F
or most people magic is a thing of myth andmystery. Some thing that is whispered about or ogled at as some guy pulls a rabbit out of a hat. To the Satanist though magic is a very real thing to be employed and used to attain ones desires.
The use of magic is important to any occult
tradition, especially Satanism. As the occult arts where for many centuries considered taboo, the employment of magic therefore became the work of the Devil. Any one caught using magic more often than not were subject to torture and ultimately execution. Thus the use of these practices became common place in Satanism and all but formed one of its founding cornerstones. The Satanic ritual is multifaceted in its purpose. It doesn’t mater whether you believe in the Devil for real or not in order to perform these rituals as they, like most other forms of magic, are meant to do more than one simple thing. They are two fold in their purpose.
1. To free the practitioner of the mental constraints of the mundane world, and allow them to have a healthy form of psychological release for pent up emotions.
2. To help influence things and matters beyond the normal reach of the Lesser magics, or the
influence by normal mundane methods. The use of magic has always been held in mystery. Often the secrets of magical arts are kept as closely guarded secrets. To the adept it is always an ever aspiring goal to become a great magician. While most adepts know that there are two forms of magical practices, more focus is placed on Greater Magic in most occult traditions, while Lesser Magic is often left to the wayside as an afterthought.
Greater Magic is more often employed than Lesser Magic because of the lure of elaborate rituals. These rituals offer so much to psychological
gratification that many people often find them much more desirable to perform than the lesser mundane arts. This is common even in Satanism in most cases.
Though a lot of Satanists are equally guilty of almost completely ignoring the rituals of Greater Magic.
The true magician however, be them Satanic or not, knows that both lesser and greater arts are
important to learn, as the combination of both can lead one to a healthy and fulfilling life.
Many people tend to forget what exactly Lesser Magic really is now days because we are surrounded by it and its results in our every day lives. When people hear the term “magic” they often think solely of spellcraft. The truth is spells are actually considered Greater Magic. Lesser Magic is used all over the world by people who nowadays don’t even bear the mantle of witch or wizard, though two hundred years ago that is exactly what they would be called. Today, Lesser Magic is called by many names: science, medicine, hypnosis, so on and so forth.
It is not hard to learn about Lesser Magics and how to employ them. In any greater magical rite or ritual many lesser magics are strung together to create a ritual and achieve Greater Magic. Much is to be said about simple books explaining the use and creation of tinctures and potions as well as others that explain the methods in which other more volatile compounds are made and employed, such as explosives, fireworks, and even poisons.
In the olden days before such things were understood fully by many people their knowledge was often left to a few people. Often shamans, alchemists, or even priests of those dark and mysterious arts. These simple items were often used to heighten rituals for their congregations. Such methods are still usable in our modern times for the same purpose. Flashy
pyrotechnics are always a good tool to use to suddenly grab peoples attention in any circumstance. The ability
to speak and hold peoples attention is also very important.
In Feudal and medieval Japan the ninja were considered master sorcerers and conjurers, because of their understanding of tricks and elusions. Even the word “ninja” literally means “magician”.
One of the few forms of Lesser Magic that still leaves people in awe, is called stage magic. But even this form is still scoffed at by many people, that is until the magician decides to use the illusion to get them really thinking and confuse them. One such case of this that I heard about involved the famous magician David
Copperfield. Who was going to the beach with his wife. A group of the usual scoffers noticed Mr. Copperfield and decided to goad him. Using a beach towel one guy would pretend to make a leg disappear by simply lifting the leg up behind the towel showing only one leg at a time.
Mr. Copperfield, being irked by this display of rudeness and not wanting to be bothered, smiled at the guys and said. “Hey that’s pretty good, how’s this one for you.” He then proceeded to imitate the man right there with his own beach towel but lifted it a third time to revel no legs below the towel. He then dropped the towel to show him self levitating in the lotus position. Don’t ask me how this was done as I can only assume that there were further details to the actual event than I was not told.
