or television to tell them not to?"
"You
got it, Sir. The airwaves of the United States belong to all
of the mortals of that nation and all have the right to use
them."
"An
interesting concept. But I still fail to see how all of this
affects us."
"Well,
a group of skeptics, agnostics and just plain atheists got together
and demanded that the FCC make equal time available to them
to answer and refute the messages of faith aired on the Sunday
morning broadcasts. Although they knew it would cause a tremendous
furor -- and it did -- the members of the FCC decided that such
a demand was within the guidelines of the so-called 'fairness
doctrine' and ordered all radio and television stations to make
equal time available to the non-believers."
"Humm.
Well, the faith has survived many assaults for many centuries,
Gabe. I don't think this electronic competition will bring about
its demise. But what role does the FTC play in all this and
why have we been served with this order?"
"The
non-believers were not satisfied with just refuting the faith,
Sir, they demanded that our earthly spokesmen prove that what
they said in their Sunday messages was true. When they received
no satisfaction, they went to the Federal Trade Commission and
demanded that it apply its truth in advertising doctrine to
the preaching of the gospel. Well, Sir, You can imagine that
all . . . Er, sorry Sir, I mean there was a great uproar throughout
the land ... "
"As
well there should have been. How can such principles be applied
to the preaching of the gospel? We do not deal in trading in
the marketplace, but in the saving of souls. This is absolutely
preposterous!"
I
know, Sir, and I quite agree; but the mortals of the United
States quite often conduct their affairs in preposterous ways.
The non-believers were able to convince the FTC that because
churches and synagogues tithe or take up collections and radio
and television services always end with an appeal for a donation,
the listener or viewer, in church or at home, is a consumer.
They cited your promise 'Whosoever shall believe in me shall
have ever-lasting life' as a claim of performance and argued
that such a claim was unlawful if there was no reasonable basis
for making it. In other words, they said if we can't prove it.
we can't say it."
"You
have to be jesting, Gabe; and if you are, you are bordering
upon sacrilege. Our 'best seller' as you call it is a work of
faith and every word in it must be accepted in faith. Proof?
Reasonable basis? Performance? These terms have absolutely no
meaning when applied to Christianity or any other faith. Faith
is Faith. Belief is belief. When I said 'Whosoever shall believe
in Me shall have everlasting life' I meant that to be definitive.
The essential word in My promise is 'believe.' I'm sure this
Federal Trade Commission found the argument of the non-believers
as spurious as I find them. "
"Funny
thing, Sir. After much soul-searching the FTC found for the
non-believers,especially when it was confronted with a quotation
from the leader of the FTC who earlier had said, "A consumer
should not be compelled to enter into an economic gamble to
determine whether a product will or will not perform as represented
. . . the consumer is entitled as a matter of marketplace fairness,
to rely upon the manufacturer to have a "reasonable basis"
for making performance claims.'"
"You're
not going to tell Me . . ."
"Afraid
so, Sir. The commission ruled that those receiving the message
in church and over the airwaves were consumers in that they
did pay for a service through their donations and offerings.
It further ruled that our earthly spokesmen were making 'performance
claims' when they quoted Your promise in their sermons. When
our earthly spokesmen were ordered to substantiate these claims,
they could only respond by saying they were representatives
of the 'manufacturer' and proof of such claims would have to
come from the top -- as it were, Sir."
"Excuse
me a moment, Gabe, I want to buzz My Father. Hello, Dad, have
you any one in mind worthy enough to build another ark?"
* * *
POWER
We
have said that Man as a species evolved from lower forms, changing
from a crude stage to a more refined, in other words, made progress.
Societies
evolve in much the same manner; in early times men formed themselves
in small groups, for mutual protection and common purposes;
as life became more organized and life's primary needs were
satisfied the members of the group found time for the development
of the mind; art industry and the philosophies were given
[Page 8]
their dues -- and organized society was in
evidence.
The
first and most important object for man's studies were, of course
his immediate surroundings, and as observations progressed of
the laws of nature, man became freed from some of his fears
and superstitions and he realized that he was part of nature
and that; as long as he obeyed her laws, he was able to live
a reasonably secure life; as his knowledge increased, his society
became more and more sophisticated and the first High Culture
was created.
But
a civilization can only go as far as the intellectual horizon
of the Culture-creators, and the achievements of modern times
have only been possible through the cumulative knowledge of
the past. However,
whether scientific knowledge is free and the property of all
the people, or, as has been the case, is proscribed and only
reserved for the use of or suppressed by, the powers-that-be,
is dependent upon the philosophy of the society.
If
or when a secular or ecclesiastical 'Prince' prohibits the spread
of scientific knowledge in order to ban any information he deems
detrimental to the retainment of his power, that Prince is working
against the common good of the citizens, for the free exchange
of scientific facts is essential for the continuous progress
of mankind.
In
our Western civilization the Christian church and the Christian
monarchs have extensively restricted the publication of rationalistic
inquiries into unsolved problems, imposing their 'moral standards'
upon scientists, inventors, and scholars in general. Thus, over
a period of several hundred years our people were deprived of
knowledge obtained through the diligent work of some of the
most intelligent and industrious members of our folk group,
and the growth of our civilization has been stunted by this
immoral behaviour.
