Satanism is perhaps the most disreputable religion in the world. Very often this movement is branded as a catalyst for the most heinous and cruel crimes. However, despite this, Satanism exists and continues to develop. According to unofficial statistics, several million people are currently adherents of this religion in the world.
Who is Satan?
Who do the followers of this dark movement consider their patron? In the Abrahamic currents, Satan is, first of all, the main antagonist of the heavenly forces and the Creator in particular. Even his name itself is translated from Hebrew as "resisting God." Common synonyms for Satan are:
- Devil.
- Lucifer.
- Cunning.
- Beelzebub.
Representatives of the most common religions today - Christianity and Islam - consider Satan the main culprit of all human misfortunes, the personification of evil, pushing people to the path of spiritual death. After Eve was seduced in paradise, this once beautiful angel was turned by the Creator into a vile snake, forced to crawl all his life onbelly.
Backstory
So, Satanism is a movement or a religion whose representatives consider the enemy of God, the rebel Satan, to be their patron. The origin of this, today quite numerous movement, falls approximately at the beginning of the 20th century. However, the doctrine of Satanism cannot be considered completely new, of course. For example, the same humanistic revolution of the Renaissance can be presented not only as anti-Christian in essence, but even as an anti-religious movement. The advice of the Apostle Paul on achieving eternal life through spirituality was opposed by its adherents to the active assertion of the interests and rights of the flesh.
Existed in different centuries in different countries and all sorts of occult and magical secret societies. Actually, Satanism itself did not exist, however, some Catholic priests in past centuries held black masses and other dark rituals. From the literature, for example, the French devil-sorceress La Voisin, who lived during the time of Louis XV, is known. This woman is credited with carrying out a huge number of dark rituals, including the sacrifice of babies, as well as many poisonings.
Aleister Crowley
Devilism has flourished, thus, perhaps, for as long as Christianity has existed. The history of modern Satanism began with Aleister Crowley. It is this person that many consider the ideological inspirer of the dark current. A. Crowley became famous primarily for the fact that he actively promoted this religion in the early twentieth century.
Modern Sataniststhey don’t like to advertise the fact that it was Crowley who “recreated” all sorts of supposedly ancient spells and rituals. Therefore, today the name of this occultist is quite thoroughly forgotten. Once he was considered "the great magician of the twentieth century." A. Cowley made himself famous not only for numerous sexual orgies using drugs and loyal attitude to National Socialism, but also for some scientific works.
The Idea of the Superman
In addition to Aleister Crowley, the German philosopher, a representative of irrationalism, Friedrich Nischze, is also considered the inspirer of modern Satanism. It is his idea of the superman that in this current is the equivalent of an individual who is able to find for himself the main goal and meaning of life on his own.
Anton LaVey
Thus, Satanism is a dark movement, the ideological inspirers of which can be considered Aleister Crowley and Friedrich Nischze. The founder of the new Church of Satan in the last century was an American of French origin, Anton LaVey. It was this man who in the 60s formulated the main provisions of the new doctrine. Almost all modern Satanists are members of Anton LaVey's Church of Satan.
Satan's commandments
People who are interested in this religion for any reason would probably like to know what are the commandments of Satanism. Of course, this religion has its own philosophy. There are only nine commandments of Satan. They look something like this:
- instead of abstinence, a person should indulge his instincts;
- instead of spiritual dreams, one should choose a full existence in the material world;
- enemies need to take revenge, not turn the other cheek;
- instead of hypocritical self-deception, it is worth showing wisdom;
- mercy can be shown not to flatterers, but only to those who deserve it;
- Responsible should behave only with responsible, and not with spiritual vampires;
- man is an animal, the most dangerous for all other animals;
- all sins, which Satan represents, do not lead to spiritual death, but to physical, emotional and mental satisfaction.
Black Bible
The main provisions of the dark teachings, including the commandments of Satan, were set out by Anton LaVey in a book specially written for this. It is called "The Satanic Bible" and includes four main sections:
- The Book of Satan.
- "The Book of Lucifer".
- "The Book of Belial".
- "The Book of Leviathan".
In the opinion of many representatives of the intelligentsia, The Satanic Bible is a completely consistent and rational work that can arouse interest primarily among adolescents and young people. Judging by this work, generally accepted ideas about this religion are often erroneous. After all, the ideology of Satanism is often presented as condoning irresponsible and cruel deeds. However, judging by the work "The Satanic Bible", such behavior is absolutely at odds with the foundations of the ethics of this teaching. At the forefront of LaVey's religionthe independence of the individual is put first of all. That is, for perfect deeds, a person must answer to himself, and not to God or the devil.
Actually, the Fallen Angel himself, according to the teachings of LaVey, is a symbol of freedom, rebellion against injustice, self-development. The status of the Church of Satan in our time is official. It is allowed in many countries of the world. In our country, the Russian Satanic Church was officially registered in May 2016.
