Unholy Alliance: History of the Nazi Involvement With the Occult

Rating:
Summary: Suprising
Review: A tale of the creation, heyday and survival of the Nazi party. The book takes you through alot of twists and turns, some quite shocking, and all quite true! Interesting and hard to believe, but a reality of the past and the present.

Rating:
Summary: How about a block of salt
Review: Fascinating subject matter delivered somewhat hysterically, but assume you can overcome the journalistic hyperbole and a completely irrational preface by Norman Mailer. Who apparently believes magical influences possibly guided the 9/11 hijackers. Here's my crackpot theory: unlike your average Israeli airport, in which jackbooted soldiers armed with machine guns man every terminal, and every other Israeli male seems to be packing a siderarm, the average U.S. airport is manned by lowest-bid security officers with minimal educational levels and possible criminal backgrounds that escape superficial efforts at employee screening. Couple that with fanatical Saudi nationals who spent several years in our country doing recon and other preparatory training. But that's just a wild theory I've developed in this life--before I pass through the sixth dimension and reincarnate as a desert hare. I should add that believing in magic without having personally experienced it's power is the hallmark of a fool. The author's preface had me on guard as well. The children killing children at Columbine. Ever heard of juvenile delinquents? As if juveniles and young adult males are not the primary offenders in almost every criminal category already. You don't hear about senior citizens staging massacres. Still, there are few compilations around concerning Nazi occult lore. It's a decent introduction to a wealth of source material from which a rational person can draw their own conclusions.

Rating:
Summary: A Correction of a False Review
Review: I had previously written a review here charging Mr. Levenda with poor scholarship and libelous treatment of Mr. Aleister Crowley and "his occult orders," it has developed, on my own faulty memory of an article written by another author. The irony of my accusing Mr. Levenda of inaccuracy based on my own forgetfulness has not been lost on me, and has been a gentleman in correcting my error. I would like to apologize to Mr. Levenda for my thoughtlessness and plan on buying his -- I'm sure -- excellent book in reparation to him.


Rating:
Summary: More timely than ever
Review: In this definitive history of Nazi religious/occult thinking, UNHOLY ALLIANCE meticulously traces the roots of this primal evil. Levenda's warnings that the beast is not dead, but sleeping, and likely to wake again, have become tragically accurate since its initial publication. While the author has been at pains to avoid hysteria and paranoia, passage after passage in this brilliantly-researched mix of historical analysis and contemporary investigation is eerily prescient.

This new edition adds an author's update, a small but excellent photo section, and a Foreword by Norman Mailer who reveals his own take on magic and Nazi occult thinking. Sadly, the daily headlines supply so many examples of the dangers of cultic, far-right ideologies that one hopes the author is sketching out notes for a third edition. The darkest instincts of human nature are now everyday images on the TV news. Two misfit high school honor students spend a year planning vengeance on their tormenters and turn an affluent school campus into an abbatoir---on Hitler's birthday. And as the Colorado suburb mourns its dead children, a wave of copycat crimes and threats sweeps America. And as more details surface, we learn that the teenaged killer/suicides of Columbine had hoped to hijack jets and crash them into--yes--the World Trade Center.

We know only too well what is exploding into our headlines. For thoughtful readers who want to understand where and how it began, and continues underground right now, UNHOLY ALLIANCE belongs at the top of any must-read list. The expanded content, the photos, the Norman Mailer essay, and a larger, more readable format all enhance this classic that now more than ever belongs in the library of every reader with a serious interest in world affairs. A disturbing but very worthwhile read.

Rating:
Summary: A great read!
Review: In this readable but thoroughly researched survey of the mythic/religio/occult ideologies that formed the basis of the Nazi movement, in UNHOLY ALLIANCE, the author has succeeded in making a dense, fact-laden topic spanning hundreds of years accessible to the non-specialist reader without sacrificing accuracy. This is probably the most thorough treatment of Nazi occult ideology in English, and where it surpasses similar works is that it continues documenting neo-Nazi survivals right up to the present. Anyone who doubts Levenda's thesis that the end of WWII only changed, rather than ended, the Nazi movement, need only check the unblushing anti-Semitism of some of the other reviews here.

Writers exploring the occult and its many flamboyant personalities frequently fall into either reflexive debunking or starstruck gullibility. While the author has done plenty of first-hand investigation, even getting into the Chilean Nazi enclave Colonia Dignidad during the Pinochet years, he succeeds in giving us a clear-eyed, even-handed view.