Scientific
facts cannot be 'right' or 'wrong' but are part of the laws
of nature and not dependent upon the Bible or any decree by
Pope or Prince.
In
our time science has been suppressed, not as much by the church
as by the financial powers through multi-national organizations
who have placed themselves as the guardians of' mankind, deciding
what chemicals we must eat in our foods, how much we may buy
for our pay cheques, which books we are allowed to read and
what nonsense we are served on TV. The censorship is even more
complete than was that of the church, for in earlier days there
were still corners of the world where a man could avoid the
reaches of the ecclesiastical powers, but where can you go today
and get away from the clutches of the multi-national organizations
and societies.
If
our culture is to withstand today's onslaught, we must break
these powers -- and we will do so, for we are entering a new
phase in our development, we are in what Yockey calls the Age
of Absolute Politics; but our actions, to be effective, must
be within a spiritual framework Odinism will provide this spiritual
framework.
|
'Mightier than
the tread
of
a marching army
is the power of an idea
whose
Time has come!
(Victor Hugo)
|
* * *
THE IDEA OF WORK
In
Genesis 3:19 it is written: "In the sweat of thy face shalt
thou eat bread". With this loving statement the Judeo-Christian
god punished Adam and Eve for wanting knowledge. Eating of the
tree of knowledge was, of course, a serious crime for if you
get to know too much, you will quickly find all the obvious
holes in the biblical cloth.
But
an even greater consequence of this tender castigation for the
crime of wishing to learn the difference between good and evil
(I know Christians tell it otherwise) is, that from that day
on, work has been looked upon as something degrading, something
to be avoided if at all possible. The Christian god thus put
his curse on work -- it was meted out as punishment, for not
being 'good' and obeying orders.
This
negative attitude towards work was accepted along with other
Christian teachings in all countries where Christianity has
been recognized as the dominant religion.
It
is, of course, not said openly in so many words, for if nobody
would work, how then would the non-productive sector of the
population get their food, clothing, luxuries etc.? However,
it has always been there in the background -- 'just a worker'
or 'only a labourer' has stigmatized millions of people who
have been involved with producing our goods and services; and,
pray tell, where our civilization would have been today, had
not 'the butcher, the baker,the candlestick maker' laboured
long hours for the improvement of our society.
[Page 9]
Fortunately,
this Christian attitude has never succeeded completely in destroying
Western man's inborn joy of creating, of shaping and forming,
of inventing and devising; from time immemorial our ancestors
have expressed an instinctive appreciation for work well done.
In Denmark they say 'arbejde adler'; the Germans say 'Arbeit
adelt'; in English this would be 'work is ennobling,' meaning
that if you do good honest work, you are a noble person, a worthy
member of the community.
At
various times in our culture this attitude has been pushed in
the background, to a certain degree helped by the industrial
revolution when machines were invented that could do many jobs
better and faster than people. But still we had the crafts,
and it is not so long ago that a cabinetmaker took extreme pride
in making an elegant piece of furniture, or a piano-builder
was proud when he produced a musical instrument that both looked
beautiful and was sonorous, offering great pleasure to musician
and audience alike. Luckily we still have people like that around,
but they are getting mighty scarce.
It
must be conceded that our modern sophisticated society with
its tremendous technology has played its role in cutting down
the old Indo-European attitude of pride in doing a good job,
and that all the blame cannot entirely be put at the feet of
the Christian church but there is still a whole world of difference
between the two concepts: In Genesis, work is held forth as
a punishment and a curse, but in Pagan Europe the creation of
values was looked upon with pride and respect.
Out
of the work-is-a-curse syndrome has sprung the easy-buck disease;
people who are struck by this malady use all their time and
effort to find out how they can skip and scamp, cheat and cajole;
and after several years of this unhealthy conduct, they cannot
understand why they have become dissatisfied, grumbling individuals
who have lost their self-respect and their zest for life and
are of no value to themselves, their families or to society.
Another
result of the Christian work-curse is that some enterprising
persons try to avoid working and still live handsomely by stealing
the profits of other people's work; they exploit their own kinsmen
as well as other races and will squeeze as much out of everybody
as they :possibly can; these people are not happy fulfilled
individuals either -- they may not admit it, but they are intelligent
enough to realize that they are robbing people of the fruit
of their 'sweat' and that, in effect, they are parasites and
spongers.
The
Odinist philosophy is opposed to the Christian attitude towards
work as expressed in Genesis 3:19; Odinists believe that building,
producing, creating -- be it a vase, a car or a book, growing
crops or simply making sure we have good clean water in our
taps -- is of a tremendous importance, not only for the community
who needs these goods and services, but also for the mental
and emotional health and well-being of the individual folk-group
member.