The main symbols of Satanism
Initially, this religion was designated mainly by inverted crucifixes. After the publication of the LaVey bible, the pentagram with the image of a goat (Baphomet) inside became the main symbol of Satanism. Of course, this pentacle was not invented by the founder of the Church himself. Most likely, its prototype is the symbol of the Goat of Mendes (the incarnation of Neter Amun). The latter was called by the Egyptian priests "hidden, abiding in things" and was considered a kind of dark force penetrating all of nature.
The inverted cross and Baphomet are thus the main symbols of Satanism. But, of course, they are far from the only ones. Includes symbols of this religion and other signs. For example, three sixes are very common. They can be depicted as 666 itself, or as FFF (F is the sixth letter of the English alphabet).
Satanism as a religion: gods
In essence, there are no gods as such in this movement, of course. The main patron of the flock in this case is actually Satan himself. Also in theirrituals, representatives of such movements can also turn to various kinds of demons. In addition to Baphomet, the most popular include:
- Astaroth.
- Hippo.
- Abadonna.
- Leviathan.
- Asmodeus.
These are certainly not the gods of Satanism. Demons in this religion are considered rather different faces of Lucifer himself. Sometimes representatives of this trend also use fictitious dark characters in rituals. For example, LaVey's Satanic Rituals describes Lovecraft's way of addressing Cthulhu. Of course, Satanists also believe in Jehovah. After all, Satan must resist someone.
Rituals
The essence of Satanism lies, therefore, in the freedom of choice of a person and his independence from any Higher powers. Of course, in this religion there are not only symbols and philosophy. Carry out, as already mentioned, its representatives and all sorts of rituals.
According to A. LaVey, fantasy plays an important role in any religious activity. It can manifest itself to the maximum only when performing special ritual actions. Therefore, the founder of the Church of Satan developed several rites, which can be divided into two main categories:
- practical actionable;
- ceremonial.
The magic of Satanism is usually based on turning to some kind of demons in order to achieve personal goals. LaVey and the well-known black mass are not considered ceremonial by Satanists. According to them, this is an effective ritual,the main purpose of which is the liberation from the dogmas of the Christian church.
It is also believed that both men and women can perform satanic rites. Of course, when conducting rituals, their participants also use all kinds of symbols of Satanism - inverted stars, black candles, crosses, pentagrams.
Satanic "sins"
The main qualities that the representatives of the LaVey movement should not have are:
- stupidity;
- lack of open-mindedness;
- ignorance of the experience of generations;
- herd conformism;
- unproductive pride;
- rudeness of nature, lack of a sense of aesthetic, noble;
- solipsism;
- prone to self-deception;
- pretentiousness.
Satan and Lucifer - what's the difference?
For many people, these two characters are identical. However, historically there is a difference between Satan and Lucifer. The most important difference between these names is age. Lucifer is a much more ancient demon that appeared in mythology back in the pre-Christian era. For example, the Romans identified him with the morning star - Venus. From the ancient Greek name "Lucifer" is translated as "Bringer of light." Since ancient times, this demon has been a symbol of the desire for freedom, open rebellion. Satanism itself professes the same principles (photos of the rituals and symbols of this religion are presented on the page).
In the Christian understanding, Lucifer is actually a fallen angel who declared himself equal to God (in retaliation for the latter's love forpeople) and rebelled. As a result, he and the angels who joined him (a third of the entire composition) were cast into hell, where they remain to this day.
Satan, compared to Lucifer, appears to be a somewhat more mundane character. No wonder he is considered the Prince of Peace. Satan is first mentioned in the Torah, a Jewish religious book from which Christians and Muslims later drew information. Here Satan is presented, for the most part, simply as an accuser or witness to the bad deeds of man. Actually, he was transformed into the personification of evil, the enemy of God, only in Christianity and Islam.
Baal Zebub
This ancient pagan god is also often identified with the concept we are considering (Satanism). The Devil and Beelzebub in some sources are identical characters. Historically, the latter is considered to be a transformation of the ancient eastern god Baal-Zevuv. And this deity, in turn, was once allegedly offered numerous sacrifices, including human ones. And put an end to this, of course, Christianity.
Reliable archaeological evidence that people were sacrificed in the temples of Baal, however, does not exist. Actually, this god transformed into Beelzebub back in the Middle Ages. In the apocryphal gospel of Nicodemus, he is called the prince of the underworld, the supreme sovereign of the infernal empire. In some cases, in ancient sources, Beelzebub is identified with Satan, in others, he is considered his main assistant.
Lilith is the first woman
Of course, Satan, like almost any self-respecting god, has a wife. In fact, he has four of them. However, the main one is Lilith - the first woman who escaped from paradise. According to the Alphabet of Ben-Sira, three angels were sent after her by the Creator. However, Lilith flatly refused to return to her husband. For such an offense, God punished her by killing 100 of her demon children every night.
In Jewish philosophy, Lilith is a winged monster that harms newborns. Jews believe that at night she kidnaps babies and drinks their blood or replaces them with demons. She does not touch, by agreement with the angels sent by God, only those children over whose bed her name is written.
In the Kabbalistic tradition, Lilith is a demon who appears to men, seduces and then kills them. It is in the literature of this direction that she is first mentioned as the wife of Samael (Zohar).