The Norman Mailer Foreword to this edition is an unexpected plus, a fine essay on metaphysics, occultism, and current events that gave this reader, who has always considered the enormous Mailer canon a mixed bag, a pleasant surprise: Mailer has a number of deeply insightful things to say about magic and the occult. Mailer says he's read UNHOLY ALLIANCE three times--once more than I have, though my first edition is a bit ragged from the many times I've also used it as a quick reference.

UNHOLY ALLIANCE belongs on the bookshelf of anyone with a serious interest in WWII, extremist religio-political ideologies of all descriptions, modern Roman Catholic history, or any branch of occultism. Thanks to excellent source notes and an index, it's a fine reference work that--a rare bonus in this field--is also a great read. The author's update to this new edition was obviously written post-September 11, and is a good, if somewhat sketchy, summary of developments since its original publication. One would wish Levenda could have had more space to explore the similarities between Nazi occultism and the current crop of terrorists in greater detail, but this is a very small quibble about an otherwise splendid work.

Rating:
Summary: An Interesting Examination of Nazi Occultism.
Review: Peter Levenda's _Unholy Alliance_ is at once a tale of adventure and intrigue and a useful source of information on the occult origins of Nazism. Much has been made of these occult beginnings and developments which led to the creation of Hitler's Third Reich and which have continued after its downfall in various forms of NeoNazism. In this book, Peter Levenda examines these occult aspects of Nazism from its early development in the Thule Society and among individuals such as Guido von List, Lanz von Liebenfels, and Rudolf von Sebottendorf to Nazi psychics up until the present day in which Satanism and other such dark forces have combined with Nazi occultism. Levenda rightly contends that Hitler himself was not overly influenced by occult ideas (contrary to the thesis put forth in _The Spear of Destiny_) despite his youthful readings of von Liebenfel's notorious magazine, "Ostara". However, according to Levenda the magical and occult aspects of Nazism cannot be denied. Levenda considers Nazism to be a sort of cult with an all powerful leader ("Der Fuehrer"). Much of the material in this book as far as the early roots of Nazism is available from other sources especially _The Occult Roots of Nazism_ by Nicholas Goodrick-Clark. However, Levenda provides new material in his examination of Nazi psychics, including Hanussen, his thorough discussion of the Ahnenerbe Society, his explanation of the Tibet expedition which has not previously been covered by other authors in this field, and his discussions of the notorious madman Aleister Crowley. In fact, a great deal of this book focuses on the shenanigans of Aleister Crowley but also discusses the roots of many German secret societies in the Theosophical Society of the medium Madame H. P. Blavatsky. The most interesting discussion in this book however is that of the survival of the Nazi cult in various manifestations particularly in South America. The far reaches of the tentacles of the Nazi octopus can be seen in the trail of Rudolf Hess, where he claims that he was being mind-controlled by various psychiatrists working for the Allied Powers. This is one among hundreds of bizarre instances involving the captured Nazi elite. The escaped Nazis may have traveled to South America via various underground channels. Individuals such as Klaus Barbie and Martin Bormann as well as the infamous physician, Dr. Josef Mengele, may have traveled to South America and survived in hiding under different aliases and involving themselves with various occult movements and lodges. The nation of Chile appears to be particularly likely to be infested with NeoNazis according to Levenda. Among others the occult writer and Chilean diplomat Miguel Serrano has written praising Hitler. Levenda himself investigated the secret Nazi center, the infamous "Colonia Dignidad", in Chile. This mysterious colony is run by the self-described "Baptist" zealot, Dr. Ernst Schafer, with unproven ties to Nazism. While in Chile, Levenda encountered this mysterious Nazi colony and barely managed to escape alive (luckily a report involving the statute of limitations on Nazi war crimes was being reviewed that day which may have allowed his escape). Rumors of mysterious deaths, torture, sexual abuse of children, and the practice of the black arts combining traditional Voodoo ritual with Nazi occultism have spread about the infamous "Colonia Dignidad". Whatever exactly this colony consists of, it is certainly not a wholesome affair. In the last full chapter in this book, Levenda turns his attention to NeoNazism. In particular, he examines the question of Nazi Satanism (taking a look at such organizations as the former National Renaissance Party) as well as the phenomenon of Nazi Skinheads. Nazi Satanists appear to base their rites off of those performed by the ultimate black magician and Reichsfuehrer of the SS, Heinrich Himmler, which he performed in his mysterious castle, Wewelsburg. Levenda makes some decent comparisons and analysis of Nazism and the Satanic abduction scare (in which he compares such mass murderers as Charles Manson with Nazi occultism and Satanic practices). Ultimately, upon finishing this book, it is clear to the reader that the Nazis were indeed based on an occult system of practice. While I dislike the idea that this was some form of neopaganism, it is more likely a restoration of the Gnostic heresy and a revolt against the Catholic Church, Christianity, and the Semitic religions. Levenda is unfortunately too harsh on the Catholic Church in this respect giving into many modernist and liberal biases. It is a fact that the Church tried to protect many individuals from the evils of Nazism and its death camps, despite whatever else certain of its members may have done. Also, the case against Pope Pius XII's involvement with Nazism is certainly far from being resolved in my mind at least. I believe Nazism constitutes a form of modern day Satanism and its ties to black magic and evil forms of occultism and degeneracy are all too apparent.

