Best new age books according to redditors
We found 130 Reddit comments discussing the best new age books. We ranked the 22 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
We found 130 Reddit comments discussing the best new age books. We ranked the 22 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
The overall goal is to do whatever it takes to make yourself enjoy life as much as possible. Of course, within moral reason. Check out The Satanic Bible. It's a very short and interesting read, and surprisingly unpretentious.
P.S. I am not a Satanist, I just like reading interesting things.
A good place to start is the sub’s sticky, followed by the Satanic Bible if you want to dig deeper. We are Egoists as well as atheists. Since we believe that all gods are the product of man’s mind, and that rational self-interest is the foundation of morality, it follows that if we are going to make up a fictitious god as a metaphor, the god that best serves that paradigm is ourselves. We do not believe that we are literal gods (as in the supernatural type), but rather use that symbolism as a tool to aid in decision making. If everyone puts themselves first, everyone is better off.
>“All religions of a spiritual nature are inventions of man. He has created an entire system of gods with nothing more than his carnal brain. Just because he has an ego, and cannot accept it, he has to externalize it into some great spiritual device which he calls ‘God.’
>God can do all the things man is forbidden to do—such as kill people, perform miracles to gratify his will, control without any apparent responsibility, etc. If man needs such a god and recognizes that god, then he is worshipping an entity that a human being invented. Therefore, HE IS WORSHIPPING BY PROXY THE MAN THAT INVENTED GOD. Is it not more sensible to worship a god that he, himself, has created, in accordance with his own emotional needs—one that best represents the very carnal and physical being that has the idea‐power to invent a god in the first place?” -- The Satanic Bible, Anton LaVey
As far as ethics, we subscribe to the idea that each individual acting in their rational self-interests will also lead to the best outcomes on a societal scale. For more information on the ideas of rational egoism, I suggest the works of Stirner (or Rand if you want the pop-culture version).
It is also often missed that man is a social animal and empathy is part of the human condition. For most, in addition to the practical benefits of benevolent (but not altruistic) behavior, there is also happiness to be found in compassion towards the deserving.
As an example, I give to charities that I feel are helpful to the society (I just sent a donation to ProjectPrevention) which I live in (benevolence to others as a practical act) and to some specific causes simply because I derive pleasure from helping those causes like the Shire Free Churche’s Hope Project (compassion to satisfy my own ego). In both of these cases I am helping others for purely selfish reasons.
Likewise, inflicting harm on others (without their consent) usually does not bring happiness to most people. For those that do like to cause unnecessary harm, that behavior is tempered by the vast majority of people who do not want to live in that type of society. Morality is determined by the individual, but still subject to judgment by others; if someone believes they have a right to steal, they will not get far before running into a well-armed someone else that disagrees. We do believe in Law and Order as well as the individual’s right to self-defense and retribution. Criminal acts are not tolerated by Satanism.
Edit: Typos, sources, links and clarity
His book "The Secret Teachings of All Ages" is worth a read if you're interested in the history of esoteric tradition.
LaVeyan Satanism is fairly reasonable. It's basically just atheism with certain philosophical tenets added in.
...mostly. I should mention that there's a big current of occult practice in most Satanism; LaVey himself wrote out a lot of 'spells' in his books, for whatever reason. How Satanists justify that basically comes down to personal preference (if they do so at all).
Philosophically, though, Satanism is pretty sane stuff. I identified myself as a Satanist for years, I still would but 'secular humanist' fits more accurately now, I think.
Edit: For those curious, there are, more or less, three major camps of Satanism, with varying degrees of differentiation.
LaVeyan Satanism is largely based on the works of Anton LaVey, and is more or less represented by the Church of Satan. The Satanic Bible basically outlines its essential positions. Like he says in the video, this form of Satanism is essentially atheist, using Satan as a metaphor for human potential and drive, as well as other things. By nature it tends toward iconoclasm, and many people (myself included) use LaVeyan Satanism as a transitory period between theism and atheism.
Setian Satanism is an offshoot from the 1970s of LaVeyan Satanism that's directed by the Temple of Set. It's an officially recognized religion in the US which even boasts chaplains in the military. Unlike LaVeyan Satanism, Setians focus very heavily on magickal and occult doctrine, and the Temple's organization mimics many other magickal orders. It's very ritual-heavy and there's some debate about whether it's atheist or not (mainly, whether Set is a symbol or an entity). The ultimate goal is Xeper, which (more or less) comes from the Egyptian word Kheper, a dung-beetle deity who's name symbolized transformation.
Luciferian Satanism is a decentralized, theist form of Satanism. The different approaches to Luciferianism are too wide to list here, but they commonly identify with a literal Satan figure to whom they pray, in the hopes of achieving a transhumanist, Promethean transformation (similar to Setians). Traditions vary between Hebraic Satanism to Norse and everything in between. There are many organizations based on Luciferianism, but none really have the size and weight of either the Church of Satan or the Temple of Set.
Hopefully someone finds this interesting.
I remember being in the army and having Christian types trying to preach to me. Even in the chow hall I'd have some asshole come sit down next to me and say something like, "Have you heard the Good News?" and then start talking about Jesus.
I kept a copy of the Satanic Bible by Anton Levay as a joke and would invite them to my bible study group. They mostly left me alone after that.
Books which may interest, especially for beginners (The first three are highly recommended)
Magic in Ancient Egypt: Revised Edition
Eternal Egypt: Ancient Rituals for the Modern World
Temple of the Cosmos: The Ancient Egyptian Experience of the Sacred
Following the Sun: A Practical Guide to Egyptian Religion, Revised Edition
Circle Of The Sun: Rites And Celebrations For Egyptian Pagans And Kemetics
The Egyptian Book of the Dead: The Book of Going Forth by Day: The Complete Papyrus of Ani Featuring Integrated Text and Full-Color Images (This book isn't much of a "for beginners"-- it's just a translated funeral text. Still a great read for Kemeticists, though.)
The Ancient Egyptian Prayerbook (Just a contemporary prayerbook which may interest)
Early history of the phenomenon (pre-manned flight) is listed as encyclopedic entries in Jacque Vallee’s book below. Unfortunately they are mostly very short descriptions without his analysis on each one. But the incredible span of history, how long people have been seeing wonders in the sky, is amazing:
Wonders in the Sky: Unexplained Aerial Objects from Antiquity to Modern Times https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005HKOIJM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_vS7-Ab3G38HZ7
Early sightings of unusual phenomena including folklore such as fairies and witches and trolls and the relationship of that fear of the unknown to today’s great unknown - the Universe and ET, is presented here, which makes a connection to the conscious observer:
Passport to Magonia: From Folklore to Flying Saucers https://www.amazon.com/dp/0987422480/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_ZR7-Ab4TMXW2D
Regardless of individual opinions of Crowley the man, when it comes to Crowley the magician you'd find it hard to find a more comprehensive work on correspondences than his '777 And Other Qabalistic Writings Of Aleister Crowley, Including Gemetria & Sepher Sephiroth' https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0877286701/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_tI-BCb9K7YCF8.
This was further researched expounded on & expanded by Dr Stephen Skinner in his excellent 2008 work 'The Complete Magician's Tables'
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0738711640/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_4K-BCbS9R4B0G
There should be plenty of info in these two volumes alone to get you where you want to be correspondence-wise. I find them both invaluable. Good luck 👍
most satanist groups don't actually believe in the existence of satan. only christians believe in satan.
this is a good read https://www.amazon.com/Satanic-Bible-Anton-Szandor-Lavey/dp/0380015390
Kay I'm home now.
oh god, where to start.
Anton LaVey called his religion Satanism for two reasons.
Reason #1) He only wanted people with an open mind.
Reason #2) He believed that humans crafted the idea of God from our ego, as we needed something to guide us, something to have us know right from wrong, a moral code, with a punishment for not following it. If the God is the Ego, and Satan is the opposite of God, then Satan would be the carnal human desires. Satanists "worship" these bare, core, carnal desires of human nature. (Lust, Greed, Rage, etc. (Known in the Christian Religion as "The 7 Deadly Sins")) This is why you'll sometimes see people wearing a shirt that says "Worship Yourself".
Satanists DO have principals they follow. For instance, The Eleven Satanic Rules of the Earth.
