Skip to content

Welcome!

Welcome to Satanism, newbie! I hope those horns feel good on you. They definitely look good! I'm glad you've come to this place to help find information - and hopefully I'll be able to provide that. Maybe I'll be able to help you find yourself, too!

As a beginner, it can be hard finding out where to even start. You know that this religion feels like the one, but pinpointing how that feeling can guide you deeper into your faith and practice can be difficult.

This page is not to tell you exactly what to do, since everybody's journey is different, but to at least get you started on a topic you wish to understand. Whether that be reading recommendations, websites, personal thoughts, questions you may have, etc., that information should be open and accessible.

Please note that this section will be more personable; meaning that I will be stating my opinions, experiences, and ideas; compared to the Community Grimoire and Pandaemonium, at least.

Please feel free to ignore, deny, or use reason/skepticism with some of the potential claims (either I or others make) in favor of your own beliefs and testimonies.

Things to Keep in Mind

Latent Christianity: How It Impacts Our Faith

A lot of Satanists come from Christianity; hot take, I know. Let me explain why this matters, though.

Religion is more than simply the set dressing and beliefs - it's the culture, the societies, and the relationships that we as the individual have with the greater whole beyond us. Even when we try to deny the impact that our cultures have on us, they are blatant in how we engage with other religions.

I assume that, for most people who will come to my site, they come from a sect of Christianity. And even if they/you are an Atheist, you most likely come from a society that has culturally Christian roots (think Italy, Greece, Spain; places like that). And because of that, there's certain ideas and behaviors that we will have when we first hear about "Satanism", or any other religion we're not familiar with.

If you do not, though, then hello! Hopefully I can explain my point to you, regardless.

Think about the practices and mindset(s) one has to adopt to "perform well" and "prove their belief" in Christianity. The Eucharist, weekly sermons/mass, seminary, Bible Study (alone or with family), vocal expressions of submission/fealty to God, the debates between different sects on which part of Jesus was divine and which was human, and more. Not performing these things - especially not "correctly" - would get you outed as a fake. A charlatain. A sham.

Even when we move away from Christianity, the way in which we remember and think about it remains and bleeds into how we continue engaging with other religions by way of comparing and contrasting with it. This is called "Latent Christianity", and it is common to see in both Occult and Pagan spaces.

Arguments about who is worshipping the Gods correctly, or if your ritual circle was drawn too slightly off or you didn't account for the alignment of the moon in accordance to the growth rates of strawberries all run rampant within these faiths. While yes, you should try to perform a spell or ritual the way it was written if that's what you're trying to do, there is an undercurrent to that idea that many people have in which doing the practice "wrong" means that you can't be a "true believer", whatever that means.

There's a lot of expectation put on that the believer has to perform to keep up with the demands of the religion. Though it can be a lot, there's structure, the security in not having to worry about whether or not you're doing it right so long as you go by the playbook. You get social affirmation, status, titles, even rewards and money out of these performances for the sake of faith.

Satanism doesn't have that, however, and it can be hard going from having an entire system with hierarchies and social safety nets down to rock-bottom loneliness. You don't get a single book to pull everything from, no official rituals or rites or baptisms. You could pull one from a book, but it definitely won't match what other Satanists are doing. Some prefer to dance, some drink and eat, some to sit and think. Some don't do rituals or magic. Some don't pray or worship. Some don't even believe in any spirituality and simply go about their praxis wholly within themselves and their mind.

It can seem like chaos getting through it all, and as a natural reaction, we can find ourselves seeking desperately for structure to affirm ourselves that this belief system is viable. Groups, covens, churches, a figurehead to look up to and worship as if they were the Anti-Christ themselves. Sort of as a return to Christianity, without wanting to commit to being Christian.

Structure and order in these regards aren't inherently a bad thing, but for a Satanist it can seem antithetical to the point of why they left their religion in the first place; to move away from that structure that limited them from being their complete and total selves.

For many Satanists, the heart of Satanism isn't a God - it's you, and because of that the crux of forming a sense of structure in the religion is entirely dependent upon you and what you alone want out of it.

I believe that this is both the biggest boon and the biggest detriment to the religion. When you're able to develop your faith entirely of your own volition, it can only strengthen your connection to that faith. But even knowing where to start, coupled with any Latent Christianity and desire to be affirmed by others, can put you in a gridlock that makes it difficult to take that first step.

How to Find Yourself Within Satanism

Give yourself grace - you deserve it. It's difficult making the jump from one faith to another. Don't beat yourself up for not knowing anything to start, for feeling unsure, for being scared. Even the most fearless of heroes get scared.

