Satanism

**Satanism** refers to a wide set of
occult beliefs that tend to glorify the figure of Lucifer. The term
came into use in the late 1800s, and was originally used as a
pejorative. Though it has historical precedent, information about
medieval satanists is rather rare, and in terms of a cohesive set of
practices it tends to be a rather new movement that grew out of proto
satanists and occultists from the 1800s. While not everything that
will be on this page is created by satanists per say, the remainders
are things which are considered inspirational and influential in
satanic circles. While the in-game chaos side does draw inspiration
from egoist anarchists, and nietzsche directly, a lot of its ideology
the way you will see it expressed is actively based off of satanist
groups, and more closely resembles them than those things in and of
themselves.

## General

There is a distinction between satanism
and luciferianism. Satanism tends to view satan or lucifer as in some
sense a dark figure, one which is dangerous, and in some sense
embodies darkness. Often glorifying chaos, or primal chaos, in
keeping with megaten themes. And tends to have more excessively
individualistic and egoist aspects. Luciferianism is a smaller group
that views lucifer as a positive figure of light, and rejects the
association of him with any kind of dark or devil figure. (And some
forms overlap both concepts, saying he has both a light and dark
aspect) Both trends come in both theistic and atheistic forms. Most
satanic groups are rather small, and there is little reason to
mention most of them. But the more important ones will be mentioned.
Note that while most well known satanist groups are based on an edgy
version of randianism, there are some real more obscure ones which do
actually partake in blood sacrifices. Though the former swear off
association with the latter, saying that they are not the same type
of group as them. Likewise, the latter deride the former as childish;
saying they take on a dark tone without willingness to engage in the
real things it represents. Theistic Satanists venerate Satan as a
supernatural deity, but generally view him not as omnipotent but
rather as a father figure. In contrast, atheistic Satanists regard
Satan as merely a symbol of certain human traits. Many satanic groups
overlap with types of paganism, insisting that satan is the same
entity as other pagan gods, or that they exist together. So the
relation
Note that all of this is of course very
relevant to megaten, as the chaos side has an obvious and explicit
satanic tone (Though the word satan is used instead for the lawful
angel jewish angel of judgement. The devil figure in-game is referred
to as lucifer). And it parralels real world satanism in some ways,
such as presenting it as overlapping with certain darker

interpretations of paganism, and even the dual trend of lucifer having both a light and dark side.

   Though it does not necessarily deserve its own section, one point to mention as regards demons in general is

that the poem now known as Dante's inferno, written by Dante
Alighieri depicts various greek monsters and demons alongside
christian ones in hell, and likewise has greek heroes outside of it.
So there is long term precedent for fallen angels and other demons
being depicted together even aside from christian demonization of
other religions.

## History

The history of satanism is not easy to
keep track of, due mainly to the fact that almost all cases
historically were false positives of people worrying that it was
occurring more than a real thing. As a distinct thing with records it
only really came around in the 1800s, and even then the proto
satanism of that time rarely considered itself to be explicitly
satanic even if it considered the figure of the devil as a less
negative one.
There are records that in 1231,
heretics began to be persecuted throughout Germany, among which were
a new trend of Luciferians. Over the following three years, several
people were burned as a result. According to a papal letter from
Gregory IX, Vox in Rama, dated from July 13, 1233, one of the claims
made by the Luciferians was that Lucifer had been cast out of Heaven
unjustly. As said "The confessions Conrad of Marburg extracted
[in Germany during the early 1200s] were apparently made without
torture, but under the threat of death if the victim did not confess.
If these confessions were accurate, the Luciferans were full-blown
Satanists. They worshiped the Devil as creator and ruler of the
world, complained that he had been unjustly and treacherously
banished from Heaven, and believed that he would overthrow the God of
the Christians and return to Heaven, when they would enjoy eternal
happiness with him. They reveled in whatever displeased the Christian
God and hated whatever pleased him..."

While the truth value of these is a bit
dubious, it shows that even in the past there were trends of seeing
Lucifer as a positive figure. Interestingly, he is presented here as
the creator himself, with yhvh as an usurper. Though lucifer in game
is never considered to be the world creator, often yhvh is considered
an usurper of other creative forces. Note that these historical
satanists viewed yhvh as a kind of demiurge like figure, and so may
have had gnostic influences. They retained the story of lucifer being
cast out of heaven, but spun him as the victim. Which is something
that happens in megaten from the perspective of the gaians.

**Witches?** There has also been a long
trend of satan being associated with the middle ages concept of
witches. However, there is little evidence that any large scale
satanic groups operated during these times. The archetype of the
witch seems more like something that existed in the cultural
consciousness as something to accuse people of rather than a common
widespread actual system of beliefs. It is not clear whether any
satanic witches actually operated in any meaningful way at this time,
but at any rate they were not very large. Witches were depicted as
having meetings in the forest, often while nude, and worshiping satan
as a goat like figure. Sometimes he was depicted as having a candle
on his head, which later became part of the symbology for the figure
baphomet. Some historians think that the archetype of witches was
influenced not just by misunderstood memories of pagan religions, but
of midwives and early chemists as well. More recently the title
witch has been adopted by various groups professing paganism or
satanism though.

**Knights Templar.** The Poor
Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, commonly
known as the Knights Templar, the Order of Solomon's Temple or simply
as Templars, were among the wealthiest and most powerful of the
Western Christian military orders and were prominent actors in
Christian finance. The organization existed for nearly two centuries
during the Middle Ages.

Officially endorsed by the Roman
Catholic Church around 1129, the Order became a favoured charity
throughout Christendom and grew rapidly in membership and power.
Templar knights, in their distinctive white mantles with a red cross,
were among the most skilled fighting units of the Crusades.
Non-combatant members of the Order managed a large economic
infrastructure throughout Christendom, innovating financial
techniques that were an early form of banking, and building
fortifications across Europe and the Holy Land.

The Templars' existence was tied
closely to the Crusades; when the Holy Land was lost, support for the
Order faded. Rumours about the Templars' secret initiation ceremony
created distrust, and King Philip IV of France, deeply in debt to the
Order, took advantage of the situation. In 1307, many of the Order's
members in France were arrested, tortured into giving false
confessions, and then burned at the stake. Under pressure from King
Philip, Pope Clement V disbanded the Order in 1312. The abrupt
disappearance of a major part of the European infrastructure gave
rise to speculation and legends, which have kept the "Templar"
name alive into the modern day.

At dawn on Friday, 13 October 1307 (a
date sometimes linked with the origin of the Friday the 13th
superstition) King Philip IV ordered de Molay and scores of other
French Templars to be simultaneously arrested. The arrest warrant
started with the phrase: "God is not pleased. We have enemies of
the faith in the kingdom". Claims were made that during Templar
admissions ceremonies, recruits were forced to spit on the Cross,
deny Christ, and engage in indecent kissing; brethren were also
accused of worshiping idols, and the order was said to have
encouraged homosexual practices. The Templars were charged with
numerous other offences such as financial corruption, fraud, and
secrecy. Many of the accused confessed to these charges under
torture, and these confessions, even though obtained under duress,
caused a scandal in Paris. The Templars were accused of idolatry and
were suspected of worshipping either a figure known as Baphomet or a
mummified severed head they recovered, amongst other artifacts, at
their original headquarters on the Temple Mount that many scholars
theorize might have been that of John the Baptist, among other
things.