Personally, I like to describe LaVeyan Satanism as "the religion of not giving a single fuck" because of what we believe. You are free to do what you please as a Satanist, so long as your actions do not harm another (without justification) or impose on their rights as a human. Example: Free Love. Go ahead, be gay if you want, be lesbian if you want to be, love who you want. If you want to have a 5 person all-male orgy, there's nothing stopping you from doing that, so long as everyone consents.
Another thing about Satanism people may find "wrong" is:
>If someone bothers you, ask him to stop. If he does not stop, destroy him.
>If a guest in your lair annoys you, treat him cruelly and without mercy.
These are some things that are entirely up to the practicing individual. Use whatever force YOU DEEM necessary to stop the problem. If YOU PERSONALLY BELIEVE murder to be the appropriate response to someone's actions towards you, GO FOR IT.
Personally there's only 3 things that condone murder for me:
You may have noticed that yes, we have rituals, and yes we call on "demons" to help us complete these rituals.
We're not actually asking for literal demons help. (This next part is where I usually lose people, fast.) We're using what we believe to be the power of our minds to will something into happening, I'm really not experienced with that though so don't take my word for it.
There you go, a very quick, very sloppy, kind of half-assed overview of LaVeyan Satanism. That was a LOT harder than I thought it would be to answer, Fuck.
For more info, check out:
Our Fundamental Beliefs
The Nine Satanic Statements
The Nine Satanic Sins
Pentagonal Revisionism: The 5 Point Program
Buy the bible!
If you do have further questions, PLEASE PLEASE feel free to ask me. Hell I'd be willing to do an /r/teenagers AMA if it gets enough interest.
Church of Satan (LaVeyan)
The Satanic Temple (Humanists using Satanism for shock value)
Joy of Satan (If you ever receive a link to this site, turn around and go home)
I also recommend reading the Satanic Bible. It's a quick read, and will explain everything you need to know about LaVeyan Satanism. Here's a link to Amazon for $10. LINK
Good Luck :)
Also, what is a sidebar?
1: [Amazon](The Satanic Bible https://www.amazon.com/dp/0380015390/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_C.Hgzb5J3HQQ5) or call your local bookstore to see if they have one in stock. My Barnes and Nobles only carries one at a time to prevent people from vandalizing it.
2: You can say Hail Satan to anything. I said it multiple times today, my wife and I say it when something cool happens or something works out in our favor. Essentially it is the vocal equivalent of "praise god", but since we don't believe in god or Satan and we praise ourselves, saying Hail Satan is like "yay me" or an affirmation.
As far as Lucifer, one of the titles for Satan, no we(LaVeyan) do not worship Lucifer. Luciferians on the other hand revere Lucifer as a liberator character but also a deity who they do not worship.
If you have more questions I would be glad to answer them through PM at any time. :)
Lots of better versions out there.
This one has Thorpe, Bellows and Bray and the old Norse, plus an introductory essay
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1542639298/
Patricia Terrys version is available as part of the Elder Edda audiobook on iTunes with various narrators (the Hávamál narrator Thomas Langbo sounds like Gustaf Skarsgård (Floki)
https://itunes.apple.com/us/audiobook/poems-of-the-elder-edda-the-middle-ages-series-unabridged/id1048774254
The VSNR (Viking Society for Northern Research) has an academic analysis of each verse available here http://www.vsnrweb-publications.org.uk/Text%20Series/Glossary%20and%20Index.pdf
Jackson Crawfords Cowboy Hávamál
https://jacksonwcrawford.com/the-cowboy-havamal/
Ursula Dronke is reputed to be one of the most authoritative, but it’s obscenely expensive and loses some of the poetry
Avoid the Pocket Hávamál or Study Hávamál as they’re published by The white-nationalist Asatru Folk Assembly.
The Satanic Bible is 9 bucks on Amazon. For best effect, I suggest asking if they would like to study the Bible with you, then get this book out and open it to chapter 5 (Hell, the Devil, and how to sell your soul).
I've found The Satanic Bible to be great for skepticism, if you're looking for a more religious bent. Some parents read The Holy Bible to their kids, and The Satanic Bible teaches you to ask hard questions and make up your own mind about things (instead of simply taking someone's word for it).
I think you may actually want at least a couple of different books here. But to get you started with a book that includes the lists of many deities and other entities, astrological, stone, color, and other correspondences, check out The Complete Magician's Tables. It's a really nice and useful book.
With regard to prayers and invocations, I'd say you may have better luck if you look at books that are specific to that tradition. For example, I'd find it unlikely that you would find any book that very comprehensively lists every single thing (including lengthy stuff like prayers and invocations) about both Judeo-Christian angels and about Hindu deities.
Don't forget the Satanic Bible. Watch the do-do hit the fan over that!
There is a book on this stuff btw.
https://www.amazon.com/Satanic-Bible-Anton-Szandor-Lavey/dp/0380015390/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1468587693&sr=8-1&keywords=satanic+bible
Get one. Works wonders.
Edit: It's actually not a terrible read if you ignore the enochian key section.
Try this one instead: https://www.amazon.com/Satanic-Bible-Anton-Szandor-Lavey/dp/0380015390/ref=sr_1_fkmr2_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1510200951&sr=8-1-fkmr2&keywords=levay+satanic+bible
Public?
A few other books you might want to add which fit nicely with the Bible (in no particular order):
The Satanic Bible and Satanism are not "globally rejected", even the US armed forces has a document that outlines religious requirements with Satanism included (DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY PAMPHLET NO. 165-13).
That said, I'm with you on the whole hand kids a stack of religious texts from various religions and let them decide for themselves.
>You can't just pick what you like and throw away the rest!
No one here is doing that. I recommend you read the sticky, the Church of Satan website and pick up a copy of The Satanic Bible while you're at it.
Satanism has nothing to do with pedophilia, and never has. Do your research and come back when you're ready to have an actual conversation.
> 1.) How are the gods viewed? Extra-dimensional beings, intelligences of natural forces or something else? Are they part of our world or another one?
These small questions demand exhaustive responses, haha. It's difficult for me to condense it here, but I will try, and will more than likely end up elaborating in comments later on.
The Netjeru are viewed as Gods -- Gods with multifarious and complex natures. They're not archetypes. They're not mere "metaphors" for anything, and are by no means facile explanations for natural phenomena conconcted by "pre-rational" humans, as many Moderns who privilege promissory materialist philosophy and interpretations are so fond of and known to say.
Personification-deities -- like Ma'at, the embodiment of the concept of ma'at; Sia, the embodiment of Divine intellect, perception, prophecy, etc.; and Shai(t), the God Who manifests more often as male than as female, and embodies fate, destiny, prophecy, etc. -- are still literal Divine beings as all the rest, but are not ones which are personable and personally accessible to human beings, on human terms. Some are much more "humanly accessible" than others. There are many classes of deities, with many roles and functions each performs, both on an individual basis and as units.
Fair warning: One does not get very far with two-dimensional interpretations and approaches to Egyptian religion(s). Ancient Egyptian theo-logic is incredibly polyvalent, and is not comprised of nor dictated by a series of competitive and contradictory bivalent values.
Arguably, the majority of the Netjeru are both immanent (within the world) and transcendent (above/outside the material world but still affecting it). That said, there are Gods that specifically dwell in the Duat (the Unseen), and do not manifest in the Seen (the material world which we inhabit). These obscure legions of specialized Divinities and "demons" are primarily but not exclusively encountered in funerary religious material, including but not limited to the Books of the Earth.
We must account for differences between localities and time periods, too . . . there is simply no simple, short, sweet answer (or set(s) of answers) to such questions, I'm afraid. Nor should there be, for a religion (or rather, series of religions) so old and multiplex as those of Ancient Egypt.
>2.) What should I read first? Should I study the myths or read a 101 book?
>3.) What specific books do you recommend?
There is no one book, nor only a couple of "handy manuals," that will inform you even remotely satisfactorily on Ancient Egyptian religion(s) and/or ritual mechanics. Anything that focuses solely on "myth," as per the nature of the discipline of "Mythology" (which is the study of myth as literature, frequently to the exclusion of cultural and religious context, and without regard for the fact that not all myth corresponds to ritual, or vice versa), will inevitably be inadequate and piecemeal.
The easiest place for me to start is to advise you whose works to avoid. Rosemary Clark, E. A. Wallis Budge, Judith Page, Normandi Ellis, Jeremy Naydler, and Jocelyn Almond are among those on the "Do Not Read" list. They're all rife with interpretative and methodological faux pas and plain-old factual historical inaccuracies.