Also recommended: _The Morning of the Magicians_ by Pauwels and Bergier and _The Occult Roots of Nazism_ by Nicholas Goodrick-Clark.

Rating:
Summary: An Interesting Examination of Nazi Occultism.
Review: Peter Levenda's _Unholy Alliance_ is at once a tale of adventure and intrigue and a useful source of information on the occult origins of Nazism. Much has been made of these occult beginnings and developments which led to the creation of Hitler's Third Reich and which have continued after its downfall in various forms of NeoNazism. In this book, Peter Levenda examines these occult aspects of Nazism from its early development in the Thule Society and among individuals such as Guido von List, Lanz von Liebenfels, and Rudolf von Sebottendorf to Nazi psychics up until the present day in which Satanism and other such dark forces have combined with Nazi occultism. Levenda rightly contends that Hitler himself was not overly influenced by occult ideas (contrary to the thesis put forth in _The Spear of Destiny_) despite his youthful readings of von Liebenfel's notorious magazine, "Ostara". However, according to Levenda the magical and occult aspects of Nazism cannot be denied. Levenda considers Nazism to be a sort of cult with an all powerful leader ("Der Fuehrer"). Much of the material in this book as far as the early roots of Nazism is available from other sources especially _The Occult Roots of Nazism_ by Nicholas Goodrick-Clark. However, Levenda provides new material in his examination of Nazi psychics, including Hanussen, his thorough discussion of the Ahnenerbe Society, his explanation of the Tibet expedition which has not previously been covered by other authors in this field, and his discussions of the notorious madman Aleister Crowley. In fact, a great deal of this book focuses on the shenanigans of Aleister Crowley but also discusses the roots of many German secret societies in the Theosophical Society of the medium Madame H. P. Blavatsky. The most interesting discussion in this book however is that of the survival of the Nazi cult in various manifestations particularly in South America. The far reaches of the tentacles of the Nazi octopus can be seen in the trail of Rudolf Hess, where he claims that he was being mind-controlled by various psychiatrists working for the Allied Powers. This is one among hundreds of bizarre instances involving the captured Nazi elite. The escaped Nazis may have traveled to South America via various underground channels. Individuals such as Klaus Barbie and Martin Bormann as well as the infamous physician, Dr. Josef Mengele, may have traveled to South America and survived in hiding under different aliases and involving themselves with various occult movements and lodges. The nation of Chile appears to be particularly likely to be infested with NeoNazis according to Levenda. Among others the occult writer and Chilean diplomat Miguel Serrano has written praising Hitler. Levenda himself investigated the secret Nazi center, the infamous "Colonia Dignidad", in Chile. This mysterious colony is run by the self-described "Baptist" zealot, Dr. Ernst Schafer, with unproven ties to Nazism. While in Chile, Levenda encountered this mysterious Nazi colony and barely managed to escape alive (luckily a report involving the statute of limitations on Nazi war crimes was being reviewed that day which may have allowed his escape). Rumors of mysterious deaths, torture, sexual abuse of children, and the practice of the black arts combining traditional Voodoo ritual with Nazi occultism have spread about the infamous "Colonia Dignidad". Whatever exactly this colony consists of, it is certainly not a wholesome affair. In the last full chapter in this book, Levenda turns his attention to NeoNazism. In particular, he examines the question of Nazi Satanism (taking a look at such organizations as the former National Renaissance Party) as well as the phenomenon of Nazi Skinheads. Nazi Satanists appear to base their rites off of those performed by the ultimate black magician and Reichsfuehrer of the SS, Heinrich Himmler, which he performed in his mysterious castle, Wewelsburg. Levenda makes some decent comparisons and analysis of Nazism and the Satanic abduction scare (in which he compares such mass murderers as Charles Manson with Nazi occultism and Satanic practices). Ultimately, upon finishing this book, it is clear to the reader that the Nazis were indeed based on an occult system of practice. While I dislike the idea that this was some form of neopaganism, it is more likely a restoration of the Gnostic heresy and a revolt against the Catholic Church, Christianity, and the Semitic religions. Levenda is unfortunately too harsh on the Catholic Church in this respect giving into many modernist and liberal biases. It is a fact that the Church tried to protect many individuals from the evils of Nazism and its death camps, despite whatever else certain of its members may have done. Also, the case against Pope Pius XII's involvement with Nazism is certainly far from being resolved in my mind at least. I believe Nazism constitutes a form of modern day Satanism and its ties to black magic and evil forms of occultism and degeneracy are all too apparent.

