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Traditie jaarboek 2025

The second yearbook of the heathen organisation Traditie from Flanders was published in november 2025.

Like the first volume, it is printed on A4, has glossy, colour pages and this issue has a little over 100 pages. Like before, there are 20+ shorter and longer essays on a variety of subjects. The yearbook is again in Dutch.

The most productive author was Benny Vangelder with three texts spanning over 20 pages. The first article is similar to the recently reviewed book The Indo-Europeans Rediscovered by J.P. Mallory (the lengthy review of the book of the same author in the digital newsletter of Traditie was my reason to read the book). Another essay is about metaphysics and one about death.
Also Koenraad Logghe contributed three texts. ‘Why I am ‘heathen’, one about Fate and a report of a group talk during the celebration of 33 years of Werkgroep Traditie.
There are in depth investigations such as Boppo Grimmsma’s Wih en hailag (notions of the sacred), Axnot Wedasunu about ‘black peter’ (devilish winter characters in different parts of Europe), ‘the unpious warrior’ by Ralf van den Haute and my own text about Askr Svarte’s pagan Traditionalism.
Then there are lighter texts, poems and songs.

The latest yearbook makes another nice read. Members of Werkgroep Traditie will have received their copies by now. Other people can get their copies from the webshop. Click on the cover.

2025 Traditie

The Indo-Europeans Rediscovered – J.P. Mallory (2025)

  • history

Many years ago i bought a second hand version of In Search of the Indo-Europeans (1991) in Canada. By 2025 the author has long been retired, yet he found himself writing a third overview of the research into the Indo-Europeans. This time the focus is on the “homeland”.

I like a book with a high ‘information rate’, but Mallory’s latest book is 450 pages of information tsunami. Also he likes acronyms, such as EHG for “Eastern Hunter-Gatherers”, which he uses a lot. Often I had to look back what all the acronyms meant again.

The book (again) starts with a bit of a general part. Defining the subject, investigating the sources of terms, different kinds of research. Then follows a lengthy part with different hypothesis and their pros and cons. Interesting in Mallory is that he doesn’t bet on one horse, but combines the findings of linguistic, archaeological and genetic research.

This results in much information about different techniques and theories in each of these fields, different datings, etc. Especially the genetic part is quite tough with different types of DNA for example. Especially modern genetic research brought new insights and ideas, but…

after a half-century study I am pretty much where I started: I believe the Indo-European homeland lies in the Pontic-Caspian steppe because it is the one that satisfies the greatest number of constituencies and provides the strongest case for explaining the dispersal of the Indo-Europeans.

Much water went under the bridge to come to this conclusion. If you are interested in the latest research into the subject, Mallory’s latest book makes a good buy. He has got nice humour, but also does not shy to present difficult information and critique on his own and other theories. The conclusion is still, that we cannot be sure.

2025 Thames & Hudson, isbn 050002863X

The Little Religions of Paris – Jules Bois (1894/2024)

Laura Gaie (V Bros publishing house) is not the first to translate and publish this book. She does not give much information about it though. The original book was called Les Petites Religions de Paris and was published in 1894 by Jules Antoine Henri Bois, who was born in Marseille in 1868 and passed away in New York in 1943.

Bois visited small esoteric and religious groups in Paris and makes reports of his visits. He has quite a ‘wooly’ language and had an open mind. You will read a few things about a variety of different groups. Mediterranean heathens, followers of Emanuel Swedenborgh (1688-1772), Theosophical type Buddists, “Theosophes”, but also Satanists (Paladians), Lucifereans, Gnostics and a few more. A few of the people who I have been reading recently are mentioned, usually in passing. It appears that around 1900 there was a lively esoteric ‘scene’ in Paris.

The book is an amusing read, but do not expect any in depth information. Rather the praises of an interested outsider.

2024 V Bros, isbn 978-2487364257

Hermetic Symbolism In Relation To Alchemy and Freemasonry – Owald Wirth (1910/2025)

Somebody finally took it upon herself (Laura Gaie) to translate some of the works of the emminent Swiss author Oswald Wirth (1860-1943).

Wirth was an esotericist and Freemason. He wrote some often referred books, but his books written in French, remained untranslated for some reason. In 1910 Le Symbolisme hermétique dans ses rapports avec l’alchimie et la franc-maçonnerie was published and 115 years later also people who are not too good with French can read the text.

The translation is 160 pages. Quite a large part are not really texts of Wirth though. There are lengthy texts from the archives of Baron de Tschoudy (Jean-Baptiste-Louis-Théodore de Tschudi (1734-1784) and the Kindle version of Gaie’s book does not make clear if Wirth only wrote short introductions to the text of that he also wrote elucidations within them. The texts are interesting in themselves though, as they represent an early ‘Egyptian’ type of Freemasonry.

Anyway, Wirth’s texts about Alchemy and related subjects are interesting and quite clear. Different subjects are deals with only here and there referring to Freemasonry and then towards the end we get the (Alchemical) Masonic texts of De Tschoudy.

An interesting and long overdue translation.