The not-so-easy place for me to go from there is whose I recommend. There are too many scholars and texts to recommend, and my advice and recommendations are most definitely colored by my formal education in Philo/Theo and Ancient Near Eastern Studies. There are some articles I would recommend before out-and-out textbooks, but I realize that not many people have ready access to them as I do.
Anyway, even the best "Western" scholars, such a Jan Assmann and John Baines and Dimitri Meeks and Stephen Quirke, have their own interpretative problems embedded in their best pieces of writing. That said, Stephen Quirke probably has the best (not to mention the most recent) introductory, survey text on Ancient Egyptian religion(s) to date. I absolutely do not recommend Garry Shaw's, which was published last year, for all his privileging of Modernity over "pre-rational" Ancient non-Greeks and refusal to view Egyptian religious material as anything other than "poor explanations of the physical world for people without recourse to particle physics" (paraphrasing, though "for people without recourse to particle physics" are among his exact words). Nor does Shaw say anything different or better than other scholars like Meeks and Assmann and Baines have already said years earlier, elsewhere.
Erik Hornung's Conceptions of God in Ancient Egypt : The One and the Many is one of the most important books on the nature of Egyptian religion(s). While I have some issues with it, I highly advise people curious about Egyptian religion(s) read that text in particular. Definitely plan to read that one, and read it slowly and carefully. Many Modern Kemetics who have read it didn't particularly understand the material for whatever reasons, which I highly suspect had to do with, in no small part, speed-reading and no time taken for critical reflection.
Maulana Karenga composed the most extensive -- not to mention, fair -- study on the Egyptian concept of ma'at to date. He does a good job of pointing out some problems in other scholars' attempts at unpacking the issue over the last several decades, and he does a good job outlining what, precisely, ma'at entails morally-ethically through extensive analyses of diverse bodies of textual evidence from different periods of Pharaonic history. Ma'at, in case you and/or those reading don't already know, is the underpinning of the entire religion(s) and Kemetic worldview, and it's impossible to be a Kemetic without understanding what ma'at is, and making it the foremost part of one's daily life and the foremost goal of one's life.
Robert K. Ritner and Geraldine Pinch wrote texts addressing heka -- Ritner's are considered to be among the best, while Pinch's are considered adequate (she makes glaring citation mistakes in areas, for instance, i.e. in the sections she writes concerning the Seven Hathors. No spell in primary source material, from any period, exists where They perform as Pinch states They perform, on top of her not providing citation for what text she (mis)interpreted those sections from). J. F. Borghouts' Ancient Egyptian Magical Texts, although brief, is frequently cited and worth looking at. A PDF of it should be floating around the interwebs somewhere, if you're interested in that, since it's pretty expensive to acquire physical copies of and is, to my knowledge, since out of print.
James P. Allen's, Thomas G. Allen's, and Raymond O. Faulkner's translations of the most famous funerary texts are among the best. Adriaan De Buck's translations of the Coffin Texts are considered authoritative, but are considerably difficult -- especially for those outside Academia -- to gain access to. I should note that the funerary texts are only so important. They honestly do not play a major role in Modern Kemetic practice and belief, though Modern Kemetics do by no means totally ignore them. Important to know, not much practical use, in other words.
As for Modern Kemetic works . . . nnnnot many exist which I could recommend in good conscience. The late Richard Reidy's Eternal Egypt is much acclaimed by many Modern Kemetics, though it does contain some errors. That's not to say that it's utterly useless, only that some of the rituals contained therein (such as those pertaining to Sekhmet) are predicated on erroneous information and mistaken interpretations. Tamara Siuda's Ancient Egyptian Prayerbook is, admittedly, only particularly handy if you're looking into becoming part of the Kemetic Orthodox Temple. It contains pointers on how to erect and dedicate shrines (in the Kemetic Orthodox way, that is); how to perform the Kemetic Orthodox rite of senut; "how to pray" and prayers in English; and snippets of introductory information about some of the most important Egyptian deities. Nothing super-heavy.
I hope this helps; and apologies for the length of my response.
Amazon Link
$8.99 new or $4.17 used.
My wife was never a big drinker and had never tried anything else. In her life, she'd been drunk once, and tipsy maybe three times.
I had the pleasure of introducing her to LSD.
Her first time was quite a low dose, which I actually regret in hindsight - I generally advice people to have a 'normal' dose for their first trip so that they experience the full effects and don't just come out of it thinking it's something less than it really is. This is exactly what happened with my wife.
That said however, you need to be well prepared. It's not something that you can even begin to imagine until you experience it. It's NOTHING like being drunk. Reading people's trip reports should help a lot. There was a truly excellent report with pictures posted from a first timer a little while ago. Here it is.
There's a couple of good books on the subject as well. For full disclosure, I'm the author of one such book. I won't advertise it here (I've been accused of "spamming" in the past, so I tend to be careful), but if you're interested, please ask and I'll provide you a link or further info. My own book is targeted at 'beginners' specifically, so may be one of the better choices compared to many others. However another really excellent one devoted to 'explaining the experience' is The Neurosoup Trip Guide, by Krystle Cole.
Miss Cole also runs the Neurosoup website, which has a lot of very useful information and a very large number of videos. Note that I'm not associated with Neurosoup other than having sponsored one video there recently.
Further info as edit: I got a little sidetracked on resources and away from the main topic - LSD as a first drug.
It's worth noting that I personally don't smoke weed. I have nothing against it for other people and I'm a staunch proponent of marijuana legalisation for several different reasons; but I just don't like the feel of being stoned. I definitely do appreciate the psychedelic experience though. LSD wasn't my first drug; but it was the first that I truly found useful, interesting, and 'truly' enjoyable instead of only 'hitting my pleasure centres'. The drugs I'd tried before it were definitely not something that prepared me in any way for it from my point of view; so while some people have commented that trying weed first might help you with management of 'being high', my own experience would be to the contrary. Either way, they're anecdotes - it might help, or it might not.
With that in mind, I'd say that LSD is a great first drug, assuming you're as well prepared for the experience as you can be.
I don't think "demons, aliens, and all things occult" are typically covered in a single, definitive work. Especially because "aliens" are usually part of UFOlogy and not occultism.
Regarding occult topics though:
- The New Encyclopedia of the Occult
- Three Books of Occult Philosophy
- Dictionary of Demons
- A Dictionary of Angels
- The Golden Dawn
- Gems of the Equinox
- The Complete Magician's Tables
- The Magician's Companion
There are literally hundreds of other resources available too, but these are the ones I could think of off the top of my head.
Aside from Liber 777, Stephen Skinner's The Complete Magician's Tables is quite good.
I also like to refer to Harold Roth's correspondences at his Alchemy Works website.
Buy the Satanic Bible for $10. It's relatively short, and will tell you everything you want to know. Also check out the links in the sidebar.
This is very good, relatively concise read. It reminds me of one of the first UFO books I read, Wonders in the Sky. Hard to know truth here, but very provocative stuff.
Check Amazon.com - there are hundreds of reviews there, and many of the top ones are actually in-depth and insightful.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0380015390/65537-21
fundie at work had a screaming meltdown when i 'forgot' this on my desk.
Luckily boss had a sense of humor. Promised him not to bring 'my religion' to work if he also promised not to bring his.
He still cannot bring himself to sit next to me in meetings. :)
I've been reading through Baphomet: The Temple Mystery Unveiled lately and it's an incredible insight into the history and beliefs behind Baphomet.
A great place to start with LaVeyan Satanism is The Satanic Bible
Man, that's laziness. Typing your request literally takes more effort than going to Amazon and searching for "Satanic Bible". Not to mention you have to wait around for your request to be filled, IF it's filled.
In Chrome (assuming you're already an Amazon user, since you requested the link):
** Lo and behold, SEARCH RESULTS! **
That was 17 key presses and a couple mouse clicks.
Edited for late night spelling
Which part?
Here is the info on Russia radiating the US embassy:
http://adst.org/2013/09/microwaving-embassy-moscow-another-perspective/
Here is the study on the radiating done by Johns Hopkins:
http://www.dod.mil/pubs/foi/operation_and_plans/Exercises_and_Projects/175.pdf
Starting on page 449 is the forged "Roswell" national security document.
