I am not seeking to promote or condone the far right in this article, but to merely examine this aspect or trend within Satanism and what significance, if any, it plays, literally or symbolically. I am not seeking to discredit or 'pick on' any one individual or organisation. The focus on the ONA in this article was not the intention of the author at the outset, but it has grown organically over time. This article is more about the organisations and their connections, and the meaning of far right symbolism, as opposed to the actual magical practices of these groups and the magical uses of symbolism, which for many is really much of interest. For many readers, who said, did or is affiliated to what is really very uninteresting.
Anton LaVey is pictured above wearing the inverted pentagram featuring the lightning bolt in the centre. This version of the inverted pentagram is not featured on the COS web site. The lightning bolt represents the lightning from Thor's Hammer, and is a symbol of war, strength and power, and was used famously by the SS, i.e. two parallel lightning bolts.
LaVey is alleged to have joined the National Resistance Party (a US Neo-Nazi Group) in 1970, according to COS defector Michael Aquino (who founded the breakaway Theistic Satanist Group 'The Temple of Set'). In 1979 the NRP staged a rally marking the 10th aniversary of the "sacrifice" of Sharon Tate (murdered wife of Roman Polanski) by Charles Manson (a random racially motivated murder by a drug addict/loser bum), in which the daughter Zeena LaVey read from the Satanic Bible.
See the link below, 'Myth 14'. This page was produced by Uncommon Sense Ministries and some may find some of the other points 'biased' or typically hard line Christian.
'...the Church of Satan...founded in 1966...harbors people of various lifestyles under the premise that the denial of man's animal nature inherent in traditional religions should be rejected and replaced with a celebration. The religion's doctrines, most notably The Satanic Bible, contain ideas of social Darwinism which are taken more seriously by some practitioners than others. Modern Satanism is not comparable to traditional Satan worship; instead, it is based in a more or less atheistic viewpoint, using the archetype of Satan to represent characteristics such as a questioning spirit, man's animal tendencies, and strength...The presence of members and leaders of the organization who understand and exploit the power of Nazi symbols is probably part of the reason for constant rumors that the Church of Satan is a haven for neo-nazis, despite writings to the contrary and a membership composed of diverse nationalities and races. LaVey did at times touch on the subject of Nazism, sometimes citing its success with aesthetics and control of the masses, while making clear that its atrocities outweighed its successes. His most thorough treatment of the Nazi aesthetic can be found in an essay called "A Plan", in which he states that Satanism is the only forum in which people can mix Jewish ancestry with a Nazi aesthetic, truly playing the role of the other. Such a combination would be the perfect "tough identity" for a new generation with mixed backgrounds. Essays such as these, as well as a rejection of racism in the Satanic Bible, cause many with a true neo-Nazi agenda to snub the organization.'
Zeena LaVey, Nikolas Schreck and the Werewolf Order:
Nikolas Schreck (Schreck is the German word for terror) formed a goth/rock/industrial group called 'Radio Werewolf' in 1984. The original line up lasted from 1984 to 1988 (pictured above looking arguably rather comical and 'unsinister' like extras from the Munsters). The name was derived from 'Radio Werwolf', the post-World War II Nazi propaganda radio station. Live on stage, they would use Nazi Swastika flags. The band even campaigned for the release of Charles Manson. The original band split up in 1988, with one member citing political differences and the rest of the band tiring of all the Neo-Nazi skinheads who would heavily populate their concerts. Not everyone in the band minded however. The band split up in 1988.
Below is a series of 3 interviews with Nikolas Schreck and Tom Metzger, a leading US Neo-Nazi and KKK member, from the late 1980s.
'...we are going to see a new social movement in the 90s that will make Nazism and Fascism seem like Kindergarten.'
A hilarious interview with Schreck from the mid-80s can be seen below.
Schreck claims that Radio Werewolf was music for white Aryans, and that the most 'authentic' form of Western or European culture was the Germanic. Anthropologists would likely take issue with such a subjective statement. As discussed on the Difference page, this concept is inherently racist, i.e. drawing racial distinctions and reinforcing them, but is no more racist than say many rap artists. However, Schreck's repeated references to strong Germanic tribes, Aryans and 'whites', and his past Neo-Nazi inspired aesthetic would be evidence enough that he was some sort of Nazi sympathiser, for all the slightly evasive world play; a white supremacist at the very least.
Nikolas Schreck also wrote the revisionist book The Manson File and the film 'documentary' entitled Charles Manson Superstar. They believed him to be an Aryan folk hero, trying to create a white colony, when in fact he was a very sloppy criminal and drug addict, frequently arrested, who decided later to have some gullible, drugged up hippies do his racially motivated killing for him, perhaps so it could not be pinned on him, or perhaps just for fun. TenHornedBeast has argued that this was an attempt to elevate Manson to a messiah-like figure for Satanic White Supremacism. One would expect such 'elitists' to pick a more classy 'hero' than someone like Manson. It is probably also a little bit of gratuitous shock value, that certain Satanists seem to embrace for kicks.
In the same year of inception of the group, Radio Werewolf (in 1984), Nikolas Schreck founded the organisation The Werewolf Order. The order was to specialise in predatory magic, 'shape-shifting' and transformation, in line with the archetype of the Lycanthrope or Werewolf.
The remit of this was to be a more aggressive organisation from either the TOS or COS, promoting the pursuit of predatory magic and for nurturing leadership and domination, and to create a new dark order in the world. Their logo features the German Cross, yet the order has nothing to do with Germany other than flirtation with Teutonic symoblism and imagery. Some writers suggest that it was mainly focussed on animal rights!
The band Radio Werewolf was continued under the same name in 1988, after the break up, with Nikolas Schreck and new recruit Zeena LaVey. Zeena LaVey married Nikolas Schreck in the same year, and also joined the Werewolf Order as co-director.
The term 'Werewolf' is presumably inspired by the name Hitler coined for the last-ditch effort to create a German commando force that would operate behind Allied lines, called Werwolf or Wherwolf. The term Werewolf has been used by some Neo-Nazi groups in more recent years. An example of a Werwolf pendant is shown above.
'The first edition of Adam Parfrey's "Apocalypse Culture" book had a manifesto from the Werewolf Order that was removed from later editions, laying out their agenda as transmitters of an end-time message.'
Below is one of a series of 10 videos on boobtube of an interview of Zeena LaVey and Nikolas Schreck (of the Werewolf Order) by the evangelical (and slightly misinformed) Christian Bob Larson. Perhaps strategically not the best choice of interviewer, being the 'adversary' of LaVey Satanism, but perhaps there were no other takers in the mainstream media. Given the interviewer's religious bias and rigid views, he is making an effort to be as logical as he can be.
Whether the Werewolf Order really existed or was merely the name for Nikolas Schreck's spiritual artistic output and expression, and for the misanthropic (i.e. predatory) and lycanthropic (transformation) magic rituals they created (later published by Michael W. Ford - see below) during his time with Radio Werewolf (i.e. another brand), rather than a formal 'Order' with dozens or hundreds of members in different countries is a matter of debate, but I have not yet seen any evidence to suggest that it any more than the former, hyped/talked up a little by Nikolas and Zeena.
Zeena LaVey, daughter of Anton LaVey, is pictured (very sexily!) below, a picture probably from the early 1980s. She was High Priestess of the Church of Satan from 1985 to 1990.
Zeena LaVey (later Schreck after her marriage with Nikolas Schreck) left the CoS in 1990 in disgust at her father's lies, corruption and charlatanism, and formally and ritually exorcised herself of all affiliation with him and the CoS. Some time in the early 1990s, Zeena and Nikolas ceased their involvement with the Werewolf Order. In 1995, they both joined the Temple of Set, a Theistic Satanic organisation (i.e. the pair definitely having moved away from atheism to theism), but owing to spiritual differences, they left in 2002. Zeena had been a Priestess in the Temple of Set from 1995 to 2001. Zeena founded the International Vanguard of the Sethian Movement in 2002, wherein she was the High Priestess, which is now defunct.
Zeena Schreck (formerly LaVey) is at the time of writing living in Europe as a photographer, a far cry from earlier aspirations for domination. Perhaps she has grown up a little or become more laid back and wiser. Or perhaps this is just an artistic outlet for the same philosophy.
It would appear that both Zeena and Nikolas have matured over the years, and are less militant or active than they used to be. The Temple of Set is certainly not as militant and militaristic as the Schrecks used to be, and is more in keeping with the law of the land. I cannot comment on the organisation that Zeena formed after leaving the ToS. However the archetype of Set is a long way away from that embraced by many radical Satanists who want to create a new order of chaos and domination.
Zeena Schreck's son, Stanton LaVey, has chosen to stick with the LaVey family's LaVey Satanism legacy rather than his mother's Theistic Satanist direction. Statnon LaVey co-founded the 'extreme' retail outlet 'Odium' - which means 'widespread hatred'. Books on various forms of national socialism, including fascism and 'black' power are sold, including a variety of other types of books. It is noted that no books on anthropology or cultural studies are included in the list. Is this for shock value or a deliberate glamorisation of the far right and racism? Is Fascism the new 'Anarchy'? Step right up folks, anarchy for sale! The study of Fascism or Nazi history is only interesting for me, as is th study of serial killers, if it is done from a psychoanalytical perspective. The gratuitous focus on Charles Manson at Odium hints at the false use of his legacy as a 'white folk hero' or a sexed up version of the myth around Manson rather than any reality. Odium seems like the exploitation of shock value for its own end, or to promote philosophies of hatred, and to make a buck, rather than providing an intelligent contribution to learning.
'Odium is a store specializing in the darkest nature of humanity. It is a candy store for researchers and collectors alike. Carrying difficult or impossible to find books, magazines, CD"s, LP"s, videos, DVD"s, original art and artifacts pertaining to the most controversial subjects in history, it offers something to interest and/or repulse virtually anyone. Categories include Celebrity Scandals, True Crime, Witchcraft, Deviant Sex & Filth, Crazy Christians, Death, Philosophy, Black Power, Fascist Studies, Conspiracy, Satanism, UFO"s, and the most complete Charles Manson & Manson Family collection to date.'
Shadow Reichenstein is a German metal band (arguably a Misfits rip off act but without the sense of humour) affiliated with/are spokespeople for the modern day equivalent of the Werewolf Order. The two 'divisions' are Werewolf Order Europe and Werewolf Order Women's Division. Whether these new designations of the Werewolf Order are actually the same organisation or the resulting organisation from the original Werewolf Order, I cannot say. But it appears merely to be the promotional arm or fan club of the metal group Shadow Reichenstein (perhaps in the same tradition as for Radio Werewolf?)
Shadow Reichenstein are obsessed with World War Two German SA and SS style uniforms, wearing German Crosses and having SS style Armbands but with the WO logo on it. Their strap line is 'RAPE, KILL, PILLAGE AND BURN!!' Is this a metaphor for destruction of that which they do not like, or literal? Presumably they don't want anyone to rape their girlfriends (or boyfriends). The drummer wears a German World War One style gas mask and helmet, which I guess he thinks looks cool, but is of course historically incorrect given the WWII theme. Most boys grow out of a fascination with historical German military aesthetics in their early teens. Except for WWII battle re-enactments in the UK, where the number of people who like to dress up as Nazis outnumbers the actual 'British' troops by a large margin. What kind of band promotes a conformist organisation where you need to pay a membership fee? That's hardly rock and roll is it?
The German Cross is of course not a Nazi symbol per se, as it is still in use by Germany today, as it is a symbol of the German nation. The usage of it however is likely inspired by the German nation and army of WWI and WWII, where it is found amongst Hell's Angels, Heavy Metal Bands and of course Neo-Nazis. It is seen as a symbol of power and strength, representing the warrior spirit. Which is somewhat strange given its current historical context. One might argue that Shadow Reichenstein wear it because it is not legal in Germany to wear the Swastika or display it in public.
Clearly the Werewolf Order Europe and Shadow Reichenstein either like historic German military uniforms and some aspects of Nazi imagery and occult power, or they are actually Neo-Nazis. It is probably the former, although there is a large amount of scope for Neo-Nazis and National Socialists to feel particularly comfortable in these circles, and possibly blend in seamlessly. Some fans and members maybe take the imagery too seriously. One thing is likely, if Hitler was alive today, or if we could recreate a modern version of the Fourth Reich (the Fifth Reich?), then he would probably want to cleanse Germany of rebellious individuals who dressed in gothic clothes, and who openly professed Satanism, as 'freaks' (from his perspective) and social misfits rather than representing a pseudo-traditional view or vision of Germany; and indeed eliminate anyone that he could not easily control and manipulate, even if they supported the same ends and helped him in various ways in the past, like he did with the Brown Shirts (SA) during the Night of the Long Knives.
One could of course argue that the use of historical military German imagery, representing a period in history when German was a military aggressor, starting two World Wars in Europe (at least starting the Northern European part of WWI), is simply an archetype for strength and power, and utilising that archetype for one's own personal reasons, to make one feel more confident or empowered, does not necessarily mean one is a racist. In the same way that a person who listens to crustcore punk is not necessarily an anarchist, and a person who listens to early 80s Skrewdriver is not necessarily a racist - but of course many are. In a sense Satanists could well be using Neo-Nazi or Nazi imagery in the same way that they use inverted Christian imagery - to create a 'new meaning' for this imagery which is self-empowering to them - i.e. personal power or strong and aggressive individualism and desire to protect one's freedom (as opposed to a collectivist National Socialist meaning) - allegedly.
The affinity for the portrayal of violence and militarism for some aspiring Satanist teenagers is struggle for identity, to express anger and personal-power, and an excuse to deny their softer side. A form of front and false confidence. It is arguably a projection of the shadow. It is usually all talk and no trousers as few if any of the individuals who use such violent imagery could or would ever do it. The minority of individuals who genuinely have such violent desires may find certain Satanic groups safe havens where their beliefs can become further justified, whereupon it may actually culminate in violence. Whether they are formal members of Satanic orders or just find inspiration from the various bands that use such imagery.
However, it could equally be argued that whilst one may use such archetypes (in a restricted sense and without reference to genocide etc.) from time to time or to explore a part of one's character, there are other ways to achieve this; e.g. one might look to the skinhead movement if one wanted to embrace an archetype of strength that was not necessarily racist or associated with genocide - but this is not as readily assimilable to the 'goth' aesthetic that many Satanists sheepishly adhere to; nor would it embrace the spirit of domination as well as the Nazi imagery does (as the Werewolf Order is about 'leadership' and directing others). Nikolas Schreck himsefl actually praised the skinhead movement as it was one of the few threatening youth cultures of today that genuinely went against middle class and politically correct values - even though he always stuck to the goth aesthetic himself. Indeed embracing an archetype from time to time is one thing, but going around ALL THE TIME wearing Neo-Nazi resembling outfits or clothing is quite another. A few punk bands or industrial bands have dressed up as Nazis once or twice in their careers as a joke on fascism, but to dress up in Nazi SS style uniforms on a routine basis, and to have an anti-Nazi stance, is rather ridiculous. The whole thing smells of conformity and stereotype if nothing else. Aren't individualists supposed to be themselves and create something new, and dare to be different, rather than conforming to the same old stereotypes?
One could also argue that various Satanic organisations and metal bands embrace historical Nazi imagery in order to soften the negative association and indeed create a positive association for many teens, goths, death metal fans and indeed those interested in the occult and Satanism. A way to draw more people into National Socialism and indeed Neo-Nazism, by their interest in rebelling against society, doing what they want, and embracing survival of the fittest on a personal level to gain control of their own lives; the jump to full blown Neo-Nazism being reduced by the softening of the previous negative associations.
Boyd Rice is a well known figure in the US Neo-Nazi scene (not necessarily actually a Neo-Nazi, but well known in these circles) and a senior member of the CoS. He was Marilyn Manson's mentor for many years, and to what extent Mariyln Manson subscribes to his ideas about fascism it is not certain, but he does share his love of the 1940s German Aesthetic. One could argue that MM was using the names of two iconic white supremacist/Aryan folk heros, Marilyn Monroe and Charles Manson, or perhaps he idolised and hero worshipped them as a youth. Perhaps also the name is meant to combine beauty and the beast in some form, for shock value and as an anti-cultural statement. A little like the Post-Hardcore band Elvis Hitler did over a decade earlier, arguably more amusingly, but were never pretentious enough for the singer to call himself 'Elvis Hitler'. Perhaps he likes the genderless implication of the female/male name, which flirts with homosexuality. Either way it is a high derivative, uninspired and unoriginal name that makes him look rather ridiculous. Referencing Charles Manson is so old hat. Clearly calling himself Charles Monroe would not have been as 'cool'! Without his makeup, posturing, fancy lighting and backgrounds, black leather and semi-Nazi outfits, he looks like a rather effeminate, baby-faced, pale faced and meek looking/sounding long haired person.hippie. Art and self-expression are one thing, when on stage and in music videos, but appearing in all this make up and wearing shades in interviews and when out in public is a sign of being a poser.
Rice was a close, personal friend of the late Anton LaVey. Boyd Rice was asked by Anton LaVey before his death whether he wanted to take over as High Priest of the Church of Satan and run it after Anton's death, being much younger. Rice declined. Rice was later awarded an honorary Priesthood by the CoS, presumably by Gilmore, then later a Magister in the Council of Nine of the CoS.
