Satanism as a Higher Form of Religion

Dazarat

 

“Should that subduing talisman, the cross, be shattered, the frenzied madness of the ancient warriors, that insane Berserk rage of which Nordic bards have spoken and sung so often, will once more burst into flame. This talisman is fragile, and the day will come when it will collapse miserably. Then the ancient stony gods will rise from the forgotten debris and rub the dust of a thousand years from their eyes, and finally Thor with his giant hammer will jump up and smash the Gothic cathedrals.” /Heinrich Heine/

Why do we view Satanism as a religion, and, moreover, as a higher form of religion? First of all, because it originated from a religious tradition. Satanism was not invented by Anton LaVey, as ignorant people believe. Satanism is, basically, Paganism than has been demonized by Christianity. Baal, Lucifer, Astarte and others are Pagan deities that Christians turned into demons. Satan, e.g. the Adversary in the original meaning, was any Pagan god that stood against Yahweh. In other words, Satan has always been viewed as a higher entity that possesses personality and consciousness, and not as an abstract “archetype” or “force of nature”.

This is why the original Satanism in the form of demonic cults has all features of religion: belief in particular deities, rituals, etc.. As for Neo-Satanism, it's not quite clear to me: why a mix of skeptical atheism with popular mysticism and psychology is being called Satanism. It's no need to think Satanism up, since it already exists and has been since long ago.

A completely different matter is that Satanism as a religion is fundamentally different from Christianity. This is a religion without worship, without moral dogmas and without the dualism of good and evil. This is a religion that is based upon free and equal cooperation with Satan as a teacher and example to follow. This is a religion that aims to liberate and raise the human instead of holding them as “God's servant”. This is a religion that rejects eternal heaven in favor of eternal development up to the level of god. Finally, this is a religion that values the best qualities in the human — their power, intellect, pursuit of freedom, pride, and will — not the Christian “virtues” of humility, chastity etc..

If we define Satanism as a cult of Dark deities, it appears to be complementing to Paganism, not secondary to it. In other words, Satanism always existed, but manifested itself in various forms. As for the modern Satanism, it is undoubtedly influenced by Christianity to a great extent, since Satan is a biblical character. However, the Judeo-Christian views on Satan have their roots in Paganism and the Pagan cults of Dark gods. Speaking of Neo-Satanism in particular, it's not just secondary to any religious tradition, but isolated from any tradition at all and based merely on groundless philosophizing.

The fact is that Dark deities existed in any religion, including Christianity that demonized them. It does not mean that Satanism would not exist without Christianity; a personalized Dark force has always been there, just manifested itself in various forms. Christianity did not create Satan; it just spread a distorted image of him.

The Pagan gods are personalities without any moral principles. They can help you, but can also treat you very cruelly. The Pagan gods stand beyond good and evil; they follow only their own interests and desires. This also means that the idea of the amoral Pagan gods led to the view of Satanists as amoral people.

Satanism and Paganism have much in common generally. They particularly agree on:
1. The respect to this world and material being.
2. Lack of dogmatism and tolerance to different views. Everybody could perceive the Pagan gods and manifest respect to them by various ways. Even the existence of the Pagan gods of different nations was recognized, which would be completely unthinkable to Christianity.
3. The common values are power, beauty, bravery, pride, and knowledge; the people who possess them are respected. Unlike in Christianity, nobody would respect those humble in spirit and mind.
4. Magical and occult practices are accepted.
5. Self-deification of a human being is viewed as possible.
6. An idea that man can fight against the gods is also viewed as possible.
7. The ritual practice is similar to some extent.

All Pagan cults are essentially identical, even those completely unrelated. Satanism, therefore, is the common Dark knowledge that is present in all forms of Paganism. Any Pagan religion contains the following elements:
1. Creation of the world from something: fire, ice, Chaos, a god's body, — not “from nothing”.
2. No one of the Pagan gods is absolute (at least in the pure form of Paganism, not in the later philosophical concepts).
3. The concept of eternal return (or the wheel of time) instead of finite being in the monotheistic religions.
4. For virtually any deity from one Pagan religion, an equivalent deity in another Pagan religion can be found.
5. The deification of nature, e.g. respect to material being.
6. Ethical concepts similar to other Pagan religions.
7. Mythologies contain similar stories and characters. For example, a Sumerian and an Aztec could discuss their religions together and understand one another pretty well, since the basis of any Paganism is the same. It would not be difficult for them to understand a modern Satanist as well, because our values are to a great extent similar.

So, the roots of Satanism grow from the Pagan religions. But why do we view Satanism as a higher form of religion? Satanism is a product of development and evolution of the Dark Pagan cults in the harsh conditions of struggle against Christianity and other dogmatic religions. However, the most important is not just this, but the fact that Satanism is the only religion that aims for the human to rise. This is what differs Satansm from any other religion.

A higher religion is such one that enables personal development and raises its followers to a higher level. The values that Satanism proclaims, are, essentially, power and wisdom in all their manifestations, e.g. the higher values. A religion that is meant to be cooperation with Satan instead of worshipping him, a religion that praises the human instead of humiliating them, a religion based on the principles of freedom and dignity — this is what Satanism is. It's a step forward in the evolution of worldview and spirit.

As a conclusion, it needs to be said that the ancient Pagan cults have gotten a new life in the form of Satanism. This is why I want to remind the quotation that I have put in the beginning. The revived and intellectually evolved Paganism, which is now Satanism, is going to be that hammer that will jump up and smash the cathedral of unnatural medieval dogmas. What we need is to remember our ancient roots and to follow the Dark principles that were originally present in all cultures. Certainly, this also means that we need to develop and expand the Dark knowledge.

Translated by Milchar