Rick Doty, USAF OSI officer admitted to making this fake document
here: http://www.miragemen.com/
and here: http://www.amazon.com/Mirage-Men-Adventure-Espionage-Psychological/dp/1602398003
I'd say the satanic bible is pretty hard to explain
I thought about it for a few minutes when I saw the post, and I came to pretty much the same conclusion.
I believe The Satanic Bible specifically mentions that children should avoid claiming to be Satanists until they are not only old enough to make such decisions, but to endure any fallout that might come about.
Of course, if your parents are Satanists(lucky you!), you might have a different, more positive viewpoint, but you'd definitely be in the minority.
I dabbled with LaVeyan Satanism and JOS in my late teens, early twenties.
​
Why did I pray to Satan?, because in LaVeyan Satanism, he (along with Beliel, Lucifer, and Leviathan) represent the four elements, with Satan corresponding to Fire. So, I'd use him in the same way Fire would be used in other magick systems.
​
Please note that the Satan of LaVeyan Satanism is not the same Satan as in Christianity.
​
Edit: Just google Church of Satan, and you'll get one point of view.
​
" As Anton LaVey explained in his classic work The Satanic Bible, Man—using his brain—invented all the Gods, doing so because many of our species cannot accept or control their personal egos, feeling compelled to conjure up one or a multiplicity of characters who can act without hindrance or guilt upon whims and desires. All Gods are thus externalized forms, magnified projections of the true nature of their creators, personifying aspects of the universe or personal temperaments which many of their followers find to be troubling. Worshiping any God is thus worshiping by proxy those who invented that God. Since the Satanist understands that all Gods are fiction, instead of bending a knee in worship to—or seeking friendship or unity with—such mythical entities, he places himself at the center of his own subjective universe as his own highest value. "
Read through the Sticky
Grab yourself a copy of the Satanic Bible
This doesn't cover everything but it's a strong start
https://www.amazon.com/Satanic-Bible-Anton-Szandor-Lavey/dp/0380015390/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1538604250&sr=8-1&keywords=satanic+bible
the hardcover version is listed at a steep $666, but the mass market paperback is only about 10 bucks. have fun!
Ready.
Hard cover only $666
Check out this grimoire it deals with Christian angelic beings and requires a bit of virtue to practice and understand. I've worked in it a bit and had some success and the entities are not malevolent.
Please read the sticky in this sub. Otherwise, many of the answers to the questions you're asking here can be found in books, so I'm going to recommend some:
The Complete Magician's Tables.
http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Magicians-Tables-Stephen-Skinner/dp/0738711640
It sounds like you're able to work a lot with correspondences. For that alone I'd recommend Stephen Skinner's Complete Magician's Tables. You'll find numerous correspondences between quite a few plants and planets, signs, entities, etc. From there you can work out when to harvest, perhaps the type of metal tool, things you can use them for, etc.
Going a little more plant-centric, Cunningham's Encyclopedia is a nice reference.
edit: linked to skinner's book
So, she is a very confused person who has been told some very awful things about the world. I'd recommend you get her a few books to help open her mind.
This one for sure...
Heck, anything on this list!
And make sure you remind her that fire is a gift from Prometheus, and is not the realm of Satan, if she burns it, she has to thank Prometheus instead of renouncing Satan, but that the act of burning anything is technically a worship act to a non-christian being.
Then just shake your head gently and say "It is just so much easier to be a good person." cue you walking away with a pensive look struck across your face
History moves in spirals. They did the same thing to her they did to Uri Geller. Most people when they hear her name automatically think what TPTB want them to think - "fraud" (same thing with Geller).
"In December 1885, the SPR published their report on Blavatsky and her alleged phenomena, authored by Richard Hodgson. In his report, Hodgson accused Blavatsky of being a spy for the Russian government, further accusing her of faking paranormal phenomena. link
Arthur Conan Doyle led a mass resignation of eighty-four members of the Society for Psychical Research, as they believed the Society was opposed to spiritualism." link
SPR was "The Amazing Randi" before he existed. This is how they control people. Tell them they're not special and have no special powers. The only people with special powers are them because they were chosen as 'divine' kings to rule over everyone else.
Also, Blavatsky was an absolute beast. This reviewer makes an excellent point and compares the energy running through her during her prime to the work Marrs did in Rule by Secrecy or Manly P. Hall in Secret Teachings of All Ages
I feel like you bringing up
> Was it all the symbolism the Illuminati flashed before your eyes?
Is just proof that you're here to try and spark conflicts and upset people. If that is not the case then I do feel that this specific quote is disrespectful.
As I suggested, please go and read a satanic bible and also visit The Satanic Temple's website. Those should paint a pretty good picture of modern day Satanism. Alternatively, you can just ask me specific questions and I can provide answers. WARNING: I'm not trying to convert you or push a mindset on you! These are merely suggestions so that you may further your knowledge in these areas as you seem to know much about Christianity and Jesus but little about opposing views/arguments against that.
To answer this quote from you
> I wouldn't be so surprised if this was r/satanism, but it is r/atheism.
I agree that there are many different "sects", if you will, of satanism, but most of these sects are atheist in nature; hence, why I'm here and trying to educate you as best I can on the matter. Speaking as general as possible, Satanists don't believe in some great amazing sky God who created humanity as a bunch of worshipers, nor do satanists believe in many of the "holy texts" from other religions that have been mostly disproved by history.
Now let me go ahead and elaborate on this quote of mine because you keep coming back to it.
> Satan is perfect
You said something about how Satan symbolizes evil and corruption. Where does that definition come from, who taught you that, and why is this the case? When I read the satanic bible, that is not the impression I got. In fact, when you research Lucifer and many of the popular names of Satan, many of them have really amazing and beautiful origins. From what I've studied, these were mostly erased/twisted after the Christian church came into contact with the "pagans" who worshiped or new these Gods/"demons".
This is why I feel that Satan is a perfect counter in situations like the one from the original article. It makes people think. It makes people ask questions and many times the answers to those questions have to be found in something other than the religious text that they started in. Satanism doesn't have the "this is it, the only thing you're allowed to believe or you burn for eternity" clause that forces people to cower in fear about studying or believing anything other than what they started with. It encourages the opposite.
I'm happy to continue this discussion as long as you are and I apologize if you genuinely feel that this
> You people are not being very respectful at all.
is true. That isn't what I've intended in any of my discussion so far.
The Satanic Bible by LaVey is currently a #1 bestseller on Amazon. Seems like there's a lot of good stuff in there.
Who? Satan? You mean like this?
Forgot to add the quote, but its quite long so heres a seperate post.
Christopher "Kit" Green, CIA Scientist involved in "Phenomena" research (Remote Viewing, ESP, psychokenisis, UFOs/visitation)
>"In a country that has a large, educated population there is a large subset of individuals who suffer from what's called paraphrenia. Paraphrenia is a form of mental illness that doesn't interfere with your everyday life. It means that you can have a delusion and not be crazy, a delusion that you can confine and control. Many of us have one corner of the mind that is delusional - I bet you that I do.
>'I might, for example, be religious - I'm an Episcopalian, though as such, I am protected from diagnosis, as are all the UFO buffs, because a large social structure of shared beliefs, like a religion, cannot be a delusion. So all those people who believe that they are being beamed at by the government can no longer be diagnosed as crazy - there are just too many of them.
>'But, if there is a condition that is threatening to the social structure - like the idea that the aliens are here and they are taking our babies, or that God hates people of a certain creed or colour - and if people who believe in that kind of delusion band together, they can end up encouraging each other to get a lot sicker, or they strap on belts and make themselves human bombs. So we have to know how to deal with these people and how to prevent them from being dangerous to others.
>'This applies to the UFO problem. If something really strange in the area of UFOs is true, then what do we do about conveying that information to the public? First we consider what may be the basic facts: maybe there are civilised lifeforms elsewhere in the universe; maybe they visited us in their spaceships a couple of times and then went back home; perhaps they left a vehicle or some technology behind and we've spent a lot of time and money trying to figure out how to use it. And there may be people in the government who believe that this did happen, and believe that the information needs to be public knowledge, because perhaps someone outside of the government will be able to make sense of their technology. But there's another group of people in power who say, "No, it will make them sick to know all this, we can't let the story out, it's too dangerous." '
>John and I glanced at each other. My mouth was dry...Things were getting strange again. Did Kit just tell us that these things happened? Was that a hypothetical scenario he had just presented us with, or one that he believed to be real? Kit continued.