Rice's music group was known as 'NON'. Boyd Rice is pictured below wearing a variant on the symbol of Baphomet pendant.
The NON symbol is virtually identical to the post-war Nazi propaganda radio station Radio Werwolf, as shown in the previous section, with the addition of an Ouroboros.
'Like Pearce and DIJ, Boyd Rice has consistently embraced fascism throughout his career as an experimental noise artist. In addition to wearing fascist uniforms and imagery and giving nazi salutes on stage, there is wide range of evidence indicating that Rice is a nazi at heart. Rice set up an explicitly fascist show on August 8th, 1988 in San Francisco called 8-8-88 [also attended by leading Satanists such as the group Radio Werewolf]."88" is a code phrase commonly used in fascist circles for "Heil Hitler" (H is the 8th letter of the alphabet). Rice is also infamous for a photograph in which he is wearing the uniform of the neo-nazi American Front and sitting next to his friend Bob Heick, the leader of the American Front at that time. In 1986, Rice was a friendly guest on the television show hosted by Tom Metzger of WAR (White Aryan Resistance). When Metzger asked Rice: "So whereas modern music propaganda is an instrument of Jewish interest and Black and so forth, you see emerging a new propaganda form for white Aryans?" Rice replied:"Yeah, yeah." Rice founded a group called the Abraxas Foundation along with Holocaust-denier Keith Stimley. The Abraxas Foundation published a newsletter called WAKE, which told its readers that "nature adheres to an Immutable Order" in short, humanity is democratic, nature is fascist. Rice has been known to sell at his shows and read as part of his performance from a racist, anti-Semitic book called "Might is Right", by Ragnar Redbeard. "Might is Right" includes an afterword from George Eric Hawthorne, the former singer of the neo-nazi band RAHOWA (RAcial HOly WAr) and founder of the white power music label Resistance Records. The book was edited by Katja Lane, wife of the imprisoned David Lane, a neo-nazi member of the Order that committed several armored car heists and murdered Jewish talk-show host Alan Berg in the 1980s. Proceeds from the book go to support David Lane and similar white supremacist political prisoners. Though Rice claims not to be racist or neo-nazi, he does not deny that he is a fascist and social Darwinist. According to an interview by Misanthrope, he said: "I feel that I'm a fascist, but Nazi is a real specific term. I'm a fascist in the sense of the modern bastardised meaning of the word. I'm completely against democratic values and liberalism. ''
Tom Metzger, leading US White Supremacist, interviews Body Rice in around 1986-88.
Boyd Rice denies allegations of racism, claiming that he hates everyone equally (perhaps inspired by Full Metal Jacket?) - and that he happens to favour Nazi uniforms and symbolism as they are elegant and attractive looking. However, the above interview might suggest that there is a little more to it than this, and that he is not being 100% honest with others or himself.
Indeed, his condoning of Nazi atrocities and being a Nazi sympathiser on many levels, as well as wearing Neo-Nazi inspired clothing, and effectively promoting Nazism in his music videos, for many is fairly concrete evidence that he really is a Neo-Nazi, disguising his true ideas with fancy misanthropic rhetoric, to say that because he is also many other things, he cannot therefore be a Neo-Nazi. His TV discussion with the white supremecist would also suggest he has more loyalty to 'whites' than non-whites.
Michael Moynihan, journalist (Seconds and The Scorpion), musical collaborator with Boyd Rice, and member of the Abraxas Foundation, was also a member of the CoS. His interviews included Whitehouse, Unleashed, Bathory, In the Nursery, Anton LaVey, Charles Manson, Peter Steele of Type O Negative, discussing Social Darwinism, Misfits founder Glenn Danzig (self-confessed Satanist), Throbbing Gristle and Psychic TV founder Genesis P-Orridge (pagan, magician, and more recently associated with the modern version of The Process Church of The Final Judgement), and Swans founder Michael Gira.
'He openly scorns the right and racist elements that people usually associate him with, saying I don't see white people doing anything particularly noble these days, so why on earth would I be a white supremacist? What does fascism have to do with anything that's going on? The far right is a bunch of isolated losers. I probably have far more in common with anarchists than I would with any right-wing person, and they would probably agree.'
The Temple of Set (TOS), a Theistic Satanic organisation, was formed as a break-away group from the CoS, created in 1975 by High Priest Michael Aquino, 'after Anton LaVey had offended many of its [CoS] members by turning The Church of Satan into a tool for his personal expression and financial income.' Aquino's sub group, The Order of the Trapezoid, is dedicated Germanic and Nordic traditions in general, including Nazi occultism, which does not necessarily mean that it supports or sympathises with Nazism as a political ideology, nor indeed Viking politics and social justice.
In the 1950s Anton LaVey formed a group called the Order of the Trapezoid, which later evolved into the governing body of the Church of Satan. From 1975 (?) onwards, this Order became a sub group of The Temple of Set. The Order of the Trapezoid describes itself as 'A Chivalric Order of Knighthood Dedicated to the Prince of Darkness and the Black Flame.'
On November 11, 1990, Tim Maroney posted a message on The Northern Lights BBS under the title, "The Nazi Trapezoid" about Aquino's organization:
'It harbors a subgroup, the Order of the Trapezoid, which is dedicated to Nazi occultism. Aquino is known to have participated in black magical rituals at Wewelsburg Castle, set up as a place of occult working for the SS by Heinrich Himmler. Aquino counts Nazi occultism as one of his chief interests, and the heraldry and symbolism of the SS is one of his favorite topics of discussion. These facts would seem to indicate, at least on the face of them, that Aquino is sympathetic to Nazism.'
Whilst some statements of Maroney's are factual, his conclusion seems to be highly subjective and inaccurate.
The TOS have a 2 year screening/initiation period, after which successive prospective members are granted full membership - a vastly different approach to the CoS who accept memberships like a commodity. An associate of mine, who was applying for membership of the TOS, has stated that he ultimately did not join as he felt that for all the rhetoric about Ancient Egypt, it was too steeped with LaVeyan paradigms, and had less focus on genuine Ancient Egyptian deity Set and Eyptian mystical reconstructionism (i.e. Kemetism). Many self-proclaimed Setians often do not actually know very much about the actual ancient deity Set, but a demonised, modern and corrupt version that has little to do with Set at all, much like most modern Luciferianism has nothing to do with the ancient deity Lucifer bar name (although clearly the concept around Luciferianism is rather different - virtually no one actually believing in a deity 'Lucifer' but using it as an archetype for the self). Most of the senior members of the TOS are well educated in Ancient Egyptian religion, and very intelligent individuals, but many of the lower members are not at all and have little interest in this, it has been said. It is less literally Theistic in its lower orders than its name might suggest, being more open to personal interpretation, and populated by many ex-CoS Satanists who are still in the LaVeyan mindset.
This section draws upon a number of sources, including (often contradictory) internet blogs, forum posts, Wikipedia, magazine articles and journalist articles. On account of the contradictory nature of some of the (dis)information on the internet, I have had to use my own judgement, and there may be some minor errors in this article. It does not explore all aspects of the ONA, but selects a few and examines them on a high level. I have not read all ONA material.
The Order of Nine Angles (ONA) is/was an Anarchic/Extreme Right Wing/Neo-Darwinist, Traditional, Polytheistic, Satanic group, based in York in the UK. They were active in the 1980s and 1990s, producing a number of books and a Tarot Card set. Whilst various claims exist about the origins of the ONA, no record of the ONA exists before 1972. It was then that David Myatt, using the nom de plum and pseudonym 'Anton Long', perhaps a parody of Anton LaVey's name, is alleged to have written the first version of the book NAOS, outlining the concepts of the Sinister Tradition and the Sevenfold Way, and the basics of Aeonic Magic (Five Dimensional Sorcery). Myatt's style of Traditional Satanism was very much concerned with earth-bound existence (i.e. not Gnostic) and magic, with the magical emphasis on ritual magic. This was before the formation of the Temple of Set which was formed in 1975, breaking away from the Church of Satan. Prior to this he was a member of the Temple of the Sun, a Traditional Satanist group. It is highly likely that Anton Long was influenced by the Church of Satan during those years, but in the early 70s was inspired to produce NAOS as an antithesis to the 'safe' and arguably humanist form of atheistic and Ayan Rand inspired, hedonistic Satanism that was described in Anton LaVey's Satanic Bible and as defined by his Church of Satan organisation. The ONA, identifying itself with Traditional Satanism, in some respects could be seen as a reaction against the Church of Satan, much in the same way that the Church of Satan in many respects was a reaction against Christianity.
Some commentators have argued that the ONA took its name from or based on Michael Aquino's Nine Angles Rite, as used by the Church of Satan. Anton Long describes the meaning of the Nine Angles in a blog response to an earlier version of this article thus:
'To understand The Nine Angles is to understand the cosmology of causal and acausal - of the Cosmos itself having a causal continuum (a causal Universe), and an acausal continuum (an acausal Universe). The Nine Angles are a nexion between the two, which means these nine angles have or can presence life; that is, they possess, or are animated by, acausal energy, from the acausal continuum. There are nine angles because there are nine dimensions involved in all the nexions we currently know - the four dimensions of, or which re-present, the causal continuum, and the five dimensions of, or which re-present, the acausal continuum, and which "five dimensions" form the basis for genuine dark sorcery, that is, the willed bringing forth of acausal energy into the causal by means of a nexion. The four causal dimensions are, of course, the three spatial dimensions (at right angles to each other) and the one dimension of causal, linear, Time.'
Our term nine-angles thus represents something innovative, sophisticated, numinous, alive - and appropriate to the new sinister Aeon soon to arise - unlike the term nine angles used by others, such as the ToSers, which just refers to a dead two-dimensional geometrical shape.
The ONA have adopted their own calendar using the 'Year or Fayen' rather than the Christian AD calendar and sign their blogs with their initiate name or pseudonym and the Fayen year. This Calendar is based around the birth year of Adolf Hitler (20th April 1889), rather than the Christian Calendar based around the birth year of Christ. 1889 is thus Year of Fayen 1, and 2010 is Year of Fayen 121. I am uncertain whether the ONA Calendar years start on 20th April or 1st January. Year of Fayen is often abbreviated by the ONA to 'yf'.
So what does the ONA symbol mean? Some might say that it resembles a combination of the an inverted pentagram (the most common symbol for Satanism) but given two addition points on the top left and right corners, in some form representing the ONA's Septenary System. It should be noted that it is not a heptagram, which is what one might expect, but a octagram with the top point and a few lines missing. This is the only reference to an inverted pentagram in the ONA literature by Anton Long, who otherwise avoids common Satanic and Inverted Christian symbolism.
Anton Long describes the meaning of the symbol in a blog response to an earlier version of this article thus:
'Considered esoterically, this sigil not only re-presents the Septenary in two-dimensional form [the seven points (of various angles) which touch the outer circle] but also the various pathways which join them. However, the actual ONA sigil, as used by the ONA, is a four-dimensional one: that is, the two-dimensional sigil is constructed in three-dimensions, within a sphere, which three-dimensional construct itself changes, thus mimicking the change which is causal Time. This change is both a simple change of perspective (for example, the movement and rotation of the sphere and the construct within it) and also a "mapping" (that is, a causal "distortion") of both the sphere and the construct within it). This mapping is essentially a change of, a transformation of, the regular Cartesian three-dimensional co-ordinate system, and to a limited extent this can be understood, and re-presented, by reference to the mathematical change of metric in causal Space-Time.'
Wikipedia's description of the ONA can be found at the link below.
The Facebook group 'Order of Nine Angles' run by a group of Swedish Satanists or occultists, is of course not the real ONA and seems to have nothing to do with Myatt, although the group does not state that it has nothing actually to do with the ONA as is often the case with many such fan profiles or groups created on Facebook or Myspace.
Whether the ONA was an active magical order in the 1970s is not really known, as Anton Long/David Myatt is the only known source of such information. It is generally believed that Myatt's occult beginnings started with the practice of Rosicrucianism of the Golden Dawn and Aleister Crowley's Thelema. Long/Myatt claims that ONA members came from Left-Hand Path or Black Magick groups such as OTP, the Temple of the Sun, and the Black Order. This is hard to substantiate. We do not the ONA name was used in association with his books since the 1970s. However, it is known that it was an active order and coven in York in the 1980s and 1990s, until its fragmentation around the time of the Millennium. Since then it has largely remained an internet phenomenon, according to some sources, and inspired a number of other Satanic organisations that studied the ONA literature and revived the ONA itself, in their own respective countries. Whilst a number of magical Satanic orders were inspired by the ONA, only a small number used the ONA name or associations. It is debatable which are 'officially' representing the ONA abroad, but the only order that seems to publicly associate itself with the ONA and Anton Long is the American branch 'WSA352'. This shall be examined in more detail below. In some ways the ONA can be described as a cult of personality, to varying degrees, throughout its existence. Whatever the ONA was or is, it has always been associated with extreme or anarchic/fascistic Satanism.
Whilst the ONA has been a working UK order at various points in its history, one of the main threads in Myatt's writings, especially on his web site, is that local Satanists can form groups and follow the ONA system, without having to necessarily be part of a wider organisation under Myatt's control. The ONA ethos today is for the proliferation of Sinister tribes, who seek to establish themselves locally and seek out local forms of power, with guidance/inspiration from Myatt/Long via blogs, forums etc. So the ONA is not an 'order' as such today and is not intended to be. This is part of the grass roots appeal of the ONA. That is the theory at least.
Wikipedia makes the following statements about the origins of the ONA, but these specific statements have come from Myatt/Long himself and one can ponder to their truthfulness or accuracy. Jacob Senholt claims that Camlad and Temple of the Sun became Lodges under the ONA in the early 70s.
'The Order of Nine Angles was originally formed in England in the 1960s, with the merger of three neopagan temples called Camlad, The Noctulians, and Temple of the Sun. Following the original leader's emigration to Australia, it has been alleged that David Myatt took over the order and began writing the now publicly-available teachings of the ONA. The ONA now has associates, and groups, in the United States, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Russia.
This Wikipedia description is presumably grafted from the following statement by DarkLogos9 of the ONA (a likely pseudonym for Myatt/Long). Because of the nature of the claim, and the fact that Myatt's claimed Sinister mentor the 'Lady Master' and her daughter, were alleged to have conveniently emigrated, their existence cannot be confirmed or proven.
'Becomes disenchanted with University, and spends more time traveling around the country attending political meetings, rallies and demonstrations, as well as working with a small Left Hand Path group, based in Yorkshire, called The Temple of the Sun, and visiting and staying with his lady friend, the brothel owner, in London where he occasionally helps out with running the business. On several occasions, he acts as Colin Jordan's bodyguard at BM meetings and rallies. He meets, via a contact in a Manchester Left Hand Path group, the Lady Master, of a traditional Sinister group, whose daughter initiates him into their reclusive sinister ways, and he spends many weeks staying with them, studying, and recording, their aural traditions after which his new Lady Master and her daughter emigrate to Australia, leaving him in charge of their very small Left Hand Path group, numbering less than thirteen people, to which group he gives the name Order of Nine Angles. The young lady who initiates him subsequently (and in Australia) gives birth to Myatt's daughter, whom Myatt only meets decades later. She and her mother have stipulated that Myatt should have no contact with them, nor try to find them, unless they contact him, a stipulation which he, honorably, honors.'
'In a recent interview (120 yf) "Anton Long" states to his audience "in the know" that:
"For a while, I was the Order of Nine Angles, although I expect few, outside of our sinister kindred, will understand what I mean here. Most - and certainly all the mundanes - will assume I mean I was the only person "involved with" some-thing called the ONA, but this is a fallacious assumption, since even from the early days there were always around a dozen or so people "involved".' What I mean is that the ONA lived in me, or more correctly, was presenced through me; through what I said, did, wrote and by what I inspired, directly - from person to person - or esoterically, through my personae as a shapeshifting player of many and varied roles." - Anton Long, Q.F.A., 120 yf
There very well could have been "a dozen" of people involved with the ONA during it's first few years. But for many decades, and still currently, the ONA came out of Anton Long. Or he wrote it into existence.'
Up until around 1998-2000, the ONA was an entirely underground venture that filtered through various magazines produced by other Satanist organizations. It was only after Christos Beest left the ONA and the ONA as an organisation fell apart (allegedly) that Long created an on line presence for the ONA (i.e. a web site and series of blog sites on wordpress). It is around this time that the ONA started to reach a much wider audience, resulting the formation of various other Sinister-inspired groups. It is around this time that the WSA 352 became formally affiliated with the ONA and started to evolve the organisation (from the USA). It could also be said that the Sinister Tradition is kept alive in other unrelated groups that have taken the path in a different direction or applied it in a slightly different manner, but are not formally connected to the ONA.
Below are described a small number of the more widely known ONA texts. There are hundreds of blogs and poems and other texts within the ONA library which are not covered here.
One of the most widely read ONA texts is 'The Black Book of Satan', containing volumes I, II and III. Part I was written by Long/Myatt with illustrations from Christos Beest. Parts II and III were written by Christos Beest. Today only Parts One and Three are officially recognised by Long/Myatt, after Beest's departure from the ONA, with the emphasis placed on Part One.
