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Michael Moynihan

Julius Evola

Men Among the Ruins: Post-War Reflections of a Radical Traditionalist Paperback – January 1, 2002

by Julius Evola (Author), Joscelyn Godwin (Author)

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Julius Evola's masterful overview of the political and social manifestations of our time, the "age of decline" known to the Hindus as the Kali Yuga.

• Reveals the occult war that underlies the crises that have become a prevailing feature of modern life.

• Includes H. T. Hansen's definitive essay on Evola's political life and theory.

Men Among the Ruins is Evola's frontal assault on the predominant materialism of our time and the mirage of progress. For Evola and other proponents of Traditionalism, we are now living in an age of increasing strife and chaos: the Kali Yuga of the Hindus or the Germanic Ragnarok. In such a time, social decadence is so widespread that it appears as a natural component of all political institutions. Evola argues that the crises that dominate the daily lives of our societies are part of a secret occult war to remove the support of spiritual and traditional values in order to turn man into a passive instrument of the powerful.

Evola is often regarded as the godfather of contemporary Italian fascism and right-wing radical politics, but attentive examination of the historical record--as provided by H. T. Hanson's definitive introduction--reveals Evola to be a much more complex figure. Though he held extreme right-wing views, he was a fearless critic of the Fascist regime and preferred a caste system based on spirituality and intellect to the biological racism championed by the Nazis. Ultimately, he viewed the forces of history as comprised by two factions: "history's demolition squad" enslaved by blind faith in the future and those individuals whose watchword is Tradition. These latter stand in this world of ruins at a higher level and are capable of letting go of what needs to be abandoned in order that what is truly essential not be compromised.

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328 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Inner Traditions
Publication date

January 1, 2002
Dimensions

6 x 0.6 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

0892819057
ISBN-13

978-0892819058
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Editorial Reviews

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"Evola is one of the most interesting minds of the [world] war generation. He has a really astounding knowledge at his disposal." ― Mircea Eliade, author of The Sacred and the Profane

"Evola writes in lively prose with fascinating detail. . . . To read his description of higher spiritual states is like watching a champion mountain climber on a vertical glacier." ― Gnosis

"Disgusted by the cruelty and artificiality of communism, scorning the dogmatic, self-centered fascism of his age, Evola looks beyond man-made systems to the eternal principles in creation and human society. The truth, as he sees it, is so totally at odds with the present way of thinking that it shocks the modern mind. Evola was no politician, trying to make the best of things, but an idealist, uncompromising in the pursuit of the Best itself." ― John Michell, The New View Over Atlantis

"Men among the Ruins is Julius Evola's most notorious work: an unsparing indictment of modern society and politics. Evola rises above the usual dichotomies of left and right, liberal and conservative, through a trenchant critique of the metaphysics that lies at the base of modern values, challenging us to reconnect our lives and our institutions to the timeless spiritual standard that guided our ancestors. Men among the Ruins is not a work for complacent, self-satisfied minds . . . it is a shocking and humbling text that will be either loved or hated. Evola's enemies cannot refute him; they can only ignore him. They do so at their peril." ― Glenn A. Magee, author of Hegel and the Hermetic Tradition

"Not for the feint of heart. His writing typically demands a concentration of focus and a strong level of comprehension." ― Robert James Buratti, New Dawn, July-August 2002

About the Author

Julius Evola (1898-1974) was one of the leading authorities on the world's esoteric traditions and wrote Revolt Against the Modern World, Introduction to Magic, The Mystery of the Grail, The Hermetic Tradition, The Yoga of Power, Meditations on the Peaks, The Doctrine of Awakening, and Eros and the Mysteries of Love.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Men Among the Ruins
Post-War Reflections of a Radical Traditionalist

From chapter 13, "The Occult War"