>'So, what do we do? There are studies on both sides of the problem. Some show that people will go crazy and jump of bridges when they're presented with this information. Others, however, say that if you don't want them to go crazy, what you do is systematically desensitize their fears.
>'If you are a psychiatrist with a patient you can do that in a very methodical way. If you are a sociologist working with a group of students at a university you can do this in a very structured and experimental way. But if you are a government with a population it's a lot more complicated. Sure, there are those who are just going to shrug and say, "I always knew the aliens were real, it's no big deal." But you also know that some of them are nuttier than a fruitcake and could cause a lot of trouble. So we have to ask ourselves how we can tell people what they deserve to know and, maybe, what they need to know?
>'The way to do it is to construct a framework whereby they can parse out the things that they've heard that are not true, and you whittle it down to a manageable story. A story like this: "There were three spaceships that came here over thirty years, and we've got one of them. We can't figure out how it works, we've crashed it because there's a lot of physics that we've still got to learn. We do have something that's like a magnethydrodynamic toroid, and it really did get a craft of the ground, but it smelled bad and it killed a couple of pilots. And we're really sorry about that, but we did it because we've got this machine that came from another planet, and we need to know how it works." '
>Oh god, he just did it again. I tried to slow my breathing to prevent the giddiness from becoming a full-on panic attack.
>Kit carried on, oblivious to my inner struggle. I was glad not to be inside one of his MRI machines.
>'How do you tell people that story? If it's true?' he added, almost parenthetically.
>"If you were to give them the core story right off the bat, they'd get sick, so you do it slowly over ten or twenty years.You put out a bunch of movies, a bunch of books, a bunch of stories, a bunch of Internet memes about reptilian aliens eating our children, about all the crazy stuff that we've seen recently in Serpo. Then one day you say, "Hey, all that stuff is nonsense, relax, it's not that bad, you don't have to worry, the reality is this..." - and then you give them the real story."
http://www.amazon.com/Mirage-Men-Adventure-Espionage-Psychological/dp/1602398003
The upside to Kemeticism is that there's a decent number of solid online blogs and other resources that can help you out, getting started. There's nothing wrong with looking for local groups as /u/Farwater suggested, but that can be difficult with such a small religious community. That being said, Kemeticism has a disproportionately strong online community, and little compunction about sharing things through online formats, so you're not out of luck. Blogs like The Twisted Rope have good material, and Edward P. Butler's Henadology page has very good pages on many of the Netjeru, among other subjects.
As for organizations, probably the most well known in Kemeticism is Kemetic Orthodoxy. I'm not a member, and I don't agree with their approach or perspective on everything, but their leadership seems to be knowledgeable and the community, from the outside, appears solid. They also provide a lot of resources for newcomers, even if their henotheistic leanings are perhaps unconventional compared to other Kemetic groups I've seen.
The book that helped me the most starting out, personally, was Eternal Egypt by Richard Reidy. The rituals therein are perhaps a bit much for the average newcomer (or for non-priests, more generally), but they provide a solid framework to work from, and something to adapt to your own ritual needs or requirements.
Aside from all of that, we have several Kemetic regulars in the r/pagan Discord server, you can find a link to that over on the sidebar.
Now, of course, much of that is general info and not dealing directly with your two obstacles that you presented.
The foremost principle of Kemetic life is the maintenance of ma'at, which you seem to have a basic handle on. Other 'rules' are somewhat looser save for issues like ritual purity, which does involve some particulars and taboos. Most of the resources I offered can help with that, the biggest thing to avoid is any blood or bodily waste in ritual space, which (blood aside, given how it functions in some other religions) is more or less a given for most people.
As for your family, that's something that anyone other than you (or others who know them personally) will have trouble helping with. You'll know better than any of us if it's worth trying to bring them into the loop, or if it's only going to cause problems.
Hopefully this helps, and of course don't hesitate to ask further questions if need be, or pop into the Discord for more real-time discussion, as it suits you.
According to Amazon, it is exactly 0.7 inches thick and 272 pages long. It's a quick read, though; especially if you're reading it to gain an understanding rather than an intense study.
The Satanic Bible https://www.amazon.com/dp/0380015390/
It can be purchased here >:)
the edgelord bible
http://www.amazon.com/Satanic-Bible-Anton-Szandor-Lavey/dp/0380015390
Holy crap it was a lot cheaper when I bought it.
You are always better off flipping the birdie to e-book rentals, and buy a real book~ https://www.amazon.com/Herbal-Alchemists-Handbook-Grimoire-Philtres/dp/1578634911
Don't forget:
https://www.amazon.com/Herbal-Alchemy-Phillip-Hurley/dp/0971012504
https://www.amazon.com/Spagyrics-Alchemical-Preparation-Medicinal-Tinctures/dp/1594771790
https://www.amazon.com/Spagyric-Alchemy-Isolating-Plants-Program/dp/1976525667
https://www.amazon.com/Secrets-Still-Grace-Firth/dp/0914440667
Cool, have you read The Satanic Bible by Anton Szandor Lavey?
This one is good, but i recommend the Complete Magicians Tables by Stephen Skinner.
https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Magicians-Tables-Stephen-Skinner/dp/0738711640
Better laid out, more complete, and provides a commentary for each table in the back to offer some explanation.
As well, AC made some mistakes back when Liber 777 was published that the Author of CMT addresses
My First Book of Mormon Stories?
Bhagavad-Gita for Children and Beginners?
The Littlest Satanic Bible? Looks like the Satanic Temple has a kid's thing, but it's already been linked.
Prepare her for a world full of Fnord with The Itty Bitty Principia Discordia? Hmmm... Can't seem to find a kids version of this.
I know! I know! Teach her about the ways of Slack with The Book of the SubGenius: The Sacred Teachings of J.R. "Bob" Dobbs and its companion Revelation X: The Bob Apocryphon, Hidden Teachings and Deuterocanonical Texts of J.R. "Bob" Dobbs! They don't have a kid's thing either, but such is life! (This SubGenious stuff is. a. hoot.)
Instead of unicorns, go with demons. People think they know shit about demons, thus you have sources. Like this one
Hi, I'm pretty new to the Wiccan Community too, but I got very good basic book for witchcraft. Even it's not Wiccan specific you should take a look at it.I own the german version (yep german baby Wicca here ;), but I'm pretty sure the original Book is as good as the transaleted one ;)
The Modern Guide to Witchcraft by Sky Alexander( https://www.amazon.de/Modern-Guide-Witchcraft-Complete-Witches/dp/1440580022 )
There is a pdf version too so you don't have to wait ;D
Good luck with your research and pls let me know if you can recommend a Wiccan specific book, haven't found a good one yet.
I have tons of graphic novels on my lists :P don't know if they count as "books"... but those are also my favorites to read :) Batman all the way :D
But in the spirit of Halloween... I have the "Black Bible" (aka satanic bible) on my wishlist O_o... And no, I'm not a Satanist ;) I just find all the occult and demon stuff interesting and I think it would be a interesting/scary thing to read :D
The Following list is taken from the Witches & Warlocks FB page. (This is Christian Day's group)
Witches and Warlocks Recommended Reading List
This is a collection of books recommended by our admins and participants in the group. Books must be approved by the admins so if you'd like to see one added to the last, please post it in the comments at the bottom of this list and, if it's something we think is appropriate, we'll add it! We provide links to Amazon so folks can read more about the book but we encourage you to shop at your local occult shop whenever possible! :)
BEGINNER'S WITCHCRAFT BOOKS
Buckland's Complete Book of Witchcraft
by Raymond Buckland
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0875420508
Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers, and Other Pagans in America
by Margot Adler
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0143038192
Grimoire of the Thorn-Blooded Witch: Mastering the Five Arts of Old World Witchery
by Raven Grimassi
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578635500
The Inner Temple of Witchcraft: Magick, Meditation and Psychic Development
by Christopher Penczak
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738702765
The Kybalion: The Definitive Edition
by William Walker Atkinson (Three Initiates)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1585428744
Lid Off the Cauldron: A Wicca Handbook
by Patricia Crowther
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1861630328
Mastering Witchcraft
by Paul Huson
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0595420060
Natural Magic
by Doreen Valiente
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0919345808
Natural Witchery: Intuitive, Personal & Practical Magick
by Ellen Dugan
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738709220
Old World Witchcraft: Ancient Ways for Modern Days
by Raven Grimassi
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578635055
The Outer Temple of Witchcraft: Circles, Spells and Rituals
by Christopher Penczak
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738705314
Power of the Witch: The Earth, the Moon, and the Magical Path to Enlightenment
by Laurie Cabot
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0385301898
Solitary Witch: The Ultimate Book of Shadows for the New Generation
by Silver RavenWolf
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738703192
Spirit of the Witch: Religion & Spirituality in Contemporary Witchcraft
by Raven Grimassi
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738703389
Witch: A Magickal Journey
by Fiona Horne
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0007121326
Witchcraft for Tomorrow
by Doreen Valiente
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0709052448
Witchcraft Today
by Gerald Gardner
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0806525932
The Witches' Craft: The Roots of Witchcraft & Magical Transformation
by Raven Grimassi
http://www.amazon.com/dp/073870265X
The Witching Way of the Hollow Hill
by Robin Artisson
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982031882
WITCHCRAFT HISTORY AND RESOURCE BOOKS
Aradia or The Gospel of the Witches
by Charles Godfrey Leland
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982432356
Encyclopedia of Mystics, Saints & Sages: A Guide to Asking for Protection, Wealth, Happiness, and Everything Else!