A 2007 version, know as 'Codex Saerus - Black Book of Satan I, II & III' was edited with a forward by Michael W. Ford (the founder of the Luciferian 'Order of Phosphorus').
On the back of this book, it is described thus:
'THE BLACK BOOK OF SATAN I, II & III are the anarchist- ritual workings of the ORDER OF NINE ANGLES. Considered too extreme by many, the ONA made available Satanic writings based on Chaos Magick and the Sinister for several decades. The BLACK BOOK OF SATAN I presents the foundation of Satanism from the perspective of the order - the black mass Satanic initiation, Ceremonies for Birth, Death including the chaos-focus of rebellion against all to become. The BLACK BOOK OF SATAN II is a powerful sigil oriented grimoire by Christos Beest, includes pathworkings based on initiatory invocations. The BLACK BOOK OF SATAN III is a continued presentation of Satanism from the perspective of the ONA. This infernal book is essential for any student of the Left Hand Path. Edited with a forward by Michael W. Ford, the author of LUCIFERIAN WITCHCRAFT presents a chaos-magickal view of the Sinister.'
Michael W. Ford also released a compilation of writings from the Order of Nine Angles, Christos Beest and the Black Order of the Dragon, including his own writings and also an introduction from himself too. It was entitled 'Order of Nine Angles - The Sinister Collection'. This may perhaps reflect Ford's own interest in predatory (Astral Vampirism) aspects of Aeonic Magic (of the ONA) and his own Satanic brand of Luciferianism, without some of the Culling aspects of the ONA, which he seems to have moved away from.
'THE SINISTER COLLECTION is a compilation and study of the various forbidden and banned texts of the ONA and the Sinister Tradition. This group of Satanists from the 1970's through the 1990's proved true anarchists and Chaos Magickians by Action alone. The Sinister Collection contains many works by Christos Beest, Anton Long, THE ONA, BLACK ORDER OF THE DRAGON and Michael W. Ford. The Sinister Tarot, The BLACK BOOK OF SATAN 1 and 2 and various commentaries are presented here for study and understanding. Magick of the Sinister Tradition gives presence to a strangeness; one which unsettles and disrupts those safety nets given by our cultural manifestations. Herein are anarchist writings invoking CHAOS, they are other and exist in the dark acasual.'
The Black Book of Satan 119 revision (2007) by Ryan Anshauung excludes the 'Caelethi' sections by Christos Beest and replaces them with Temple of The Sun documents.
Michael Ford also released Christos Beest's Sinister Tarot as a Calendar in 2008, from his Luciferian Witchcraft web site. A Calendar is perhaps a commercialised usage of Sinister Tarot artwork which is not meant to make each months' dates look 'cool'. All of the ONA workings were produced in small numbers at the time of writing, and it is only really until the ONA came on line that the public has had access to these works, for free. Myatt had the philosophy of giving his material away for free, in the interests of spreading knowledge about his system and influencing as many people as possible, whereas Ford has been publishing some of the ONA material and images in hardcopy format, but offering them for sale (not necessarily providing a percentage to the authors.) The ONA had always been a non-commercial enterprise. This may have annoyed some within the ONA or indeed Christos Beest who created the images. I am unsure of the exact details surrounding this.
'Michael Ford was granted the Order of Nine Angles command by Christos Beest in 1996, from which Ford operated until 1998 in Indianapolis. Ford left the active ONA due to what he has described as its Neo-Fascist stance and political ideals, which in his view are not an inherent part of Magick or Satanism.'
It is likely this command or anyone else who was associated with it, if applicable, ceased involvement formally with the ONA after this time. After ceasing association with the ONA, Michael Ford went on to study a variety of other occult traditions, including Qlippoth, and to write a number of books on the subject, as well as on Vampirism, in line with his Satanic influenced form of Luciferianism. More information about Michael Ford's Order of Phosphorus can be found on the Gnostic Luciferianism page.
The 'NAOS: A Practical Guide to Modern Magick' (1989) by Thorold West & The Order of Nine Angles can be found at the link below. It details the basics of the ONA cosmology and also the Star Game which is a type of multi-dimensional occult version of chess played with sigils, used to change the way of thinking of initiates.
The Nonagon is the second incarnation of the Black Glyph Society (BGS), one in a long line of archival attempts to preserve the works and writings of the ONA on the internet, from around 2000 when the ONA first had an on line presence. The ONA Database, Aeona, Temple of the Tangent, Mvimaedivm, The Black Glyph Society, the Nonagon have all been run by Ryan Anschauung of the Temple of THEM in the continuing belief that the work of David Myatt should all be available to the thousands of readers who have already studied his works. The Nonagon is a free and continuously updated archive of ONA texts and blogs. Blogs and books are all mixed in together and it is difficult to know the difference until you have downloaded it and opened it. There are also mp3 files, including the infamous Self-Immolation Rite.
'The ONA's writings condone and encourage human sacrifice as a means of eliminating the weak: Anton Long describes it as "a contribution to improving the human stock, removing the worthless, the weak, the diseased (in terms of character)". This "culling" serves not just a Darwinian purpose, but is also connected to the promotion of a new Aeon: "The change that is necessary means that there must be a culling, or many cullings, which remove the worthless and those detrimental to further evolution." Thus, true Satanism, they assert, requires venturing into the realm of the forbidden and illegal, in order to make contact with the "sphere of acausal, sinister forces on the cosmos." The presencing of acausal energies, such as through culling, is meant to create a new Aeon, whose energies will then create a newer, higher civilization from the energy unleashed. Probably because of the ONA's highly radical stance, there is open animosity between the ONA and "mainstream" Satanists such as the Church of Satan. The ONA publicly disavows any connection to Church of Satan, claiming the Satanic Bible to be a "watered-down philosophy". The ONA eschews the religious type of approach evident in groups such as the Temple of Set and regards other Satanic groups, such as the Church of Satan, with contempt. The Temple of Set proscribed the ONA in the early 1980s for its avowal of human sacrifice.'
Presumably the Temple of Set or Church of Satan did not have such a big issue with their extreme right wing stance, were it not for the human sacrifice aspect! Not a great deal is known about the ONA practice of human sacrifice. Myatt/Long has been highly critical of the Temple of Set and the Church of Satan as being pseudo-Satanism with firm codes of conduct about culling that suggest they are not really Satanist at all. The ONA has various texts on the practice of culling. Perhaps Long was inspired by the 1973 movie, The Wicker Man, a tale of a back to basics pagan community which makes a human sacrifice to ensure good harvests. This can be seen as slightly different from a Satanist style sacrifice which is performed for some other reason, the gaining of some other power.
I have also aruged that whilst the CoS and the TOS deny being bound by moral codes, they in actually do hold certain moral values. However, this is more an inconsistency of presentation and proclamation than necessarily a flaw in the underlying philosophy they propose. Thus, just because one has pointed out a flaw in their logic does not mean one should reject these humanist style moral codes outright, unless one truly wants to go the path of no code of conduct whatsoever, which if taken to its logical conclusion would arise in a jail term in the near future. Even the ONA display elements of a system or code of warrior-like honour, which is arguably a different concept, but it is still a form of morality or set of rules.
Clearly, any murder of manslaughter is not going to be openly talked about in specifics, because of potential self-incrimination. To what extent these groups are being monitored by the police forces in their respective countries, and to what extent these law enforcement agencies tend to focus more on active Neo-Nazi paramilitary cells who are responsible for a higher percentage of murders is not known. No doubt these procedures are conducted in secret locations and that all present are restricted to a code of silence, enforceable by severe violence or death - should they even wish to 'snitch' at all. Clearly to brag about human sacrifice makes them look very tough and anti-society in certain Satanic or Neo-Nazi circles, embodying a type of extreme Neo-Darwinism and Nazi-style Eugenics but on a smaller scale.
It is rumoured that the sacrifice itself is related mainly to their recruitment process, in that applicants who fail the initiation or application procedure, either die as a result of failing some physical trial, or are actually murdered if they fail a non-fatal trial. However, killings are also thought to be revenge attacks and completely separate from their screening process for membership/trials. Clearly, if applicants are aware of such policies, of eliminating the weak as an 'added bonus' to eliminating those that don't meet their criteria, then they only have themselves to blame. Don't expect any sympathy, not that you will as you will be too dead to read this or think about it. Surely the ONA must regard themselves as being worth it or really something special for applicants to be prepared to risk their lives to join. This is surely some big ego trip for everyone involved. Presumably if they are accepted then it will reinforce their belief that they are indeed 'the strongest'. If a group wants to test initiates to ensure they have the 'strongest' then that is their business - assuming it is consensual and within the law - otherwise may attract the attentions of the police. One may debate the definition of 'strong' and argue that it is really just copying the practices of modern Neo-Nazi groups which have similar screening procedures, and indeed are perhaps just fancy themselves as being as tough as Marines, which clearly they will never be. I would like to go through a Marines or Special Forces style training regime at some point, but under no circumstances would he entertain the idea of potentially dieing in the process, or having the people running the 'training' taking big risks and actually trying to kill him. That is not clever in my opinion.
The selection process then is a reflection of the nature of the group's philosophy, of promoting the Sinister in society, to bring chaos and a new dark order upon society, by unleashing the Dark Ones (from the acausal plane!) to wreak havoc onto the earth. Perhaps these Dark Ones are inspired by H.P. Lovecrafts outer dimensional monsters.
Anton Long describes the significance of the Dark Gods and any relationship to the Lovecraft mythos in a blog response to an earlier version of this article thus:
According to our aural traditions, our Mythos of the Dark Gods - of living-beings living in the acausal continuum - is much older than the pseudo-mythology manufactured by Lovecraft. In addition, our mythos of these acausal sinister entities is quite different in almost all respects from the beings described by Lovecraft. Lovecraft's beings - such as Cthulhu - are loathsome, almost primal, physical creatures, in the ordinary causal continuum. In complete contrast, the Dark Gods are acausal beings, some of whom can manifest in the causal continuum, and many of whom possess the ability to shape-shift and to assume human form. They can thus appear as beautiful human women, or handsome human men. Furthermore, among these acausal beings is the being known, from our human mythology, as Satan. [ Refer, for instance, to the ONA MS Ontology and Theology of Traditional Satanism. ]Ê Thus, the ONA mythos, of these Dark Gods, is a sinister, distinctly Satanic, mythos, whereas Lovecraft's pseudo-mythology is not. [ For an early ONA reference to Satan as one of these Dark Gods, refer to the fictional work, Falcifer, Lord of Darkness, originally written in 1974 CE and first published in 1976 CE. ]
The ONA have never claimed to have "invented", or to have made public for the first time, the legends and myths about the Dark Gods, only to have explicated them, given them a rational, scientific, basis, and thus codified the tradition into a genuine Mythos appropriate to our times. Furthermore, the ONA acknowledge that Lovecraft may have somehow stumbled upon some of the ancient, esoteric, legends and myths about The Dark Gods, through, for example, his own research, or perhaps via the medium of dreams (where sometimes the psyche of an individual can obtain intimations of the acausal and experience some effects of acausal energy). But if he did, then either it was a distorted, incomplete, garbled version, or he himself, perhaps for literary purposes, penned his own imaginative version of such intimations. Moreover, the "names" given for various Dark God entities, in such works as NAOS, are useful exoteric symbols (note the words useful symbols) intended for Initiates. That is, they are not re-presentations, in the causal, of what are essentially acausal entities who/which cannot be described in causal terms, but which may be better apprehended or re-presented in part via esoteric vibration/chant. The ONA make it quite clear that it is for the Initiate to discover if this is indeed the case - via their own practical experience.
These ritual killings are not thought to be of a racial nature, although that is not to say that ONA members themselves are not affiliated with Neo-Nazi groups or terrorist cells that do actually proactively kill people, of a homosexual orientation or different ethnic grouping; or that the joining or association with such groups is not encouraged or mandatory within the ONA. This is a matter between themselves, society and the law, and not within the scope of this web site. However, this web site does not promote or condone 'unnatural' or 'artificial' selection in any form. Of course, one does not have to apply to be a member to follow the ONA's system, not that they claim to have a fixed system as such. But one can choose to apply for membership. The ONA do not go out actively recruiting, although the information on their web site may perhaps imply otherwise. However, as mentioned, this comes with associated risks, and the ONA state on their web site that membership is earned rather than given or granted. This seems to be a metaphor for extreme, brutal hardships and trials. Perhaps part of the logic of eliminating the weak is in order to leave/evolve into a strong society or world population, that may have some magic significance on a cosmological level on account of its syncronicity (all minds being powerful and of a single mindset or high energy state - or perhaps this is a type of conformism or weakness - as strength through coercion rather than choice is perhaps not really strength at all but more conditioning or fear). This is perhaps one of several points where the ONA depart from Satanism. Are the ONA just ' Neo-Darwinian Special Forces' style wannabes? Who consider themselves as a serious threat to society and the status quo, but are merely just Satanic Walter Mitty types? Or is there real substance behind it? To what extent are they taking the easy option by picking on their own (applicants), rather than being 'violent' towards the outside world like other paramilitary organisations that put their money where their mouth is. True anarchists do not pick on people on their own side if they see themselves as fighting a war for freedom!
One could argue that the ONA's practice of ritual murder (through failed application attempts by potential recruits), manslaughter or assassination conforms to the stereotype of Satanists or Devil Worshippers spread by the Catholic church during the Middle Ages; and indeed gives Evangelical Christians and Conspiracy Theorists the wrong impression of Satanism as a whole, tainting the whole LHP with the same brush. Clearly other groups do not agree with their practices, but make little effort to do anything about it. So the ONA will continue to fuel bad feelings and gross generalisations about Satanism and the LHP, when in fact the generalisations and stereotypical images only really apply to a tiny minority. But they are there and can do what they like. They are not any other group's problem apart from all the negative attention ALL Satanists get, a significant number (but clearly not all) are humanists.
One thing that should be remembered about culling, assassination and human sacrifice is that the actual incidences of such activities is most likely extremely low, probably counted on the fingers of one hand, if at all. There is a difference between proclaiming that something is part of your order's theoretical practices and actually doing it. It is probably more about the Sinister intent, and the training to 'case a joint', conceal oneself, stalk, kill, and dispose of the body rather than the actual literal act of killing itself. Oh course I could be wrong, but this seems most likely. Members whilst they many not rule out the possibility of killing another, may not wish to do so for a particular organisation like the ONA. The proliferation of the ONA as an internet community also negates the possiblity for some of the 'trials' of initiates. Acts of violence are another matter of course, and who is to say how many crimes or acts of violence have been perpetrated by ONA members, affiliates or those inspired by the ONA. Probably the majority. It is possible that some ONA-inspired groups may be more likely to rape, maim or kill than their forebearers as they may want to get a 'rep' in the Sinister community, competing for the 'honour' of being the most 'hardcore' or 'Sinister', without the emphasis on Myatt's own political vision.
Sociopathy or psychopathy is in the context of the Sinister Path an act of liberation of the self. However, uncontrolled or undiscplined actions could be regarded as detrimental to the self. Excessive uncontrolled sociopathy and psychopathy under the rule of a criminal, materialistic organisation may in some senses be at odds with the essence of the Sinister Path. The ONA has been described by one critic as a factory that produces serial killers. One could of course look at the perspective of the Sinister from a perspective of empathy, the 'dark' or 'Sinister' being an exploration of consciousness.
The ONA's reputation most probably greatly overtakes its actual Sinister real world actions. That is the power of the internet marketing and myth creation. A Luciferian friend of mine was attending an OTO meeting, the membership of which she describes as 'hippies'. A visitor showed up and when introducing herself she said she had been involved with the Order of Nine Angles. The mention of these words cut the atmosphere like a knife, and the OTO members mostly looked totally shocked, as if pure evil had just entered the room and they felt they had no defense against it! The majority of the attendees of the meeting rapidly stood up and made a swift move for the exit, leaving only a small number remaining! I thought this particularly amusing, especially given the fact that any self respecting ONA affiliate would presumably not be attending an OTO meeting as it is 'Magian' in nature. Name dropping the ONA is for some perhaps an act of posing, when their total immersion in the system may just be glancing through a couple of texts or merely looking at their web site. Whilst ONA-inspired groups like the Tempel ov Blood, discussed below, encourage members infiltrate and cause chaos in other occult and spiritual groups, this is done 'undercover' and if this was one's intention, one would not be so foolish as to declare one's allegiance.
Michael W. Ford writes in his book 'Luciferian Witchcraft' (2005) on page 297, under the demonic face illustration:
'Illustration above - Scribed by Azhdeha Lilitu (Elda Isela Ford) on the night when the former initiate shed the blood of another, an omen of awakening...Savar.'
It is unclear whether this reference in his book is referring to a (former) initiate of Ford's Order of Phosphorus or his Black Order of the Dragon. Perhaps it is a gross exaggeration. If not, it might suggest an ONA-inspired (ritual) culling or perhaps an argument that got out of hand, the dark energy of which others in the order used for their own ends or for inspiration; or which Ford capitalised on to make his orders sound more 'bad ass'. Perhaps it is merely a form of dedication to the deceased. It might be seen by some as a method of communicating to other magicians involved in ONA-style Aeonic magic that this spirit is carried through to his own order(s). Whether the person in question became a former member as a result of these actions, or whether he had already left the order when he spilt the blood of another cannot be determined from the text either. Who can say.