Various causes have been adduced to explain the crisis that has affected and still affects the life of modern peoples: historical, social, socioeconomic, political, moral, and cultural causes, according to different perspectives. The part played by each of these causes should not be denied. However, we need to ask a higher and essential question: are these always the first causes and do they have an inevitable character like those causes found in the material world? Do they supply an ultimate explanation or, in some cases, is it necessary to identify influences of a higher order, which may cause what has occurred in the West to appear very suspicious, and which, beyond the multiplicity of individual aspects, suggest that there is the same logic at work?
The concept of occult war must be defined within the context of the dilemma. The occult war is a battle that is waged imperceptibly by the forces of global subversion, with means and in circumstances ignored by current historiography. The notion of occult war belongs to a three-dimensional view of history: this view does not regard as essential the two superficial dimensions of time and space (which include causes, facts, and visible leaders) but rather emphasizes the dimension of depth, or the "subterranean" dimension in which forces and influences often act in a decisive manner, and which, more often not than not, cannot be reduced to what is merely human, whether at an individual or a collective level.
Having said that, it is necessary to specify the meaning of the term "subterranean." We should not think, in this regard, of a dark and irrational background which stands in relation to the known forces of history as the unconscious stands to consciousness, in the way the latter relationship is discussed in the recently developed "Depth Psychology." If anything, we can talk about the unconscious only in regard to those who, according to the three-dimensional view, appear to be history's objects rather than its subjects, since in their thoughts and conduct they are scarcely aware of the influences which they obey and the goals that they contribute toward achieving. In these people, the center falls more in the unconscious and the pre-conscious than in the clear reflected consciousness, no matter what they-who are often men of action and ideologues-believe. Considering this relation, we can say that the most decisive actions of the occult war take place in the human unconscious. However, if we consider the true agents of history in the special aspects we are now discussing, things are otherwise: here we cannot talk of the subconscious or the unconscious, since we are dealing with intelligent forces that know very well what they want and what are the means most suited to achieve their objectives.
The third dimension of history should not be diluted in the fog of abstract philosophical or sociological concepts, but should rather be thought of as a "backstage" dimension where specific "intelligences" are at work. An investigation of the secret history that aspires to be positivist and scientific should not be too lofty or removed from reality. However, it is necessary to assume as the ultimate reference point a dualistic scheme not dissimilar from the one found in an older tradition. Catholic historiography used to regard history not only as a mechanism of natural, political, economic, and social causes, but also as the unfolding of divine Providence, to which hostile forces are opposed. These forces are sometimes referred to in a moralistic fashion as "forces of evil," or in a theological fashion as the "forces of the Anti-Christ." Such a view has a positive content, provided it is purified and emphasized by bringing it to a less religious and more metaphysical plane, as was done in Classical and Indo-European antiquity: forces of the cosmos against forces of chaos. To the former correspond everything that is form, order, law, spiritual hierarchy, and tradition in the higher sense of the word; to the latter correspond every influence that disintegrates, subverts, degrades, and promotes the predominance of the inferior over the superior, matter over spirit, quantity over quality. This is what can be said in regard to the ultimate reference points of the various influences that act upon the realm of tangible causes, behind known history. These must be taken into account, though with some prudence. Let me repeat: aside from this necessary metaphysical background, let us never lose sight of concrete history.
Methodologically speaking, we need to be careful to prevent valid insights from degenerating into fantasies and superstition, and not develop the tendency to see an occult background everywhere and at all costs. In this regard, every assumption we make must have the character of what are called "working hypotheses" in scientific research: as when something is admitted provisionally, thus allowing the gathering and arranging of a group of apparently isolated facts, only to confer on them a character not of hypothesis but of truth when, at the end of a serious inductive work, the data converge in validating the original assumption. Every time an effect outlasts and transcends its tangible causes, a suspicion should arise, and a positive or negative influence behind the stages should be perceived. A problem is posited, but in analyzing it and seeking its solution, prudence must be exercised. The fact that those who have ventured in this direction have not restrained their wild imaginations has discredited what could have been a science, the results of which could hardly be overestimated. This too meets the expectations of the hidden enemy.
After considering the state of society and modern civilization, one should ask if this is not a specific case that requires the application of this method; in other words, one should ask whether some situations of real crisis and radical subversion in the modern world can be satisfactorily explained through "natural" and spontaneous processes, or whether we need to refer to something that has been concerted…

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Inner Traditions; 0 edition (January 1, 2002)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 328 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0892819057
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0892819058
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.05 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.6 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #509,079 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Julius Evola
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Julius Evola (1898-1974) has been one of the most misunderstood and controversial authors of the Twentieth century. Born in Rome, Evola began his pursuit of truth as a Dadaist painter and an Idealist philosopher, but quickly lost his taste for modernism and moved on to metaphysics, religion, and the occult. Encountering the work of René Guénon, who became a lifelong friend, Evola embraced his concept of the Tradition and his critique of the modern world, and spent the remainder of his long career elaborating his own, more individualised variation of the principles first explicated by Guénon, offering a unique view of how one can put into practice the doctrines of a genuine spiritual path. Believing that Tradition was an idea which should encompass the social as well as the spiritual world, Evola saw some hope for a remedy to the ills of modernity in Fascism, although he never joined the Party, and his writings on the subject were more critical than complimentary of the movement.
Nevertheless, his involvement branded him as a Fascist in the eyes of his opponents, and this label continues to follow his name to this day. After 1945, Evola remained aloof from politics, and attempted to define the most effective stance for an inhabitant of the modern age to adopt and still retain something of traditional wisdom. He remained almost entirely unknown in the English-speaking world until the 1990s, when Inner Traditions began publishing its translations of Evola’s works. Since then, Evola’s ideas have given rise to a new breed of spiritual seekers and anti-modernists in the English-speaking world. Arktos has published his books, Metaphysics of War, which is a collection of his essays from the 1930s and ‘40s; The Path of Cinnabar, which is his intellectual autobiography; Fascism Viewed from the Right, which is his post-war analysis of the positive and negative aspects of Italian Fascism; and Notes on the Third Reich, which performs a similar analysis upon German National Socialism.
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Matthew Johnson

