The term Tradition refers to the concept that all authentic religions derive from a single Primordial Tradition and are therefore equally valid paths to Salvation. Traditionalism is therefore the school of religious studies that strives to illuminate the unifying Principles underlying the various manifest Traditions of the world.
Traditionalism was founded (if one can say such a thing about a perennial wisdom) by the French scholar Rene Guenon (1886-1951). Other notable Traditionalists include Julius Evola, Frithjof Schuon, Ananda K. Coomaraswamy, Lord Northbourne, Titus Burkhardt, Martin Lings, Seyyed Hossain Nasr, Whitall Perry, Robin Waterfield, Arthur Versluis, R.A. Schwaller deLubicz, and William Stoddart. Thinkers sympathetic to some extent or other to the Traditionalist view include Mircea Eliade, Huston Smith, Jacob Needleman, Alain Danielou, and Joseph Campbell.
While the Traditionalist school is well-represented in Europe (where it has even impacted the political arena, an aspect I generally avoid here) there is relatively little material available in English, especially on the Internet. This website attempts to gather as many links as possible to English-language site dealing with Traditionalism. Please feel free to help out by emailing me with anything I have missed.
Evola List Moderated by yours truly and devoted primarily to discussion of Julius Evola's work. I created this to take the place of the old Evola List which was cancelled mysteriously in the spring of 2000.
Lens of Ascent A list with a more 'practical' orientation to the Work of spiritual growth. Much influenced by Evola's book Introduction to Magic.
Tradition List A less-active list for discussion of Rene Guenon and Frithjof Schuon.
Traditionalism and Meta-History Discusses Guenon, Evola, and other Traditionalists. Used to be much more active but still has a high quality of discourse.
Collectif EA: Julius Evola: Le Chemin du Cinabre A Julius Evola tribute site with multi-media.
The Concept of Initiation in Rene Guenon's Thought A good article on one of the most important aspects of Traditionalist theory.
Esoteric Anthropology and Perennial Philosophy A long essay by two Religious Studies specialists contrasting the "Modern" and "Perennialist" (ie: Traditionalist) worldviews.
Foundation for Traditional Studies Publishers of the Sophia journal.
Guild of the Grail An attempt at a Magical Order along Evolian lines, it is not accepting any new members at present due to the mysterious absence of the founder. The reading list is generally excellent even if it has too many books on the Third Reich for my taste.
A History of Western Sufism A good essay on the subject with important information on the relationship between Guenon and Schuon.
Huston Smith on the Primordial Tradition Transcript of an interview with Jeffrey Mishlove from Thinking Allowed.
Institute Rene Guenon of Traditional Studies A multi-lingual site with various Traditionalist material.
Integral Tradition:
Tradition and Conservative Revolution A very large collection of texts and
links to various kinds of conservative religious and political authors and
subjects.
Integral Traditionalism Bibliography Some links and an extensive bibliography of Traditionalist works in French and Italian.
Kshatrya: Julius Evola A text archive of Evola's writings, some in translation.
Marginal Muslims in Cyberspace A long essay on the relations of Tradition, Islam and the Internet with a collection of links.
Nehuschtan's Page A hard-core Guenonian. Has a list of pages 'misusing' Guenon.
Seyyed Hossain Nasr Foundation Site for the prominent Muslim Traditionalist scholar. You can order tapes of his lectures.
Traditionalist Conservatism Page Many links covering a wide spectrum of 'Conservative' or 'Rightist' issues. Check out Jim Kalb's essays.
Traditionalists on the Web A massive guide to various strains of Traditionalist thought.
Who was Rene
Guenon - Shaykh 'Abd Al Wahid Yahya? In later life Guenon moved to Cairo
and embraced Islam, making contact with Sufi orders there.
Entheos: A Journal of Gnosis and Tradition A new online journal with issues in .pdf format.
Living Traditions Online Australian journal published in .pdf format. Quite substantial with a wide range of material.
Sacred Web: A Journal of Tradition and Modernity A fine publication from Canada.
The Scorpion The primary English-language journal of the European 'New Right'. This is a more polically-oriented site than I usually list here, but it does feature some interesting online articles.
Sophia: The Journal of Traditional Studies Published by the Foundation for Traditional Studies, this is the foremost English-language journal in the field of Tradition.
SYNTHESIS: Journal du Cercle de la Rose Noire This online journal is by no means strictly Traditionalist, but it is an excellent resource for anti-modernist and politically-incorrect thought of many kinds.
TYR: Myth, Culture, Tradition An excellent annual journal of Traditionalist European Paganism.
I know of no other Traditionalist periodicals with an Internet presence as yet, however the following journals are recommended:
Esoterica: The Journal of Western Esoteric Studies A fine online academic journal.
Gnosis Magazine Many issues dealt with the Traditionalist school. While the magazine has ceased publication, back issues may still be obtained.
Parabola Magazine Journal of the Society for the Study of Myth and Tradition. Often has articles by Traditionalist authors.
Arya Kshatriya Books Books, ritual paraphernalia, and even supplies for your Alchemical laboratory!
Fons Vitae Deals mostly with Islamic material but also has an extensive catalogue of Traditionalist small-press books.
Inner Traditions International Publishers of Julius Evola and R.A. Schwaller deLubicz.
Kazi Publications Another Islamic bookseler with some Traditionalist offerings.
SeriousSeekers.Com Best source for English translations of Guenon. They also have books by Nasr, Lings, and Lord Northbourne (nice to see him finally get back into print!)
Sophia Perennis U.S. source for Traditionalist writings. Traditionalist bookseller that also publishes English translations of Guenon. A dozen new titles have been released recently, many of which have never appeared in English before.
World Wisdom Books Devoted mostly to the works of Frithjof Schuon.