The ONA writings place a great deal of importance on self-reliance and physical fitness and conditioning. To be the 'fittest' in the Darwinian sense. The ONA philosophy is not for cannabis smoking or beer drinking slobs and hedonists.
One part of the ONA's ranking system is a grading whereby an individual member will be left for months on end in the middle of nowhere, to survive for himself, to train his self-discipline whilst in isolation, and to record his experiences in a journal, for review by the group or senior members later upon his return. I can see a certain appeal to such 'survivalist' or 'Bear Grylls' style living off the natural environment for short periods of time, as a character building and leadership style exercise, but certainly not within the confines or ideology of a group such as the ONA. Like Myatt, I am very keen on martial arts, but mainly from a body/mind and health perspective but the fact that one can look after oneself and become confident, but not necessarily in an aggressive or egotistical manner, are added benefits.
The ONA are very much against the symbolism of Quabalah, Freemasonry, Gnosticism, Rosicrucianism and Templar traditions, and prophet-based Abrahamic religions and thinking. Whilst LaVey Satanism and Traditional Satanism is general is also opposed to these symbols and practices, although they are considered forebearers to Satanism in some respects, they do draw on Templar imagery in some respects (e.g. Baphomet etc.) These traditions are deemd to be representative of the 'Magian' or RHP in some sense, the Quabalah in particular 'tainted' by the dualism of Judaism. Whether the justification is racial in nature, I could not comment.
The ONA has what some commentators have described as a non-Semitic version of the Qabalah, called the Tree of Wyrd. If it is based on the Qabalah, was this created to enjoy the benefits of some Gnostic Judaic traditions or principles but with the ability to claim no lineage or direct use of anything related to Jewish tradition? Myatt does however describe some of his writings as 'Gnostic' and the way he allegedly uses pseudonyms to create dialogues and room for guessing, speculation and exploration, in the form of a puzzle (talking in riddles), could be viewed as being Gnostic in nature. The ONA is opposed to Qabalistic traditions, including the Qlippoth or reverse Qabalah, which is used by many Luciferian Satanists such as Michael Ford, and also the anti-cosmic gnostic 218/Temple of The Black Light, both of whom share some aspects of misanthropic Satanism to some extent.
Anton Long describes the meaning of the Tree of Wyrd in a blog response to an earlier version of this article thus:
According to the aural traditions of the ONA, The Septenary System, with its Tree of Wyrd, is much older than the Magian qabala with its ten spheres comprising the Magian Tree of the Lifeless. Early, Western, alchemical writings contain many allusions to an esoteric septenary system, as do some of the works of Robert Fludd. However, according to the aural traditions of the ONA, the Western Septenary System as inherited and as developed by the ONA and its reclusive predecessors, had its origins in the works of early Arab and Muslim alchemists (who predated Western alchemy) -
"...who had not only posited a system of seven fundamental stages or elements - al-ajsad al-sabaah - but who had also constructed a system of nine emanations of "The One" which included these seven elements plus two others which were quite distinct by virtue of having different aspects, or types of, or sources of, time itself, as described in the alchemical manuscript Al-Kitab al-Aflak." Source: Emanations of a Mage by Anton Long, 118 yf
Thus, the ONA regards the qabalistic Tree of the Lifeless as a horrid Magian distortion of the genuine esoteric tradition manifest in the Septenary System. Furthermore, the ONA have never claimed to have "invented" the Septenary system - only to have made public various aspects of it; and to have extended it in some particular and important ways.
Long describes the ONA in various places as being heretical, deviant, rebellious, subversive and so on. The language used is the language of opposition, which could be said to be by definion to be reactionary and thus causal, rather than acausal. However, this may just be the colourful language used by Long.
To what extent the concept of being 'against' or 'opposed' to is just another form of dualism, as opposed to simply 'not being' something or being slightly different (as being opposed to something focusses the mind on what one doesn't want and thus tends to produce more of it rather than less of it). One might also argue that those who aspire to the 'Sinister' are doing so as a reaction to the current politically correct climate, as a sort of panacea or to create a feeling of freedom. This is arguably in this sense reactionary or one side of a dualism, unless a balanced middle ground is reached, i.e. what one actually wants.
The ONA's fixation with National Socialist philosophy or practice can only be seen as perhaps a symptom of the 'Magian', or 'Abrahamic', in so far as the quest to purge society of 'evils' (be they slightly different 'evils' than those of the Bible) and indeed Hitler as described in the Temple 88 writings is portrayed as a type of Messianic figure or prophet, is in a sense Magian. Hitler was arguably heavily influenced by Aryan Christianity, although he was too influenced by other traditions such as Theosophy etc. Myatt's antisemitism could be viewed in the cultural and historical context of many centuries of Catholic and Protestant persecution of Jews as 'Christ Killers'. This is examined on the Mainstream Religions page.
Over the year's Myatt's influence on the plethora of Sinister and Sinister inspired Satanist groups cannot be underestimated, and for some groups, Myatt has become a visionary or 'prophet', perhaps not a role he has chosen, which has a distinct Magian notion about it. Myatt has perhaps exacerbated this with the myths and mystery about his person.
One could also view the whole concept of the 'Sinister' as a stereotype of the Christian view of what a Satanist is, capable of acts of misanthropic or malevolent violence, murder and human sacrifice. This stereotype has existed for many hundreds of years. To what extent is the Sinister Path simply a total rejection of Magian preoccupations and fears, and to what extent can it be seen as a total inversion of these values and embracing the Christian view of what a Satanist is, thus fuelling such stereotypes and views of Satanism further? Regarding Christian expectations, is it a no-win situation? Damned if you do and damned if you don't?
The use of the term 'Satan' and 'Satanist' could be considered dualistic or magian, as the term derives from the New Testament, referring to the Christian concept of the 'Devil' and also features in the Old Testament as 'Ha-Satan', a non-Devil character, an arm of God or judge. This is an issue for most Satanists, and some prefer not to use the term at all because of its origins and room for confusion and misunderstanding by outsiders. The concept of Baphomet is based upon a combination of old pagan archetypes, but the actual term was first documented as having been used by the Knight Templar, a Christian military organisation of the Middle Ages.
The term Magian encompasses a wide variety of concepts and in some senses it is an imprecise term, and its exact meaning can subtly change depending on the context. Its usage could be considered in some respects as similar to the Rastafarian usage of the term 'Babylon' (not necessarily the meaning). < br>
In the blog 'Misconceptions, Lies and Ignorance', Long states that psychology and sociology are 'bunk'. Whilst some sociologists may be infused with political correctness, it is by definition a form of science, and therefore does not have to necessarily be politically correct.
The ONA believe in 'Star Gates' which are gateways between the causal plane and the acausal plane. Not to be confused with the Sci Fi movie and series Stargate!! This is examined in more detail in a forthcoming article written by an associate of mine on the cosmology of the ONA (and posted here), based on a reading of the book NAOS. Human minds are thought to be Star Gates. There are also thought to be physical gates in timespace, much like wormholes. 'Anton Long' states in NOAS that these gates are said to reside near the stars of Algol, Dabih, and Naos. 'NAOS' postulates that a gate may exist in our own solar system, near Saturn (NAOS pg 76). This is a rather specific allegation, based upon little actual scientific evidence. Many would argue that this is the result of an overactive imagination or too many hallucinogenic drugs. One clearly can't disprove it, but neither can one prove it. It does sound rather 'Stargate' movie-like or even in the vein of the Scientologist cosmology, and one might argue does little to give the group scientific credibility.
'Myatt succinctly states: "If we need a symbol to represent our Western civilisation - to express its quintessence - it is the spacecraft." (Myatt, ibid. 7.).The Western Civilisation would be superseded by a Galactic Civilisation just as the Roman Civilisation had superseded the Greek, and the Western the Roman.'
In Liber Dabih, Selected Works of David W. Myatt, 'An American in Oxford, December 1, 2007' (P.18) stated that two of Myatt's many favourite TV shows included Babylon 5 and Star Trek: The Next Generation.
Myatt clearly has an interest in Science Fiction and Space, which may suit his mild mannered and bearded side of his personality more.
Myatt's Star Game, described in Naos, is highly rated by many occultists, and is probably influenced by his early interest in physics at University as well as his interest in Science Fiction and space travel.
DarkLogos postulates that Column 88, the Neo-Nazi paramilitary group that David Myatt was involved with before he was arrested and later joined Combat 18, was created by MI5 in order to discredit the British National Party (BNP) and to attract the most extreme members so they could be monitored in one place; Myatt being nothing more than an MI5 puppet. However, this has never conclusively been proven.
Myatt's was involved in Combat 18 once he was released from prison.
Combat 18 (or C18) is the "armed wing" of the British neo-Nazi organisation Blood & Honour. The "18" in its name is commonly used by neo-Nazi groups, and is derived from the initials of Adolf Hitler; A and H are the first and eighth letters of the Latin alphabet. Members of Combat 18 are barred from joining the British Prison Service. The Combat 18 logo is based on the Totenkopf of the 3rd SS Division. The numbers 88 are also used in conjunction with Neo-Nazi groups, signifying 'Heil Hitler' (i.e. H being the 8th letter of the alphabet). Although 'boneheads' can count upto 10, most cannot spell very well, especially in German, so use 88 in short.
'THE IDEOLOGICAL heavyweight behind all this talk [Combat 18] is a man called David Myatt. An eccentric former monk, Satanist and widely travelled martial-arts expert, Myatt (who is 48) has previously attempted to establish a Nazi-occultist commune in Shropshire. He now produces a regular bulletin, The National Socialist, which espouses race war, the supremacy of the Aryan nation, and a fanatical devotion to "warrior values" of Loyalty, Duty and Honour.
A typical theme in his writings runs thus: "So-called racial hatred and racism itself are Nature's way of protecting her creations and protecting herself - it is race mixing which is the ultimate evil. Race mixing is a crime against life itself." Elsewhere, he calls for a "holy war against our enemies, for these enemies are threatening our very racial existence".
Myatt provides much of the intellectual "legitimacy" which groups like C18 - mainly composed as they are of self-educated, working-class young men - lack. His writings go into great, often tortuous detail about National Socialist values, but he has the ear of people like the Sargents, in particular Steve (with whom he has now forged a new group called the National Socialist Movement).
However, unlike C18, Myatt draws inspiration from a fanatical devotion to Germany in the 1930s. "National Socialist Germany is the closest thing to there being a cultural expression of something which is natural and healthy for Aryan peoples," he says in a polite, soft-spoken accent when we meet at the tea shop in Malvern station, surrounded by oblivious old-age pensioners.
Listening to Myatt is a surreal experience. A slim, diminutive figure dressed in bright cycling gear and sporting a huge beard, he has a passion for toasted tea cakes and translating Greek literature. We talk for an hour about race war, Aryan supremacy and warrior values. He sees his role as educating and guiding young neo-Nazis. In particular, he believes in the supremacy of Aryan warriors, represented by today's skinheads. Their raw violence can be harnessed and disciplined for the National Socialist cause. "I'm trying to raise these people up, to harness their own instincts in a productively useful way." He expresses great admiration for both Spartan and ancient Japanese societies. In his ideal world, we would all be warrior-farmers - or enslaved to those who were.
Unlike C18's members, Myatt is well educated and, in his own words, "of independent means". His father worked "for the British Empire" and as a child, he lived in east Africa and Asia. He read widely about National Socialism and Hitler, becoming a convert in his teens. Yet even by his own admission he is a loner and a fanatic, who hates cities and motor cars, and who became disillusioned with groups such as the National Front. He even spent 18 months as a monk - but "I had a great struggle between my political beliefs and religious dogma. I finally decided they were incompatible."
We share several awkward silences. A shy man, he seems uncomfortable in the company of others, and it is difficult really to find out why or how he was so drawn to Nazism. All he will admit is that he has been in prison twice for his beliefs and that he was profoundly affected by the death of a loved one. He has since decided that revolution and a great leader are needed to bring about the resurgence of the Aryan peoples. He admits to a similarity between himself and extremist religious figures: "I know I'm right," he states simply.
Yet his conversation and writings show little understanding or empathy with human nature. He stresses again and again the need for fanatical values in bringing about his new society, attacking other cultures and "traitors" to the Aryan cause - yet he admits to being continually disappointed by "real life". His vision of a Homeland - organic farming, horse-drawn equipment and no contact with the outside world - also differs sharply from the reality of the Sargent brothers.'
...C18 looked for support among the ultra-violent football hooligan 'firms' and around the "white power" skinhead music scene. (Despite this, however, few of C18's supporters were actually skinheads, preferring the designer-casual image of the football hooligans: "Skinheads are basically wankers. The only skinheads are Reds and queers," laughed Steve Sargent, Charlie's softer-spoken younger brother, when I asked him about their image.) A number of members also worked (and still do) as cocaine dealers and illegal debt collectors in the criminal underworld. They were happy to show me how to "bosh" someone in the stomach with a knife, as a penalty for failing to pay up on a loan. Similarly, they mocked the Government's law and order strategy, claiming it was ineffectual and that the prisons were C18's natural recruiting ground. With their jailbird tattoos, they would casually refer to the police as "scum". By their own admission they were violent people. "We're thugs who follow an ideology," boasted Charlie.'
Myatt was unlike the other Combat 18 members, as he was not a 'football casual'. Unlike most far right supporters, who are National Socialists of one type or another, are fundamentally pro-industrialisation. Myatt conversely is generally known to be anti-industrialisation and for more grass roots type rustic Aryan ideal. In addition, Combat 18 and other far right organisations are generally intolerant of those religions, beliefs or practices that are not considered to be 'typically British', which includes anything other than nominal Protestantism, even if the members in question haven't been near a church or Bible in their life. Islam is particularly detested, and it is likely that most Satanists are also not liked either, as they may not share the same vision for British culture. Myatt, assuming he was Anton Long, which is generally accepted, therefore kept quiet and denied being a Satanist during this period, as he still does today, as being a Satanist whilst trying to be accepted by British National Socialist Paramilitary members is not really possible. As discussed at the end of this Far Right section, a Satanist Neo-Nazis are a non-conformist minority that are not generally accepted by the mainstream majority of the Far Right movement.
Myatt was exposed as being Anton Long and the head of the ONA by Nick Lowles and Nick Ryan, as discussed below, which causes him considerable problems in Combat 18, and even though he denied the allegations and challenged both writers to a duel, the damage had been done and this is likely why he was forced to leave Combat 18 and his other Far Right groups, and continue his contributions to the far right anonymously.
'Abdul-Aziz ibn Myatt, (born 1950) - formerly known as David Myatt and David Wulstan Myatt - is British Muslim and a former white nationalist political activist and neo-nazi. Before his conversion to Islam in 1998, Myatt was the first leader of the British National Socialist Movement (NSM), and was identified by the British newspaper, The Observer, as the "ideological heavyweight" behind Combat 18.
Following his conversion to Islam, Myatt dissociated himself from nationalism and racialism, and has spoken openly about his contempt for racism, and wrote that the only distinction that mattered was that between Muslims (Mumin) and the Unbelievers (Kuffar).
Additionally, and subsequently following his conversion, he also became an advocate of Islamic martyrdom operations (Shaheed), expressed support for Osama bin Laden, the Taliban, referred to the Holocaust as a "hoax.", and supported the killing of 'civilians' or non-combatants.
An April 2005 NATO workshop heard that Myatt had called on "all enemies of the Zionists to embrace the Jihad" against Jews and the United States. Political scientist George Michael writes that Myatt has "arguably done more than any other theorist to develop a synthesis of the extreme right and Islam."
Myatt came to public attention in 1999, a year after his Islamic conversion, when a pamphlet he wrote many years earlier, A Practical Guide to Aryan Revolution, described as a "detailed step-by-step guide for terrorist insurrection," was said to have inspired David Copeland, who left nailbombs in areas frequented by London's black, Asian, and gay communities. Three people died and 129 were injured in the explosions, several of them losing limbs.
In addition to writing about Islam and National Socialism, Myatt has translated works by Sophocles, Sappho, Aeschylus, and Homer, and has written several collections of poems and some science fiction, using the name D.W. Myatt.'
David Myatt's Islamic web site can be seen at the link below.
David Myatt visibly went from one monistic, divisive, anti-semitic and pro-terrorist ideology to another. It is likely that Myatt's Islamic conversion is merely another vehicle for the Sinister, but for him to have been accepted amongst Islamic extremists (and indeed in the Neo-Nazi movement), he still had to deny being or having been a Satanist. It is possible to be compartmentalised in one's beliefs, and be both an occultist and a Muslim, even though they seem highly at odds with one another. For example, Jaz Coleman of the post-punk group Killing Joke was both an occultist and a Muslim, and would alternate between both philosophies depending on his mood. Jaz Coleman was however arguably slightly insane.