One thing I suggest all new Satanists do is to, at present, ignore the grandeur of rituals and spells and building favor with a God/Demon or anything like that. Ignore it all in favor of thinking about what you're trying to achieve within the religion. What do you want the most in this life? Is it a connection to "Satan"? To better understand yourself? To fulfill a need for information, or maybe find out a hidden secret about what life means? Be sure to write it down or save it somewhere.

This goal will be at the heart of your system, and of course, you can always change it. But knowing what you want is half the battle of finding and forging that path to get to it. Already, you have some sort of structure, because now you have two things: yourself, and your goal. Filling in the rest is a journey.

Give yourself time; if you need to take longer to really figure it out what it is you want and need, then do it.

How to Know When You're Ready to Convert

When you feel like it. No, really. You will convert when you are ready, if that is what you seek.

Any worthwhile commitment takes time, thought, and energy. It takes hours of ourselves pouring through books, asking hard questions, meditation, and researching.

We do this all the time with other commitments - looking for a job, college, a future partner. We weight our options - does this job pay enough? Does this college have a program to the degree I want? Do I want my future partner to respect me for who I am?

The same care must be held with religion. It may take time for you to pray, to study, to create your own praxis. Hell, you may find yourself in another religion entirely and not even realize what you were doing until months later as you crawl out of the rabbit hole.

But you owe that to yourself. You owe yourself that time to think before you take that commitment and label of being a Satanist. Whether you're a (closeted) Atheist who merely wants to adopt and adapt the philosophy, or a Devil Worshipper who wants all the power in the world, you deserve yourself the time and care to think about whether or not you really want to convert.

It's okay. You're doing great. And thank you, really, for using my site as a resource.

How to Find Your "Sect"

Satanism actually does, in fact, have different organizations and sects despite the implications that Satanism is without hierarchy, or is entirely anarchical. While this is true on an individual level (in that we all form our own beliefs and systems), on an organizational level, this is not true.

But how do you find your "sect"? Well, different people will use different terms. Some refer to themselves by their coven or group they adhere to. I could lists groups all day, but I find this vastly unhelpful to new people who want something more general explained to them. So instead, I'm going to share some general terms and the names of some more prominent groups that you would more readily see when researching into Satanism.

Please know these terms are not binding, and you're more often to see Satanists fit in multiple camps. It's also common to switch between them. Don't find these definitions binding by any means.

Also note that my explanations will be highly generalized. I don't exactly want to explain the entire histories of some of these groups (or their drama/scandals), just their general values.

Atheistic Satanism

LaVeyan Satanism

LaVeyan Satanism, also known as the Church of Satan, is an Atheistic sect formed in the 1960's prior to and within the Satanic Panic of the 1980's (which still, in part, echoes to today). The religion was put together and codified by Anton LaVey and a few of his closest confidantes (such as Michael Aquino).

The religion heavily emphasizes the Self and one's relation to society and the natural world - and that there are no Gods but the ones man makes up in their minds as a means of controlling their true nature: carnality and hedonistic pleasure. Though they may not believe in God, however, it is not uncommon for them to build altars and shrines, as well as perform rituals, usually as a sort of psychologically focused "play" to prime and engage the mind.

The primary texts they refer to are those written by LaVey, most notably The Satanic Bible and The Satanic Rituals. They remain some of the most accessible Satanic texts to this day.

Author's Note: I like to joke that they're "Orthodox Satanists". Because they're the first codified Satanic church, a lot of LaVeyans see themselves as the truest form of practicing Satanism. Anything else is either a bastardization or- in the case of Theists- "Devil Worship", not Satanism, since it is not a codified part of the religion. I could comment a lot on this, but I won't. Feel free to come to your own conclusions.

The Satanic Temple

The Satanic Temple, also known as TST, was formed by Lucien Greaves. His approach is different from LaVey's in that instead of focusing on the Self (though that's still a core part of the group's "beliefs"), they also set their eyes on fighting against religious injustice and using their status as a codified church to play the system against evangelism.

They lean towards Humanism and one's place in society, rather than Autotheism and one's Self-image. They run by their own values and rules, though they won't be afraid to adapt from more theistic/literary references (such as Revolt of the Angels), or non-theistic sources in philosophy. Some of TST's adherents may even pull from LaVey's writings, still.

They combine aspects of Romantic Satanism (which I'll explain later) and Rational (Atheistic) Satanism.