by Judika Illes
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0062009575
The Encyclopedia of Witches, Witchcraft and Wicca
by Rosemary Ellen Guiley
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0816071047
Etruscan Roman Remains
by Charles Godfrey Leland
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1494302519
The God of the Witches
by Margaret Murray
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0195012704
The Weiser Field Guide to Witches, The: From Hexes to Hermione Granger, From Salem to the Land of Oz
by Judika Illes
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578634792
ADVANCED BOOKS ON WITCHCRAFT AND MAGIC
Blood Sorcery Bible Volume 1: Rituals in Necromancy
by Sorceress Cagliastro
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1935150812
The Deep Heart of Witchcraft: Expanding the Core of Magickal Practice
by David Salisbury
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1780999208
Teen Spirit Wicca
by David Salisbury
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1782790594
Enchantment: The Witch's Art of Manipulation by Gesture, Gaze and Glamour
by Peter Paddon
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1936922517
Initiation into Hermetics
by Franz Bardon
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1885928122
Letters from the Devil's Forest: An Anthology of Writings on Traditional Witchcraft, Spiritual Ecology and Provenance Traditionalism
by Robin Artisson
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1500796360
Magical Use of Thought Forms: A Proven System of Mental & Spiritual Empowerment
by Dolores Ashcroft-Nowick and J.H. Brennan
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1567180841
Magick in Theory and Practice
by Aleister Crowley
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1500380679
The Plant Spirit Familiar
by Christopher Penczak
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982774311
Protection and Reversal Magick
by Jason Miller
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1564148793
Psychic Self-Defense
by Dion Fortune
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578635098
The Ritual Magic Workbook: A Practical Course of Self-Initiation
by Dolores Ashcroft-Norwicki
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578630452
The Roebuck in the Thicket: An Anthology of the Robert Cochrane Witchcraft Tradition
by Evan John Jones, Robert Cochrane and Michael Howard
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1861631553
The Satanic Witch
by Anton Szandor LaVey
http://www.amazon.com/Satanic-Witch-Anton-Szandor-LaVey/dp/0922915849
Shadow Magick Compendium: Exploring Darker Aspects of Magickal Spirituality
by Raven Digitalis
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003VS0N5K
The Tree of Enchantment: Ancient Wisdom and Magic Practices of the Faery Tradition
by Orion Foxwood
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578634075
The Underworld Initiation: A journey towards psychic transformation
by R.J. Stewart
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1892137038
HERBALISM, CANDLES, INCENSE, OILS, FORMULARIES, AND STONES
A Compendium of Herbal Magic
by Paul Beyerl
http://www.amazon.com/dp/091934545X
Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs
by Scott Cunningham
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0875421229
The Enchanted Candle: Crafting and Casting Magickal Light
by Lady Rhea
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0806525789
The Enchanted Formulary: Blending Magickal Oils for Love, Prosperity, and Healing
by Lady Maeve Rhea
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0806527048
Incense: Crafting and Use of Magickal Scents
by Carl F. Neal
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738703362
Magickal Formulary Spellbook Book 1
by Herman Slater
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0939708000
Magickal Formulary Spellbook: Book II
by Herman Slater
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0939708108
SPELLCASTING AND SPELLBOOKS
Crone's Book of Charms & Spells
by Valerie Worth
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1567188117
Crone's Book of Magical Words
by Valerie Worth
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1567188257
Encyclopedia of 5,000 Spells
by Judika Illes
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0061711233
Everyday Magic: Spells & Rituals for Modern Living
by Dorothy Morrison
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1567184693
Pure Magic: A Complete Course in Spellcasting
by Judika Illes
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578633915
Utterly Wicked: Curses, Hexes & Other Unsavory Notions
by Dorothy Morrison
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0979453313
The Voodoo Hoodoo Spellbook
by Denise Alvarado
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578635136
The Voodoo Doll Spellbook: A Compendium of Ancient and Contemporary Spells and Rituals
by Denise Alvarado
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1578635543
THE ANCESTORS AND WORKING WITH THE DEAD
The Cauldron of Memory: Retrieving Ancestral Knowledge & Wisdom
by Raven Grimassi
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738715751
The Mighty Dead
by Christopher Penczak
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982774370
Speak with the Dead: Seven Methods for Spirit Communication
by Konstantinos
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738705225
The Witches' Book of the Dead
by Christian Day
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1578635063
_____
TAROT
78 Degrees of Wisdom
by Rachel Pollack
http://www.amazon.com/dp/157863408
So... I'm writing up another post in notepad with a lot of Reddit comment formatting code and whatnot as a starter for creating quality stickies. Here's what I'm working with currently. There will be more to come. Feedback is welcome:
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Link to previous Q&A sticky: Sticky 1, Sticky 2
Unlike many other subreddits, we at /r/Satanism enjoy nearly complete freedom of speech. The tradeoff for that free speech is that sometimes you will be exposed to ideas or opinions that you don't agree with. Keep in mind that bad behavior and not bad ideas will get people banned from this subreddit. As Satanists most often believe in stratification, the voting buttons in /r/Satanism can be used to that end. Because of this, moderators like myself likely will not remove links to sites that you would expect to be removed from other subreddits.
***
FAQ:
Note: This FAQ is written by moderator of /r/Satanism and member of the Church of Satan, /u/modern_quill. I am trying to remain unbiased and fact-based in these Q&A responses, so if you feel that I have somehow misrepresented your organization or philosophy, please let me know and we can work together to make the appropriate corrections.
Q: What is Satanism?
A: This is a simple question, but it has a complex answer because it depends on who you ask. Satanism as a philosophy and religion was first codified by Anton Szandor LaVey in his 1969 publication of The Satanic Bible. Some people refer to this secular Satanism as "LaVeyan Satanism" as a nod to Anton LaVey. The Satanic Bible borrows from the works of Might is Right by Ragnar Redbeard, Ayn Rand's Objectivism, and Frederich Nietzche's Der Wille zur Macht. This is the most widely practiced form of Satanism and is championed by the Church of Satan (CoS) to this day. At its most basic definition, "LaVeyan Satanism" is about living the best life that you want to live, and bending the world around you to your will to achieve that goal. A Satanist sees themselves as their own God. There is, of course, much more to Satanism than that very basic definition, but we expect people to do their own research as well. Most LaVeyan Satanists will simply call it Satanism, as there is only one form of Satanism from the Church of Satan's perspective. Members of the recently formed secular organization called The Satanic Temple (TST), by comparison, see Satanism as political activism. The Satanic Temple often makes news headlines with their efforts to establish a separation of church and state and do not include The Satanic Bible as part of their organization's canon, but rather The Revolt of the Angels by Anatole France. There are also theistic Satanists, some believe in a literal Satan and some do not. Ask a theist like /u/Ave_Melchom what they believe and they'll likely share their thoughts with you, but you probably won't find very many theists that share the same philosophy. There are also more esoteric organizations such as the Temple of Set (ToS), which was formed by former Church of Satan member Michael Aquino after infighting within the organization in 1975 caused many theistic members to split away and become Setians. /u/Three_Scarabs and /u/CodeReaper moderate /r/Setianism subreddit and are a wealth of information on the subject. There are also organizations that fall into a more neo-nazi ideology such as the now defunct Order of Nine Angles (ONA or O9A) and self-stylized "Spiritual Satanists" of the Joy of Satan (JoS), which are often not tolerated by other members of this subreddit. The words, "Fuck off, Nazi!" have become somewhat of a meme on /r/Satanism.