Baphomet was described as looking like
either a head, a cat, or multiple heads. And was considered a pagan
idol at the time, more than a satanic figure. The best historical
guess of what it came from was a mistranslated of mohammad, thinking
that mohammad was a foreign pagan god equivalent to Jesus. Note that
the later depictions of baphomet come from the drawing of eliphas
levi, and do not resemble the templar figure. Though there is little
evidence of them as a satanic organization, they have entered
cultural lore as a possible one ever since. When you fuse baphomet in
some games, he refers to the templars saying he was their idol, and
that it won't be his fault if the inquisition comes for you when they
see you with him. Interestingly, note that baphomet is considered a
dark / law demon instead of a chaos demon. The reasons for this are
unknown. Perhaps referring to that the original templars were not
anti christian after all. Or that it is a corruption of mohammad,
since the vile race is often demonized figures. Note that the center
in II shows similarities with crusaders, and is found to have chaos
demons on their side. Perhaps calling to mind occult figures
associated with the templars. More information on the knights templar page.

**Other occultism?** Other people
operated during the middle ages with various esoteric beliefs. Few
were explicitly satanic, but some were accused of it. Such as the
alchemists, who often claimed to interact with nature spirits, which
due to christian dualism, these spirits not being good were seen as
then likely to be evil. Though christian folklore in the middle ages
did often allow for neutral spirits too. (Fairies were sometimes even
seen as a neutral type of angel who was cast from heaven, but not
evil enough to be sent to hell). To see more info on this read the
alchemy page.

## Thelema

**Thelema**. is a practice started by
Aliester Crowley, based on a philosophical law of the same name,
adopted as a central tenet by some religious organizations. Crowley
is among the most well known occultists, and has been considered the
founder or main figure of modern satanic practices. Though it did not
use the name for itself at the time. The law of Thelema is "Do
what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Love is the law, love
under will." The law of Thelema was developed in the early 1900s
by Crowley, who was an English writer and ceremonial magician. He
believed himself to be the prophet of a new age, the Æon of Horus,
based upon a spiritual experience that he and his wife, Rose Edith,
had in Egypt in 1904. By his account, a possibly non-corporeal or
"praeterhuman" being that called itself Aiwass contacted
him and dictated a text known as The Book of the Law or Liber AL vel
Legis, which outlined the principles of Thelema. An adherent of
Thelema is a Thelemite. Note that while the law sounds egoistic in nature, and has a heavy slant of egoism, it is not pure egoism, since it calls you to respect the drive for others to act egoistically as well.

Although the kabbalah is most often
associated with judaism in II, the strongest obvious kabbalah
association was for chaos. This is because hermetic kabbalah,
popularized by thelema, though older than it by a bit which it became
heavily known for very strongly was known for chaotic type ideology.
At first, this might seem like just haphazard representations,
however many hermetic qabbalists were left hand path occultists who
had chaotic ideology. One of the most well known of these was
**Aliester Crowley.** He created his own religion known as
**Thelema**, which was chaotic in tone, and became the inspiration
for later edgy groups like **laveyan satanism**. And to make the
inspiration here more obvious, they have crowley as a boss in II.
When he transforms, he is referred to as **master therion**, which is
another name he referred to himself by. Thelema is a form of hermetic
qabbalism, which was a reinterpretation of kabbalic logic for occult
groups. Some of which, like crowleys were radically individualistic,
and elitist. Chaotic in tone, and saying that the weak should not be
given leniency by the strong.

**Pantheon:** Thelema is ruled over by
a mixture of **egyptian gods**, and **christian demons**. The chief gods are
the egyptian godess Nut, seen as a consort of Horus, and the beast of
revalations (who crowley associated with himself, and referred to as
master therion) as well as the mother harlot, baphomet and some
others. Though these demons still took on dark tones, described even
by him as volent or filthy, he denied that such as thing as devils
existed, saying that baphomet was an icon of satan, who was also a
god of light and knowledge. Sometimes he referred to these as if they
were archetypes rather than literal, but it seems that he wavered on
this, sometimes saying they were literal entities. In IV you see master therion as the beast trying to summon the mother harlot.

**Ethical egoism / Nihilism**. One of
the core and main staples of thelema was that moral duties to others
were not real. At least not in any sense that you would understand
it. This ties to the concept of true will. The only real prescription
is to work to finding and complying with your own true will and what
it means for yourself, without consideration to others. This is the
true purpose in life of each individual. Though it is presented not necessarily as a moral command. Interestingly enough, note
that Nietzsche is considered a saint in thelema, an much of the chaos
side's ideology is based loosely on nietzsche. One could also
consider thelema to be nihilist in the sense that crowley denied that
such a thing as morality existed, making the concept of the true will
seem in some sense amoral. But at other times he described it in an
egoist way, saying that it was an active good to live within your own
will. Egoism and nihilism may be similar, but are not identical
concepts.

**True will**. The main ethical rule of
thelema is summed up as “do what thou wilt shall be the whole of
the law.” However, this is more complicated than it seems, and
doesn't just mean act egotistically or impulsively. What it means is
that every individual has their own “true will” in life which is
a path towards what they truly desire, and how they truly want to
live. And that your actions in this sense are merely degrees with
either compliance with this, or deviance from it. It is described in
some sense like an orbit. A path that an ideal person would get on
which is not a goal, but an ongoing full compliance. This seems
almost astrological in a sense, since it seems as if this will was
almost described as something external to you, which wounds a little
less chaotic. But needless to say, most thelemites do not interpret
it that way, but rather see it as a continual path of self creation.

Note that this calling to fulfill your
own true will does not mean that you are bound not to interfere with
the true will of others. Crowley noted that people's wills would
intersect. And openly derided weakness, saying that people need not
give them leniency, but should trample over them. and that if two
strong wills intersected then they should fight for dominance as
equals. He sways definitely chaos, because he insists that many times
people interfere with others are in ways that are not adequately
complying with their own will. People trying to ascribe moralities or
ordered social systems are wasting time because this probably isn't
what their own will maximally wants for itself. And so criticism of
authoritative systems generally stems from the assumption that the
people involved are themselves failing to understand how to live in
accordance with their will, and so are manifesting this inability in
various ways. So in this way he while upholding the right of the
strong to do what they want, still arrives at a vague way to
criticize the idea of someone strong choosing not to be chaotic.

Fully coming in contact with your true
will is known as **crossing the abyss**. Note that in II you
literally cross the abyss.

**Holy guardian angel** is a concept
that refers to an inner voice that leads you into complying with your
true will. Though it was originally described by crowley as an
archetype that guides you, he later described it as in some sense a
real being, possibly even other humans who were previously
enlightened. In some ways the personas in-game seem mixed a little with this idea. He heard a voice in his head who he associated with this,
and this related to his pantheon, so in some sense there was a
relation between your own inner daemon, and the pantheon of devils
leading you to enlighten yourself. But that you must do so ultimately
of your own power

**Qabbalah**. In order to preserve
rationalizing the unity of kabbalah with the rabid individualism of
his system, crowley considered manifesting your true will as
equivalent to joining with and becoming one with the divine. But in
the sense of the cosmos with planets moving on their own path, rather
than nullifying themselves. He used the same tree of life symbol to
show this, but reinterpreted it in various complicated ways. Later
thelemites noted that despite the system being chaotic, some of the
language was a little ordered, and they downplayed this. left hand
path kabbalists often also say that interaction with the qliphoth is
allowed, which is forbidden by jewish kabbalah. Crowley himself put
strong emphasis on the unique nature of Will inherent in each
individual, not following him, saying he did not wish to found a
flock of sheep. Thus, contemporary Thelemites will often overlap it
with other practices, like luciferianism, satanism, gnosticism, etc.