Theistic Satanism

Traditional Satanism - "Devil Worshipping"

This would be what you think of when you're imagining Theistic Satanism. This belief system can range from simply someone who sees the Christian God as evil and Satan as good, all the way to Anti-Cosmic Gnostics who wish to see the universe return to a system of Chaos and/or Nothingness. It is important to note, however, that while this is a more unified view of Satan and God, there are still a variety of beliefs and groups that explain the nitty-gritty details in their own ways.

A prominent example is Rev. Cain, who is a recommended read for a large portion of new Theistic Satanists, even if they find it doesn't work out for them or they join a different sect. He's a good example of what a Traditional Satanist may be like. The Infernal Gospel, as well as The Satanic Philosopher, are decent introductions.

Demonolatry

Demonolatry is in a strange Quasi-Satanist position. It's spiritual, but not all adherents are necessarily "Satanists" in a traditional sense. Below is a quote from S. Connolly, who essentially made the practice mainstream. This quote is from her primary boo, The Complete Book of Demonolatry.

Demonolatry was unlike anything Satanism has seen at the time, and it still is today. Formed from the coven Connolly attended, it has become a system and a practice that centers around the view that the Demons are representative aspects of various forms of energies in the universe. It affirms many Gods and Spirits from many cultures, and takes a more distinctly Animistic approach to Satanism.

However, while Connolly has formed her system and shared her UPG (Unverified Personal Gnosis), many adherents use it as an augmentative practice to their own belief system. This means you don't have to be a Satanist to engage in Demonolatry.

Author's Note: I liken it to a modern, eclectic form on Animism that relies more on personal experience and experimentation with divinity than a hard-set belief system. A lot of Demonolators (practitioners of Demonolatry) may use it as an overlay on top of their current belief system. An example is a Jew who engages with the Sheydim under a distinctly Jewish and Demonolatric context. This is to be respected as a valid practice under Demonolatry. And I can say this example because I know a Jewish Demonolator, hehe!

Back to Your Regularly-Scheduled Programming: Demonolatry can also be likened to a Paganization of Satanism. Connolly focused a lot on the idea that you can basically pull Gods from many pantheons and worship/venerate them to your desire. So, a lot of Demonolators also adhere to Pagan faiths and belief systems. Personally, I also (primarily) follow Canaanite NeoPaganism, specifically of the Ugaritic tradition. And I still consider myself a full-fledged Satanist. Pretty cool, right?

Gnostic Satanism and Anti-Cosmic Satanism

Disclaimer: Okay, I need to clarify something before I talk about Anti-Cosmic Satanism. I am not advocating for the ostracism of adherents to any form of this system. However, I will be clear in that a lot of the groups that attribute(d) to the Satanic Panic often adhered to a very specific set of beliefs and practices that included hurting and even killing other people. Not all Gnostic Satanists- or even Anti-Cosmic Satanists- fit this mold at all.

Gnostic Satanism is similar to Traditional Satanism in many ways, but also departs from it in many ways. They may agree with Traditionalists in that God is evil and we should fight him for our freedoms, but they often take it a step further and say we need to return to our original source - that being Chaos, Darkness, or Nothingness. And, like always, they have their own systems and beliefs regarding this.

Some groups are more focused on the violent aspects of it - The Misanthropic Luciferian Order comes to mind, which consisted of many unfortunate sacrifices of other people. However, there are more positive takes, such as Vedantic Nihilism (coined by the band Grave Gnosis) which focuses more on the spiritual journey to the dissolution with No-Thing, or No-Thingness.

Quasi-(A)Theism and Other(s)

Romantic Satanism

Romantic Satanism is a literary movement focused on bringing the Biblical Satan to a more prominent (though not always positive) light. Notable writers include William Blake, John Milton, and Anatole France, though it can include others more modern (or more archaic).

The texts within Romantic Satanism are often used by Atheists and Theists alike - and they are the closest to "scripture" we may ever get. The theme of these stories are usually centered around Rationalism, questioning authority, enlightenment, and personal creativity. Some Satanists will enjoy one author more than another, but all of them are generally respected. The Satanic Temple has a Romantic take on Satan, despite seeing him as symbolic.

Luciferianism

A highly specialized practice focusing in on Lucifer specifically. Not only is Lucifer known as a fallen angel, but he was also believed to be a Roman God (equivalent to Eosphoros/Phosphoros) as the Son of Dawn, of Eos (Goddess of the Dawn). This has lead to a huge branch within Satanism. Not all Luciferians will call themselves Satanists, but within Satanism they are connected to and welcomed within.