Myatt had been in visiting Egypt prior to his conversion, and had praised Islamic extremists for their warrior code, many of whom had praised Adolf Hitler, just as Myatt had done. Whilst he may have alienated some of his former associates in the British Far Right, who hated Islam, his move to Islam was still in keep with his warrior ethics and penchant for expressing the sinister in terms of antisemitism. Some Satanists have taken a dim view of Myatt's activities, especially his newly found Islamic fundamentalism, as although some Satanists may have supported his Far Right Pro-Aryan stance, but from the perspective of Western Industrialisation and Satanism combined, many are perhaps now turned off by Islamic Fundamentalism, which for many Americans, is their main enemy. Grandmaster Blackwood of the Temples of Satan, with whom Myatt has an internet flame war going, dismisses Myatt simply as a terrorist going from one flavour of terrorism to another, and unpatriotic to his own country and also to Americans. However, one could argue that Myatt has done his time in prison for the crimes which he was connected with, and is not currently under police investigation. Whilst his Islamic fundamentalist stance may catch up with him, one could argue that he is not currently a terrorist but merely is 'socially irresponsible'.
Some would argue that Fundamentalist Islam is a more effective vehicle for the extreme right and terrorism than Christianity. One could however argue that whilst Myatt may be leveraging certain Sinister aspects of Fundamentalist Islam, ultimately, if it is successful then he merely uproots one monotheistic culture with another that although slightly more Sinister, is far removed from a Satanic ideal, and is arguably harder to uproot than Christianity (which in the West is losing ground to secularism and the New Age). This is the problem with vehicles that don't quite fit but serve a purpose. Most of the on line activities of the ONA only really came about at the turn of the Millennium, and Myatt has continued to be active privately on the various ONA blog sites and also in Far Right forums and in Neo-Nazi writings whilst publicly playing his Muslim extremist role or showing that part of his persona.
One should note that Myatt has dabbled with various religions and spiritual leanings, whilst simultaneously pursuing his occultist studies and Left Hand Path (Satanic) Sinister Path, including Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism and Paganism. How big an influence on his thinking these have been, only those who understand his philosophy more can say. His current Islamic extremist 'mode' or persona is a more useful vehicle for the Sinister and warrior tradition than the others, but the others may have had some significance, interpreted in a pagan and/or Sinister manner.
Perhaps one can view his dabblings as the expression and pursuit of the Sinister using both Left Hand and Right Hand Paths - which some LHP adherents might argue was counterproductive in terms of LHP personal development and evolution, as the goal of being 'Sinister' may override the personal goal of self evolution and instilling certain aspects of Magian philosophies into one's psyche merely as a means to a Sinister end to destroy the Magian). Luciferians in some instances use 'Magian' philosophies such as the Kabbalah, Qlippoth, Gnosticism and/or Gnostic or Esoteric Christianity as part of their spiritual evolution. In these instances the 'Magian' influence is not one of submission to God, but more in relation to the development and balancing of the Self. To bypass these 'lesser Magian philosophies and go straight to intolerant forms of extreme and war-like Monotheism which require subjugation and submission before God (negation of the Self) would for some to seem like the last thing they would want to do, even if it was to fulfil some bigger Sinister goal. It depends how far one is prepared to go to achieve that goal, be it to sacrifice one's own principles or philosophies in one's 'undercover' activities.
One could argue that wanting to wage a war on the 'Magian', rather than just being 'non-Magian' oneself is a way of reinforcing and creating a large Jungian Shadow. The adoption of Islamic faith also creating another more superficial Shadow, which may have overlaps with the other anti-Magian shadow. To have an agenda for the entire world could be seen as similar to the agenda of many Monotheistic religions, albeit wanting a completely different goal. This goal might be slightly closer to Fundamentalist Islam than Christianity but it is still miles away from a Satanic Sinister ideal. One could argue that anyone who does not just want to educate people or offer them a choice to change, but to force a change on others is always going to be some kind of 'fascist' and have some kind of 'shadow' issues. Often we hate most what we deny about ourselves, and perhaps Myatt, being a mild mannered and considerate individual in person, as one of his personas, is really in denial about how nice and gentle a guy he is, and pursues his dream of physical resilience and Satanic elitism to overcompensate. This may not of course be the case and given that he has many personas, not fully integrated, it is hard to say exactly, without putting him on the couch for a number of consultations and discussions. Some might argue that by trying to eradicate something, and focussing on it, you will only serve to strengthen it.
Perhaps one can view the pursuit of both paths as reflections of some of the softer aspects of some of these traditions in his day to day mild mannered and polite personality that he may not necessarily see as part of his 'Sinister identity' or his purpose but are parts of his character nonetheless. Perhaps it is not 'integrated' in the traditional Jungian sense. To be a Muslim AND a Satanist you presumably either have to be either compartmentalised in these beliefs (i.e. modes of operation, not fully integrated as a single unit), insincere or insane. Perhaps there is a fourth option or grey areas in between these.
A discussion of David Myatt, the ONA and his public conversion to Islam is discussed on the 600 Club forum at the link below. Member 'birdstrike' believes that Myatt uses 'lesser magic' to present himself to people in various forms they can understand or allow him self-expression. One member 'Amina' believes it is likely that Myatt has used Satanism as much as he has used Islam, to use different vehicles to recruit people to his racist and anti-society cause.
To understand David Myatt, and his involvement with Combat 18 (the extreme right wing paramilitary organisation) and Fundamentalist Islam, it is important to note that these are embodiments of the Sinister Tradition and in some respects vehicles for his enacting of the Sinister Tradition as defined by the ONA in the world and his own anti-semitic and homophobic/sexist ideology (which could just be his own expression of the Sinister), using whichever vehicle best suits him at the time. Myatt seems to have many different facets to his personality and leads an 'official' visible existence (as a Neo-Nazi and Islamic fundamentalist) as well as a private one or one using pseudonyms. One could argue that these right wing terrorist movements are amongst the few outside of gang culture that embody the kind of brutal, Darwinist and sinister and anti-establishment elements that are genuinely threatening to middle classed, western society.
Anton Long describes the nature of shapeshifting in the acausal sense in a blog response to an earlier version of this article thus:
'As for outer, temporal, changes - seen and described by some mundane or some mundanes, or by some Magians - so what? The judging of such a particular individual by means of such outer, temporal, changes is, for us,
a basic but effective test of mundane-ness, especially among those who describe themselves as Occultists and "satanists". Have these "Occultists" and "satanists" the instinct, the occult ability - the innate character of one of our sinister kind - to see beyond mere causal form, to the acausal, and thus perceive the reality of one shapeshifting sinister individual?'
From 2010, David Myatt is no longer calling himself a Muslim, but is embracing his Numinous Way philosophy. This philosophy was run in parallel to Myatt's muslim stance and web site, and now as far as I am aware, only professes the Numinous Way philosophy officially. Myatt's own web site discusses the Numinous Way, and which is also briefly summarised on Wikipedia.
'Myatt has written of what he calls "The Numinous Way" that "[o]ne way of effectively combating the New World Order is by creating new rural communities inspired by honourable, rational pagan/heathen beliefs Ñ and the Numinous Way of Folk Culture is a step toward this. He describes the "Numinous Way" as a new form of "heathenism" based on respect for the natural world and the principles of personal honour, compassion, cosmic ethics, and empathy. According to more recent writings, he developed it to be an apolitical, and individual, way of life where race and the concept of the folk not only have no place but are regarded as unethical abstractions. Myatt has in recent years further developed, and recently (2010) publicly returned to, his apolitical, mystical, Numinous Way philosophy, writing that "according to The Numinous Way, the only ethical way in which we can change ourselves, and our society, is through an inner, individual, transformation by developing empathy and by striving to live in an ethical, and honourable, way." and that "the desire not to cause suffering...may be said to be the basis of individual living according to The Numinous Way.'
From these descriptions it would appear that Myatt is still embracing the Septenniary System and Aeonic Magic, but with a less Sinister approach to society and less political activism. Myatt's various roles or stances over the years can be seen in the context of resisting the 'New World Order' or the Magian, each attempt having some degree of success, but perhaps not overwhelming success, and changing approach every few years to try something else to achieve similar ends. He has in a sense sewed a number of different seeds that may work towards his primary goal in different ways, the combined effect being more than the sum of its parts. This is not to say that his beliefs have at all changed over the years. However Myatt has provided various different models for ONA members to adopt in order to combat the 'Magian'. Myatt is described as having been involved in paganism in his youth, and it is extremely unlikely for a genuine Islamic Fundamentalist to revert back to Paganism. Indeed, the language used on his web site indicate that it is very similar to the ONA's magickal philosophy, with some minor philosophical changes or newfound maturity in his older years. Aeonics and so forth are still referenced. It seems very likely that unofficially Myatt has been involved in the occult throughout his official Muslim years. The difference now is that Myatt is more open about his mystical and occultic beliefs rather than relying solely on his anonymous pseudonyms to express more of his character and beliefs. One might say that the Numinous Way has been inspired or influenced by the film The Wicker Man, with small scale pagan communities resisting centralised authority.
A number of sources identify David W. Myatt as Anton Long, the founder of the ONA and author of many of its manuscripts, which is likely to be correct. This article is written with the assumption that this is the case, and where Myatt is referred to, it is thus assumed that Anton Long is his occultic pseudonym and persona. These sources include:
- Nick Ryan, the author and journalist:
'Author Nick Ryan has asserted that Anton Long, the author of the ONA's public tracts, is a pseudonym of David Myatt, a person who was involved with the neo-Nazi movement in England. This assertion is repeated by Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke, who claims that David Myatt was the founder of the ONA and writer of most of the ONA documents, and had previously acted as bodyguard for "British Nazi Colin Jordan"'
- Nick Lowles from Searchlight magazine:
David Myatt has always denied such allegations about involvement with Satanism, the ONA, and using the pseudonym Anton Long, and repeatedly challenged anyone to provide any evidence of such allegations. In addition, Myatt challenged two journalists - Nick Lowles (from Searchlight) and Nick Ryan - to a duel for repeating such allegations, a challenge which they both declined.'
- Jacob C. Senholt, author of The Sinister Tradition (2009), an overview of the ONA, identifies Myatt as being Anton Long.
ONA352 blog spot, in his blog 'ONA: A Briefing', states:
'With all the BS, mythos, and glam propaganda aside; the "Order of Nine Angles," may have first begun as a side project of an English bum living in Shropshire England named David W. Myatt: a known trickster and vagabond; or as they call them in England - "Gentlemen of the Road." Myatt was known to never really have a job. Supposedly, according to Myatt, sometime in the 60's a "Lady Master" of sorts gave him the "Dark Tradition," whereafter did he add new elements to it, which thus became the ONA. It is known that in 1972, Myatt first began to write documents and manuscripts for his ONA with the nom de plume of "Anton Long." There are several theories as to how he came up with "Anton Long." Some say that the river Long Stanton (Long [St] Anton) which he lived by gave him the pen name. Others say that the river Anton (a tributary of River Test) in Hampshire, which flows by a Parish named Long Parish, gave the name.'
Caladrius however refers to Myatt in the context of the ONA and being Anton Long in various other places in this blog.
- 'DarkLogos9', a.k.a. DarkLogos or DL, of the ONA, provides a chronology for David Myatt, from his early youth onwards. He cites his early beginnings with the Left-Hand Path group 'Temple of the Sun' in 1971 and his meeting of 'Lady Master' that introduces him to the Sinister Ways in 1972. This appears to be fairly accurate. See the section below for more discussion about 'DarkLogos9'.
- Chloe, a.k.a. Kayla, a WSA352 member (American sister organisation to the ONA), does not state that Myatt is Long, but states that he is a role model for WSA352 members in many respects, and that Myatt helped to create elements of the Sinister Tradition in his political activities and as a far right heavy weight. There is a strong implication that he was or is the ONA.
- The Temple of THEM host a number of interviews or articles by former leader/spokesperson Ryan Anschauung, who used the nickname 'ThoTh' (short for THe temple of THem). These suggest that Myatt is in fact Anton Long. The interview 'Last Word from one of THEM' can be found below.
- Richard Moult (formerly known as Christos Beest and an ex-ONA member) in May 2010 painted this portrait of David Myatt, including an upside down ONA symbol on the top left, suspended from the ceiling.
Jason King in an article he wrote, quoted on the Nineangles blog spot, claims that David Myatt, a Neo-Nazi since the 1970s, in fact created the ONA, and is Anton Long, and there never was an Order of Nine Angles, and it was simply a successfully propagated myth.
- 'LeGivorden' has suggested that David Myatt started the ONA as a joke, or to wind up the Church of Satan, by inverting most of its rituals and symbolism.
- O9A.org blog site references both David Myatt and Richard Moult as 'Associates'. On Myatt's own web site, The Numinous Way, he describes various Aeonic magical concepts, implying that he was in fact highly knowledgeable in occultism and ONA magic.
- David Myatt is excessively hero worshipped or name dropped by claimed ONA members and affiliates in blogs, more than would ever be the case for anyone who was not Anton Long and their 'idol'.
- The David Myatt web site seems virtually identical in its formatting and HTML coding to the ONA web site, with links to pages being centrally aligned, interspersed with pictures.
It is important when trying to undersand the ONA to note two things. Firstly, the difference between the ONA and Myatt's various interests outside of Satanism, and to view these from the perspective of the Sinister tradition. And secondly that most of the information available on the ONA on the internet comes from the ONA itself and can therefore not always be trusted. One of the key elements of the ONA is role play, for personal and esoteric development - not just privately, but publicly. In this manner, one can assume any number of identities, and discuss ONA related matter using a variety of pseudonyms, not always in a consistent manner. One can therefore create entire discussions by oneself, using different pseudonyms, both parties saying some truths and some untruths and using it as a vehicle to allow the reader to formulate ideas about what the truth might be, drawing people into the discussion or creating a discussion whereas when only one person posts information, it becomes a one way dialogue. One pseudonym can be used to open up a gate or leave a 'discussion' open ended, inviting others to participate and fill in the 'gap'. Myatt under various pseudonyms invites himself in via such gates or openings and at other times, other (Far Right) forum members do so. The ability to role play different roles that are totally different to one's core personality is a core part of ONA practices, perhaps relating to much of experience being an illusion. It can be a means to create a myth or air of mystique and mystery. It is also a means to lure in intrigued minds and to ensure that people talk about Anton Long and the ONA for many years to come. It is also arguably a vehicle for spreading false information and for damage limitation, to deny certain elements that it may choose not to associate with anymore, and to make the Order appear much bigger and ominous than it really is. It is also arguably very frustrating and time consuming for individuals who are trying to figure out what the real story is, and could be viewed by some as being less than a totally honest and direct/forthright approach. For some, it is a challenging and intruiging puzzle, and an exercise in developing some of one's senses. Not everyone is intelligent enough to work it out for themselves. Using different pseudonyms on internet forums to back up your argument is a commonly known internet faux pas. Whilst it is difficult to be 100% certain about the pseudonyms used by Myatt on the internet, it is widely known that 'DarkLogos', 'River Isis Nexion' and 'Pointy Hat' are all just David Myatt. Pointy Hat is probably a joke on 'MyHat' or 'Myatt', possibly some Wizard (or Ku Klux Klan) reference or joke also. 'Madmagemyatt' is another wizard or soceror reference or joke.
So whilst some truths and untruths are circulated by Myatt under different pseudonyms are easier to identify than others, some of the information cannot readily be verified one way or another. Caladrius was previously thought to be another pseudonym for Myatt but on examining the writing style and posts on Club 600, and claimed location 'SoCal', and references to being 'Thai', this person would appear to be affiliated with the 352, most likely Chloe/Kayla, and not be Myatt himself. Caladrius is quite open and up front. Some of Myatt's own pseudonyms are more truthful about Myatt than others. For example, DarkLogos is mostly honest about Myatt (although playing down whether Myatt actually is actually Anton Long), but exaggerates about Christos Beest. Some of these pseudonyms/internet accounts post on the Stormfront White Pride World Wide far right internet forum, and one character seems to play off the other and disagree about Myatt and/or Christos Beest. You can pretty much guarantee that whenever anyone discusses the ONA on that forum, Myatt is involved in the discussion in one way or another. Examples are discussed in the section on 'Christos Beest' below. It is worth nothing that for the large part, those others who post do not seem to know anything about the ONA and seem to believe whatever these pseudonyms say, which is a rather sad state of affairs, in terms of their lack of knowledge but also the fact that the person behind these pseudonyms, highly likely Myatt, does not mind misleading his 'Aryan Supremacist brothers'. Other pseudonyms such as River Isis Nexion seems to be totally deny Myatt's involvement with the ONA or with the occult in general, and making the most caustic remarks about Christos Beest.
'Gerry Gable, from anti-fascist magazine Searchlight, said: "Myatt is an ethereal character who has used numerous aliases to post messages on extremist websites. He is a dangerous man who has twice been jailed for his violent right-wing activities and who openly asked for blood to be spilled in the quest for white Aryan domination. We believe... he remains a deeply intellectual subversive and is still one of the most hardline Nazi intellectuals in Britain today. Myatt believes in the disruption of existing societies as a prelude to the creation of a new more warrior-like Aryan society which he calls the Galactic Empire."'
There are a large number of different ONA and Myatt related wordpress blog sites, all of which are probably run and written by David Myatt, under different pseudonyms or as simply Anton Long.