**Abyss.** In Thelemic mysticism, the Abyss is the great gulf or void between the phenomenal world of manifestation and its noumenal source. To him, crossing the abyss is an aspect of spiritual enlightenment that involves moving past the belief in the discrete self, similar to enlightenment in buddhism. Though notably, for crowley this process is still individualistic, and results in seeing your will as part of the cosmic order, which upholds those who act egoistically like orbits of planets, and in which the crushing of the weak is simply part of this order. While later satanists draw much inspiration from crowley, they often downplay the idea of being part of a universal order in this sense.

In II where you see crowley directly in the abyss, and in which crossing it is part of the plot, this name for the abyss itself is therefore a direct reference to his works. The association of crowley and many buddhist figures together is likely meant to show that the buddhist concepts of moving past the idea of the discrete self can also be repurposed for ends resembling that of thelema.

## Éliphas Lévi

Éliphas Lévi was a French occult
author and ceremonial magician. Although he had satanic elements, he
is in some sense a proto satanist because he considered himself to be
a catholic in good standing, insisting that he was revealing the true
teachings of christ and that the churches had corrupted it. He is
remembered mainly as an inspiration for later satanic occultists, and
is relatively obscure outside of this. He believed that catholicism
was the true religion, but that one must uncover the true hidden
catholicism within, using kabbalah and occultism. He also had
socialist leanings, being one of the figures who attempted to merge
socialism with kabbalah, publishing in socialist manuals. He was the
one who came up with the idea of a star pointed down to symbolize
evil contrasting pointed up to symbolize good. His popularity rested
in part on that he defined magic in a vague way that at the time
seemed to avoid obvious nonsense, yet by the same vein was so vague
that few considered him to be saying much of any real meaning.
Referring to magic he says: "To practice magic is to be a quack;
to know magic is to be a sage." and "Magic is the divinity
of man conquered by science in union with faith; the true Magi are
Men-Gods, in virtue of their intimate union with the divine
principle."

**Baphomet** Eliphas Levi is known best
for creating the image he had drawn himself which he described as
Baphomet and "The Sabbatic Goat", showing a winged humanoid
goat with a pair of breasts and a torch on its head between its horns
(illustration, top). This image has become the best-known
representation of Baphomet. Lévi considered the Baphomet to be a
depiction of the absolute in symbolic form and explicated in detail
his symbolism in the drawing that served as the frontispiece. Though
the name baphomet had already existed, since back from the time of
the knights templar, he was the one who gave it its more modern
usage. The Baphomet of Lévi was to become an important figure within
the cosmology of Thelema, the mystical system established by Aleister
Crowley, and later the symbol of laveyan satanism.

The goat on the frontispiece carries
the sign of the pentagram on the forehead, with one point at the top,
a symbol of light, his two hands forming the sign of occultism, the
one pointing up to the white moon of Chesed, the other pointing down
to the black one of Geburah. This sign expresses the perfect harmony
of mercy with justice. His one arm is female, the other male to show
adrogyny. The flame of intelligence shining between his horns is the
magic light of the universal balance, the image of the soul elevated
above matter, as the flame, whilst being tied to matter, shines above
it. The beast's head expresses the horror of the sinner, whose
materially acting, solely responsible part has to bear the punishment
exclusively; because the soul is insensitive according to its nature
and can only suffer when it materializes. The rod standing instead of
genitals symbolizes eternal life, the body covered with scales the
water, the semi-circle above it the atmosphere, the feathers
following above the volatile. Humanity is represented by the two
breasts and the androgyne arms of this sphinx of the occult sciences.

Lévi's depiction of Baphomet is
similar to that of the Devil in early Tarot cards, leading to his
satanic association. Lévi believed that the alleged devil worship of
the medieval Witches' Sabbath was actually a perpetuation of ancient
pagan rites. A goat with a candle between its horns appears in
medieval witchcraft records, and other pieces of lore are cited in
Dogme et Rituel. His association of the symbol of baphomet as the
absolute with the devil figure was intentional. (Note that Lévi's
Baphomet, for all its modern fame, does not match the historical
descriptions from the Templar trials.) He says himself:

“Below this figure we read a frank
and simple inscription—THE DEVIL. Yes, we confront here that
phantom of all terrors, the dragon of the all theogenies, the Ahriman
of the Persians, the Typhon of the Egyptians, the Python of the
Greeks, the old serpent of the Hebrews, the fantastic monster, the
nightmare, the Croquemitaine, the gargoyle, the great beast of the
Middle Ages, and—worse than all these—the Baphomet of the
Templars, the bearded idol of the alchemist, the obscene deity of
Mendes, the goat of the Sabbath. The frontispiece to this ‘Ritual’
reproduces the exact figure of the terrible emperor of night, with
all his attributes and all his characters.... Yes, in our profound
conviction, the Grand Masters of the Order of Templars worshipped the
Baphomet, and caused it to be worshipped by their initiates; yes,
there existed in the past, and there may be still in the present,
assemblies which are presided over by this figure, seated on a throne
and having a flaming torch between the horns. But the adorers of this
sign do not consider, as do we, that it is a representation of the
devil; on the contrary, for them it is that of the god Pan, the god
of our modern schools of philosophy, the god of the Alexandrian
theurgic school and of our own mystical Neoplatonists, the god of
Lamartine and Victor Cousin, the god of Spinoza and Plato, the god of
the primitive Gnostic schools; the Christ also of the dissident
priesthood.... The mysteries of the Sabbath have been variously
described, but they figure always in grimoires and in magical trials;
the revelations made on the subject may be classified under three
heads—1. those referring to a fantastic and imaginary Sabbath; 2.
those which betray the secrets of the occult assemblies of veritable
adepts; 3. revelations of foolish and criminal gatherings, having for
their object the operations of black magic.”

**Magician**. He defined the magician,
the end goal of practicing magic and its results as this: "He
looks on the wicked as invalids whom one must pity and cure; the
world, with its errors and vices, is to him God's hospital, and he
wishes to serve in it." "Judge not; speak hardly at all;
love and act."

"They are without fears and
without desires, dominated by no falsehood, sharing no error, loving
without illusion, suffering without impatience, reposing in the
quietude of eternal thought... a Magus cannot be ignorant, for magic
implies superiority, mastership, majority, and majority signifies
emancipation by knowledge. The Magus welcomes pleasure, accepts
wealth, deserves honour, but is never the slave of one of them; he
knows how to be poor, to abstain, and to suffer; he endures oblivion
willingly because he is lord of his own happiness, and expects or
fears nothing from the caprice of fortune. He can love without being
beloved; he can create imperishable treasures, and exalt himself
above the level of honours or the prizes of the lottery. He possesses
that which he seeks, namely, profound peace. He regrets nothing which
must end, but remembers with satisfaction that he has met with good
in all. His hope is a certitude, for he knows that good is eternal
and evil transitory. He enjoys solitude, but does not fly the society
of man; he is a child with children, joyous with the young, staid
with the old, patient with the foolish, happy with the wise. He
smiles with all who smile, and mourns with all who weep; applauding
strength, he is yet indulgent to weakness; offending no one, he has
himself no need to pardon, for he never thinks himself offended; he
pities those who misconceive him, and seeks an opportunity to serve
them; by the force of kindness only does he avenge himself on the
ungrateful..."

## **The Marriage of Heaven and Hell**

William Blake was an English poet,
painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognized during his lifetime,
Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of the poetry
and visual arts of the Romantic Age. One of his major known works is
making prints depicting dante's divine comedy.

