My thoughts on Demonic Possession.

Hello, just starting publishing here, I’d like to take time to greet and thank, both S. Conelly and Co-Bloggers for the space.

I addressed this matter in my personal blog before, though I was remarked a few things that went a bit off topic, so Im going to remake the whole thing.

After a time of practicing magic I can say It is very unlikely that a Daemon in a magical current or a grimoire will just jump into your body unless it has something very important to say or do (Old powerful Genni and Gods have better things to do than messing with your body), it’s also unlikely to stay there for long, in cases of possession I’ve heard are not Daemons as a high spirit, but are random entities that came by some other means the particular cases I can recall:

A friend can personally testify that using the Ouija board (or what I consider the Mystical Chat Roulette) extendedly he found himself out of control of his body, and by mere chance made it out by knocking himself out in the wall near the stairs swinging his head at the first change he got, and one of the local Mystic girls I know told me that she had a friend possessed, in which case it could not be stopped until they give up and started to open their feelings of fraternal love for each other, the other left, which Im not sure if the power of love triumphed that day or only the entity got bored, I think Ouija boards were involved here too.

Now what these cases have in common and most of the cases of spirit possession that I know is when they started to meddle with something that have no kind of protection or filter thusly giving change to entities to jump at them, I have a friend being haunted by a departed ghost and it would seem the dead don’t try to do possession either unless channeled, they are more concerned on being attached to their homes. (Ive never encountered passed away criminaly insane people so not sure if happens)

I’ve never heard of a Magician getting unwillingly or dangerously possessed by a daemon especially if it’s treated with respect, I do know some practitioners have had some things gone dangerously wrong, but not in a possession but in getting unexpected results or having angering the Daemon due disrespect, but if you are specific in what you ask for, avoid disrespect or practicing to satisfy a morbid urge “to see what happens” you should be fine.

Now I have not worked with everything that is out there, but long way practices and grimoires have survived because they have been tested over and over, so if you are starting in your magical path, you might want to start practicing your path within safe grounds before experimenting things that you are not ready to handle.

Blessings of Lucifer

Jadean Lazulli

Demonic Possession???

We are bombarded with movies, books, tv shows of demonic possession. We are shown images of projectile vomit and heads spinning 360. I have never witnessed anything like that, there are moments that I seen people dancing, in a trance, and tremors. Have they been possessed by demons of their faith? I don’t know.. I’m sure this is the shortest posting from me, but I’m not going to beat around the bush about this… I have no clue.. I want to believe that it may be possible, but then again I want to believe that the world well explode around December..

In Search of Demonic Possession

Infernal Greetings to All …

 

Welcome to March and this month’s topic, Demonic Possession. This is a rather difficult topic to write about since nobody seems to agree what exactly it is or if it is real at all. I have read everything from psychologists that feel it is nothing more than a severe form of mental illness or schizophrenia to religious zealots that think everyone from Adolf Hitler to Marilyn Manson are possessed. I know that all the way back to Sumerian times around 4500BC the concept of spiritual possession was recorded in their history. It appeared here and there in various cultures but really found its home in the judeo-christian religion.  There is a ton written by both secular and religious people on the topic and I won’t go into much detail since it is rather boring unless you have a sense of humor.

 

It probably would have remained a dusty old biblical concept if it hadn’t been for Hollywood in the 20th century. I am not forgetting some of the really interesting pieces of literature and artwork that have surfaced in the last 2000 years since all of the biblical myths were written, but it is hard to find somebody in this country that hasn’t seen or at least heard of “The Exorcist”. The extreme music world, especially Heavy Metal, has used the theme of Demonic Possession frequently also. Another area that you can find Demonic Possession is in many role-playing games and some of the modern horror fiction being written.

 

I have read all that is written in the CBOD about the subject and it seems to be pretty close to how I feel. In my experiences with the Demonic I have never felt any malevolence or had anything ever attempt to take over my senses or mind. But, this still does not mean it is impossible. I have never seen a UFO or little green men but after all I have read I do believe that something is out there.  I have also seen a great deal of religious strangeness (stigmata, speaking in tongues, levitation) but once again not in person just in literature and video. By now it must be obvious that I tend to be a realist and look at many things logically. The good thing is that I am always open to being proven wrong and I really enjoy surprises.