Myatt seems to be a trickster, a chameleon, and a strategist and uses pseudonyms and role play, or other right wing political or religious movements to achieve his goals and also to cause confusion as to who he really is. He transforms himself into different roles, carefully choosing what to say and where, and how to present himself, in order to achieve certain role-specific goals. For some, a role that is in opposition to one's inner self does not come naturally to most people and this is where good acting or training come in. The mind likes internal consistency.
Below is an excerpt of an interview with 'ThoTh' from the Temple of THEM, by Mark Sievwright, from 2008, entitled 'the Last Word from one of THEM', Oto Anorha magazine #30. It pertains to the identity of David Myatt and his style of writing that betrays who he is when allegedly working with various pseudonyms. It also covers over topics relating to the ONA. The full interview can be read on the Ryan Anschauung's wordpress site at the link below.
Why do you think Long is Myatt, like evidence-wise?
Well, assuming, loosely, that Myatt does not have his material written out by someone else before he releases it, Myatt and Long both use long strings of commas to break up sentences in a very similar way, as does 'Julie Wright'. My experience has taught me that people, artists especially, are very particular about language when they write. Due to the audio inflection they hear in their head, they write a certain way, to express how they hear conversation, where pauses, when/how emotion, and so on play out in a conversation and in how people interact with one another; also in what details are captured and which are omitted, in the breadth of vocabulary, for example. All these are particulars that can't help but emanate the consistent underlying structure of how language is understood and perceived in its conveyance by the writer.Ê Their Iambic Pentameter is the same too. I believe Anton Long and David Myatt are the same person. Having worked with the ONA through Sapanur, Eusebius, Dark Logos, and the dozen other nicknames he has assumed over the years, and very closely with writings from "both" of them - I have concluded and remain convinced that Myatt is Long.
Myatt writes so much that to consistently maintain any conscious focus to disrupt that style of writing would be too much of a strain to keep up - moreover, Myatt is probably not aware of, or recognizes the impossibility of cleaning up, the "linguistic" trail he leaves behind. The word 'fastly' rather than quickly is idiosyncratic, as is the consistent "misspelling" of 'past' with 'passed', the omission by both AL and DM of ornate description, as though the style of prose adopted for the Deofel Quintet coloured everything written since...these are just some small examples. It's my opinion that Myatt wants people to know he is AL. And damn right, AL is the best thing to happen to Satanism in the last four decades.
What the hell is Iambic Meter?
So far as I understand it, it's a fancy way of indicating the measure of both the mathematical and poetic rhythym or spacing in verse and the overall measure of meter to which they flow. Eminem and Dr. Seuss are two great examples for this. When reading Dr. Seuss, for instance, there is an impulse to insert an extra syllable in some lines to give more order and poise to the prose, which often seems stilted because it is missing a syllable in a place that interrupts the smooth rhythym of the prose. On the other hand, Eminem is a wordsmith whose masterful use of rhythym is a powerful example of correct Iambic (Penta) Meter or perfectly measured verse. As is the Haiku poem, which uses five syllables, then seven syllables, then five again, a style favoured in Japan.
Going back, what do you mean Anton Long was created for something?
I mean that AL is a deliberate magickal creation. There are powers and actions granted via a channel emanating a certain personality that AL can perform, but which David Myatt, cannot. Likewise, actions and stances that ONA, can perform and hold: as a separate entity: which David Myatt cannot. All because of the different codes of conduct each possess, or more accurately that he has given them the power to possess.
THEM have come along and penned Liber Dabih at an extremely fortuitous time, because over the years, each of Myatt's lived forms have been treated superficially, seen simplistically as snapshots which described Myatt, and each form with its own attached tirade of ignorant outside observation and commentary. And one of Myatt's most infamous actions was a conversion to the Islaamic faith much to the chagrin and disgust of many pro-National Socialist circles: who, never really understood why Myatt was seen to be joining them in the first place, at all. At this time, like all his other forms, Myatt's Islaamic learning can now be placed within a fair context. I think Myatt is genuine about using Islaam to attack the Magian, it is a role that makes a lot of sense from the perspective put forth by both AL and DM about championing Heresy.
Yet Myatt's recent tally of shape-shifting confessions have brought him to a place where his over-arching concern is for the level of suffering needlessly endured by the promulgation of forms, illusions and divisions that man-made abstractions have the power to do, and a deep sadness that humanity has learnt or is in danger of learning, nothing from its past five thousand years; and thus that all forms such as National Socialism, Militant Coups, Islamic Fundamentalism, etc, should no longer play a part; but, he is caught irrevocably in-between Knowledge and Time.
While he Knows/Lives with these profound integrated discoveries of suffering and the Numinous Way intimately as David Myatt: the struggle to do nothing and the struggle to do something clearly rages within. As Myatt, he can do nothing to try and change the flow and precession of suffering - for Myatt is Above Time: but as the ONA, as Long, he can actively continue to struggle against the odds of the Times (Long is the means by which David can manifest In/Against Time) we live in by using a variety of forms, the complete ONA being one of these, to infuse the consciousness, the deep learning of David Myatt, into the world through the Seven-Fold Sinister Way. Thus not just the results of his learning, but also the way in which he set about teaching himself.
Obviously, the idea that Myatt has split personalities for this theory is appealing, but it would be incorrect. Myatt's personalities are not split: and from his point of view, and mine, there is no differentiation between the two men and the plethora of other manifestations which each serve different purposes for Myatt: which emanate from one consciousness; but which consciousness is Acausal not Causal. Thus Myatt feels himself, rightly, a part of you, a part of me, a part of something greater, and is moved to express it, i.e. the Numinous.
The ONA web site and blog sites have a great opportunity to clarify all the conflicting rumours going around about the Order, and about certain high profile figures, who have attracted gratuitous attention to themselves, including Christos Beest, David Myatt and Michael W. Ford. Clearly the ONA related sites contradict one another in a number of areas and in many respects are a major source of disinformation and confusion. This is perhaps intentional to create this air of mystique about the ONA and also to open questions in the eyes of sceptics so that they no longer belief anything they read about the ONA and Myatt, in particular, when someone is actually telling the truth. Those who are interested, who can pick up the trail of crumbs, can with considerable effort, figure out pretty much who is who. The individuals concerned must like all the attention that this generates as it is unnecessarily time consuming one might argue. No mention is made of Michael W. Ford on any of the ONA web sites. Not once. This is very strange considering he has reissued some of their work and was a member himself. The web site and blog site is also crudely constructed - borderline amateurishly - almost as amateurishly as this web site (which is constructed by one individual, myself)! The formatting of the web site would lead one to believe that either they don't care or are lazy, or it is actually just one or two individuals and nothing more.
Anton Long discusses pseudonyms in a blog response to an earlier version of this article thus:
'While some pseudonyms may be attributable to Anton Long (and names such as Stephen Brown come to mind, here), other pseudonyms used by ONA members or associates (such as DL9 or PointyHat or Caladius) which some people have claimed are used by AL, are most certainly not attributable to Anton Long, a fact which those making such ludicrous claims could easily have found if they had bothered to find and ask the individuals using such 'nyms.'
Given that Myatt still uses Pseudonyms for a variety of purposes, it is highly unlikely that he would simply say 'yes ok it is really just me' if someone makes this allegation. So one would naturally expect him to deny any such activity, assuming it is the case (which seems highly likely). In the above blog response, the authorship is attributed to DarkLogos9 (DL9) and PointyHat with assistance from Anton Long, but it seems fairly clear to me that it is really just Myatt's blog (which make the title perhaps a little ironic). Amusingly enough, Myatt refers to himself much in the same way that I have done in the third person in the past (something that I started doing, then carried on thereafter out of habit). I would like to point out that I had no intention of writing in such length about the ONA from the outset. A large part of the reason for this was the amount of time he spent reading slightly conflicting accounts of the ONA from ONA affiliated persons and pseudonyms, which would not slot together neatly. This inspired me to want to produce such an article just for his own benefit. This resulted in what you read now, and the article grew from its original short length to this excessively long article/blog today. Unfortunately, such a length does not make sense in the light of a lack of familiarity with the ONA texts, but I have limited resources and chose to focus rather narrowly on this topic. I freely admit not being conversant with most ONA texts, and my intention was to merely reflect the connections if any to the far right, rather than examine all philosophical and magical aspects of the ONA.
Richard Moult, a painter based in Shropshire was a former Illuminates of Thanateros (IOT) British Isles Section initiate. The IOT appears to be a Chaos Magic order inspired by Thelema, Zos Kia Cultus, Taoism, Tantra and Shamanism. The two founders of the IOT were Peter J Carroll and Ray Sherwin, who are believed to have first created Chaos Magic in 1976. They subsequently formed the IOT in 1978. Moult joined the ONA in the late 1980s (using the initiate name Christos Beest (abbreviated to 'CB'), presumably leaving the IOT at that time. He was appointed by Anton Long as the official spokesperson and ambassador/public face (outer representative) of the ONA. He painted the artwork for the Black Book of Satan Part 1, and wrote the subsequent Parts 2 and 3 of the Black Book of Satan. He also created the Sinister Tarot. According to journalist Nick Ryan, Myatt stayed with Moult in his house, forming a Satanic commune for a period of approximately two years. Both were involved with Neo-Nazi political activity in this time as well as their other Satanic spiritual workings. Myatt was arrested in 1998 and Beest continued to be public head of the ONA until sometime between 1998 and 2004, depending on which sources one believes. ONA member 'blackrhadley' cites this as being 2001. He is said to have converted to Catholicism at that time, and later Orthodox Christianity, and still paints and composes music to this day. I used to believe that Moult was most likely a genuine Christian, but now believe that this was really just a facade to allow him to pursue his career in music and art, as ONA association is likely a huge hindrance in these circles if one does not want to be an underground/fringe composer/artist. He does not seem to have made a complete break with his past, as he does seem to keep up contacts with the ONA and/or flirt with the old imagery from time to time. He does appear to have some metaphysical, existentialist and pagan interests too. Anton Long now discredits much of Beest's work and writings for the ONA, as he felt that they diverged too much from his vision of what the ONA was about. Clearly being a Christian would serve no sinister purpose - apart from infiltration - but I believe that this is a good way to make a public break from the past. At the end of the day, I do not personally care whether Moult is still practising black magic or not, that is his own business. It is not uncommon for members of occult groups to keep their activities there secret or deny their membership or association, because of career and social pressures.
An updated version of the above article appears on the o9a web site, where it states that in 2009, Moult as Christos Beest reappeared in 2009 'as ÔAudunÕ to briefly help out with some aspects', which would imply that he was still involved in occultism and the Sinister in some respects today, perhaps in parallel to his Christian and existentialist leanings.
A poem and painting by 'Audun', entitled The Fox and the Snow, in the style of Moult, can be found on the 'nineangles' wordpress site, referencing the acausal cosmology of the Dark Gods etc.
Various references to Audun can be found on the WSA352's blog site, the context of which implies that Chloe/Kayla of the 352 and DarkLogos (Myatt) were working closely together.
The IOT's UK web site is shown below. It is not believed to have been a right wing or Satanist organisation, although there was a scandal in the early 1990s whereby one of the founding members of the order, Ralph Tegtemeier, was thrown out, having being accusing of being involved in ultra right wing cultish activities. It is reputed to have some Sinister aspects to it, although affilitation with the ONA is not tolerated.
Richard Moult's myspace page for his musical output is listed below. Among his friends list are a variety of artists and musicians and some ONA followers/fans.
A Moult fan has unofficially published Moult's Sinister Tarot deck, the official Tarot deck of the ONA, on his myspace page. This deck is not complete and cannot really be used for Tarot readings, but is more for use in visualisation of sinister archetypes.
The ONA writings recommend that each person creates his own Tarot deck. Whilst CB's Tarot and other artwork is the only 'official' Tarot deck and artwork for the ONA, a small number of ONA or Sinister inspired Tarot decks exist, created by ONA or ex-ONA initiates. These include the Naos Tarot deck created by Ryan Anschauung of the Temple of THEM; a deck created by Hagur; and a fourth deck, The Cosmic Tarot, created by the Ordo Deorc Eorthe (The Order of the Dark Earth or ODE), a non-affiliated, ONA-inspired National Socialist Sinister Satanist order, whose leader is allegedly shrouded in controversy over incestual child abuse according to a now deleted post on the Vampirefreaks.com forum (something Myatt was probably incorrectly accused of by anti-fascist journalist Nick Lowles, which particularly angered him). The ODE is affiliated with the Temple of Anvelin and the Temple of Azoth as far as I can tell from interlinked web sites.
'In an interview published in The Heretic 8, Beest describes National Socialism as "a fundamental expression of the Wyrd of the Western Soul...It is true to say that National-Socialism is an expression of Satanism (and vice-versa)"'
Christos Beest also makes various references to Neo-Nazism in his books and poetry published (and interviews) under the name of the Order of Nine Angles. However, although the ONA claim that these only represent his own personal opinions, the works do carry the ONA, rather than Beest as an individual writer; and some groups would block the publication of such works if it was painting an incorrect picture of their group.
Jeffrey Kaplan and Tore Bjorgo, authors of the book 'Nation and race: the developing Euro-American racist subculture' (1998) on pp.115, that Stephen Brown was actually Christos Beest. Jacob Senholt, author of The Sinister Tradition (2009), claims that Stephen Brown is really just a pseudonym for Myatt! Myatt above admits that Stephen Brown is one of his pseudonyms.
DarkLogos (above - a likely pseudonym for Myatt) claims that the interview in the Hexagon archive was in fact with Stephen Cox, using the name Christos Beest.
However, Stephen Bernard Cox is a different individual and a separate ONA affiliate. He founded the ONA Nexion, the Order of Jarls Baelder (OJB) in 1990, a pro-Aryan pagan organisation, featuring Fraternitas Loki (FL) and the masculine and feminine orders Dark Earth Sisters and Shadow Fire Brothers. The OJB is reputed to be non-racial and admit female and homosexual members. It was renamed to Arktion Federation in 1998 and was dissolved in 2005 when Cox retired on account of health reasons. It used the broken curved arm swastika as its symbol (similar to that of The White Order of Thule or Myatt's Temple 88 logo) and was classified as fascist Satanism by Partridge, although Cox contests this. Cox was a former Freemason. The OJB is described on p.38 of Jacob Senholt's book.
The ONA is described in this book between pages 115 and 117, and it describes the main endeavour of human sacrifice as being an intrinsic part of their version of the 'Black Mass'. Black Mass is supposed to be held once a month according to the Black Book of Satan, so whether the above allegation is actually completely true or not is another matter.
Kaplan and Bjorgo cite a source on page 124 of their book as a letter from Christos Beest, August 1996, which explains the following (summary of content of letter quoted, not actual letter):
'The ONA claims ancient roots. In a history that is remarkably similar to that of Gardnarian Wicca, the ONA path is held by its adherents to be some 7,000 years old and to have been passed down through a line of female initiates, or Mistresses of the Earth, until, in the 1960s, it was decided to expand the organization and Anton Long was initiated. The name 'Order of the Nine Angles' was adopted at about that time.'
To what extent this view of the ONA is actually held by other members of the ONA, or whether it was a pagan-style fantasy of Beest's, it is hard to say. The ONA blog site denies that it has a multiple thousand year old direct lineage. It is probably based on the myth around Myatt's schooling from a dark sorceress in the LHP.
'Michael Ford was granted the Order of Nine Angles command by Christos Beest in 1996, from which Ford operated until 1998 in Indianapolis. Ford left the active ONA due to what he has described as its Neo-Fascist stance and political ideals, which in his view are not an inherent part of Magick or Satanism.'
It is likely Ford's command or anyone else who was associated with it, if applicable, ceased involvement formally with the ONA after this time. After ceasing association with the ONA, Michael Ford went on to study a variety of other occult traditions, including Qlippoth, and to write a number of books on the subject, as well as on Vampirism, in line with his Satanic influenced form of Luciferianism. More information about Michael Ford's Order of Phosphorus can be found on the Gnostic Luciferianism page.
'River Isis Nexion', a likely pseudonym for Myatt, writes on the ONA Wordpress site about Christos Beest. 'He' alleges that Christos Beest was a 'rather silly pseudonym' for the Shropshire-based composer Richard Moult. Moult was involved in the ONA for nearly 10 years, from 1989 until the late 1990s. Moult never passed the grade of Internal Adept. Moult was allegedly only involved with David Myatt's The National Socialist Movement, and Reichsfolk, for a short period of time, during the 1990s. In 1998, Moult ceased his involvement with the ONA and far right politics to concentrate on his music and art, and later became a Christian. This sounds suspiciously like damage limitation rather than a truthful account of Moult's acitivities.
Myatt allegedly came up with a plan to infiltrate occult groups with Neo-Nazi doctrine whilst spending time in a Church of Nazarene monastery, which is ironic as he uses the word Nazarene as an insult to anyone who he considers too 'Magian'!