**The Marriage of Heaven and Hell** is
a book by the English poet and printmaker William Blake. It is a
series of texts written in imitation of biblical prophecy but
expressing Blake's own intensely personal Romantic and revolutionary
beliefs. Like his other books, it was published as printed sheets
from etched plates containing prose, poetry and illustrations. The
plates were then colored by Blake and his wife Catherine. He made
many etchings of Lucifer represented as a positive figure, depicted
generally naked and strong to represent life and indulgence.

The work was composed between 1790 and
1793, in the period of radical ferment and political conflict
immediately after the French Revolution. Though Blake was influenced
by his grand and mystical cosmic conception, Swedenborg's
conventional moral strictures and his Manichaean view of good and
evil led Blake to express a deliberately depolarized and unified
vision of the cosmos in which the material world and physical desire
are equally part of the divine order; hence, a marriage of heaven and
hell. The book is written in prose, except for the opening "Argument"
and the "Song of Liberty". The book describes the poet's
visit to Hell, a device adopted by Blake from Dante's Divine Comedy
and Milton's Paradise Lost. It is considered an inspirational work by
many later satanists.

Unlike that of Milton or Dante, Blake's
conception of Hell begins not as a place of punishment, but as a
source of unrepressed, somewhat Dionysian energy, opposed to the
authoritarian and regulated perception of Heaven. Blake's purpose is
to create what he called a "memorable fancy" in order to
reveal the repressive nature of conventional morality and
institutional religion. In other words, like as is presented in
megaten, hell and demons are represented as the freedom to indulge
and act on one's own will, and are something that conventional
Christianity at the time was seen as repressing. He also endorsed
indulgence, saying that one should indulge and learn form mistakes
rather than avoiding them. So he depicted this demonic perspective as
actively impulsive, despite representing it as positive. Religiously
his views seemed to be a kind of pantheism. He talked much about how
god would glorify the intelligent rather than those who refrained
form certain actions. And even made his own pantheon of various gods.
But it seemed that he saw these as archetypes, saying that all gods
lived within the human breast. He also rejected the concepts of
scientific materialism, saying that they were too much an attempt to
solidify logic as understanding, and that inner energies needed more
than a single vision that ignores lived context.

**The Great Red Dragon Paintings** are
a series of watercolour paintings that Blake was commissioned to
create along with over a hundred paintings intended to illustrate
books of the Bible. These paintings depict the seven headed dragon in
various scenes from the Book of Revelation. They are most recognized
from the movie and book red dragon from the hannibal series. The art
of satan in smt apocalypse was likely based on these paintings (on
top of the general biblical design), as it shares a lot of
similarities with the art. And since satan in apocalypse comes from a
literal fusion of a leader of the armies of heaven and hell,
referencing something by the author noted for the book of the above
name is something likely common.

## Paradise Lost

John Milton was an English poet,
polemicist, and man of letters, and a civil servant for the
Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell. He wrote at a time of
religious flux and political upheaval, and is best known for his epic
poem Paradise Lost (1667), written in blank verse.

**Paradise Lost** is an epic poem that
concerns the Biblical story of the Fall of Man: the temptation of
Adam and Eve by the fallen angel Satan and their expulsion from the
Garden of Eden. Milton's purpose, stated in Book I, is to "justify
the ways of God to men". Though the book does depict demons as
the villains, many later satanists have considered it inspirational,
saying that it depicts Lucifer in an almost heroic light, and that
they suspect that Milton was more sympathetic to him than many
Christians. Note that in SMTIV, paradise lost is one of the books
handed out by lilith, implying that it is seen in game as something
the gaians take as a positive story.

**Satan** is the first major character
introduced in the poem. Formerly called Lucifer, he was the most
beautiful of all angels in Heaven, and is a tragic figure who
describes himself with the now-famous quote "Better to reign in
Hell than serve in Heaven." He is introduced to Hell after he
leads a failed rebellion to wrest control of Heaven from God. Satan's
desire to rebel against his creator stems from his unwillingness to
be subjugated by God and his Son, claiming that angels are
"self-begot, self-raised," and thereby denying God's
authority over them as their creator. Satan is deeply arrogant,
albeit powerful and charismatic. Satan's persuasive powers are
evident throughout the book; not only is he cunning and deceptive,
but he is also able to rally the fallen angels to continue in the
rebellion after their agonizing defeat in the Angelic War. He argues
that God rules as a tyrant and that all the angels ought to rule as
gods.

Though commonly understood to be the
antagonizing force in Paradise Lost, Satan may be best defined as a
tragic or Hellenic hero. According to William McCollom, one quality
of the classical tragic hero is that he is not perfectly good and
that his defeat is caused by a tragic flaw. As Satan causes both the
downfall of man and the eternal damnation of his fellow fallen angels
despite his dedication to his comrades, Satan is perhaps an
ur-example of the trope. In addition, Satan’s Hellenic qualities,
such as his immense courage and perhaps, lack of completely defined
morals, compound his tragic nature.

Satan's status as a protagonist in the
epic poem is debatable; Milton arguably characterizes him as such,
but Satan lacks several key traits that would otherwise make him the
definitive protagonist in the work. One deciding factor that
insinuates his role as the protagonist in the story is that most
often a protagonist is heavily characterized and far better described
than the other characters, and the way the character is written is
meant to make him seem more interesting or special to the reader. For
that matter, Satan is both well described and is depicted as being
quite versatile in that he is shown as having the capacity to do evil
whilst retaining his characteristic sympathetic qualities and thus it
is this complex and relatable nature makes him a likely candidate for
the story’s overarching protagonist.

Although Satan's army inevitably loses
the war against God, Satan achieves a position of power and begins
his reign in Hell with his band of loyal followers, composed of
fallen angels, which is described to be a "third of heaven".
Satan's characterization as the leader of a failing cause folds into
this as well and is best exemplified through his own quote, "to
be weak is to be miserable; Doing or Suffering", as through
shared solidarity espoused by empowering rhetoric, Satan riles up his
comrades in arms and keeps them focused towards their shared goal.
Similar to Milton’s republican sentiments of overthrowing the King
of England for both better representation and parliamentary power,
Satan argues that his shared rebellion with the fallen angels is an
effort to “explain the hypocrisy of God”, and in doing so, they
will be treated with the respect and acknowledgement that they
deserve. As scholar Wayne Rebhorn argues, “Satan insists that he
and his fellow revolutionaries held their places by right and even
leading him to claim that they were self-created and self-sustained”
and thus Satan’s position in the rebellion is much like that of his
own real world creator.

As such, though milton was depicting
him as dark in the story, it is easy to see why it is seen as a
sympathetic portrayal, and one that can be taken in the opposite
direction, as later satanists, and lilith in IV does.

One additional point is that Joker's ultimate melee weapon (made by itemizing Satanael) in persona 5 is called *Paradise Lost*.