Satanic magic uses many of these Lesser Magics every day. Often the true Satanist will be excellent in several forms of Lesser Magic, such as covert or conversational hypnosis to hold peoples attention and get them to do what the Satanist desires, or the uses of scents to attract a specific kind of person or help set a mood in their home or dwelling.
The same is also done to a much more extreme degree with rituals. In a ritual it is important for all these Lesser Magics to be employed to achieve the desired frame of mind and make the ritual worth while. The use of melodrama and over acting is necessary in any occult art, especially when there is more than one person present. Though a fine line is walked with these rituals. Too little melodrama and the desired effect may not be achieved, too much and your congregation may be left rolling their eyes at you. Finding this fine line is important to any magical ritual or ceremony.
With these Lesser Magical tricks you may find your self thinking that they are hardly magical in the least. But none the less they are true mundane magics. These methods are the self same methods used by wizards, sorcerers, and magicians of the past. Though updated to our modern times. As I have said before, nowadays Modern Sorcery goes by different names than it once did. For example gun powder AKA black
powder, was once called Chinese magic powder, and was used by “Sorcerers” to perform devastating or even beautiful displays of power. And was not the use of
nowadays these things are common knowledge and can be used by most people.
The use of Greater Magic is equally as important as the use of Lesser Magic. Greater Magic and ritual are traditional in the Satanic Religion. Almost all religions in the world have their form of ritual. This is because man often finds he needs dogma to help him express himself more freely. It is an essential corner stone for almost any religion nowadays to have rituals in its curriculum before it can often be called a religion at all. The use of rituals goes back as long as man has had any sort of religious belief. In many cases religion it self was a form of government. Such has been the case in tribal politics through out the world, ancient Egypt, Aztec and other southern American cities, and even during the burning times by the Roman Catholic Church.
In the occult and especially in Satanism the use of ritual is meant to draw upon forces outside the normal perspective to aid the practitioner in bringing about changes outside the normal reach of man. It seldom matters though if one or two participants in a ritual actually believe in the devil or not to reap the benefits of such rituals. They equally serve just as efficiently as a psychological stimulant as any sport or therapists chair can offer. More so in some cases as the participant, despite what he or she may personally feel or believe in, may feel that for once they are actually accomplishing something by simple participation.
In such rituals they may be able to feel as though they can indulge in some personal or secret desires, or have the opportunity to voice some thing that they have kept bottled up for a long time. There is also the
wondrous feeling in the simple act of doing some thing forbidden or naughty. Satanism is a shunned religion even today though it is now more popular than ever. Therefore the simple act of saying “Hail Satan” for the first time in some secret chamber away from prying eyes can often be an exhilarating experience.
Fore those who actually do believe in the Devil, it can hold just as much freedom as it would for the non- believer, but it also provides a methods in which the practitioner may contact and employ the powers of beings beyond that of this mortal realm and influence things out of their normal reach.
Often it seldom matters if a spell or curse really works or not on a person, the practitioner may simply feel better about a situation knowing that they have done something about it. Should something actually happen, well then so much the better and that practitioner can then have some thing personal to validate their religious and personal convictions.
Any ritual can and should be altered to fit the practitioner. There is no set way to perform a ritual or spell, so why stick with the way it is written. Satanism is about being different, as such your rituals though
following a certain line or train of thought should always be customized to your tastes and flavor.
Consider any rituals or spells you find or read about more as a simple set of guidelines to follow during a ritual or even to inspire new ones of your own making. Or, you can think of it like cooking. You can always follow the basic recipe, but also add whatever feels right to you in order to suit your personal taste. As long as it feels right for the practitioner or their congregation then it is right.
And always remember one last thing. Have fun with your rituals. If it is not fun to do a ritual or no one enjoys it or is going to feel better afterwards, then don’t even bother with it as it will serve no purpose except to waste your time as well as that of your congregation.