 

I would like to ask anyone that has a similar point of view (or thinks I am wrong) to post their ideas and share what this topic means to them. Most of what I know about Demonic Possession came from books and I would really like to hear from someone with a more personal point of view on this topic.

 

Until next month (I Promise).

 

In Darkness We are United …

 

Devil Murdock

 

March 2012: Reader Q&A

When we asked blog readers what they wanted the bloggers to talk about this month we were told:

“I would love to hear the bloggers thoughts on Demonic possession. I know it’s be covered slightly in the CBOD but it’s such a fascinating subject and the idea that people are being possessed seems to be on the increase. I’m just curious about what the blogger think especially the Generational Demonolaters. “

and…

“I would like to hear their experiences/opinions on dream magic and/or astral temples.”

The bloggers will either discuss these topics this month, or they’ll just blog about whatever they feel like this month.

Enjoy it.

Website Payment Methods Update

As of today we at demonolatry.org are beginning to remove Paypal links from this site because we cannot, in good conscience, continue to support a credit card processing company that promotes censorship and book banning. As a publisher of occult books, occult fiction, and erotica (where the banning has started), I would be hypocrite to cry foul and then continue to support them by using them to process transactions on my own website and on any website on which I do business (here).

We have chosen to start using Google Checkout. However, we can also accept payments through Amazon Payments and we can accept money orders and certified checks the old fashioned way – via snail mail.  If there is absolutely NO other way for you to pay, you may still send us Paypal payments to [email protected]. I won’t smite you for it as I understand some people only have Paypal. However, both Google and Amazon are viable alternatives if you are wanting  to pay via a credit card. Contact me at the e-mail address above if you have any questions.

Alas, I won’t be closing my Paypal account completely because sadly in order to get paid by several of my book distributors  I need to keep that account open and that’s why I’ll still accept Paypal if necessary.

Please note the Paypal links will remain on the demonolatry.org website until I have time to switch over to the new Google purchase buttons.

Thank you for your understanding and I hope this doesn’t cause any inconvenience.

-S. Connolly

Pathworking Thoughts

I have been thinking about this topic for some time now.  It is one of those things where the definition is a little elusive.  So many things could be called “pathworking” in magick.  Someone does meditation a few nights and voila it’s pathworking.  But the word and the ideal of pathworking is so much deeper than that.  It is a part of the Great Work.  Knowing and discovering oneself.  Ultimately that is what pathworking leads to for the serious magician.  Getting to know and being able to discover oneself is not an easy task.  When real life learning takes place it usually comes at a cost.  A tragedy happens and we learn to carry on in the aftermath.  We discover things about ourselves we never would have without that tragedy.  This is how I see pathworking, to a point.  Let me explain.  In pathworking we take the energy of that ritual and we extend it to it’s and ours breaking point.  We  push ourselves further and further unlocking the secrets of the ritual and along with that ourselves.   It is not for the faint of heart.  At times, it can be painful and uncomfortable.  But it can also be a catalyst to a great change and a greater understanding of ourselves as well as the world around us.  The same type of change and understanding that can be brought on by a tragedy.  But at the end of all that work and all that sweat and energy, you are futher along the path to getting to know what you are capable of and what futher discovery may be possible.  On the other side of a tragedy or the other side of pathworking there is greater understanding and greater knowledge about oneself.