In the modern satanic tradition, Lilith can be identified with many black goddesses - Kali, Hekate, Helyu, etc. We can also talk about two Liliths - the eldest and the youngest. The first is actually the wife of Satan, and the second is the wife of the demon Asmodeus.
Other wives
In addition to Lilith, the spouses of Satan and the mothers of demons are also considered:
- Naama;
- Agrat;
- Searching for Zennunim.
There are other female demons in Satanism - Lamia, Mahkhalat, Elizaddra. Lilith differs from the rest in that she used to be mortal. Most of the other demons were cast down from heaven along with Lucifer. In the rituals performedRepresentatives of this movement, among other things, can use such signs of Satanism as the "Black Moon" of Lilith and the lamen of Naama.
Gentile Opinion
Thus, for the Jews, Satan is a witness to human actions, a slanderer and an accuser before God. For Christians, this character is the personification of evil, leading a person astray. What do pagans think about Satanism? Christians are known to dislike both of these religions. Indeed, in Satanism and paganism there is something in common - the rejection of God or gods as a force that must be worshiped in some way. Well, or on which you can shift the responsibility for your actions. However, many Satanists at the same time consider the Creator an enemy that Lucifer will defeat sooner or later. The pagans, of course, have a slightly different attitude towards the gods. Representatives of this religion consider them not some kind of Absolute that controls human life, but rather more powerful partners than people. Representatives of this religion do not consider any god an enemy.
Existence of Yahweh is not denied by the pagans for the most part. However, many representatives of this religion consider him at the same time rather boring, spiteful and unbalanced. Some pagans equate Yahweh with the dark beginning - the devil, explaining this, among other things, by the similarity of the names of these two characters.
Actually Lucifer himself is sometimes identified by representatives of this religion with the god Wotan (Odin) or the Russian Veles. Also, sometimes Satan in this religion can be associated with Chernobog.
Satanism in Russia today
In our country, Satanism as a religion appeared in the time of the USSR. In Moscow, for example, the first such groups were noted in the 70s. In those days, however, they were very few in number. But gradually this religion gained popularity in the USSR, spreading to other cities and towns. In the 80s, quite large satanic societies already appeared in the country. In the 90s, being a follower of one of these groups also became very fashionable.
At the moment, Satanism in Russia is represented mainly by the religious society "Russian Church of Satan", whose members are followers of LaVey. Of course, there are other, in most cases, closed and secret currents of a similar orientation in the Russian Federation today. Among the most famous are the following: "Black Angel", "Southern Cross", "Green Order".
In general, the entire spectrum of adherents of the dark forces in Russia is divided into two main groups:
- actually the Satanists themselves;
- demon worshipers.
With some stretch, all kinds of practicing sorcerers and witches can be attributed to the adherents of Lucifer.
Christians on Satanism
The attitude of the members of the Russian Orthodox Church to the representatives of this trend, of course, in most cases is sharply negative. Christians are doing their best to bring this movement to naught. Moreover, they direct their religious anger not only to the Satanists themselves, but also to all the movements that the ROC classifies as such, and even to representatives of culture. For example, in 2014, in connection with insulting the feelings of believersproblems arose with the pro-Satanic Polish band Behemoth. The latter, on the initiative of Orthodox activists, was even expelled from Russia (officially for violating the visa regime).
Of course, Christian priests also express their opinion about this religion. For example, those who wish can read A. Kuraev's book "Satanism for the Intelligentsia". It is dedicated not only to this dark current itself. It also tells about other directions and movements that the ROC considers to be Satanism.
Light Satanism
There is such a movement in the world today. It is believed that light Satanism is primarily a philosophical worldview based on common sense. At the forefront, representatives of this trend put their own mind and life experience accumulated in past years. The main god of light Satanism is Satanail. The light in this flow symbolizes the human consciousness, not clouded by any dogmas. After all, one of the names of Satan - Lucifer - literally means "Lightbringer".
Light Satanists, unlike ordinary ones, do not perform magic rituals. Representatives of this trend believe that they, being, in fact, crutches, they simply do not need. In very bad situations, when it is already impossible to do anything on your own, a bright Satanist can turn to Satanail for help. The main moral principle of this doctrine is the freedom to choose one's ownway.
Little Known Facts
Actually, almost everyone knows about Satanism itself today. For the most part, people believe that representatives of this movement summon demons, hold a black mass, wear inverted crosses, from time to time make sacrifices to their dark god, etc. There are several little-known facts connected with this church, which the reader may want to know about. find out:
- In order to become a member of LaVey's Church of Satan, you need to make a rather large donation. Once upon a time, this amount was only about $2. Today, due to inflation, this church can only be entered for $200.
- Officially, the Church of Satan is categorically against any black magic. "Evil" rituals are not practiced by its representatives.
- The biggest sinners in the eyes of Satanists are people who lack intelligence.
The Satanica Encyclopedia classifies 16 different groups as Satanism. Their ideology is very different. There are various satanic cults in the world today - from those dedicated to Cthulhu to gnostic esoteric ones.