Q: If Satanists don't believe in Satan, why call it Satanism at all? Why not Humanism?
LaVeyan A: Modern secular Satanists see humans as just another animal within the greater animal kingdom, no better than our avian, reptilian, or mammalian friends. Our technology and our intellectual advancements may have placed us at the top of the food chain, but it has merely encouraged humans to be the most vicious animals of all. To us, Satan is a metaphor that represents our strength, our pride, our intellect, our carnality, and all of the so-called sins as they lead to physical, mental, or emotional gratification. The Hebrew word Satan simply means adversary, and Satanists take that adversarial stance to a great many things in their lives; the way we approach an issue, the way we tackle a problem, the way we overcome an obstacle. While Humanists may try to live like Bill & Ted and be excellent to eachother, a Satanist recognizes that emotions like anger, even hate are natural to the human animal and we shouldn't feel guilty for such natural inclinations. While Christians may turn the other cheek when wronged, you can be sure that a Satanist will have their revenge, with interest.
*
Q: Do you sacrifice or molest children/animals? Do you drink blood?*
LaVeyan A: No. Sacrifice is a Christian concept that was projected on to innocent Satanists during the "Satanic Panic" of the 80's and early 90's by charlatan law enforcement "consultants" and Christian religious "experts". One trait common to Satanists is their love of life as Satanists view life as the greatest of indulgences; children and animals represent the purest forms of life and imagination that there are. In fact, the abuse of children and animals is forbidden by the Eleven Satanic Rules of the Earth. Also, why would we want to drink blood? Christians* are the ones that (symbolically) eat the flesh and drink the blood of their savior. I'd rather enjoy a nice scotch.
Eleven Satanic Rules of the Earth
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More FAQ Below - (10,000 character maximum per post.)
I found a Satanic Bible once in a parking lot when I was in high school. I kept that shit.
Yeah you did! Soon you'll be in wonderland!
One of the first hallucinations I ever had -- and one of the strongest, even to this day -- was of a wolf face. It was out of nowhere: one moment it was the normal tone of eigengrau you'd expect behind your eyelids, the next, a wolf was inches from my face. It was beyond clear, more real than real life. I could see every hair. Its eyes, bright yellow and full of some unearthly knowing, stared right into mine. Not just at, but into.
Naturally, I shot up in bed, gasping and punching. I was just certain that a wolf had somehow gotten into my bedroom and had come to gobble me up, and I wasn't going down easily. My mother had been sleeping next to me that night, and I woke her up with all my thrashing about. She eventually convinced me that there wasn't a wolf in the room, and I eventually went back to sleep.
I obsessed about it for months. I was a kid back then, and the internet wasn't a thing (nor were computers or cell phones or any of that stuff), so I couldn't just google around for answers. After some heavy pondering, I assumed that I had just seen a picture of a wolf in a book somewhere, that it somehow stuck in my head, and had just popped up during some kind of weird, half-awake dream. I didn't know about hypnagogia back then.
So, being the little detective that I was, I proceeded to go through every single book and magazine we owned, looking for that specific image. I knew the eyes, I knew the coat patterns, and I knew that I would know both when I saw them again. When that failed, I begged my mom to take me to the library. And then kept begging until I had been enough times to go through all of their related material. All of their natural history books, all of their National Geographics, and anything else the card catalog hinted might have a wolf in it.
As you might expect, I found no match. I did find a mention of totem animals, though, which was a new concept for a kid who had only been taught about spirituality through the (very narrow, I now feel) lens of Southern Baptist faith. Fortunately, my family has native ancestry, or my search might have ended right there.
I started bringing home library books about Native American spirituality. Acceptable, even to my very conservative father. It was "Indian stuff", so it was fine. Those were exhausted pretty quickly. Eventually there was nothing left to read, and I begrudgingly gave up the search.
Some years later, when I was a teenager, my mother took me to a bookstore in a neighboring city, and left me to my own devices while she wandered off to get a coffee (and to meet her boyfriend, I realized much later, lol). I don't know what little internal thing pushed me in that direction, but after a few minutes of wandering, I started looking for more totem animal books. I ended up finding the new age section, and everything changed.
Now, I still believed back then that everything that had been printed in a book was true, or was at least valuable in some way. I understood the difference between fiction and nonfiction, but I thought that it had to be good fiction in order to be printable, because of course agents and editors and publishers had gone over it with a fine-toothed comb. It cost money to publish things, after all, and surely a business wouldn't invest in wasteful nonsense. And the non-fiction? Well, all of that had been equally well researched, of course. They were basically textbooks.
So imagine coming from this point of view, and being suddenly surrounded by things like Taoism, Eckankar, shamanism, tarot, mysticism, and Wicca. I was in the non-fiction section -- just one long shelf over from the Bibles! The Bibles!
Magic was real? Meditation wasn't just something monks in documentaries did? These were topics that our backwoods little library hadn't even hinted existed. It was like a portal to an entirely different world had suddenly been opened up to me, a world that I had no real way of knowing about until then. Dial-up internet was only just beginning to be installed in some homes, and mine wasn't one of them. And this stuff certainly wasn't highlighted on VH1.
I wanted to learn as much as possible, but I realized that the stuff I was reading had to be innocuous enough that I wouldn't get in trouble if my mother came back and caught me with it. Also, I didn't want to go to hell, and willfully touching something like this seemed like a pretty good foot in the door. So I grabbed a book about meditation, one about tarot (though I didn't understand what the hell it was talking about and ended up discarding it pretty quickly), and a sort of borderline acceptable one about candle magic. I found an overstuffed chair nearby, as I wasn't about to be caught dead in that aisle, and spent the next fifteen or so minutes soaking my little teenage brain in this whole new paradigm.
Mom returned not long after I had gotten really into the candle magic book. Maybe she was in a good mood, maybe she was feeling guilty for the tryst, maybe the stars aligned and some cosmic finger guided her, or maybe she was just more of a hippie than I gave her credit for. Likely a little of all of those. Whatever the case, she bought me this book, with the explicit instruction that I was to hide it from my father.
This is a pretty standard beginner's book, I now realize. Nothing in it is revolutionary, and many of the things I now have enough of an understanding of to disagree with the authors' interpretations, or to disregard it entirely. But back then, I thought it was gospel. It became my new Bible -- it certainly made a lot more sense than my old one. I carried it with me everywhere, for fear of leaving it somewhere at home and having my father discover it. It became not just reference material, but also a place where I could jot down everything that I was learning. My very first Book of Shadows. When Mom went back to the bookstore for more secret infidelities, she often dragged me along, and I always dragged the book along, and copied down things from other books into its pages (they all look like this, more or less, including the inside covers on both ends).
It grew from there. I went to college, got a job, bought a house, and proceeded to fill the library with books on whatever the hell I wanted. As a result, I am fairly well-versed in the histories and beliefs of many religions (most of the modern ones, some of the ancient ones), and extremely well-versed in a select few. I have also developed a strong interest in physics, which I believe will eventually become the bridge between science and spirituality. My shelves have plenty of those books, too.
I like to think that none of this would have happened quite like it has, had it not been for that wolf. Over the years, it has been something I have returned to, some unsolved mystery that "Oh, just hypnagogia" never quite felt like the right answer to. So not too long ago, during my QHHT session, I asked about it:
> What about the vision of the wolf face?
And my higher self responded:
> That is meant to be a guide. And she has followed, in her way. It has made her ask the questions that needed to be asked.
I think it served its purpose well.
My junior high principal forbade us from bringing D&D rulebooks and the like because "they are Satanic." This must have been around 1986 or 87.
I asked my parents if I could buy a copy of the Satanic Bible and take that to read instead, but my Dad gave me some lame excuse about not dealing w/ me being suspended to make a point.
You mean, something like, The Satanic Bible? http://www.amazon.com/Satanic-Bible-Anton-Szandor-Lavey/dp/0380015390
Next time they stop by, hand them pamphlets about atheism. Or even better, buy some copies of this and give it to them. Guaranteed to have them never come back. Might get you lynched, though.