## Atheistic Satanism

Atheistic satanism is satanist groups
that beleive in satan as an archetypal figure, rather than a concrete
entity. Most atheistic satanist groups stemmed from the beliefs of
LaVeyan satanism, which is the most well known variant. Some of them
however consider themselves not atheistic but autotheistic, saying
that from the relative perspective of the individual, they should see
themselves as their own god. Note that in megaten, the chaos side
often blurs the line between demons and humans, often with chaotic
figures wanting to eventually merge with demons. So one implication
is the actual tangible deification of the self. Despite being
atheistic, atheistic satanists they will often declare as important
the practice of magick, saying that it works in some archetypal
sense, or some other means that is not made clear. Laveyan satanism
talks heavily about magick as a positive force

**LaVeyan Satanism** is a more recent
religion inspired by crowley's thelema. The religion's doctrines and
practices are codified in LaVey's book, The Satanic Bible, which was
inspired by nietzsche and ayn rand. Its core philosophy is based on
individualism and egoism, encouraging a pursuit of fleshly
indulgence, an eye for an eye code of ethics, and the concept of
"self-deification". The philosophy positions itself in
favor of Social Darwinism and opposes egalitarianism, seeing it as a
conservator of mediocrity and decadence, and to a larger extent, the
Abrahamic faiths, which are seen as lies which promote idealism,
self-denigration, herd behavior, and irrationality. It has also been
known to support eugenicist ideology. The anthropologist Jean La
Fontaine described it as having "both elitist and anarchist
elements", also citing one occult bookshop owner who referred to
the Church's approach as "anarchistic hedonism". Though it
does not actively profess to be anarchist, being more about personal
practice than social arrangement. The religion however, like thelema
stresses Lucifer as an archetype rather than a real figure, believing
in atheism and materialism.

Though it is close allies with more
theistic satanist groups which tend to have similar ideologies, and
often use its statements in various ways. (Which ironically parallels
the in game ambiguity over demons being both mental archetypes and
seemingly also real beings). Its ethics do resemble much of chaos'
fairly well, as well as showing the historical precedent for lucifer
glorifying groups to be in this general ideological zone.

**The Church of Satan** was established
at the Black House in San Francisco, California, on Walpurgisnacht,
April 30, 1966, by Anton Szandor LaVey, who was the church's High
Priest until his death in 1997. In 2001, Peter H. Gilmore was
appointed to the position of high priest, and the church's
headquarters were moved to Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, New York City.
The Church is dedicated to the religion of LaVeyan Satanism as
codified in The Satanic Bible. The church often rejects the
legitimacy of any other organizations who claim to be Satanists as
proper continuations of LaVey.

**First Satanic Church** After LaVey's
death in 1997, the Church of Satan was taken over by a new
administration and its headquarters was moved to New York. LaVey's
daughter, the High Priestess Karla LaVey, felt this to be a
disservice to her father's legacy. The First Satanic Church was
re-founded on October 31, 1999 by Karla LaVey to carry on the legacy
of her father. She continues to run it out of San Francisco,
California. Some in this group believe the philosophy propounded by
Anton LaVey himself was deism or panentheism but is propounded as
atheism by the leaders of the Church of Satan in order to distance
themselves from what they see as pseudo-Satanists.

**The Nine Satanic Statements** are a
set of nine assertions made by LaVey in the introductory chapters of
The Satanic Bible. They are considered a touchstone of contemporary
organized Satanism that constitute, in effect, brief aphorisms that
capture of Satanic philosophy.

1: Satan represents indulgence instead
of abstinence. This obviously is something you see in-game. Even when
first introduced in IV lucifer is called "regal voice" and
merkabah "chaste voice."

2: Satan represents vital existence
instead of spiritual pipe dreams. (This is a nietzschean statement
about living and loving your life in the world.)

3: Satan represents undefiled wisdom
instead of hypocritical self-deceit.

4: Satan represents kindness to those
who deserve it, instead of love wasted on ingrates. (Note that this
is a rejection of any sense of universal love or affection. Chaotic
figures often talk in megaten games about the pointlessness of
licking the wounds of the weak and harming yourself in the process.)

5: Satan represents vengeance instead
of turning the other cheek. (Pretty self explanatory. With the
impulsiveness and anger of the chaos side this is a given.)

6: Satan represents responsibility to
the responsible instead of concern for psychic vampires. (This is
kind of a restatement of #4, but with a slightly different focus.)

7: Satan represents man as just another
animal who, because of his "divine spiritual and intellectual
development", has become the most vicious animal of all.

8: Satan represents all of the
so-called sins, as they all lead to physical, mental, or emotional
gratification.

9: Satan has been the best friend the
Church has ever had, as he has kept it in business all these years.
(Note that in IVA, it is implied that yhvh actively was behind the
arising of lucifer for his own means as a carrot and stick method.
Though that is less pro satanic, and more a weird association of
satanism with radical ideas that exist only to sound bad.)

**The Eleven Satanic Rules of the**
Earth**. (Note Satan being associated with the earth. Which ties in**
in game to lucifer being associated with gaians and the ground as
opposed to law being associated with the sky). Notice that these
rules of the earth seem more toned down than some of the others.

1: Do not give opinions or advice
unless you are asked.

2: Do not tell your troubles to others
unless you are sure they want to hear them.

3: When in another’s lair, show him
respect or else do not go there. (That's right. They use the word
lair. This is super edgy.)

4: If a guest in your lair annoys you,
treat him cruelly and without mercy.

5: Do not make sexual advances unless
you are given the mating signal.

6: Do not take that which does not
belong to you unless it is a burden to the other person and he cries
out to be relieved.

7: Acknowledge the power of magic if
you have employed it successfully to obtain your desires. If you deny
the power of magic after having called upon it with success, you will
lose all you have obtained. (This one is a little odd for an
atheistic group to have, but even so).

8: Do not complain about anything to
which you need not subject yourself. (Not terrible advice, really.)

9: Do not harm little children.

10: Do not kill non-human animals
unless you are attacked or for your food.

11: When walking in open territory,
bother no one. If someone bothers you, ask him to stop. If he does
not stop, destroy him. (more edgy language.)

**Nine Satanic Sins**. LaVey classified
the Nine Satanic Sins as unwanted behaviors which are
counter-productive hindrances to success. Note of course the fact
that none of these sins imply that harming people or such is the main
problems to focus on. They're mostly variants of lack of being
impressive seeming, or benefiting yourself. Which highlights the
selfish tone involved here.

1: Stupidity: "It’s too bad that
stupidity isn’t painful. Ignorance is one thing, but our society
thrives increasingly on stupidity. It depends on people going along
with whatever they are told. The media promotes a cultivated
stupidity as a posture that is not only acceptable but laudable.
Satanists must learn to see through the tricks and cannot afford to
be stupid."

2: Pretentiousness: "Empty
posturing can be most irritating and isn’t applying the cardinal
rules of Lesser Magic. On equal footing with stupidity for what keeps
the money in circulation these days. Everyone’s made to feel like a
big shot, whether they can come up with the goods or not."

3: Solipsism: "Projecting your
reactions, responses and sensibilities onto someone who is probably
far less attuned than you are. It is the mistake of expecting people
to give you the same consideration, courtesy and respect that you
naturally give them. They won’t. Instead, Satanists must strive to
apply the dictum of “Do unto others as they do unto you.” It’s
work for most of us and requires constant vigilance lest you slip
into a comfortable illusion of everyone being like you. As has been
said, certain utopias would be ideal in a nation of philosophers, but
unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately, from a Machiavellian
standpoint) we are far from that point." (This is a kind of
incorrect use of the world solipsism).

4: Self-deceit: "We must not pay
homage to any of the sacred cows presented to us, including the roles
we are expected to play ourselves. The only time self-deceit should
be entered into is when it’s fun, and with awareness. But then,
it’s not self-deceit!"

5: Herd Conformity: "It’s all
right to conform to a person’s wishes, if it ultimately benefits
you. But only fools follow along with the herd, letting an impersonal
entity dictate to you. The key is to choose a master wisely instead
of being enslaved by the whims of the many."

