I know the Nazis we’re all in on occult type shit and “germanic / roman” mythos, is this meme just that Steiner had the same kind of woowoo occult going on?
I thought the Nazis we’re generally against Steiners brand of woowoo
“Steiner, along with Hübbe-Schleiden and Hartmann, was affiliated with the racist and anti-Semitic Guido von List Society. For many anthroposophists in fact, ‘Jewishness signified the very antithesis of spiritual progress and the epitome of modern debasement.’”[334] The theories of theosophy and anthroposophy were “later co-opted by National Socialism”
Both stem from romantic and naturalistic idealism, that‘s Part of German culture. Modernity had severed the relationship between the people and the land and nature. Christianity and Judaism were seen as invasive religions, that eradicated the natural indigenous religion.
There‘s an antisemitic strain that rejected modern medicine as Jewish, and favored alternative methods. Homeopathy, Anthroposophic medicine, new Germanic medicine, quackery, and other alternatives were supported by the Nazis.
The Nazis regulated quacks and providers of alternative medicine as Heilpraktiker (healing practitioners), a law that‘s still around today in Germany. This legitimized them in the eyes of the public until today.
It’s all pretty convoluted and there’s no clear line. Nazism as an ideology has a lot of inherent contradictions. It’s both against modernity, for a more ancient indigenous culture, while embracing modernity, technology, media, and revolutionary change. It’s very syncretic.
Anthroposophy and other alternative medicine remains popular in Germany today, especially among the educated middle and upper class. Left-liberal hippies will often send their children to Waldorf (Rudolf Steiner) schools, which you can find in every medium sized city. I have personally listened to a Waldorf teacher talk in front a group of 40ish people how the Holocaust was the result of bad karma accumulated by the Jewish people. According to him the Jewish people were were cleansed by it and transitioned now to a higher stage of development.
The success of the German Green Party, organic farming, environmentalism, anti nuclear sentiment, alternative medicine, has a direct cultural origin in the naturalist romantic idealism from the late 19th, early 20th century. The Nazis co-opted some of it, because it fit in with their Völkisch and antisemitic ideas.
Even today, you can find neo-Nazis in Germany, who care a lot about the environment and animal welfare, also following alternative quack medicine. Anti vaccine sentiment was widespread in west Germany before COVID, and the anti-vax movement was easily co-opted by the far right afterwards.
It’s funny how hippies becoming right wing extremist is a worldwide phenomena. Even without the Nazi influence late stage hippies always end up on the far right. Like in my country the face of the anti-covid movement is a stereotypical white boy hippie with dreds. Like the typical mistrust in the government hippies have creates a lot of overlap with the far-right hence why some hippies become right wing extremist.
It pisses me off that they intermixed so much stuff. Some might be good, some might be bad, some definitely is bullshit, but you can’t really have a discussion because it’s all under one label and criticizing a part of it, criticizes the part you would agree to in their eyes.
Yes, I am German. I come from that alternative milieu. My father was a founder of the local chapter of the Green Party and active in the peace and environmental movement. His job was working at a co-op owned bookstore with a book selection that had a strong emphasis on environmentalism, peace movement, leftist politics, third world authors (mostly Latin American leftists), etc.
I was born in an anthroposophic clinic. Throughout my childhood I ate mostly organic food and was treated with alternative medicine, mostly homeopathy and herbal. This impacted my life pretty negatively as I never received antihistamines for my allergies, only some vaccinations, nor any kind of attention to my ADHD. When I first visited a regular doctor as an adult, it was mindblowing to receive medicine, that actually works.
Some of my friends went to Waldorf schools, so I have second hand experience. Their school philosophy has lots of things going for it, but in practice can be pretty terrible for some children.
I know the Nazis we’re all in on occult type shit and “germanic / roman” mythos, is this meme just that Steiner had the same kind of woowoo occult going on?
I thought the Nazis we’re generally against Steiners brand of woowoo
OH I DID MORE GOOGLING:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudolf_Steiner_and_race
Both stem from romantic and naturalistic idealism, that‘s Part of German culture. Modernity had severed the relationship between the people and the land and nature. Christianity and Judaism were seen as invasive religions, that eradicated the natural indigenous religion.
There‘s an antisemitic strain that rejected modern medicine as Jewish, and favored alternative methods. Homeopathy, Anthroposophic medicine, new Germanic medicine, quackery, and other alternatives were supported by the Nazis.
The Nazis regulated quacks and providers of alternative medicine as Heilpraktiker (healing practitioners), a law that‘s still around today in Germany. This legitimized them in the eyes of the public until today.
It’s all pretty convoluted and there’s no clear line. Nazism as an ideology has a lot of inherent contradictions. It’s both against modernity, for a more ancient indigenous culture, while embracing modernity, technology, media, and revolutionary change. It’s very syncretic.
Anthroposophy and other alternative medicine remains popular in Germany today, especially among the educated middle and upper class. Left-liberal hippies will often send their children to Waldorf (Rudolf Steiner) schools, which you can find in every medium sized city. I have personally listened to a Waldorf teacher talk in front a group of 40ish people how the Holocaust was the result of bad karma accumulated by the Jewish people. According to him the Jewish people were were cleansed by it and transitioned now to a higher stage of development.
The success of the German Green Party, organic farming, environmentalism, anti nuclear sentiment, alternative medicine, has a direct cultural origin in the naturalist romantic idealism from the late 19th, early 20th century. The Nazis co-opted some of it, because it fit in with their Völkisch and antisemitic ideas.
Even today, you can find neo-Nazis in Germany, who care a lot about the environment and animal welfare, also following alternative quack medicine. Anti vaccine sentiment was widespread in west Germany before COVID, and the anti-vax movement was easily co-opted by the far right afterwards.
It’s funny how hippies becoming right wing extremist is a worldwide phenomena. Even without the Nazi influence late stage hippies always end up on the far right. Like in my country the face of the anti-covid movement is a stereotypical white boy hippie with dreds. Like the typical mistrust in the government hippies have creates a lot of overlap with the far-right hence why some hippies become right wing extremist.
It pisses me off that they intermixed so much stuff. Some might be good, some might be bad, some definitely is bullshit, but you can’t really have a discussion because it’s all under one label and criticizing a part of it, criticizes the part you would agree to in their eyes.
Appreciate the detailed answer, the way you speak about it implies (or I take as an assumption) you’re German/local?
Yes, I am German. I come from that alternative milieu. My father was a founder of the local chapter of the Green Party and active in the peace and environmental movement. His job was working at a co-op owned bookstore with a book selection that had a strong emphasis on environmentalism, peace movement, leftist politics, third world authors (mostly Latin American leftists), etc.
I was born in an anthroposophic clinic. Throughout my childhood I ate mostly organic food and was treated with alternative medicine, mostly homeopathy and herbal. This impacted my life pretty negatively as I never received antihistamines for my allergies, only some vaccinations, nor any kind of attention to my ADHD. When I first visited a regular doctor as an adult, it was mindblowing to receive medicine, that actually works.
Some of my friends went to Waldorf schools, so I have second hand experience. Their school philosophy has lots of things going for it, but in practice can be pretty terrible for some children.
I can talk about this stuff for hours.