1910/2025 V Bros. Publishing, isbn 2487364440

The Nath Religion – Raghupati Bhatt (2025)

Manticore published another Bhatt. I have read only one of them before this one. The Nath religion is a current that exists within Hinduism, but is so universalistic in approach that also people of other faiths are involved. Nath even claims to have adherence of all castes.

Bhatt’s book is mostly a collection of hagiographies. One big soul after another gets a short biography. This is not entirely uninteresting, but these biographies do not say all too much the Nath religion.

Towards the end there are some “unknown tales of the Nath cult”.

Not a boring read, but I would have liked to read more about the religion itself and not just about the people involved.

2025 Manticore Press, isbn 1763861333

Magic Mirrors – Paul Sédir (1907/2019)

Next name of the Belle Epoque esoteric authors is that of Paul Sédir (1871-1926). Les Miroirs Magiques was translated by Alex Bushman.

After some information about clairvoyance and other abilities, Sédir gives an overview of the use of different kinds of mirrors in different cultures and in different times and also about other types of divination. Sometimes he is quite explicit about the possible techniques that can be used. There is also information about astral worlds and similar subjects.

Even though the subject is not entirely mine, Sédir, just like Stanislaus de Guaita and unlike Jhourney or Papus, has a readable writing style with interesting details.

Divination in theory and practice.

1907/2019, isbn 979-8650697794

Rosicrucian Kabbalah – Alber Jhourney (1887/2019)

Albert Jounet (1863-1923) was an author from the esoteric circles of the French ‘Belle Epoque’. I have been reading more texts of this period recently and Jhourney’s Kabbalah book is mentioned in some of them.

Le Royaume de Dieu (‘the kingdom of God’) is not as much a book about (Jewish or Christian) Kabbalah, but more of ‘a Kabbalistic book’, so to say. About 100 pages filled with aphorisms roughly structured around the sephiroth.

Trinitarian Christian, less focused on the science of his day than other books that I have been reading, but (unfortunately) again not really my cup of tea.

In the Days of the Messiah, the World will be ruled by the Son of God and the great Church of the Magi. The Redeemer will be the Supreme Prophet, the Sovereign Pontiff and the King of Kings.

A random quote to give you an idea of the book. Some of the aphorisms are like this, other are more religious or spiritual, but this is not a learning book about either Kabbalah or Rosicrucianism. Some people may find (and have found) it inspirational.

2019, isbn 979-8634113968

The Secret Science – François Charles Barlet (1890/2022)

Volume 8 in the series “Martinism Without Secrets” is a compilation of texts. Here you find writings of Gérard Encausse (Papus), Eugène Nus, Doctor Ferran, Julien Lejay, Stanislas de Guaita and François-Charles Barlet. There is again a introductory “practical Martinist supplement”.

To start with the latter, this again concerns mostly exercises. Not my cup of tea.

The texts themselves are not too interesting either unfortunately. A lot of pages are dedicated to Theosophy, at the time of writing the texts undoubtedly new and groundbreaking, not nowadays not much so in my opinion.

We have a chapter about Theosophy specifically by Barlet and an enormous text about Sinnetts book Esoteric Buddhism by Nus. Also the text of Papus about Kabbalah is quite Theosophical. A reason to buy this compilation was the text about symbolism of Freemasonry, but “Dr. Ferran” manages to write close to nothing about Freemasonry in his text. Somewhat interesting is the final text of Stanislas de Guaita.

I appreciate the effort that the creators of these series take to make these old texts available in different languages, but not everything has the same relevance today in my opinion. The texts are also more ‘spiritual science’ type than personal growth (or whatever to call it) proper.

2022, isbn 979-8407019138

A History of Esotericism – M. Alan Kazlev (2023)

It was a bit of a gamble to buy this A History of Esotericism – From the Paleolithic to the Axial Age with an approach somewhere between academic and spiritual. I was not really impressed.

The book is not much about esotericism. Rather it is a history of religion and philosophy. There does not appear anything new in the book, but perhaps on the positive side, neither did I encounter anything really incorrect or one sided. Kazlev presents a fairly down-to-earth history of human thinking. Here and there some of his preferences shine through, but overall the book is not bad.

Kazlev is not entirely dryly academic, but also not too ‘fluffy’. He starts many centuries in the past and ends with the Stoics of Greece. Perhaps there are plans for the second half of the story.

Not the best Manticore title, but not a bad read.

2023 Manticore Press, isbn 0645670049

The Science Of Magis – Papus (1892/2021)

Papus (Gérard Encause (1865-1916)) is the next 19th century esotericist that I read a text of. It proves that both the series with the typical cover you can see on the right and the books of Alex Bushman are Martinists ‘opening up’. “Martinism without mysteries” you can see on the right.

I find the book of Papus not too interesting. It is a fairly Theosophy-type account which blends Theosophical esotericism with science of its day. Just as the other book from these series, it begins with an introduction with exercises, etc. and only after a while the actual translation follows.

Astral bodies, reincarnation, etc. these are the subjects at hand. Nothing too interesting. Perhaps I should try Papus’ more specific texts, such as his Kabbala book first.

2021, isbn 9798768440091