6: Lack of Perspective: "You must
never lose sight of who and what you are, and what a threat you can
be, by your very existence. We are making history right now, every
day. Always keep the wider historical and social picture in mind.
That is an important key to both Lesser and Greater Magic. See the
patterns and fit things together as you want the pieces to fall into
place. Do not be swayed by herd constraints—know that you are
working on another level entirely from the rest of the world."

7: Forgetfulness of Past Orthodoxies:
"Be aware that this is one of the keys to brainwashing people
into accepting something new and different, when in reality it’s
something that was once widely accepted but is now presented in a new
package. We are expected to rave about the genius of the creator and
forget the original. This makes for a disposable society."

8: Counterproductive Pride: "Pride
is great up to the point you begin to throw out the baby with the
bathwater. The rule of Satanism is: if it works for you, great. When
it stops working for you, when you’ve painted yourself into a
corner and the only way out is to say, I’m sorry, I made a mistake,
I wish we could compromise somehow, then do it."

9: Lack of Aesthetics: "Aesthetics
is important in Lesser Magic and should be cultivated. It is obvious
that no one can collect any money off classical standards of beauty
and form most of the time so they are discouraged in a consumer
society, but an eye for beauty, for balance, is an essential Satanic
tool and must be applied for greatest magical effectiveness. It’s
not what’s supposed to be pleasing—it’s what is. Aesthetics is
a personal thing, reflective of one’s own nature, but there are
universally pleasing and harmonious configurations that should not be
denied."

**Pentagonal Revisionism: A Five Point**
**Program** is a list of goals for social transformation written by
LaVey.

1. Stratification: "The point on
which all the others ultimately rest. There can be no more myth of
equality for all—it only translates to mediocrity and supports the
weak at the expense of the strong. Water must be allowed to seek its
own level without interference from apologists for incompetence. No
one should be protected from the effects of his own stupidity."
(So note they are actively for hierarchy and against any presmed
equality. Making this a very obvious association with the chaos side
in game again).

2. Strict taxation of all churches: "If
churches were taxed for all their income and property, they’d
crumble overnight of their own obsolescence, and the National Debt
would be wiped out as quickly. The productive, the creative, the
resourceful should be subsidized. So long as the useless and
incompetent are getting paid, they should be heavily taxed."
(This kind of ignores the reason that churches aren't taxed).

3. No tolerance for religious beliefs
secularized and incorporated into law and order issues: "To
re-establish Lex Talionis would require a complete overturning of the
present in-justice system based on Judeo-Christian ideals, where the
victim/defender has been made the criminal. Amnesty should be
considered for anyone in prison because of his alleged “influence”
upon the actual perpetrator of the crime. Everyone is influenced in
what he or she does. Scapegoating has become a way of life, a means
of survival for the unfit. As an extension of the Judeo-Christian
cop-out of blaming the Devil for everything, criminals can gain
leniency, even praise, by placing the blame on a convenient villain.
Following the Satanic creed of “Responsibility to the responsible,”
in a Satanic society, everyone must experience the consequences of
his own actions—for good or ill." (Note that this is
ironically calling for more draconian laws of punishment, implying
that influence shouldn't be used as a defense. Which is an odd line
of thought to take).

4. Development and production of
artificial human companions: "The forbidden industry. An
economic “godsend” which will allow everyone “power” over
someone else. Polite, sophisticated, technologically feasible
slavery. And the most profitable industry since T.V. and the
computer." (Why they actively included the word slavery in this
is weird. But at any rate it shows their mentality).

5. The opportunity for anyone to live
within a total environment of his or her choice, with mandatory
adherence to the aesthetic and behavioral standards of same:
"Privately owned, operated and controlled environments as an
alternative to homogenized and polyglot ones. The freedom to
insularize oneself within a social milieu of personal well-being. An
opportunity to feel, see, and hear that which is most aesthetically
pleasing, without interference from those who would pollute or
detract from that option."

## Theistic Satanism

Theistic Satanism is an umbrella term
for religious beliefs that consider Satan as an objectively existing
supernatural being or force worthy of supplication, whom individuals
may contact and convene with. The individual belief systems under
this umbrella are practiced by loosely affiliated or independent
groups and cabals. Another characteristic of Theistic Satanism is the
use of ceremonial magic.
The history of theistic Satanism, as an
existing spiritual path practiced by people, is obscured by a number
of groups having been accused of Satanism who did not actually
worship Satan, such as in the witch trials in Early Modern
Europe,(Note that in megaten, witches show up at times, but are not
explicitly shown interacting with lucifer, but instead other gods
like aradia). and such beliefs having been heavily persecuted, being
grounds for execution during most of European history. Most actual
theistic Satanist religions exist in relatively new models and
ideologies, many of which even claim to be independent of the
Abrahamic religions.

**Joy of Satan** is an obscure internet
group that believes that Satan appears angel-like; is the leader of
the Nordic gods; and is also is the ancient sumerian god Enki/Ea; and
is the yezidi archangel called Melek Taus. It is often made fun of as
a meme for having directions on its website on how to summon a
succubus for sex.

**The Church of the Elders** borrows
its theology from Joy of Satan, believing that Satan is based upon
Enki, but the Church of the Elders rejects calling this being
'Satan', instead calling it Enki, similar to how the Temple of Set
believes that Satan is based upon Set, and should therefore be called
Set rather than Satan.

**The Cathedral of the Black Goat**
believe Satan and Lucifer are the same being in his light and dark
aspects.

**The former Children of the Black**
Rose**, are particularly inspired by Lucifer, who they may or may not**
equate with Satan.

**Temple of the Black Light** is a
group formerly known as the Misanthropic Luciferian Order prior to
2007. The group espouses a philosophy known as “**Chaosophy**”.
(note the obvious presence of the word chaos being associated with
lucifer). Chaosophy asserts that the world that we live in, and the
universe that it lives in, all exists within the realm known as
**Cosmos**. Cosmos is made of three spatial dimensions and one linear
time dimension. Cosmos rarely ever changes and is a materialistic
realm. Another realm that exists is known as **Chaos**. Chaos exists
outside of the Cosmos and is made of infinite dimensions and unlike
the Cosmos, it is always changing. Members of the TotBL believe that
the realm of Chaos is ruled over by **11 dark gods**, the highest of
them being **Satan**, and all of said gods are considered
manifestations of a higher being. This higher being is known as
**Azerate**, the Dragon Mother, and is all of the 11 gods united as
one. The TotBL believes that Azerate will resurrect one day and
destroy the Cosmos and let Chaos consume everything. Note also that in
nocturne's true demon ending, you destroy the cosmos of the world and
then exist outside of it. Note also that entities being parts of
others being something commonly seen in-game. Lucifer saying that he
is a part of god that god discarded.

Similarly, the Temple of the Black
Light has criticized the Church of Satan, and has stated that the
Temple of Set is "trying to make Setianism and the ruler of
darkness, Set, into something accepted and harmless, this way
attempting to become a 'big' religion, accepted and acknowledged by
the rest of the Judaeo-Christian society," stating that rather,
satanists should actively be seen as dangerous obscure people. The
TotBL rejects Christianity, Judaism and Islam as "the opposite
of everything that strengthens the spirit and is only good for
killing what little that is beautiful, noble and honorable in this
filthy world". The temple of the black light is in contrast
often considered extreme and radical by other satanist groups due to
practicing of animal sacrifice. And many other satanists have
distanced themselves from them for that reason.

