Called "The Black Pope" by many of his followers, Anton La Vey began the road to High Priesthood of the Church of Satan when he was only 16 years old and an organ player in a carnival:
""On Saturday night I would see men lusting after halfnaked girls dancing at the carnival, and on Sunday morning when I was playing the organ for tent-show evangelists at the other end of the carnival lot, I would see these same men sitting in the pews with their wives and children, asking God to forgive them and purge them of carnal desires. And the next Saturday night they'd be back at The carnival or some other place of indulgence.
"I knew then that the Christian Church thrives on hypocrisy, and that man's carnal nature will out!""
From that time early in his life his path was clear. Finally, on the last night of April, 1966--"Walpurgisnacht, " the most important festival of the believers in witchcraft--LaVey shaved his head in the tradition of Ancient executioners and announced the formation of The Church Of Satan. He had seen the need for a church that would recapture man's body and his carnal desires as objects of celebration. ""Since worship of fleshly things produces pleasure," he said, "there would then be a temple of glorious indulgence . . .""
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Reviews
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I am a devot christian and was curious of what this "satanic" book had to offer.
The commandments here are pretty similar to the christian bible. I am not offended at all by anything in here, there is nothing moderately satanic in here, these people don't even believe in satan. A very good read though, reccomended.
This is one book I'm very glad is now in my collection, as the old saying goes you should never judge a book by it's cover this book backs that point up fully. The preconceived idea of what satanism is unfortinatly is false, this book gives you the truth to what being a satanist really means.
I have read this book within the first week of buying it and i recommend it to ANYONE who is open minded and does not beleive in that "religion" bullcr@p! I loved it and am now a Satanist and will never look back!
A lot of the above essays give the impression that The Satanic Bible is merely a loose collection of melodramatic ponderings, when nothing could be further from the truth. There is nothing spiritual here, indeed LaVeyan Satanism (the only codified Satanism there truly is) is a form of de facto atheism. This book isn't for those who dropped out of high school before 5th Form and don't understand the terms 'literal' and 'metaphorical'. There are genuinely insightful gems here which can, if desired, be used to further yourself towards whatever goals you've set. Some might find other writings from LaVey morally dubious but, as is mentioned here and in other Church of Satan publications, in Satanism you are your own God and whatever suits your ends is of the highest virtue (within reason). It's not called rational self-interest for nothing. I recommend The Satanic Bible as the founding text of Satanism and a must read for anyone interested in this field of religious study.
A classic book. Great for those interested in Satanism and those interested in religion generally, it is a very different but very valid way of looking at the world. I also liked the brand spanking new cover of this book, worth buying it new just for that. It will make you think about how honest you are being with yourself and where your priorities really lie.
I found this book melodramatic and confused. One thing I'll have to concede to the not-so-dearly departed LaVey however is his awareness of the use of emotion in practical magic, something usually ignored by the majority of ritual magicians. (Myself included.)
This book is an interesting curiosity, mostly for its philosophical musings on God, Satan and organised religion. LaVey makes a number of interesting points, and does so in a way that is intelligent, thought-provoking and darkly humourous. The first half of the book explores LaVey's thinking on topics ranging from his origins to how he came to found the Church of Satan, and perhaps more importantly, why. The second half of the book is full of strange rituals, bizarre incantations and grandiose proclamations of rebellious intent. It's actually very funny in a "Woo! I'm a Satanist! Look at this black dressing gown I'm wearing! Isn't it, like, scary and stuff!" sort of way. In fact, a lot of it is so ridiculously melodramatic it's hard to tell if LaVey was serious or just having a laugh. Given his impish sense of humour and penchant for tongue-in-cheek remarks, I'm leaning more toward the latter.
A very interesting twist on religion and self, The Santanic Bible gives a description of what a means to be a modern satanist. It also gives a short description of LaVeys discovery of the religion, how and why. While alot of the book comprises of various Enochian Keys which confused me, it also goes to show where christianity fails and explain the difference between satanism and the christian version of satan.
I bought this book back when I was an angry teenager, and I still keep it on my bookshelf just as a curiosity.
Despite the title, it would be a stretch to call it a 'bible' - it really isn't all that comprehensive, the fundamental position of the 'religion' is vague, and the author seems to constantly contradict himself...okay, so maybe it is a bible.
Prospective buyers of this book need to know that it is not an ancient text, and it does not definitively represent all 'sects' of Satanism. It is full of spells and hexes for 'witches' and 'warlocks' t perform, which is probably appealing to some people, but I found it a little sad.
If you're interested in creepy stuff about ancient magic you'd be better off spending your money on Frazer's 'The Golden Bough'.
I was curious about satanism and found this book very interesting and helpfull. Irecomend this book to everyone who is curious or serious about satanism.
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