So in observing all that, comparing pathworking to a tragedy, recognizing the pain and hard work that goes along with discovery, I would be inclined to ask, “Why the hell would I want to put myself through that?”  A fair question.  This is why I believe that the Demonic has a lot to do with us choosing this type of discovery.  This is the level of communication that is necessary with the Demonic.  We stare into their eyes and then find out we are looking at ourselves.  I do believe that we are influenced by the Demonic to push ourselves to greater heights.  Pathworking, the act of performing a ritual or a group of rituals until anything that can be drawn from the act, is drawn.  I have to be honest, when I have anything that could be defined as “pathworking” it has come upon me by accident.  And many times I have not recognized it until it was over.  This is where I think the Demonic is communicating with me.  Driving me to continue the ritual work until some unseen lever clicks and I am satisfied.  And in turn they are satisfied that I have taken from the ritual or rituals that which was necessary.  I don’t believe pathworking can be done without the influence or the assistance of the Demonic.  Rituals can be done over and over and yes different things can be learned from each working, but unless it is in conjunction with the Demonic, I am not sure it could be called “pathworking”.

 

Pathworking is not an Enigma

Not too long ago I was talking to a young man about training for the priesthood.  He told me about how he’d gone through the training for priesthood in several other traditions and he was always left feeling like the training had no substance.  This left him jumping from tradition to tradition, looking for “the one” that gave him the challenge, depth and structure he so desperately sought.

I wasn’t surprised. I see it all the time; students looking down their nose at a curriculum that appears far too simple to be training for an office, role or title.

Now admittedly I can understand this frustration. A lot of traditions simply expect you to perform rituals X, Y, and Z, where you memorize lines and regurgitate them when asked to. It ends up looking and sounding like a bad High School production of Marlowe’s Dr. Faustus. They may even make you wait a year in between each of these scripted rituals, too, just to make the title at the end of the “training” a little more difficult to get.

Of course we get out of an education what we put into it. So perhaps the fault isn’t in the traditions or their training or their rituals. Perhaps the fault is in the student and their expectations of training for a “higher office”.

That’s the point in the conversation when I pointed out to this young man that all rituals and courses of study, especially the important ones leading you to a specific office or title, were all about the path-working.

Sure, you could do any ritual in an hour (or less) and walk away, calling it done. But when you really work a ritual by giving more than a mere two hours of your time, and really commit to working it by pondering and repeating it for months, working it backward and forward, you are path-working.

When you study a book and experiment with the material six ways to Sunday, that’s path-working.

That’s the difference between just reading a book or doing a ritual, and doing actual path-work.

The old traditions are full of path-work rituals and courses for study cleverly disguised as simple rituals meant to be worked in under and hour and lists of books to be read. But sadly the modern phenomena of the absence of teachers  combined with the instant gratification culture we live in doesn’t do a lot to facilitate path-work. Students don’t understand it because they don’t have a teacher to knowingly shake their head at them, give them a forlorn sigh, and say, “You’ve missed the point. Go back and do it over and this time, slow down and pay attention.”

Path-work actually requires you actually work it. You have to think about the rituals or the material you’re studying.  You have to follow where your questions, curiosity, and answers lead. This also means you have to question the very core of your beliefs and understand every aspect of every ritual and understand the intent behind every incantation uttered.

Path-work is not this enigma we are lead to believe it is and if you are the spiritual or magickal student you think you are, you’ll relish in the path-work and find depth for yourself by understanding that training for an office like the priesthood isn’t about just completing a ritual or reading (I’ve learned the bulk of students merely skim) through a bunch of books.

Instead, it’s about actually finding that one thing you missed and focusing on it for awhile. Then realizing the next thing and focusing on that until you feel you have mastered the lesson.

Several years ago I embarked on my Path of Ptah. When I initially started the ritual I was viewing it as a “becoming as the creator” or a creative force. It took me a year of doing the ritual over and over again, experimenting with it in different ways, thinking about it, studying it, and living the lessons it was teaching me before I discovered that I had missed the most important lesson of all. I was so busy focusing on the end result that I’d missed the lesson in process. So I took another year and focused on the process.