The MLO consist of the unified belief
in "**Chaosophy**" or "**Chaos gnosticism**". They believe that Chaos is the
pandimensional plane and/or power with infinite amounts of space and
time, in contrast to cosmos, which only has three spatial dimensions
and one linear time dimension. They also believe that, in comparison
with the linear time of cosmos, chaos can be described as timeless in
the way that it is not contained nor limited by one-dimensional time,
and formless, because of its ever-changing and infinite amounts of
space dimensions. Note that in the amala verse time is not said to
exit outside of worlds as the same way it does within them. Extreme
militant nihilism is taught within the group and they say that the
true Satanist must not be a part of the modern society, as it is
founded upon lies.

The temple of the black light is based on qabalah, saying that both sephirot and qliphoth were emanated from the ein sof. However, they invert it from jewish kabbalah by saying that the structure of the sephirot is one of restriction, associated with cosmos whereas the structure of the qliphoth is one of freedom, associated with chaos. And that the sephirot are a false light that must be moved past. They associate the qliphoth with "evil," referring to its drive as the **evil impulse**, (parraleling that of kabbalah the evil inclination) but the meaning of this is meant to be that good and evil have no fixed meaning, and are part of a structure created by the archons associated with the sephirot.

And so the identity of evil is more like an amorality based in liberation. A transcendence of good and evil that would be seen as evil by those aligning with the right hand path and archons. The black light / black flame is seen as the gnosis that would allow one to flourish in the universe of chaos. Without which, one would see it as horrifying. The black light is said to be seen as darkness to those who are unenlightened. The qliphoth are seen as just as divine as the sephirot, being the divine force of liberation rather than restriction.

These are the three dark veils before
Satan, in their belief system seen as the three Forces that were
expelled from Ain Sof in order to make way for the manifestation of
the Black Light in the Outer Darkness that soon became Qliphoth:

000 - Tohu - Chaos: Qemetiel ("Crown
of Gods")

00 - Bohu - Emptiness: Beliaal
("Without God")

0 - Chasek - Darkness: Aathiel
("Uncertainty")

These three powers can be seen as the
Burning Trident held high above the Thaumielitan, and to represent them the symbol of the trident is used. These three powers
can also be viewed as Wrathful Reflections of the Ein Sof. Note here
the kabbalic associations. Kabbalah is often associated with satanic
groups, and similarly it often shows in up game even for the chaos
side. The ein sof seems to be a heavy inspiration for the great will.
While jews consider the ein sof to be positive, these satanists here
are interpreting it as dark, and having wrathful incarnations, and to
exist in a morally elitist world. Note of course in game the
ambiguity over which side is right, and them each claiming the larger
underlying reality at large as for their own side.

**Temple of Set**. Some writers equate
the veneration of Set by the Temple of Set to theistic Satanism.
However, the Temple of Set do not identify as theistic Satanists.
They believe the Egyptian deity Set is the real Dark Lord behind the
name Satan, of whom Satan is just a caricature. Their practices
primarily center on self-development. Within the temple of Set, the
Black Flame is the individual's god-like core which is a kindred
spirit to Set, and they seek to develop. In theistic Satanism, the
Black Flame is knowledge which was given to humanity by Satan, who is
a being independent of the Satanist himself and which he can dispense
to the Satanist who seeks knowledge. Note here the conflation of set
with satan being a common trend in satanism. Interestingly, this
shows up in SMTII with set being half of the soul of Satan, yet the
Satan referred to in game is not the devil of christianity, but the
angel of judgement of judaism.

**Satanic Reds** A group with very
different ideology to the standard randian trend is the Satanic Reds,
whose Satanism has a communist element. However, they are not
theistic Satanist in the manner of believing in Satan as a god with a
personality, but believe in dark deism, the belief that Satan is a
presence in nature.

**The Order of Nine Angles** is known
as one of the most dangerous Satanist groups known. his group became
controversial and was mentioned in the press and in books, because
they promoted human sacrifice, as well as neo nazi ideology. The O9A
believes that \*\*Satan\*\* is one of two \*\*'acausal' eternal beings\*\*,
the other one being \*\*Baphomet\*\*, and that Satan is male and Baphomet
is female. The ONA is a secretive organization. It lacks any central
administration, instead operating as a network of allied Satanic
practitioners, which it terms the "\*\*kollective\*\*". Thus,
Monette stated that the Order "is not a structured lodge or
temple, but rather a movement, a subculture or perhaps metaculture
that its adherents choose to embody or identify with." Several
academic commentators have highlighted the existence of a position
within the ONA called an "Outer Representative", who serves
as an official spokesperson for the group to the outer world.
However, this role has been stated to be a kind of ruse to mislead
outsiders.

The ONA states that cosmic evolution is
guided by a "sinister dialectics" of alternating Aeonic
energies. It divides history into a series of Aeons, believing that
each was dominated by a human civilization that emerged, evolved, and
then died. The ONA claim that current Western civilization has
recently undergone its Time of Troubles, with its final stage, an
"Imperium" of militaristic governance, due to commence at
some point in 1990–2011 and last until 2390. This will be followed
by a period of chaos from which will be established a sixth Aeon, the
Aeon of Fire, which will be represented by the Galactic civilization
in which Aryan society shall colonize the Milky Way galaxy.

However, the Order holds that unlike
previous Aeonic civilizations, the Western has been infected with the
"Magian/Nazarene" distorion, which they associate with
Judeo-Christian religion. The group's writings state that while
Western civilization had once been "a pioneering entity, imbued
with elitist values and exalting the way of the warrior", under
the impact of the Magian/Nazarene ethos it has become "essentially
neurotic, inward-looking and obsessed", embracing humanism,
capitalism, communism, as well as "the sham of democracy"
and "the dogma of racial equality". They believe that these
Magian/Nazarene forces represent a counter-evolutionary trend which
threaten to prevent the emergence of the Western Imperium and thus
the evolution of humanity, opining that this cosmic enemy must be
overcome through the force of will.

The ONA praise Nazism as "a
practical expression of Satanic spirit... a burst of Luciferian light
– of zest and power – in an otherwise Nazarene, pacified, and
boring world." The ONA does not initiate members into the group
itself, but rather expects an individual to initiate themselves. It
requires that initiates be in a good physical condition, and
recommends a training regimen for prospective members to follow.
Newcomers are expected to take on a magical partner of the opposite
sex, or of the same sex if they are lesbian or gay. Thenceforth, the
practitioner must undertake personal and increasingly difficult
challenges in order to move through the different grades. Most of the
ordeals that allow the initiate to proceed to the next stage are
publicly revealed by the Order in its introductory material, as it is
believed that the true initiatory element lies in the experience
itself and can only be attained through performing them. For
instance, part of the ritual to become an External Adept involves an
ordeal in which the prospective member is to find a lonely spot and
to lay there, still, for an entire night without moving or sleeping.
The initiatory process for the role of Internal Adept entails the
practitioner withdrawing from human society for three months, from an
equinox to a solstice, or (more usually) for six months, during
which time they must live in the wild without modern conveniences or
contact with civilisation. The next stage – the Ritual of the Abyss
– involves the candidate living alone in a dark isolated cavern for
a lunar month. According to Jeffrey Kaplan, an academic specialist of
the far right, these physically and mentally challenging initiatory
tasks reflect "the ONA's conception of itself as a vanguard
organization composed of a tiny coterie of Nietzschean elites."