Anton Lavey's satanic bible is the best "holy" Book around. Fascinating stuff, and totally misunderstood by fear mongering christians.
It's like $10 here
Enjoy.
The Complete Magician's Tables
https://www.amazon.ca/Complete-Magicians-Tables-Stephen-Skinner/dp/0738711640
The Secret Teachings of All Ages: An Encyclopedic Outline of Masonic, Hermetic, Qabbalistic and Rosicrucian Symbolical Philosophy by Manly P Hall
Wonders in the Sky
It's a compilation of UFO accounts from ancient times to like the 90's.
Everything you need to know you'll learn at the invisible school, sooner or later.
There are lots of authors I've learned from, but none wrote books specifically about the invisible school.
So if you like, I would be more than happy to recommend a few books. Have you read these?
https://www.amazon.com/Thousand-Faces-Collected-Joseph-Campbell/dp/1577315936
https://www.amazon.com/Comparing-Religions-Jeffrey-J-Kripal/dp/1405184582
https://www.amazon.com/Wonders-Sky-Unexplained-Objects-Antiquity/dp/1585428205
That would be The Satanic Bible by Anton LaVey.
It's actually quite interesting.
Are you going through an A.'.A.'. Student Examination?
Let's break this down.
What is a Talisman?
Answer: A talisman is an object believed to contain certain magical properties thought to draw good luck to the possessor, or offer the possessor protection from possible evil or harm. - Wikipedia
What is Numerology?
Answer: Numerology is any belief in the divine, mystical relationship between a number and one or more coinciding events
How do I find the meaning/ideas/associations of a number?
Liber 777
The Complete Magician's Tables - Skinner
Is there a recognized way to go about this?
References to materials to get you started.
Do you have any further questions or anything you would like to know in particular?
If i'm being wooshed, so be it.
Satanism has many different spins, one such spin was done by a man named Anton LaVey, who wrote This Satanic Bible. It's arguably the most popular/mainstream spin on Satanism and some people like to identify as LaVeyan Satanist rather than just Satanist.
Similar to how there are so many different spins on Catholicism there can be drastic differences between each spin.
Avoid the 50th anniversary "ReVision" by Aquino
​
this is what you beed
https://www.amazon.com/Satanic-Bible-Anton-Szandor-Lavey/dp/0380015390/ref=asc_df_0380015390/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312025907670&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=16641305949302525770&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9025167&hvtargid=pla-424706868890&psc=1
They were. You should get a copy of this - http://www.amazon.com/Wonders-Sky-Unexplained-Objects-Antiquity/dp/1585428205
So the version I read was a re-publication from 2014 but from what I can tell there weren't any new reports added to it since the 70s. It looks like his most recent is from 2010 called Wonders in the Sky.
I feel like getting a bunch of versions and reading them with and against each other is a good way. I don't read Chinese, so I don't really know for sure what I am missing in the translations. I like Huang's translation and my teacher recommends that one as a good translation but I also have Baynes and Cleary's translations.
Plum blossom oracle is a way to use the I Ching without needing coins or sticks. One uses events and anomalies, basically the world around us, to construct the hexagrams using the attributes and correspondences of the various trigrams as guides. Two good books on this are I Ching Numerology by Da Liu and The Tao of I Ching: Way to Divination by Tsung Hwa Jou. Both these books have tables of correspondences which I find very helpful.
I am very fascinated by connections between the Chinese system and Egyptian magical systems. When in the Qigong state during meditations and exercises I have often connected with energies that strike me as very Egyptian. Granted, I doubt there has to be any sort of historical link for me to connect with it on that plane, but it's interesting to entertain.
My understanding is that the "elements" are more phases/states or different manifestations of Qi than actually different things. They can definitely be used to balance each other out (I manage my chronic back pain (water) by balancing it out with heart energies (heart) and by containing/blocking it using the stomach/spleen/pancreas (earth), while continuing to build up the water energies to become stronger.
I don't own this book but The Complete Magician's Tables seems like it'd be really helpful for syncretic explorations.
I don't know what country you're from, but I guess you could easily buy it here...
https://www.amazon.com/Satanic-Bible-Anton-Szandor-Lavey/dp/0380015390/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501601500&sr=8-1&keywords=satanic+bible
http://www.amazon.com/Satanic-Bible-Anton-Szandor-Lavey/dp/0380015390
Ok, here's the thing... he has fiction and essays. Both are equally mind blowing but in different ways. The essays are easier to read, I think.
Fiction series:
Illuminatus Trilogy
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0440539811/therobertantonwi
Schrodinger's Cat Trilogy
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0440500702/therobertantonwi
Historical Illuminatus Trilogy (I think these are the easiest to read of the novels):
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1561841625/therobertantonwi
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1561841633/therobertantonwi
http://www.amazon.com/Natures-God-Historical-Illuminatus-Chronicles/dp/1561841641/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1236806921&sr=1-15
Essays:
Everything else. I'd start with the book that I linked to here "Illuminati Papers" then "Right Where You Are Sitting Now" and Cosmic Trigger 1, 2 and 3.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1579510027/therobertantonwi
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0914171453/therobertantonwi
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1561840033/therobertantonwi
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1561840114/therobertantonwi
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1561841129/therobertantonwi
Cosmic Trigger 3 is subtitled "My Life After Death", it was written after it was rumored that he died...
Unfortunately he did pass away in 2007.
This is book is an easy read and has a fair bit of info.
http://www.amazon.com/Fallen-angels-spirits-Robert-Masello/dp/0399518894
You may want to start with this, xd kidding i only know the guy because of the profile pic he uses and the quote, i talk with riot support quite often, it's like my home now lol
"If you're feeling really adventurous, why not 'Do as thou wilt' and check out The Satanic Bible by Mr. Anton LeVey. Come see what kind of whacky adventures he and his friends have been having!"
The cow mutilations were tests related to a primitive, experimental form of fracking.
It's covered in this https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mirage-Men-Adventure-Espionage-Psychological/dp/1602398003
This which lead via a long path to this.
The first -in the last few chapters- let a teenage me know that I wasn't alone in questioning society. The second one is so far out there, yet so chocked full of fact it's astounding.
Gee, I wonder what practitioners of Satanism might believe in? I bet Google would be able to tell me.
Check it out! The first link is the official webpage for the Church of Satan
I wonder if there is some sort of information about what they believe? Yep, there it is, right on the first page and there's even a convenient link to Amazon so one can purchase The Satanic Bible by Anton LaVey.
Now if only there was someone willing to hold your dick and aim while you piss maybe your shoes wouldn't reek of urine all the time.
Excuse me sir.... But if you get the Kindle version it won't burn.
This little pamphlet is somewhat educational. Or just kidnap her and wait till she's old enough to decide whether or not she should get baptized. Depending on, you know, whether she has invisible friends past her childhood.
Oooh the restraining order. That's the type of stuff she's into, I get it. ;) Go to her home and slit your wrist, and use the blood to create pentagrams and various satan symbols and versus from The Satanic Bible all over the walls and floor of the house. Then grab a virgin lamb and stick it exactly 24 times and take its blood and lather it all over your body. When she arrives grab a nearby wine bottle and beat it over her head until conscious. Drag her body to the blood pentagram you previously drew with your blood and gently write a "666" on the base of her forehead. Fuck her body furiously and ejaculate inside of her, and make sure every last drop of your semen is inside her. Once complete, strap her down to the floor with chains connected to the ground and through her wrists and arms. When she awakens, tell her everything you have done to show her your affection. Then cover her in gasoline and light a match. Place the lit match carefully between her breasts and gently stick your penis in her vagina while rubbing the gasoline on her body. When the gasoline lights, continue to duck her gently, and burn together.
https://www.amazon.com/Secret-Teachings-Ages-Manly-2007-10-31/dp/B01K178WBK/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=Secret+history+of+all+ages&qid=1568008361&s=gateway&sr=8-4
Well it's on amazon my mistake, But it still took like 2 seconds to find but here.
https://www.amazon.com/Satanic-Bible-Anton-Szandor-Lavey/dp/0380015390
By the way I don't mean to sound rude however this was NOT hard to find man.
Ooo you should watch What the Bleep Do We Know and Quantum Activist!! Beautiful and enlightening! Available on Netflix.
Edit:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1604590955?pc_redir=1410399412&robot_redir=1
Reading this right now. Great book.