What the Left-Hand Path is all about

The Truth about Contemporary "Satanism"

Mar 7, 2009

A general myth of the Left-Hand Path philosophy is that it is "Satanic" and that those who adhere to it are evil in nature.

The Right-Hand Path (RHP) elevates spirituality, the strict adherence to prescribed moral codes, and in most cases, the exclusive worship of a deity (Christ, Allah, Krsna, Satan, etc.). The intent of the RHP is to attain closeness to or even integration with the divinity. Here, both the path and destination or goal, is predefined and therefore serves as a guide. In most instances there are also associated scriptures believed to be inspired by the respective divinity, such as the Bible, the Koran, the Baghavad Gita, the Satanic Bible, etc.

In the Left-Hand Path belief system individuals seek the guidance of one or more deities/archetypes via religious practices (Set, Satan, Lucifer, etc.), or more commonly, via non-religious uses of individual qualities, such as instincts and logic. Although some sects value closeness to the divine, followers of Left-Hand Path belief systems seek to become divinities in their own right.

Religious LHP Belief SystemsReligious LHP belief systems use a divinity only within a symbolic context, as the individual uses it only as a medium towards his/her own independence. It is theoretically difficult to reconcile religious and non-religious LHP belief systems. The secret lies in understanding that both these groups share a collective destination or goal and that the difference lies only within the method or path of practice. The individual never becomes submissive towards the divinity (compared to Devil Worship or Satanism).

Satanism

Classical Satanism (or Devil Worship) is characterized by submission and contemporary LHP practitioners classify it as a RHP belief system, which approaches divinity by consummation, instead of emulation. Satanism is distinguished from witchcraft and other forms of paganism in that it is dedicated to the antithesis of the God of the Christian Bible (2). It promotes immoral acts, acts of violence, promiscuity, based on the premises that it manifests the anti-Christian nature of the individual. To classify someone that adheres to a LHP belief system as a Satanist provokes conflict. Yet, the use of Satan as an archetype within the LHP belief system does exist. The current Church of Satan uses it.

The Church of Satan was established in San Francisco, California, on April 30, 1966, by Anton Szandor LaVey (3). The former Church attracted much public interest, as well as those that joined it for the same reason. The result was that the management structure of the Church fell apart. Yet, no one can deny that Anton LaVey did groundbreaking work opening the way for others to follow and improve based on his own experience.

The Temple of Set and the Left-Hand Path

The Temple of Set was established in 1975 by Lt. Colonel of the US Army Michael A. Aquino and certain members of the priesthood of the Church of Satan, who left because of administrative and philosophical disagreements with its founder (4). The Temple of Set was incorporated in California that same year as a nonprofit church (5) and still exists today, as one of the most prominent public religious LHP organizations.

Thelema and Xeper

The Temple of Set as an initiatory school does not bind itself to any form of dogma and members are free to explore the path of self-deification, necessarily different and distinctive for each individual. The process of transformation is represented using the word Kheper, or Xeper. As verb it means “I have Come into Being” (6). It is an evolution of the term “Thelema”, which describes the individual Will: to will, wish, purpose. Early Christian writings use the word to refer to the will of God, the human will and even the will of God's opponent, the Devil (7).

Set and Satan

Satan was the one who challenged the RHP belief systems of humans. Since then, the Abrahamic religions have variously regarded Satan as a rebellious fallen angel or demon that tempts humans to sin or commit immoral deeds. Others regard the Biblical Satan as an allegory that represents a crisis of faith, individualism, free will, wisdom and enlightenment (8). Set (also spelled Seth, Sutekh or Seteh) is an ancient god, who was originally the God of the Desert, Storms, Darkness and Chaos. Set's name ultimately means the "Separator" or "Isolator." His chief enemies are the gods of Stasis and Mindlessness (9). Both Set and Satan is antinomian in nature. Yet, Satan represents the act of rebellion, whereas Set represents the ongoing nature of the individual to change, or constant process of Coming into Being, as it is not a once-off process.

Feeling Deceived?

There is a difference between RHP and LHP belief systems that apply Satan as an archetype. Yet, both are generally classified as Satanism. This misconception arises due to a lack of understanding the fundamental difference between the two belief systems. In addition, the LHP belief system allows the individual to use other archetypal figures than Satan, such as Set. It is therefore recommended that much caution is used before classifying the nature of those that follow the LHP belief system.

References

The copyright of the article What the Left-Hand Path is all about in Religious Freedom is owned by Frederick Veldman. Permission to republish What the Left-Hand Path is all about in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.