For those of you who don’t know, Ptah isn’t a long ritual. It takes about one hour each time it’s performed. So sure — I could have done my Path of Ptah in an hour and moved on to my next initiatory rite. But I didn’t. Having had the benefit of a teacher who taught me never to do anything in magick half-assed, I worked the ritual until I understood every crack and crevice and element of its design, not to mention all that it could potentially manifest. That little one hour initiatory rite took me two years to complete because I didn’t just do a ritual. I did path-work. I’ve just now moved on to my next “ritual” which I have no doubt I’ll path-work that one, too. That is how I do my magickal and self-work because that’s how I was taught to do it. Not to mention I feel a deeper connection to my magick through path-work.

So next time you find yourself rolling your eyes at some seemingly simple ritual  or course of study, take a step forward and look a little deeper. Chances are you need to slow down and pay attention because you’ve probably missed the point.

Pathworking to Empowerment

To be honest, I was nervous about this month’s writing topic. I was having a hard time nailing down the practice of pathworking, but after sitting down with my copy of The Complete Book of Demonolatry and searching for the area on pathworking that I remembered seeing, I had soon re-acquainted myself with it’s particulars. The passage isn’t very large, but it speaks of exploration and self-discovery. Growth through the exploration of what is new, interesting, and challenging to those on the path. Much like Bluemidknight, this is something I had been doing for some time as well, though perhaps under a different name. It even parallels a topic that I explore in my current book project, and so I would like to share an excerpt from that project for this month’s post. Here it is, I hope you all enjoy!

Indulgence

Often times there is a very negative stigma associated with indulgence, but Satanists view it as an important and vital part of spiritual life. To indulge, is simply to partake in that which makes one happy, nothing more. The negative stigma comes from numerous sources, such as the long-held christian belief that taking too much pleasure in something, is a sin. Satanists however, are expected to indulge and enjoy life as much as possible, for when sadness and sorrow are confronted, they too must be accepted and experienced to the fullest. Both sides of the spectrum, both halves of the whole, must always be respected and allowed to run their course. To not do so, would create an imbalance that would be just as unhealthy as a denial of both experiences completely.

Indulgence fuels and empowers the human spirit, and leads down a path of self-discovery and exploration. For one cannot indulge without knowing what it is that truly brings joy and fulfillment. Unhindered by dogma, Satanists are free to delve deeply within themselves to find what truly brings them joy and satisfaction in life. And once discovered, it is their duty to indulge and pursue that fulfillment and satisfaction whenever prudent. Because again, when sorrow or pain are encountered, there is no flight. A Satanist stands in the face of tribulation, and through the fortitude brought about by emotional balance and strength, weathers the encounter and becomes even more empowered than before. That which does not kill us, truly does make us stronger.

Pathworking mystery

It took me the longest time to figure out what Pathworking is.. I feel dumb now, since someone just explained to me what it was..   I’ve been doing that since I was young in the occult, it was called “ground and center time” or “meditation guidance”.  The rhythmic drum beat, ta ta ta ta ta ta    ta    ta   ta   ta   ta  ta  , the soothing voice of the high priestess and priest  telling us certain things, and the visual effects that our mind’s eye creates.  Felt like I was in occult kindergarden and it was nap time, it was incredible.  For a youth occult practitioner it helped me able to understand visualization with my mind’s eye, to connect, to feel, to sense what it was.. To understand how magick linked between the physical, mental, and spiritual planes.   I highly recommend it  if you have someone in your group that can do it, that understands the speed of drum beats and “key words”  ( rhythmic chanting, visual describing.)  I wish I was skilled in this area, but sadly I rely on a recordings..   Candle light, mysterious darkness, and the sound of a drum… ancient words spoken… images conjured in the mind..  wow really reminiscing a time period so long ago..

Pathworking February

This month the bloggers post about Pathworking. It does appear as two of our early month bloggers were unable to write for this month so please bear with us and hopefully some of our later month bloggers will come up with something nice for you.

Also, this month you’ll be able to get the Official Melissa Press debut title Infernal Colopatiron by S. Connolly.  I am anxiously awaiting my own copy. I’ve heard great things.  Watch tomorrow for the PayPal buttons on the Infernal Colopatiron page (for those of you who didn’t pre-order).

A relatively slow month on our path through 2012.

Frank