This religion has near to no standardized practice or belief system. However, the common themes surround enlightenment, change, self-deification, and personal development. Some practice Luciferianism on top of Satanism, as a sorter "lighter half" of the coin. Both Atheists and Theists adhere to Luciferianism, though you're more likely to meet a Theist who is a Luciferian.

Independent Satanism

This is a term some Satanists will apply to themselves, either on top of other labels or on their own. Nearly all Satanists are Independent in some form, even if they subscribe to LaVeyan Satanism or The Satanic Temple.

Independent Satanism is the most eclectic form, which seeks to combine a multitude of practices that ultimately make one cohesive system. These systems are personalized and individualized, which means everyone who subscribes to it will be different.

The beliefs cannot be condensed. Whether in philosophy or spirituality, Satanists of all kinds will come to their own conclusions as to what to believe or not believe.

How to Start a Practice

A Foreword

One thing to keep in mind is that, for most Satanists, they will ultimately pick and choose what their practice is. That means that every practice will be different between Satanists, with many different religions and forms of media that they will reference from.

However, I have a few qualms with this when it comes to helping new practitioners out with formulating their own daily routine. Aside from leaving new people high and dry on where to even start, it can increase the barrier to entry on both reading and praxis, and may pull the Satanist away from the experience of being a Satanist.

I hope to rectify this issue by sharing some of my own practices, and resources that helped me. Please be aware that these resources are from differing faiths and approaches - however, I find that inspiration can come from many places. Take what you wish, and leave the rest, regardless.

This site is also under the assumption that you will be brand new to everything. I can't promise advanced material in the future, since that is not the goal of this site, but we shall see as time goes on. If you are already advanced, feel free to skip any sections as needed.

Daily Meditation

Daily meditation is a universal practice regardless of faith, and is highly recommended for the new practitioner. Aside from any spiritual benefits anyone may claim it has, meditation can be both a grounding tool and an awareness tool, allowing the practitioner to exercise their ability to maintain their focus and mindfulness of themselves and their surroundings.

Meditation is recommended prior to any rituals or major, deeper aspects of practice. The reason being is not only its simplicity, but its adaptability. We aren't always able to dedicate an hour of our time to casting a large pentagram and chanting to the lowest Hells for a Demon to attend teatime and crumpets with us in the hopes they'll help us with next week's test or meeting (so put that Earl Grey away! Disgusting!). By comparison, meditation requires nothing but you, your mind, and maybe 5 minutes, though 10-15 oftentimes tends to be enough of a sweetspot for most new people.

The practice below is a basic form of meditation that is not "not thinking about anything". There are many different forms of meditation, and it would be unfair to start out with one of the hardest forms to do (for most people).

Put yourself in a room with minimal distractions (meaning no pets, nearby family members, or traffic). If you cannot avoid sound, feel free to put on music, move to another location, see it as an added challenge, or suffer (in all fairness, what else are you to do?). The room should be dark enough, with minimal light or flickering of light. Some prefer to use a candle, which I will address in a moment.

I do not recommend laying down. Sitting up in a chair will do just fine. Got a bad back? Lumbar support may be required. But do not lay down unless you want to fall asleep, which sort of ruins the purpose of the meditation, since you can't exactly be mindful when you're asleep.

Some people prefer to use a candle as the focal point of their attention, but personally I found that the shifting flame was too distracting. Instead, I use my breathing as the focus point during my meditation. Choose what works best for you.

Set a timer on your phone (minimum 5min, recommended 10-15min), sit up straight in front of your lit candle (if you have one), and close your eyes. Focus on the light of the flame filtering through your eyelids, or your breathing. It is okay to focus on the effort of inhaling and exhaling.

Now, the hard part: focus on it, and do not pull that focus away. Do not analyze any incoming thoughts in-depth. Let your mind flow, but do not entertain it (as in, don't let your mind get into a wordy rant about why flames are blue in the middle).

"But ADHD! But my family! But my dog/cat/fish! I can't focus with all of this stuff happening around me..."

It won't come in a day. Meditation will be frustrating at first. You'll be focusing on the flame, and then suddenly you're wondering what's for dinner tonight. Part of the challenge is the point of the meditation. Mindfulness and focus are both skills to develop, not just use. We take these things for granted, and become frustrated when we are unable to do something "easy" or "basic" or "instinctual". But almost every skill is learned, even focus. Don't belittle yourself over this.

