Eventually the colonized world began to import not only predominant Western belief systems, like capitalism and Christianity, but minority and antagonistic systems like communism and socialism. At this level a very interesting transformation took place.

The Western educated elites of the colonized world, already alienated from their own heritages and yet naturally antagonistic to any foreign domination, gravitated toward such alternative Western systems. This was the great appeal of communism in the Third World, particularly Asia where intellectuals wanted a way out of colonial domination but were already too Westernized to discover a solution within their own traditions. Communism allowed colonized peoples to be both Western and anti-Western at the same time, accepting Western ways of thought but opposing the exploitation done by Western powers. They could challenge Western colonial rule by following revolutionary Western thinkers and aligning themselves with revolutionary elements within Western culture, which could provide them with the education and resources to stage their revolt.

This had yet a more damaging effect on traditional cultures. The communists of the Third World came to identify their own native traditions with the very dominant Western traditions that European communist leaders had opposed. They lumped their own traditional hierarchies - their kings, rajas, merchants, monks and mandarins - along with the kings, church, bourgeoisie and bureaucracy of Europe. They came to look upon their own cultures as their real enemies and eliminated them with the same cruel righteousness that they would a foreign tyrant. They lumped their own non-Christian religions along with Christianity to be opposed, giving their monks and swamis the hatred European communists reserved for the pope and the church.

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