Also recommended: _The Morning of the Magicians_ by Pauwels and Bergier and _The Occult Roots of Nazism_ by Nicholas Goodrick-Clark.

Rating:
Summary: The Anti-Semites Attack!
Review: Reading the last few reviews of Unholy Alliance, I am struck by the fact that both reviewers are unapologetic anti-Semites. I guess everyone's entitled to their opinion, but they have misrepresented some of the facts. I only find a single reference to Tom Metzger in the book, and the author nowhere states that Metzger was a "rune master", whatever that is, only that his newsletter used to be a forum for pagan and Odinist views. I think that's correct. As for Hitler not being an occultist, the author states very clearly that Hitler was not a member of any occult group, but that he was fascinated by Lanz von Liebenfels, something that is well-documented, and was a protege of Dietrich Eckart. In fact, the entire book is well-documented with sources (from the Captured German Documents Section at the National Archives, among other places) that you won't find other places, and the author even gives microfilm roll numbers so anyone -- even an anti-Semite! -- can go to the Archives and look up the relevant documents themselves with ease. While one of the reviewers is an admirer of Goodrick-Clarke (who also writes about the occult background of the Third Reich), he does not like Unholy Alliance. I think the problem is that Unholy Alliance also focuses on modern survivals of Nazism in North and South America and takes a good hard look at groups like Metzger's, something that Goodrick-Clarke does not do (even though his books are excellent). Unholy Alliance puts it all in one place; and the author risked his life investigating Colonia Dignidad in Chile, a place where others were not so lucky to escape (an American math professor was taken to the Colony a few years AFTER the author, and tortured and killed as reported in the NY Times), and was personally acquainted with James Madole and Roy Frankhouser, all notorious racists and neo-Nazis. To attack the book because of a single reference on a single page to Metzger seems strange. And although the reviewer claims to have been a friend of Metzger since 1978, it is obvious that the author of Unholy Alliance has also been in the field at least that long (his trip to Chile was in 1979 for instance).

So, I think the book is worth a look by Nazis and anti-Nazis alike. Both will discover a wealth of information about the SS Ahnenerbe and its bizarre Tibet Expedition, about Otto Rahn and the search for the Grail, and about a host of other things that few other books have bothered to document as thoroughly.

Rating:
Summary: Unholy Alliance
Review: This is one of those system books that feels if they can spell a few people's names right, then the author is free to say anything. Total non-sense. Hitler was never into the occult; he was an atheist who liked the rites of the Catholic Church. I've known Tom Metzger since 1978. He was never a Thulist nor neo-Odinist as the book claims. He is an atheist. He's not a Rune master; he doesn't know a feu from an odal rune.
WAR has never been an Odinist organization. WAR promotes that race is your religion. Odinism is the worship of Odin.
Don't waste your money on this... book!
A real crackpot thing this book gets into is the author claims to have gone to a secret Nazi Occult colony in the jungles of South America. And he implies he saw Martin Borman in the jungles of South America. Only a nut would believe anything this kook writes. Martin Borman was killed by a Russian in April 1945. Hitler is not alive in Chile. There are no secret Nazi camps in South America. The author of this book is insane. This is like something you would read in the Globe or the Star. The Black Sun is a far better book on racial occultism, at least that author is sane.
This book remains me of some of those whacky Christian Identity books which claim Jews eat Christian children for Passover. If you are a True Believer in shadowy cults getting ready to take over the world than this book is for you, but if you're not nuts, then you should buy another book.