You will struggle. But you will also succeed. When you find yourself drifting in focus, simply reel it back in. Over time you'll find your groove and method.

Below are a couple resources I used to get myself started. You will most likely find more on your own time (and this is a good thing), but these two below are what helped me the most.

- Quareia's first lesson is on meditation. Josephine McCarthy, in my opinion, does a good job explaining step by step what you should do to start practicing (unguided) meditation. The only downside is that if you wish to use her method, discipline may be required. Adapt as necessary!

- Plum Village has a completely free application that helps with guided meditation. The context is Buddhist, however, which may throw new people off if they were looking for something more... Occult. But if you want my (completely biased and unfounded) opinion on the matter, I say spirituality and knowledge is found everywhere!

Keeping A Journal

Journals can be... difficult. They're hard to keep track of, not only because it requires us to go on a schedule (or so many of us think), but also because it incentivizes aestheticism over function.

To be honest, most journals are quick scrawls, drawings, and quick sentences that don't quite make sense. Entries are done when they're done - and left for months when they're not. But it's easy going on TikTok or Instagram and finding people with "Study Bibles" full of 15 different coordinated highlighter colors and stickynotes that rehash the same thing over and over again, lazily labeled as "analysis" when they do little more than add to the rubble of repeated thoughts.

The reality is that journals are meant to be logs, not means of gaining clout. They're messy, uncoordinated, unsure yet also entirely confident in what they're saying. Too often do we get caught up in how it looks rather than how it functions, and then we don't actually want to do them because we don't want to put the creativity in.

I am guilty of this, myself. This website has been in the works for a very long time because I was so worried about how it looked, that I ignored its function as both a resource site and a place for me to share my thoughts.

One thing I often find myself doing is yapping on Discord about the nature of spirits, their connections, what they mean to me, what certain words in Ugaritic Cuneiform mean, and more. It simply interests me more to put my thoughts in a format where others can engage with it, especially since I also like to ask a lot of Theological questions that may even make people uncomfortable.

I thought this a weakness. You idiot, I would chastise myself late at night. You spent all that time talking about Jesus' humanity on fucking Discord and didn't even write that journal entry you said you would do!

It would get me in this cycle of despair where I found myself continually putting off doing my journal because I already missed a day, or I didn't want to write things down, or I thought it was stupid and embarrassing and shouldn't be shared.

But I realized that line of thinking made those things true. It was stupid, because I thought so. It shouldn't be shared, because I thought so. It shouldn't be written, because I didn't want to. All those things became true because I made them true. I made those feelings real.

So, I adapted.

I simply put in my Discord rants and chats into my now digital journal I keep on my computer. I got a thought I pasted on Discord that day? Save it. I might expand on that thought later, or realize something and want to write down more, or type more, or share more.

Sometimes my art is my journal entry. Words are a bit useless when an image says how I feel. Years later when I look at it again, I can reminisce and enjoy the fact that I saved what I was doing.

Sometimes I go on my computer, make a note, write "Blegh, feeling bad. Hopefully Belzebul can help me with that later when I give some of my beer", and that's it. Most days I got nothing. Not everyday needs something going on - you're not a spiritual failure because you had a simple day. Simple days can be absolute blessings in this era.

My point is that I made it easier on myself to keep a journal by letting go of the expectations I was putting on myself and adapting to my needs, not my wants. The pretty colors and formatting will come with time. But for now, I just gotta get my thoughts out. That's all that matters. Hell, it definitely takes less time.

Some resources will suggest you keep a strict journal. If you can do that, wonderful. Even better if you think you can't but are able to anyways. But personally, I simply can't. So I don't. Why waste time on something fundamentally unhelpful to my ability?

A Daily Practice - AN EXAMPLE

Please note that the following is a daily practice I do. You do not have to do this, but for people who are new to meditation, or who struggle with doing something daily, this could help. It does for me, and that's good enough when most days I lack the motivation or ability to do much more. I've written this out to a friend a few months ago, so the formatting is different from how I would typically write on this site. Please forgive me, but I hope this helps you.

The reason why I’m giving you this example (despite it seeming decently secular) is because I consider it important to take each day as a step. We expect events to be major to impact our lives, but the little moments that we take to better ourselves are just as important.

This really shouldn’t take more than 15-20 minutes a day, I think it’s small enough for a newcomer to get used to in a rhythm. But if you struggle with writing these things down, since you may not always have the ability to do so, doing it in your mind will help you stay conscientious of your actions.