Only
by experiencing the joy of creating something for use or beauty
(or both) can our people, with the inborn characteristics, inherited
from our ancestors, have a feeling of accomplishment, an inner
satisfaction of being part of a great culture and the confident
assurance that our civilization will thrive and prosper. And
it matters little whether the job is cutting the lawn, cooking
a nutritious dinner, doing research or building a boat, as long
as the individual knows he has put effort into his work and
done a good job; it is not even necessary that anybody should
be there to praise him, for he knows full well if he did his
very best or not.
We
are, of course, not suggesting that we create work for work's
sake by turning back technological advances, using pickaxe and
shovel where a bulldozer can do the job easier and faster; what
we would like to do away with, is sloppy workmanship and the
to-hell-with-it attitude, that in recent years is getting out
of control. This presupposes, however that every worker will
get his fair share for doing a good job. Odinist philosophy
emphasizes that only the producers of goods and services are
worthy members of the community and should have the benefits
of those created values, that all citizens of an area should
take part in the needed production and that none should be allowed
to evade contributing 'their sweat' to the progress of their
community.
It
is a whole new philosophy (and yet age-old) that does away with
the work-is-a-curse mentality we have suffered under for so
long; we need a new approach, we need a re-evaluation of our
priorities, we need citizens who are prepared to accept a responsibility
and who understand that keeping the wheels of society well oiled
and running smoothly is important for all of us and that, without
creating values in the widest sense of the
[Page 10]
word, we will regress.
Each
member of our folk group should be duty-bound to work, according
to his abilities, far the progress of our communities, and those
who will not do so, should not be accepted as members of the
communal fellowship.
* * *
THE SUNWHEEL
The
Sunwheel is a symbol considered holy (involving also the meaning
of hale or whole, bearing good fortune and greeting), used in
pre-Christian times by our forefathers. Its four arms at right
angles, whether straight or curved, give the appearance of movement,
as of a wheel fashioned in the shape of the sun.
In
Europe, finds of the Sunwheel were made as far back as the early
Stone Age. In the homelands of the Germanic tribes, among whom
it was especially popular, it can be traced back to the Bronze
Age, and appears to have been associated with the symbol of
fire; in this area, it may have been at first a stylization
of the hammer which represented thunder and was accompanied
by fire from the sky. As Thor was the producer of thunder and
lightning and the god who meted out both sunshine and rain to
men, the Sunwheel as well as the hammer were connected with
him. From the first century B.C.E. until the imposition of Christianity
an the North, the Sunwheel was frequently used as an ornament,
either to be worn or to decorate weapons or vessels.
Whereas
other holy symbols gradually faded into insignificance, the
Sunwheel maintained its meaning. and importance throughout the
migration ages of pre-history. Proof of the existence of the
Sanskrit-Sunwheel in Asia dates back to the third millennium
before our chronology. The Sunwheel has been found in India,
Indonesia, Polynesia and North America. It was, however, unknown
to the Semitic races and the Australian aborigines.
Just
how this symbol made its way to the various lands in which it
was found, is as much a matter of contention as is the origin
of the races. No doubt its meaning varied somewhat from West
to East. And this, we may assume, must have been the course
of its travel, if we consider the fact that there is no race
on earth that was so consumed by the yearning to traverse the
lands and oceans or the globe as were the Vikings and their
forefathers.
For
our ancestors, the Sunwheel was a symbol of the changing phases
of the sun both day and night, and in the four seasons of the
Northern lands.
The
circle indicates the eternal movement of life and the four arms
within this circle, the ever-returning recurrence of the seasons
in the life of nature as in the lives of men. And as the change
of seasons occurred with the waxing and waning of light, so
the Sunwheel also became the symbol of the eternal struggle
between Light and Darkness, of a religion of Light, fashioned
by the genius of Western Man, in conflict with one of darkness,
seeking to bring about the eternal doom of higher humanity.
Two
of the most significant artifacts with high symbolic meaning,
left us from the Bronze Age of Northern Europe, are the wheeled
wagon or chariot of the sun, journeying across the sky, and
the ship of the sun, indicating the belief that each night,
when the sun disappeared beneath the Western sea, it traveled
back during the night for next morning again to rise, warm and
bright, in the East.
Nowhere
but in the North would the Sunwheel have assumed this meaning,
for here the sun was the very fountain of life. When the sun
grew distant, or `dis,' then nature died too; when it returned,
life too returned. The hearts and souls of men, being intimately
intertwined with the turning of the seasons, responded to their
coming and going with deep religious sentiments, incorporating
such feelings in their mythologies and in the festivals of the
year. To this day, nothing, neither Christianity, nor our modern
so-called 'civilization' has uprooted the ancient meaning of
these festivals from our hearts and souls.
At
the Spring Equinox, for example, we celebrate the festival of
Easter (in commemoration of the Goddess Eastre), a festival
of joy, celebrating life reborn in the fields and meadows; the
rabbit and eggs signify the fertility, anxiously hoped for by
the ancients in a life that was a never-ceasing struggle between
light and dark, between life and death.
It
is thus fitting that the Odinist Movement of the present and
the future should resurrect as its symbol the same Sunwheel
which inspired the Odinists of the past in their battles for
the survival of their people, their religion, and their freedom.
|
March
1974
11
at
the Battle of Cowpens, S. Carolina, 1781