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Critique of New Age

By Gornahoor


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Rene Guenon wrote before 1950:
”As for the counter tradition, we can still only see the preliminary signs of it, in the form of all things that are striving to become counterfeits in one way or another of the traditional idea itself.”

As for today the signs are bumping into our heads, so clear are they.

1. Intro

"New age thought” claims to rest on the 'fulfilment of the self.' But this is only confusing the Psychic and the Spiritual.

2.

"New age thought” claims to rest on the fulfilment of the Self. Yet they confuse the Psychic and the Spiritual. The Spiritual, or Soul, transcends the mind, and there can be no matter of self-realisation. The Soul exists as a reflection of God. Any path not founded on surrendering their will and worshipping the Absolute will find no spiritual awakening. Treating the "Ego” or the "individual self” as the object of care is like trying to support (a) cancerous Tumour in the brain (which is) blocking rational thought. The correct approach is to DESTROY the tumour. This is the object of REAL mysticism, to slay this stain called the "self”. As Al-Hallaj (ra) said "I look for myself and the self was gone”.

3.

Many "New agers” seek an alternative to Abrahamic Spirituality. As a result, they openly scorn monotheism. Instead, they embrace "animism” or "polytheism”. These two conceptions never existed; the notion of an "Evolutionary” thesis of religion was a fabrication of the western colonialists in the "Age of Imperialism”. In reality, all Religion is Monotheistic, which is why it was easy for Africans and Native Americans to embrace Islam and Christianity, for the basic tenets of a Single all-powerful God, an afterlife, a fall from Grace, were already essential tenants of their religious beliefs. The New Agers who call themselves "animists” or "polytheists” are creating a gross-perversion and distortion of indigenous beliefs. Julius Evola made this case against the Neo-pagans claiming to practice European "Paganism”, specially attacking their libertinism and "nature worship”.

4.

On this note, The New Agers are often ignorant of Christian Mysticism. In their question for direct spirituality they oddly ignore clear examples of Self-realisation within the Christian Tradition. One of the most clear examples being the great Meister Eckhart, whose entire Theology rested on demonstrating on how the Universe was an illusion and how the only thing Real was God, and that Christ was the "Son of God” in-so much as he was the most perfect Human, completing the levels of spiritual ascension, and providing an archetype for all human kind to reject their created natures and become One with God.

5.

On this note, so-called "New Agers” are, like religious fundamentalists ignorant of the distinction between the esoteric and the exoteric. There is no reaching the Supreme Realisation without rigorous bodily discipline.

Even in the case of Primitive society, the Shaman had to subject himself to years and years of fasting, prayer, and seclusion. A great many trials and tribulations which the "new ager” could never survive. In fact, many of the most vocal critics of New Age have been natives.

In light of the Islamic tradition, the noble discipline of Tasawwuf has been bastardised, with "Neo-Sufis” shamelessly claiming the mantel of "Sufi” without practicing the Shariah. They desecrate the graves of the sages of Islam by claiming absurdities like "Sufism is different than Islam”. Authentic Spirituality has ALWAYS demanded the rigorous practice of the exoteric, and history, with rare exceptions, has demonstrated this. In order to transcend to elevate the spirit, we must conquer the body.

Source: The Deception of the New Age
With permission from Gornahoor




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* Living Islam – Islamic Tradition *