Outdated and flawed in parts, brilliant in others. An important book in Evola's bibliography.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 27, 2021

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First, a preface: Men Among the Ruins is one of Evola's few explicitly political works, and as such it addresses particularistic questions by nature, albeit from a Traditional point of view. Anyone familiar with Evola's work understands that his treatment of the possibility of a political restoration of Traditional values (those values which are transcendent and universally true) changed over the course of his life. Keep that in mind, as Men Among the Ruins had been written still relatively early in his life and in a particular political context, no doubt. His final works would treat the question of restoration decidedly negatively -- late Evola believed no such thing would be possible due to the disappearance of worthwhile political groups and urged Traditionalists to focus on their own inner lives rather than the plane of political action. So, in surveying Evola's ideas, don't take this work as his final position on the matter.

All that having been said, I'll move onto a proper review of the book. Men Among the Ruins ranges from naive/outdated to insightful and highly valuable. I need not dwell on its flaws, since they should be evident to the reader. I'm content to highlight the best points Evola makes here which would echo throughout his later works. First of all on the matter of particularities, certain political ideas presented are very solid and could even be implemented today, particularly Autarchy.

Evola rightly figures that the only possible way a modern state could avoid the excesses of the infinite growth of capital and to maintain an "uncompetitive" form of rulership is through autarchy. This would free society from the fetters of foreign economic interests and allow a serious culture to form inside the borders against modern materialism.

Next, his proposal to solve materialism, alienation, dehumanization, and expansion under capitalism and communism is to create some form of corporatism inspired by the ancient Roman idea and the medieval artisan guilds. This could also be practiced today, as something approaching corporatism has been employed before. In Evola's opinion, bringing a spiritual dimension to labor and prioritizing quality over quantity could be fruitful, as was the case with the Roman lares and patron spirits of the Germanic guilds.

Elsewhere he elaborates on modern "conservatism," and its relationship to labor, and furthermore the role that labor should play from a Traditionalist perspective. Evola points out that modern conservative movements have become proletarianized and have formed a myth of labor. They tend to revolve around "labor ethics," and associate hard work within the economy with traditional values in a puritanesque way. Far from being a particular trait of his time, this tendency among conservatives remains today and is chiefly expressed by the American GOP, so the question remains relevant. Evola does an excellent job dispelling the myth of labor. Far from being a source of meaning or ethics, labor in the Traditional view was either amoral or decidedly negative, the latter being the case in ancient Rome where the word laborare denoted suffering or misfortune. Labor meant something closer to the way we use the term "laborious" today.

Evola explains that the Traditional aristocracy had a healthy and differentiated disdain for labor -- it was the lot of serfs, not of lords -- something unfortunately necessary. The elite were preoccupied with their divinely appointed destinies, being warfare and spirituality, the latter forming the basis of morality rather than labor. Furthermore, he addresses the question of alienation under capitalism (and communism for that matter.) Automation and industrialism have removed human autonomy from the process of production and destroyed any degree of humanized choice or intention. Modern products are austere and unsymbolic, the products of automatic processes. The people working with these machines experience dehumanization, something that would not have been the result of spiritually informed artisan work.

Further, he elaborates on the dangers that capitalism and communism both pose to Traditional society. He explains that both systems narrow the societal system of values down to materialism, labor, and production, causing an irrational collectivism to form that will replace "individualistic" Traditionalism. Evola has explored this problem in other essays, my favorite is probably Faces and Mush from Recognitions, in which he presents a similar opinion to Marcuse on the creation of artificial needs under capitalism, but from a decidedly transcendent perspective.

One of the best-known and most valuable essays in this book is "The Occult War," which is excerpted online. Here, Evola poses a powerful critique of nationalism vis-a-vis traditional empire, contrasting its focus on the ethnos and demos -- the masses of people and society of number -- to the latter's individualistic and transcendent justification which exists as a matter of cosmic hierarchy and corresponds to the law of differentiation. He also criticizes the tendency within nationalism of demagoguery -- masses of people whose lowest impulses are being exploited to cause chaotic outcomes. He urges that a properly Traditional society must operate on reason and fidelity, not demagoguery.

For all these reasons, Men Among the Ruins remains a valuable contribution to the Traditionalist school. It hits far more than it misses and contains a good deal of wisdom that reaches up to and beyond our modern day.

