Frithjof Schuon Colonialization of First Nation by European Fantasists

[Honoring Boundaries]

Schuon is known as a 'Traditionalist'. This is a body of ideology that has served as a bias through which many well meaning persons have projected their own needs for a 'primordial/perennialist' spirituality onto the First Nation Peoples.

I plan to add more study resources for interested persons to consult.

At the time Schuon began to do this, the First Nations had no means to set boundaries and defend themselves--this was the 1940s to 1950s.

[Honoring Boundaries]

Persons who want to understand how First Nation practices have been misunderstood and misused to support pet biases of outsiders can learn a lot by studying the career of Frithjof Schuon and an idealogy Schuon was part of and contributed to, an ideology called Traditionalism. Elsewhere on this forum some have been discussing Julius Evola, a third and important member of the Traditionalist ideology.

Schuon however, has escaped inventory until now. As one who is not a member of the First Nations, I would like to offer some research material in case anyone is interested in pursuing this avenue.

At the time Schuon visited and thought he had been adopted by the Sioux, in 1959, the First Nations lacked the resources to identify when someone was making claims that were untrue. The role of Yellowtail deserves further scrutiny. Few Lakota or Oglala Sioux would have had the resources to travel to Paris and the capability to communicate with a European cosmopolitan such as Schuon.

Frithjof Schuon, a Traditionalist and a maverick perennialist who had converted to Sufism and then introduced modifications when leading a circle of European disciples, had a great deal of international influence.

Professor Mark Sedgwick wrote the first objective survey of Traditionalism in his book Against the Modern World:Traditionalism and the Secret Intellectual History of the Twentieth Century.

Joseph Espe Brown anthropologist and an Alwai (follower of Schuon's interpretation of Sufism), corresponded with Frithjof Schuon and sent him a copy of Neihardt's book, Black Elk Speaks. Schuon had been fascinated with Native Americans since childhood and in 1946.

Schuon was so intrigued that he urged Brown to contact Black Elk and this lead to a book by Brown entitled The Sacred Pipe: Black Elk's Account of the Seven Rites of the Oglala Sioux.
http://books.google.com/books?id=GcUFmQ-NF_0C&pg=PA123&lpg=PA123&dq=schuon+%22black+elk+speaks%22+%22against+the+modern+world%22+sedgwick&source=bl&ots=QyrTPTDD6M&sig=8j7YwSeKzQcEj8Q-YfoO0xBGDlg&hl=en&ei=i6EZTsTFL4yusAPowuDsDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBkQ6AEwAA


Schuon and his wife's first encounter was with someone named Thomas Yellowtail, whom they had met in Paris in 1953, according to Mark Sedwick's overview of traditionalism as given in Against the Modern World.

On this 1959 visit, Schuon took with him a painting he already had done of the White Bison Woman.

Years earlier, (page 148) in Europe, Schuon had begun painting. According to Sedgwick, among his early paintings, Schuon had painted two Native Americans, one of whom clothed, symbolizing exoteric religion and one of whom was naked, expressing esoteric spirituality.

Schuon's purpose was to save the Sioux from modenity. During this visit, they were supposedly adopted into the tribe, being given the names Wikapi Wyakpa (Bright Star) and Wowan Winyan (Artist Woman).."

He was so impressed that he took the feathered sun as a symbol of his Maryamiyya order.

http://traditionalistblog.blogspot.com/2008/01/schuon-and-feathered-sun.html

(Sedgwick, Against the Modern World page 149--)

Inspired by this the Schouns were able to visit Pine Ridge Reservation where Black Elk had lived, and then to Sheridan WY where Yellowtail lived.

http://books.google.com/books?id=GcUFmQ-NF_0C&pg=PA149&lpg=PA149&dq=schuon+%22wife%22+lakota+%22against+the+modern+world%22+sedgwick&source=bl&ots=QyrTPTCFfN&sig=1C2g2ZoApzi2IGApiO2GyedCrFc&hl=en&ei=xp4ZTvuhBoX0swO1jZXCDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBcQ6AEwAA

After this visit, there came more. Schuon and many disciples moved from Europe to the United States. Schuon began to incorporate elements of what he thought were Native American practices, and some of these were kept secret from devoutly Muslim disciples.

An account of these 'Indian Days'

http://books.google.com/books?id=GcUFmQ-NF_0C&pg=PA173&lpg=PA173&dq=schuon+%22indian+days%22+%22against+the+modern+world%22+sedgwick&source=bl&ots=QyrTPTEx8L&sig=UjZ17ekloNflIDjMHszV5SdMZIE&hl=en&ei=LqMZToSdHIn6sAOFosWIBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBgQ6AEwAA

Frithjof Schuon official website
http://www.frithjof-schuon.com/blessed.htm


http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&source=hp&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=schuon+lakota+against+the+modern+world&btnG=Google+Search

An overview of Traditionalism

http://www.traditionalists.org/

Members of the First Nations need to be aware of all this

Various neo pagan movements, some with political consequences, claim traditionalism as their inspiration.

Coverage of Schuon and Maryamiyya on Sedgwick's blog here:

http://traditionalistblog.blogspot.com/search/label/Maryamiyya

http://traditionalistblog.blogspot.com/search/label/Neo-paganism

[Honoring Boundaries]

Some neo pagan groups are using traditionalism as their inspiration.

Its important to have an overview understanding of traditionalism to be aware of possible biases that strangers may bring. Traditionalists tend to seem themselves as an elite, bent on reviving ancient iniatiator knowlege to help save the world from modernist corruption.

And many feel entitled to keep this secret from others.

http://traditionalistblog.blogspot.com/search/label/Neo-paganism

[educatedindian]

There's an older thread on ties between Newage and fascism that's relevant.
http://www.newagefraud.org/smf/index.php?topic=228.0

Most of these traditionalist groups seem borderline fascist or at least hard right/extreme nationalist. It shouldn't surprise anyone who remembers Hitler and his love of Karl May books.

[Honoring Boundaries]

Thank you for providing the URL to the earlier thread on Savitri Devi. THat person, and Julius Evola, are also mentioned, along with Schuon, in Mark Sedgwick's survey Against the Modern World:Traditionalism and the Secret History of the Twentieth Century.


http://www.google.com/#hl=en&xhr=t&q=sedgwick+mark+against+the+modern+world&cp=37&pq=micmher%40hotmail.com&pf=p&sclient=psy&source=hp&btnK=Google+Search&aq=0n&aqi=q-n1&aql=&oq=sedgwick+mark+against+the+modern+worl&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&fp=4e0097930301f58f&biw=1024&bih=587