Within the initiatory system of the
ONA, there is an emphasis on practitioners adopting "insight
roles" in which they work undercover among a politically extreme
group for a period of six to eighteen months, thus gaining experience
in something different from their normal life. Among the ideological
trends that the ONA suggests its members adopt "insight roles"
within are anarchism, Neo-Nazism, and Islamism, stating that aside
from the personal benefits of such an involvement, membership of
these groups has the benefit of undermining the Magian-Nazarene
socio-political system of the West and thus helping to bring about
the instability from which a new order, the Imperium, can emerge.
Therefore, "through the practice of "insight roles",
the order advocates continuous transgression of established norms,
roles, and comfort zones in the development of the initiate... This
extreme application of ideas further amplifies the ambiguity of
satanic and Left Hand Path practices of antinomianism / amoralism,
making it almost impossible to penetrate the layers of subversion,
play and counter-dichotomy inherent in the sinister dialectics."

**The Acausal Realm, Magick and the Dark Gods.** The ONA believe that humans live within the causal
realm, which obeys the laws of cause and effect. However, they also
believe in an acausal realm, in which the laws of physics do not
apply, further promoting the idea that numinous energies from the
acausal realm can be drawn into the causal, allowing for the
performance of magic.

External magic itself is divided into
two categories: ceremonial magick, which is performed by more than
two people to achieve a specific goal, and hermetic magick, which is
performed either solitarily or in a pair and which is often sexual in
nature. Internal magick is designed to produce an altered state of
consciousness in the participant, in order to result in a process of
"individuation" which bestows adepthood. The most advanced
form of magick in the ONA system is aeonic magick, the practice of
which is restricted to those who are already perceived to have
mastered external and internal magick and attained the grade of
master. The purpose of aeonic magick is to influence large numbers of
people over a lengthy period of time, thus affecting the development
of future aeons. In particular it is employed with the intent of
disrupting the current socio-political system of the Western world,
which the ONA believe has been corrupted by Judeo-Christian religion.

The Order promotes the idea that
"**Dark Gods**" exist within the acausal realm, although it
is accepted that some members will interpret them not as real
entities but as facets of the human subconscious. These entities are
perceived as dangerous, with the ONA advising caution when
interacting with them. Among those Dark Gods whose identities have
been discussed in the Order's publicly available material are a
goddess named Baphomet who is depicted as a mature woman carrying a
severed head, (whose design has been compared to the hindu kali) with
the ONA stating that the name is of ancient Greek origin. In
addition, there are entities whose names, according to Monette, are
borrowed from or influenced by figures from Classical sources and
astronomy, such as Kthunae, Nemicu, and Atazoth.

Another of these acausal figures is
termed Vindex, after the Latin word for "avenger". The ONA
believe that Vindex will eventually incarnate as a human – although
the gender and ethnicity of this individual is unknown – through
the successful "presencing" of acausal energies within the
causal realm, and that they will act as a messianic figure by
overthrowing the Magian forces and leading the ONA to prominence in
the establishment of a new society. Sieg drew comparisons between
this belief in Vindex and the ideas of Savitri Devi, the prominent
Esoteric Hitlerist, regarding the arrival of Kalki, an avatar of the
Hindu god Vishnu, to Earth. The ONA also propagate the idea that it
is possible for the practitioner to secure an afterlife within the
acausal realm through their spiritual activities. It is for this
reason that the final stage of the Seven Fold Way is known as the
"Immortal", constituting those initiates who have been able
to advance to the stage of dwelling in the acausal realm.

**Sacrifice** The ONA's writings
condone and encourage human sacrifice, referring to their victims as
opfers. The ONA outline their views on human sacrifice in a number of
documents: "A Gift for the Prince – A Guide to Human
Sacrifice", "Culling – A Guide to Sacrifice II",
"Victims – A Sinister Exposé", and "Guidelines for
the Testing of Opfers". According to the ONA's beliefs, the
killer must allow their victim to "self-select" themselves;
this is achieved through testing the victim to see if they expose
perceived character faults. If this proves to be the case, the victim
is believed to have shown that they are worthy of death, and the
sacrifice can commence. Those deemed ideal for sacrifice by the group
include individuals perceived as being of low character, members of
what they deem "sham-Satanic groups" like the Church of
Satan and Temple of Set, as well as "zealous, interfering
Nazarenes", and journalists, business figures and political
activists who disrupt the group's operations. The ONA explains that
because of the need for such "self-selection", children
must never be victims of sacrifice.Similarly, the ONA "despise
animal sacrifice, maintaining that it is much better to sacrifice
suitable mundanes given the abundance of human dross".

The sacrifice is then carried out
through either physical or magical means, at which point the killer
is believed to absorb power from the body and spirit of the victim,
thus entering a new level of "sinister" consciousness. As
well as strengthening the character of the killer by heightening
their connection with the acausal forces of death and destruction,
such sacrifices are also viewed as having wider benefits by the ONA,
because they remove from society individuals whom the group deems to
be worthless human beings. Monette noted that no ONA nexion cells
publicly admitted to carrying out a sacrifice in a ritual manner, but
that members had joined the police and military groups claiming that
it was in order to engage in legal violence and killing.

The ONA believe that there are
historical precedents to their practice of human sacrifice,
expressing belief in a prehistoric tradition in which humans were
sacrificed to a goddess named Baphomet at the spring equinox and to
the Arcturus star in the autumn.(which is the cheese grator looking
boss in triangulum). However, the ONA's advocacy of human sacrifice
has drawn strong criticism from other Satanist groups like the Temple
of Set, who deem it to be detrimental to their own attempts to make
Satanism more socially acceptable within Western nations.

## Academic (also popular usage)

In philosophy, though this is rare, the
term satanism comes up in a few places such as the writings of R M
Hare to refer to one who would find out what the moral facts are and
deliberately perform immoral actions in violation of moral facts. Not
because of any personal benefit, but merely because they actively
wanted to perform immoral acts for the sake of immorality. Hare
contrasts what he calls the "satanist" who directly does
wrong actions with an amoralist who does not care if they do, and the
nihilist who does not think they exist. The term satanist is used to
refer to the satan of christianity who is often depicted as a force
of evil, wanting to cause humans to do evil for no reason other than
that it is evil.
R M Hare addresses whether such a being
as a satanist by his definition could truly exist, or whether
knowingly bad actions are only for personal benefit. But concludes
that one could, but that such a person might be born from looking at
morality the wrong way to begin with. Note that he doesn't think
there is any organized group of self professed satanists who refer to
themselves as such and act like this. He even points out that many of
the occultists that classically were called satanists like crowley,
leading to "satanism" becoming a self professed identity
were not actually being evil for the sake of evil as Christians often
accused them when they coined the term satanism. But that he is using
the term to refer to its classical negative connotations in the
abstract, without trying to affiliate it with any particular person.

Note of course that in popular culture
the term satanism is also sometimes used in a way resembling this
(though popular culture generally assumes it is tied to occultism,
whereas hare is using it merely in a moral sense). And this is not
necessarily a totally inaccurate usage, since that definition of the
word existed before many self professed satanist groups with
different ideologies sprang up. The conflation of the groups that
refer to themselves as satanists with the type of thing one might be
accused of are two different things, despite bearing the same name.
Note that groups being evil merely for the sake of evil are presumed
to in actuality be incredibly rare if they exist at all. Even some of
the more dangerous above listed satanist groups do not actively
profess to be this, even if some may be seen as evil by others.

As far as megaten games go even chaos
demons do not tend to be this, most simply having more of a
ruthlessly individualistic ideology. And of course most real satanist groups wouldn't describe themself as actively being bad for the sake of being bad. Even though they might accept that they are bad relative to the standards of others.