Rating:
Summary: The Nazi Cult
Review: _Unholy Alliance: A History of Nazi Involvement with the Occult_ by Peter Levenda is a bizarre book on how Nazism was created by right-wing extremist occult secret societies after the First World War. The back cover says the book will appeal to an audience anxious about something great and unseen, beyond morality and our individual perceptions of reality, that is "constricting our existence." This certainly describes me. _Unholy Alliance_ begins with the author's first person narrative of a trip he made to Chile back in the seventies to investigate a rumored Nazi compound known as Colonia Dignidad, which apparently served as a torture center for Pinochet's regime. Levenda's history of occult Nazism begins describing the histories of Madame Blavatsky's Theosophy and Alestier Crowley: the British occultist who founded the OTO (Order of the Eastern Temple) known for his practice of sex-magic. The "volkish" pagan mystic Guido von List and the ex-Cistercian monk Lanz von Leibenfels promoted esoteric metaphysical theories concerning the secret history of the Aryan/Germanic race and the corrupting nature of Christianity and Judaism. The "volkish" paganism they expounded rejected Christianity, the Jews, democracy and modernism. They romanticized the German peasantry and traditional, irrational, cultic beliefs and rituals, and placed an emphasis on the organic unity of the race, (the "volk,") and nation. The mythical Holy Grail was viewed as an Aryan symbol, not the container of Christ's blood, but instead a metaphor for the racially pure blood of the German race. _Ostara_ was a noted occultist publication in this genre and Hitler was among its readers. Following World War I, Germany was a shambles and faced a takeover by socialists and communists. The Thule Society was formed to promote a nationalist reaction against the forces of revolution. The Thule created the German National Socialist Worker's Party/Nazi Party to appeal to a wide working class audience. Hitler, according to Levenda, was a product of the occult societies. _Mein Kampf_ is dedicated to Hitler's mentor, Dietrich Eckhardt, a proto-Nazi poet and mystic. Levenda documents the role that secret societies, astrologers, psychics and assorted mystics played in the Third Reich and the British intelligence service during the war. Rudolf Hess, Hitler's deputy; Heinrich Himmler, the fuhrer of the SS; Alfred Rosenburg, a Nazi philosopher and Haushaufer, the chief Nazi geo-politician, were all seriously involved in occult theories and doctrines. After the defeat of the Third Reich, the SS, inspired by the memory of Gnosticism, Manicheanism, the Knights Templar, the Cathars, and the Arthurian guardians of the Holy Grail, went underground. Nazism gets credit for being a religiously anti-modern philosophy, but remaining anti-Christian, millenarian, utopian, and romantic in character. Even Charles Manson is mentioned--and it appears that the Sharon Tate murders served some kind of obscure propaganda purpose. Manson, who wanted to provoke a race war and admired Hitler, even carving a swastika on his forehead, ironically tends to reinforce the Nazi image of short, bearded, brown-eyed men ravishing attractive blonde women. Levenda maintains that the Nazis still exercise an influence in the world today from their secret Chilean hideout in the Andes Mountains. He claims that Nazis orchestrated the coup against the leftist Salvador Allede in Chile and funded domestic terrorism in the United States. Although Colonia Dignidad is certainly an odd place, it is questionable that it is a center of gravity for a global Nazi underground conspiracy against democracy, socialism, Jews and non-white races. Levenda also believes that there is evidence for a white conspiracy to destroy the black race through biological warfare and mass murder. The conclusion his "Nazi Occultism Today" chapter pessimistically predicts that if the economy collapses and Americans loose faith in the current political establishment, Nazi-style cults will take over the country, a new Medievalism will prevail, and race and religion will be all that matters. This seems like a possibility, although such scenarios will probably be one where Jews encourage colored races to attack whites like they have been for the past sixty years. The foreword by Norman Mailer is also interesting, apparently to give some credit to this book. _Unholy Alliance_ covers a fascinating subject with good writing but with its sensationalistic, journalistic authorship and spurious claims, it needs to be taken with a large grain of salt.