8 people found this helpful

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New Age of Barbarism

Julius Evola: Proponent of Counter-revolution and Tradition.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 15, 2003

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_Men Among the Ruins_ is the post World War II political reflections of the Italian intellectual Julius Evola. Continuing along the same lines as he had in his more famous _Revolt Against the Modern World_, Evola advocates a return to Tradition and radical counter-revolution. This translation is divided into three parts: an excellent introduction to the life and thought of Julius Evola, the text of _Men Among the Ruins_ proper, and Julius Evola's defense when brought in front of a court for charges of subversive activity.
_Men Among the Ruins_ has been called a "dangerous book" and Evola has been called a fascist; however, if we are unable to read these "dangerous books" and decide for ourselves what they have to say then we will never be able to learn anything from outside of the dull conformist mainstream. The introduction to this book explains much of Evola's thought and life, while at the same time explaining the particularly tricky issues of his involvement with fascism, his lectures in Germany, his racist theories (unlike the crass biological racism of certain components of the National Socialist regime, Evola advocates a spiritual notion of race), and his relationship with antiSemitism (including mention of the notorious forgery "The Protocols of the Elders of Zion").
_Men Among the Ruins_ advocates a return to Tradition and a rejection of modern day liberalism, Bolshevism, individualism, collectivism, and the ideals of the revolution. Against this, Evola proposes a return to an underlying Indo-European substratum, authority, and a re-recognition of the necessity for transcendence. The book includes discussions of various aspects of the State, hierarchy, work and the economy, the Roman Imperium, corporativism (which Evola will somewhat reject along with socialism), militarism, and the role of war. Evola also tackles the issues of the "occult war" (including many of the rumors about the Jews - Evola rejects the more virulent forms of antiSemitism), the "problem of births", and Roman Catholicism as a component of that Tradition. I disagree somewhat with Evola's rejection of Catholicism, although it is unclear to me how much of this aspect of the Tradition is retainable (this would include recognition of the changes in the Church post-Vatican II, as well as the need to address the problem Evola brings up of the world's other religious traditions within the framework of Catholicism). Evola concludes with a discussion of the united Europe and a call for a new European Order. Evola writes specifically about the kind of men that are needed to compose this new Order, including old European families and military leaders. He concludes, "It remains to be seen which and how many men, in spite of it all, still stand upright among so many ruins, in order that they may make this task their own." The book concludes with Evola's defense before the Italian court and his rejection of his specific "glorification of Fascism" charge. This defense is one of the best clarifications of Evola's personal idiosyncratic thought that I have encountered.
In order to read this work, it is probably necessary to first complete Evola's more famous _Revolt Against the Modern World_. Most of Evola's other works that have been translated have a more esoteric bent to them and are less outrightly political. In the end however, Evola advocates a form of apoleteia, a phenomenon he will refer to as "riding the tiger", and a rejection of all party politics. In fact, Evola never participated in outright politics nor ever voted in his entire life. The book goes beyond the familiar schema of Right and Left political thinking and is certainly not to be recommended to any person completely absorbed in either mainstream or modernist ideologies and modes of thinking.

79 people found this helpful

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Mr. Bo

Kosher!

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 13, 2005

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March 2, 2005

I expected something more controversial or thought provoking, but it's very kosher, almost bland. Basically, baron Evola was a pre-1789 Sicilian traditionalist and aristocrat who naturally resented the two hundred and fifty years of our present day industrial/mercantile/militaristic/demo-pornocratic "multicultural" disaster.

An old anti-democrat like Nietzsche, in comparison,

has more staying power than Evola's mildly politically incorrect

class musings. Maybe, it's just this book (haven't read Evola's other work yet).

Take into consideration that over 1/3 of this edition includes an intro essay -the mandatory PC agitprop professer or another, pontificating von oben upon the possible

dangers of Evola's ways of free-thinking! Yawn. The usual US academical fear of truth and reality, especially when touching the controversian, taboo topics -the exploding problem of Race relations (esp. in North America) and of the Zionist Jewish world suprematism.

If you think New Orleans riots are not part of the global Zimbabwe anarchy, Evola is not for you.

But, no worries. Count Evola is no David Irving. He doesn't bite! He's one of the good guys!

19 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

Kevin S Terry

Five Stars

Reviewed in Canada 🇨🇦 on December 27, 2015

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awesome

One person found this helpful

George

Difficult reading, absolutely worth it

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on May 24, 2017

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In this inflammatory book, Evola outlines the traditional values which ought to be held in as absolute values in every society. Anti-egaliterian, anti-democratic, anti-liberal and anti-popular in every aspect, but it is great for those looking for another "worldview".

12 people found this helpful

Matt

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on April 4, 2016

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Too true

9 people found this helpful

WLADYSLAW WIETRZYK

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on January 4, 2016