According to 'DarkLogos' on the 'Stormfront.org White Pride World Wide' forum - the forum conforming to the stereotype of racists not being able to spell, c/f 'worldwide' - Richard Moult, aka Christos Beest (referred to as 'Beesty Boy' or 'Dick the Pagan' by some nowadays), never really lived his life in a sinister way, and his music was definitely not sinister, political or occult in nature. His writings, using the name of ONA, were more 'pagan' than Satanic. However, had he not left the ONA, he would likely have been kicked out. He ceased his involvement with the ONA and the far right in 1998 after Myatt was arrested, most likely because of all the pressure [also the same year that Michael W. Ford left]. DarkLogos believes that he was never really serious about politics or the occult, but they were just interests for him. Some have alleged that the article by River Isis Nexion was written by Myatt on behalf of Moult himself as a damage limitation exercise as apparently very few galleries would take his paintings because of his past reputation; and that his Catholic then later Orthodox Christian instruction was merely a PR exercise to appear more acceptable to the music/art scene. However this is unlikely. DarkLogos claims that in occult circles, his conversion to Christianity is generally regarded as genuine. Whilst there is some truth in this, it does sound rather like exaggeration and damage limitation, and DarkLogos is believed by many to be another pseudonym of Myatt's.
DarkLogos also writes on this wordpress blog site, where he seems to imply he is an ONA member. Here he states that Myatt wrote for the ONA from the 1980s onwards, and continues to do so even after his 'conversion' to Islam in 1999. He actually continued to release his Neo-Nazi material to Far Right magazines until 2000! DL states that his ONA writings under the pseudonym 'Anton Long' are more voluminous than his Islamic writings, and that his conversion to Islam was an excuse to further his anti-semitic goals and promote terrorism and anything that threatens the order of modern Westernised society and democracy. DarkLogos provides a timeline for all of Myatt's activities.
Another member of the Stormfront.org White Pride World Wide forum, 'Demogorgon' (quite possibly Myatt again), makes a contrary statement to 'darklogos'. Demogorgon states that the ONA's earliest writings dated back to the 1940s. Anton Long, he states, ran the order and brought it into the public eye. After his death, Christos Beest took over running it and remains the leader today (at the time of the post in November 2003). He states that David Myatt's role in the ONA was minimal for years other than the recent supplementation of his Aryanism writings. A person who follows the works of the ONA does not have to follow the additional works on Aryanism if they do not wish to. These are considered 'optional'. Contrary to the ONA blogspot above, Demogorgon states that Beest never left the order.
ONA writings known as 'Temple 88' are explicitly National Socialist and Neo-Nazi, Aryan Satanic. Their web site has changed address and been taken down a number of times, perhaps through legal action, ISP policy, or though lack of money or will. The old Temple 88 web site can be downloaded at the link below, where their agenda and ideas are explicitly stated. Although no references are made to the authorship or the ONA, these writings are widely attributed to David Myatt, and contain Neo-Nazi populist and Occult references, citing the meth-amphetamine addicted Austian Immigant Adolf Hitler as a spiritual leader (in line with the ONA Calendar based on his birth) and National Socialism as a religion and way of life, a model for living in all aspects of life.
Myatt's Temple 88 writings were probably directed at occultists familiar with the ONA who had racist and white supremacist leanings. It is unlikely he was just offering a choice of racist ideology to Satanists and not embracing it himself, although this might just be one of an arsenal of Sinister tools he likes to use. There are inconsistencies however between the Temple 88 writings and documented personal tastes of his mild-mannered scholar persona, in that his favourite music is classical music (according to that persona) yet in the Temple 88 writings he says that 1930s style marching music is the only authentic music for Aryans - was he pandering to the audience as to what they wanted to hear or was this just one of his many personas? Whilst the Temple 88 writings make some valid points, the qualities they espouse are given racial attributes and I do not rate Adolf Hitler very highly, although he did make some powerful and attractive looking symbols, probably one of the reasons why he is so popular today with many Satanists and White Supremacists.
This Swastika-style logo is used by many ONA members and affiliates and at least one ONA Yahoo group.
'Another demonstration of the convergence of fascism and occultism is found in the ONA's Temple 88, which is described as an instantiation of the "aryanist and national-socialist ideas/ideals of the Order of Nine Angles." The writings of "Temple 88? are recommended for higher initiates, having "reached the seventh stage (Saturn) of the septenary Tree of Wyrd," who are "assumed to be able to judge and understand why the usage of national-socialism and aryanism is implemented in the Order of Nine Angles ideological structure."'
The book 'Black Sun: Aryan Cults, Esoteric Nazism and the Politics of Identity' by Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke examines Neo-Nazism as a new religious movement.
The ONA also had an alliance of sorts with White Order of Thule (WOT), a Nordic pagan Neo-Nazi organisation, who had Satanic overtones. The name is a thrown back to the neo-pagan and mystical Thule Society of 1920s Germany that Hitler was briefly associated with (briefly examined on the Freemasonry page). WOT members were involved in Neo-Nazi terrorism in 2002, plotting to blow up landmarks associated with Jews and Afro-Americans.
The ONA Nexus 352, a.k.a. ONA 352 or ONA NXS 352, formerly known as the White Star Acception (WSA352), can be said to be the American sister organisation to the ONA, in some sense, and is located in Orange County, California. It probably only numbers a half dozen individuals. The WSA was originally an independent Satanist organisation but it became inspired by the writings and legacy of the ONA, and later formally affiliated with the ONA during the noughties, reinvigorating the ONA into a working order again (albeit an international one), which had at the time turned into an on line phenomenon and writings by one man, the working order having fizzled out.
The WSA 352 logo, the trident, features an inverted Cross, which is the only instance of inverted Christian imagery (or usual Satanic symobolism of inverted pentagrams or stars etc. - used elsewhere in some but not all of the other 352 symbols) that I have found in the ONA and related Nexions.
88 x 4 = 352
This is thought to be more a symbolic Fourth Reich rather than a literal one.
An ONA NXS 352 (WSA352)'s blog spot is hosted on wordpress also. It appears to feature blogs from Anton Long and 352 members, who seem to use the terms ONA and 352 interchangeably. Here Anton Long seems to make a joke about 'OGs' (Original Gangsters) and Jewish/Masonic symbolism, both interests of the 352.
Below is the blog spot of 352 spokesperson Chloe a.k.a. Kayla. An article about the history of the WSA written by Kayla 352 can be found here also. Whitestaracception is another blog spot for the 352. Which of the two blog spots is an 'official' representation of the 352 is uncertain, but it is most likely they are run by Chloe/Kayla. There is an usual mixture of imagery on this blog site, featuring 352 Satanic symbols, diamonds, jewelry, gold, Mercedes, Prada logos, D&G logos, high heeled shoes, handbags, Japanese manga anime pictures featuring lesbian scenes and some graffiti 'Chloe loves Kayla' (presumably playful role play). Clearly there is 'bling', anime and lesbian imagery on here which diverges from the usual imagery on the main ONA blog sites and web site. Myatt himself is very much opposed to the materialism of the modern era.
Opus Vrilis - Progress or Die is a book available on the WSA wordpress site, describing various aspects of the WSA's philosophy. I have not studied this yet in any detail. The WSA describe themselves as Progressive Satanism within the context of the Sinister Path.
George Sieg of the Exeter Centre for the Study of Esotericism (EXESESO), writes in his brief article 'Anglular Momentum: From Traditional to Progressive Satanism in the Order of Nine Angles:
'In the last few decades, the Order of Nine Angles has become notorious in both the context of the
Left-Hand Path, and radical movements, for its advocacy of human sacrifice and its apparent
alignment to National Socialism and far-right terrorism, as well as the association of David Myatt
(generally believed to be, pseudonymously, its leader or former leader, Anton Long) with radical
Islam and the promotion of "martyrdom" (suicide) operations. Esoterically, it has until the past
year identified itself exclusively as a "Traditional" Satanism. Its membership, acknowledged to
be small, has been suggested by detractors or sceptics to be nearly nonexistent.
These consistencies seem to have changed with the advent of ONA spinoffs such as the Tempel
ov Blood in the United States and the Temple of THEM in Australia, both of which depart to a
greater or lesser degree from the system promoted by the ONA. The Tempel ov Blood seems to
retain the system, and the association with far-right extremism, but expands it in the direction of
vampirism. The Temple of THEM, by contrast, encourages antinomian exploration of the
extremes, rather than far-right extremism specifically, and has expanded the system into various
speculative and theoretical arenas of esoteric interest.
The most significant evolution of the system, however, has occurred in a context of youthful
American innovation, presenting itself as a new form of Satanism not only inspired by but
officially within the affiliation of the ONA, identifying as one of its "Nexions." This Nexion,
named the "White Star Acception" and based in Oakland, California, but apparently progenating
a number of daughter Nexions also in the United States, was founded by two girls in their early
twenties who have coined the term "Progressive Satanism" to describe its methodology.
Significantly, they openly purport to have syncretised the methods of the ONA with other work
of David Myatt produced under his own name, including his pagan, apolitical "Numinous Way"
and his communitarian "Reichsfolk" concept, as well as presenting an interview with Anton Long
in which their innovations receive his direct approval and endorsement.
The variations introduced by the White Star Acception, however, are considerable. Its term
"Acception" is derived from Freemasonry, as some of its members are also Freemasons. Masonic
imagery is included in the initiation rites of the Acception, along with the use of Hebrew terms
and the designation of profane, non-Satanic persons as "goyim." This use of Judaeo-Masonic
imagery is not merely an aesthetic departure from the Traditional Satanism of the ONA: the WSA
repudiates biological racism. One of its founders is half Cambodian, and both Latino. Eschewing
folkish National Socialism, the WSA promotes a "sinister tribalism" bearing more in common
with gang culture, also an interest of its founders, whose rites include not only human culling, but
gang-style initiations requiring assault, rape, theft, and other criminally antinomian acts.
According to their own claims, however, the most "Progressive" aspect of their Satanism is its
emphasis on the "sinister feminine," and they maintain that despite considerable differences, their
system aims at the grand "aeonic" goal of Galatic Imperium which is the ultimate aim of the
ONA.'
Satanist gangsters or criminal gangs are nothing new, it is really just new specifically in the context of the ONA. The aggressive, chaotic and Darwinistic tendencies of many Satanists go well with the gangster lifestyle. Myatt himself was a cat burglar in the 1960s, only robbing those homes that were challenging and worthy of him, according to 'DarkLogos9' in his chronology blog. Whilst his Neo-Nazi Paramilitary involvement was criminal, it was not quite in the same way. It is likely that some of these elements, combined with the current popularity of gangster rap and the continued glamourisation of gangsters in movies, have been big influences on the 352. Is gangster level, localised criminality as 'sinister' as the actions of famous dictators that Kayla writes about in one of her blogs? One could view the gangster lean of the 352 as similar to Myatt's penchant for racial violence and National Socialism but without the (racist or political) direction, the only loyalty being to the gang and nothing else.
One famous example of Satanism meeting gangbanging is that of Jon Nodtveidt, guitarist for the Swedish Black Metal band DIssection and a member of the Temple of the Black Light (formerly known as the Misanthropic Luciferian Order) - an anti-cosmic Satanist order - and a member of the Werewolf Legion, a Swedish criminal gang. Whilst he was involved in all kinds of criminal activities and likely inter-gang violence, he was strongly against drug dealing.
'Nodtveidt was convicted of being an accessory to murder, in the killing of the 38-year-old homosexual Algerian Josef Ben Meddour, in 1997. He was released from prison in 2004, and restarted Dissection. On the 16th of August 2006, he was found dead in his apartment in Hasselby, a suburb of Stockholm by an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound inside a circle of lit candles. Early reports indicated that he was found with an open copy of the Satanic Bible, but these were later dismissed by Dissection's guitarist Set Teitan. According to him, "it's not any atheist, humanist and ego-worshiping 'Satanic Bible' by Anton LaVey that Jon had in front of him, but a Satanic Grimoire. He despised LaVey and 'The Church of Satan.'
It is highly likely that many branches of biker gangs in the USA and Canada, many fronts for criminal acitivities, pimping and drug dealing etc., have numerous members involved in Satanism for similar reasons.
Although I am aware that some Luciferians and LaVey Satanists are also Freemasons, as is the highly syncretic and heterogeneous nature of their beliefs, it is rather unusual or odd that some 352 members are Freemasons, and have moulded their organisation around Freemasonry is certain respects. Those female 352 members then are presumably part of clandestine masonic organisations, possibly Co-Freemasonry, or dedicated female only lodges, rather than the more common 'boys clubs' of Freemasonry. The ONA and indeed Traditional Satanism and LaVey Satanism has always been anti-Qabalistic and anti-Masonic, being less about 'mysteries' about more about practical application. The ONA in particular is very much opposed to the 'Magian' and Freemasonry is extremely 'Magian' in the sense that it is often Qabalistic. Perhaps the embrace of the 'Magian' in at least this respect is a symbolic two finger salute to Myatt's Islamic Fundamentalism and Neo-Nazi beliefs, or perhaps to reiterate that it is not racist in nature as a group (not that Freemasonry is always free of racism like any other spiritual or religious movement.) It is not likely to be easy to understand this guiding principal of the 352 without immersion in their various blogs. It is clearly taking Aeonic magic in a different direction, athough it is not 'Luciferian' in the traditional sense with its emphasis on criminality as an expression of the Sinister and Neo-Darwinist thinking. It could possibly be interpreted in a loose sense as a form of Anti-Freemasonry, with predation, chaos and disorder in place of nominal benevolence towards humanity. This probably wouldn't be quite correct either. Some critics might argue it was a highly confused system. If one believed Myatt's Islamic faith to be extremely syncretic, this is perhaps even more so as it is fully integrated not compartmentalised.
A recent blog post by Kayla/Chloe on the ONA-NXS:352 wordpress site (in part a response to this article/blog) addresses some of these points about the spiritual influences on the 352 and context, from the 352 perspective:
Whilst the 352 are not overtly Neo-Nazi or racist, they seem to have an affinity with the far right and brutalism. For example, one of their blogs describes a desire to kill all illegal immigrants. Another refers to 'Red Light Districts' which implies areas where it is easy to cull/kill victims without being caught. Chloe also talks about the good works that Myatt has done in recruiting Islamic boys, in parallel to efforts in the West to rekindle nationalism.
Below is a series of remarks made by Kayla of the WSA 352 about The Temple of THEM and their brief 4 day membership of the +O+'s forum, before they left in disgust. It is interspersed with Ryan Anschauung's comments. The 352 appear to believe in Myatt's earlier 'hardcore' material-based works, but in a non-racial context. They reject the later more philosophical writings of Myatt. Kayla has a strong interest in gang culture, but does not appear to be an intellectual or a philosopher. She accuses 'THEM' of being 'softcore'. Ryan suggests that Kayla has little understanding or experience of the ONA, implying that her organisation has little substance.
'352 "This guy David Myatt was just a Nazi who hated Jews. He wanted to create a Satanic - Nazi hybrid organization to do something with them back in 1985, so he started releasing these edicts via post to anyone interested and in the skin head underground. Don't get me wrong, this guy is a genius, and 50% of what he wrote are mind blowing; but the rest is bullshit."'
Below is an excerpt from a blog by Chloe on the ONANXS blog site.
'The point is that the ONA proper isn't a chess club or religious community where you can just register as a user and think your ONA. If you don't know or understand what the hell Myatt is and what he's doing, then you aren't "Sinister." If you like working for the Man in his corporations cuz you get bi-weekly checks then you ain't "Sinister." If you got a problem with violence and crime, gangs and terrorist groups, guns and people getting shot up then you ain't "sinister." If you like your State and government, and pay your taxes 3 months early with a grin, then fuck you too. If you never have committed yourself to a group such as the military, a gang, a skinhead group, of such kind where you have learned to work in an organized group manner for your group's private interests, by fucking up other countries, other cities, other races to dominate and control, then fuck you cuz you ain't "sinister." Fuck you cuz you don't have that nature that the ONA is taking about. You are mundane and not of the sinister breed by nature.'
Some commentators have suggested that the WSA 352 have 'ruined' the ONA. The 352 have clearly reinvigorated the ONA and injected new life into it, recreating it as a working order again. As to whether this strategy will work for the ONA in the long run and appeal to a new generation or be its downfall is yet to be seen. I understand that there were some moves towards an alliance between the Temple of THEM and Anton Long which fell through prior to the shift in THEM's focus, after which point Long formed an alliance with the 352.
Clearly each Sinister Tribe, ONA Nexion, or Aeonic magic-inspired organisation, whether formally affiliated to the ONA or not, has taken elements of the ONA's philosophy and adapted it to its own cultural setting and personal tastes, values and occultic preferences. Besides cultural and personality differences, there are also differences in gender, class, education, age, organisation, application of philosophy and ideology, and values between groups. Whilst values and mission statements vary considerably between all the different groups, the he biggest difference between the groups is probably that between the WSA 352 and the others. Here we have a youthful female-lead group, membership comprised largely of late teens and 20 somethings, who are more 'street' focussed, specifically gang-oriented, from what one assumes are more working/lower class backgrounds (or possibly aspiration to appear so), as opposed to the safer, middle classed, likely University-educated backgrounds of many of the other Nexions. This street focus and youthfulness is evident in the approach and writing style and approach of the WSA.
