| Nickname | Landig Circle |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1950; 75 years ago (1950) |
| Founder | Wilhelm Landig |
| Founded at | Vienna,Austria |
| Type | Occultist and neo-völkisch group |
TheLandig Group (Austrian German:Landig Gruppe) was anoccultist and neo-völkisch group formed in 1950, that first gathered for discussions at the studio of the designer Wilhelm Landig in theMargareten district ofVienna.[1] The circle's most prominent and influential members were Wilhelm Landig (1909–1997), Erich Halik (Claude Schweighardt) and Rudolf J. Mund (1920–1985). The circle has also been referred to as theLandig Circle (Landig Kreis),Vienna Group (Wien Konzern) andVienna Lodge (Wien Lodge).
Landig was the founder of the group, which has since inspired decades ofvölkischmysticism. He and his group revived theariosophical, Ario-Germanicmythology ofThule, the supposedpolar homeland of the ancientAryans.
Landig "coined the termBlack Sun, a substituteSwastika [and/orFylfot] and mystical source of energy capable of regenerating the Aryan race."[2]Landig, through his circle, popularized esoteric ideas current among the pre-Nazivölkisch movement and theSS relating toAtlantis, theWorld Ice Theory, pre-historic floods and secret racial doctrines fromTibet.
Landig and other occult-fascist propagandists have circulated wild stories about German Nazi colonies that live and work in secret installations beneath thepolar ice caps, where they developedflying saucers and miracle weapons such asDie Glocke after the demise of theThird Reich.[3] These stories include the theory that flying saucers were Nazi secret weapons launched from an underground base inAntarctica, from which the Nazis hoped to conquer the world.
The focus of the group's discussions was a secret center in theArctic known as the Blue Island, which could serve as a source point for a renaissance of traditional life. This idea was taken fromJulius Evola, whoseRevolt Against the Modern World became the bible of the Landig group.[2]
More so, or at least equally as important to the group as Evola's book, the Vienna Group hungrily devoured the ideas and books ofHerman Wirth.[2]
Landig was a formerSS member who revived the ariosophical mythology ofThule. He was born on 20 December 1909.[2] He wrote the Thule trilogyGötzen gegen Thule (1971),Wolfszeit um Thule (1980) andRebellen für Thule – Das Erbe von Atlantis (1991). He inspired the idea of theBlack Sun, a substitute swastika and mythical source of energy, which was launched in the 1991 novelDie Schwarze Sonne von Tashi Lhunpo by ghostwriterRussell McCloud.[4]
It has been shown that a younger generation continued the development of the circle's ideas from the 1980s on. This younger generation consisted of members of the German/Austrian Tempelhofgesellschaft. Their publications demonstrate an exchange of ideas with the older generation, mainly revolving around the Black Sun concept. After the Tempelhofgesellschaft had been dissolved, it was succeeded by the Causa Nostra, aFreundeskreis (circle of friends) that remains active.[5]