Temples of Satan's Grandmaster Blackwood dismisses the Order of Nine Angles as being non-Satanic and a 'brand' revived again and again over the internet. Blackwood sees himself in some way as the spokesperson for Theistic Satanism with some kind of real authority over Satanist organisations. He has been nicknamed 'Block Wood' and insulted on various internet blogs by numerous pseudonyms of Myatt (presumably). To what extent the ONA in the UK was an actual organisation prior to 2006 (after Beest left), it is not certain.
'There are others that are exposed and those organizations include the Order of Nine Angles. The Order of Nine Angles continues even after it was dissolved by Grand Magister Blackwood at New York Meeting in 2006 in which attendees included previous and past membership who refused to change policies and doctrines that were recommended by Grand Magister Blackwood in an attempt to codify and provide truth to the membership. Much of the Order of Nine Angles documents and policies are shrouded adding mystery, however this organization or dis-organization is comprised of many false names and delusional theories that again sometimes run borderline with a anti-Satan message, and create an entire court of mysterious and magickal unproven names and ideologies that are expounded from esoterica intellectuals who find the darkness far more appealing through the eyes of secrecy and yet provide little or no relevance to Satan and or his plans and goals as described for centuries. The Order of Nine Angles offers up nothing as far as truth in Satanism and remains simply a place for those interested in the "Underground Attitude" to congregate and discuss theories laid down by low intelligent leaders who step "back and forth" into power by forming and reforming the Order of Nine Angles over and over via the Internet, the base of the organization is dissolved and lacks the organization to withstand the future in Satanism. Stubborn membership had a certain chance as blew it when I came aboard asked by previous leaders to rekindle and reorganize the failing order, however lack of mental expansion and provision of truth failed to turn the corner for this mostly now Internet-based Organization.'
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Tempel ov Blood, E.A. Koetting, Astral Vampirism, Initiations & Infiltration:
Tempel of Blood (TOB) is an American Satanist group, that was inspired by the ONA texts and came into existence in 2003 in North Carolina, but which is not formally affiliated to the ONA. Some may regard it as an independent ONA Nexion or a Sinister Tribe, but which is still part of the ONA 'family. In many respects the TOB is ideologically and 'theologically' almost identical, although there are of course certain differences in philosophy, practice and application. The TOB seem to be more focussed on the Vampire God rather than the other multiple dark extraterrestrial (acausal) gods as are the ONA and related organisations, as far as I can make out, although dark Gods are still mentioned. The Tempel ov Blood were inspired by the ONA writings and the ONA organisation, which allegedly ceased to be operational as a physical UK group around the time of the Millennium (before the WSA352 came into the fold).
The TOB just have some information hosted on blogging or other sites, with no formal web site at present.
'The Tempel ov Blood exists as a Nexion to the Dark Gods as well as a guidance and filtration system for aspiring Noctulians. For those seeking a harsh alchemical change into the Transcendental Predator based on a synthesis of Sinister Hebdomantry and Vampirism...Our Calcination, Seperation, and final Coagulation will create a New Being capable of bringing about the "Day of Wrath" spoken of in the Diabolus Chant. Hail the New Aeon! Agios Athanatos!
The Focus and Direction of the Tempel ov Blood:
For those so inclined to work with the Tempel ov Blood (after proving their Noctulian potential), our main aims are threefold:
First, we wish to hold as our highest priority the creation of the New Being. The realization of the meaning of the human's life is this - humans are nothing in themselves, they are great however once they have decided to become a bridge to the New Being variously described and symbolized by Homo Galactica, Ubermensch, Noctulians, Vampires, and the various titles given to Alien beings in such mythologies. ANY and ALL humans who fail to embrace this evolutionary urge will serve as food and a resource to be used by the New Being- as a human would a lesser animal. Thus is our philosophy and way of being a terror to the Magian. So much sweeter will their Blood Essence be to consume...
Second, the infiltration and manipulation of organizations and forms with Sinister potential. Aryanism, particularly the more religiously fanatical forms of it, such as Christian Identity are a good example. The manipulating Noctulian is to use these forms for their own Presencing of the Dark, as well as changing in subtle ways the followers of such forms to following a more Sinister direction. For example, in Identity, using knowledge of the Biblical doctrines and prophecies encourage war, hardship, and system disruption using the scriptures as guidance and proof of the message you are sending to adherents of the said form. Any form with a transhuman, system disruption, or satanic direction to it may be of use here. The key is finding a form that in itself is an aid to the Dialect and empowering it further, causing a saturation of Acasual Energy.
Third, disruption of Magian organizations. Whether overtly occult forms, such as Judeo-Christian churches, Wicca covens, pseudo-satanic temples, or more physical "down to earth" forms such as Magian political groups and government. These need to be infiltrated and disrupted via both magical means (the ways of which are detailed in a ms not available to the public) as well as in more physical and practical ways.
The Tempel itself is but a means for the Noctulian Empire to provide a harsh alchemical change process to those who seek it, allowing them to aid the dialect on their own with the knowledge and skills attained during the transformation. Those few who go on to become Noctulians will join with us in our Harvest and pass thru the Jihad as One of Them that will reign immortal in the Dark Land. '
Regarding the 'first' statement, this seems to refer to anyone who does not subscribe to this type of spiritual evolution as a part of the Sinister Path is regarded as sub-human and thus worthy of predation in a magical sense (astral vampirism) or physical sense (e.g. exploitation or culling).
The 'second' statement is no doubt inspired by David Myatt's use of Islam's violent and warrior aspects to bring out his desired National Socialist inspired sinister goal. It should be noted that only a miniscule proportion of those in power are formally following a Sinister Satanic path and 'pretending' to adhere to the religions in question. The vast majority of people in leadership positions of the main religions in the world are doing a perfectly good job on their own of creating division and conflict with other religions, and the traditions or misconceptions regarding what is part of the religion and what is just religious popular culture that they perpetuate are often used by the populace at large for the own personal agendas and maintaining positions of prejudice and ignorance. Many religious leaders and priests abuse their power and have life too comfortable for themselves, becoming instead career priests a little like many of today's politicians, rather than doing it because of genuine love of their faith alone. The majority of the Baptist and evangelical preachers and Muslim clerics that wage a spiritual war on the faithless or other religions do not need any help from Sinister Satanists. Only where they are adding value and creating a union between cultures in a joint cause of war is it really significant, for example David Myatt's drawing together the European Far Right and Islamic Fundamentalism that share many of the same goals. Religions have historically been watered down, fragmented into rival factions and been used for political purposes or personal purposes for several thousand years. The Sinister Satanists are not really doing anything new here, it is just given a more formal structure.
Regarding the 'third' statement on infiltration and disruption, I have described an instance he heard of when in a Christian home group many years ago, when a Satanist infiltrated a Christian home group and was convincing in the speaking in tongues and worship, but was actually causing chaos within the group and freaked the group leader out so much he quit his faith and became an atheist as he could not face it. Most Satanists are not like this, and have better things to do with their time, but a small minority enjoy such pursuits. These are the type of Satanists to watch out for if one belongs to another other type of group that is not predatory Satanist in nature. It should be noted that whilst infiltration might work in groups that are dysfunctional or lacking in a real understanding and bonding with fellow members, it is much harder if not impossible to infiltrate organisations or groups that are tightly bonded, work in accordance and compliment one another, and who are comprised of highly evolved, self-actualised people, sensitive and aware of every type of vibration. Dysfunctional groups that are easy to infiltrate are typically those with no screening or interview process, that welcome any new members, no matter how emotionally imbalanced or inappropriate they are for the group in question. This may include some occult orders and also more evangelical Christian groups where they are just happy to accept new members. In monotheistic groups, members may focus on the worship and the appearance (or actuality) of embracing one side of the psyche, whilst perhaps not paying attention to the other half of the psyche as long as the feeling of the 'Godly' half is strong enough - the visible and usually limited spiritual vocabulary and standard expressions used - so it drowns out whatever else is lurking in the conscious or subconscious mind). This may be standard operating procedure for many Christians, who tend not to want to lift up the 'bonnet' and look too carefully inside at the other 'stuff' inside the subconscious. I once knew of a boy that pretended to be a Christian in order to hang out with a girl he fancied. In this case, he knew nothing of how Christians were expected to act and was 'sussed out' fairly quickly! In esoteric orders or religious groups where there is no screening process, they may well be subject to a large amount of internal conflict, neurosis, sociopathy, childish dramas and insanity present. If an individual is disruptive, then fellow members may try to save him from himself rather than just kick him out immediately. This is especially true for those groups or religions that want to convert the whole world, and if the individual does show some signs of genuine interest, even if they are totally divided, will still be given leeway, perhaps indefinitely, as long as they do not visibly cause trouble - depending on the congregation. This may give an infiltrating individual a little leeway and room to improve the subtlety and performance of his 'act' and provide more opportunities to cause magical trouble or otherwise.
Are most Sinister Satanists natural born actors? Whilst there is an emphasis on role play in such organisations, that is not to say that all such individuals are naturals. In some cases, if they are well known, a little detective work may reveal who they really are. Most actors on television and the movies can't act very well. If the person in question was once a Christian, then one can recall the memory of what it was like to be a Christian and the states of mind employed and how one acted, and use those for one's current persona when required. They might even enjoy it! The same goes for the other way around, in that ex-Satanists or ex-gang members may access the memories of what it was like to be that way and use it to infiltrate such organisations. One risk with such role playing is that in the weaker individual, it may change who they are and they may indeed slowly become more like the person they are pretending to be. Those with good sensory acuity should be able to sniff them out fairly easily. Whilst the mind may think it's fooling you with an act, the person really does have to believe it deep down (really deep down), or otherwise the body language and intonation of the voice will give it away. Most people with some spiritual insight could 'fake' worship of God, merely because the frenzy of evangelical worship is built up over time and usually takes on predictable type forms or expected types of behaviour.
E.A. Koetting, author and occultist, a former member of the ONA and Tempel ov Blood, and former affiliate/practitioner of the 218 current (The Temple of the Black Light) left and formed his own independent order Ordo Ascensum Aetyrnalis.
In an interview with Koetting by Michael Collinsworth in 2008, where he talks about Black Magic in general, in relation to the 218 and ONA, Koetting states:
'"At the age of 17, I contacted the Church of Satan to apply for membership. Herr Vad of the Church eventually replied to my request and said that I had to be 18 to join."
Koetting says Herr Vad then sent along some information about a group known as the Order of Nine Angles (ONA). If you know anything at all about Satanism, this is like going from a barely simmering frying pan into the flames of Hell itself. The Church of Satan is really nothing more than a group of atheists and hedonists, their rituals nothing more than psychological drama, so I found it quite strange that they would lead him to a radical and dangerous system such as the ONA. He agreed that it was a very odd coincidence. What Herr Vad had given him was a description of the first several initiations of the ONA. Koetting was amazed by what he found. Over the course of time, however, Koetting lost the contact information that was originally given him. So several months later he again emailed the man who had turned him down for membership in the Church of Satan, saying, "Could you send me that information again?" It turned out that, in fact, Herr Vad had absolutely no recollection of sending him the information. So either it was not actually sent by him, or he was putting forth the "use it or lose it mentality." So Koetting began working in a solitary manner, going through the initiations as outlined in the now infamous ONA manuscripts written by Anton Long.'
Whilst one cannot definitely prove that this is an example of ONA infiltration of the Church of Satan, one could safely assume that no genuine senior CoS member would willingly recommend the ONA which went against nearly everything it stood for (taking into account the chaotic and independent nature of different parts of CoS at various points in its history). So presumably this was an example of ONA infiltration, the person in question just covering his tracks in case the recipient of the information turned out to be someone clueless who could not keep his mouth shut.
"In every spiritual path," says Koetting, "they recognize a Dark Night of the Soul. Before you can actually ascend, you have to hit rock bottom. In spirituality, the rock bottom is total evil. That"s one reason that in the ONA you hit rock bottom immediately. You have to kind of nosedive and come out of it."
The truth, however, is that many hit rock bottom and stay there, or go insane from what they find waiting, either within themselves... or right on the other side of our mundane reality. All too often an aspirant thinks they know what they"re getting themselves into, only to find that the experiences these orders offer were not at all what they were looking for. They get in over their heads, frantically searching for what Koetting calls, "Hell"s emergency exit."...When it comes to working within these paths, the first step is to heighten one"s sense of awareness. What Koetting transmits in his books is that the practitioner really needs to be thinking like a practitioner. He needs to feel the forces at work, see them with his own two eyes, smell them, taste them, realize how, whether he likes it or not, he is already forever immersed in them no matter where he is. In fact, in a typical "banishing ritual" you are not actually banishing the forces of darkness from a given area. Rather, you are removing yourself from their conscious awareness. In reality, they haven"t actually gone anywhere.'
As discussed on the section above on Myatt and his Islamic faith, infiltration and 'acting' or wearing the clothes of one's 'enemy' is a use of one's time that could arguably be spent elsewhere more productively. Some might argue that disrupting other groups is childish. It ultimately depends on what your goals and values are. Pursuing a 'war' on the 'Magian' (and disrupting or manipulating of other groups or ideologies) to become Sinister and to achieve a Sinister goal or paradise may come at the expense of one's own personal self-actualisation (having to deal with philosophies one has little interest in or actually dislikes or despises) and the creation of a new 'shadow' (based on the perception of an 'enemy'. Perhaps there is some conflict between the different goals professed by those who claim to be 'Sinister', as being 'Sinister' is only one part of the whole. Most occultists who are interested in personal development subscribe to Jung's theory about exploring the shadow and integrating the psyche, not fragmenting it and creating 'external enemies' that must be destroyed. Often those who look for external enemies are projecting denial from their own psyches and/or hiding from their own Self.
The final reference to Jihad in the above statement by the TOB is surely very Myatt inspired. Being truly Sinister and waging war on the world in one's lifetime can result in 'reigning immortal in the Dark Land'. Whether this means immortality in the physical sense or spiritual sense is unclear, but I am aware of many that practice astral vampirism that aspire to physical immortality. Is this an inverted type of Magian or Abrahamic reward for being Sinister (as opposed to the reward in Heaven for being 'good' and loyal in Abrahamic religions)?
It should be noted that whilst the Tempel ov Blood was clearly born out of individuals studying the wide variety of ONA material, they chose a slightly different direction for their own order. The Tempel ov Blood have reputedly criticised the ONA on a number of aspects of its organisation. Anton Long on the ONA web site warns against such divergent and breakaway orders, not naming any names, that they provide a somewhat distorted view of the ONA and Sinister path. Whilst Long/Myatt may have produced many texts on the Sinister Way, and whilst the ONA lead the way in Sinister Satanism for many years in terms of the Sinister, it cannot hope to monopolise on the Sinister, which is ultimately intended to be an individual path and schisms, break away groups and evolution of his ideas in a myriad of different directions is really inevitable. Some argue that one has to move away from the ONA in order to recapture the essence of the original Sinister journey, unbound by causal constructs of groups, organisations and egos.
My associate has informed me that the Temple ov Blood does contain Afro-American members, in the same way that the Church of Satan and indeed Freemasonry does (although in the latter example, they tend to join up in clandestine Afro-American lodges).
The Tempel ov Blood are reputed to believe in the Vampire God, Noctulias, equivalent to an 'extreme' Satan. A Satanist friend of mine advises him that the Tempel believes that Satanists can be 'created', mostly through intense physical and mental trauma. This is perhaps based on the ONA premise of extreme physical toughness and fitness, but taking it one step 'further'. Perhaps a certain level of self-hatred or psychological imbalance is required for such 'inhumane' humanism. Some criminal gangs use similar practices of bullying or abusing members to iron out their feelings and create numb individuals who no longer care about the suffering of others and can function better as part of the criminal gang. The ToB use Nazi iconography and have a militaristic 'stormtrooper' style ethic.
This is taken to its logical conclusion where the ToB believes in an afterlife that is constant pain and torment, which is the desired goal as it helps in some kind of spiritual development or kind of pressure for the soul to push against. This is ironically reminiscent of the Christian concept of Hell, and ironically both parties argree that ToB are going there!
According to a friend of mine, their internal journal has a detailed account of the rape and beating of a potential initiate until he finally submitted. A 16 year old Satanist boy met with a representative of the Tempel ov Blood (it is assumed), telling him that he was ready. He is then told to follow the man, who drove him to an abandoned warehouse, and gave him some milk drugged with a hallucinogenic substance presenting it as a glass of milk. The boy unknowingly drank the spiked milk ('drinking milk?!' you might ask) and fell unconscious shortly afterwards. He awoke and found himself naked and chained to the ground, with TOB members surrounding him, whipping and beating him. They eventually started raping him, shouting at him 'What makes the grass grow? What does the earth want?'...eventually he shouted out in reply 'Blood! Blood! Blood!' The child eventually fall unconscious again, and later awoke unchained in the deserted warehouse, covered in a large red cloth banner with a black Swastika on it.
Perhaps the rape and beating and incarceration, and indeed the drugging, was an expression of power over the individual, so that he might experience what it is like to be controlled and trodden on, so he might get a taste for it himself, to be conditioned from being the abused to the abuser, much like abused children go on to molest their own children when they are older; or the child who witnesses atrocities goes on to commit them himself when an adult.
It is easy to replace natural confidence with hate. It feels similar to many people but it is based upon self-doubt and self-hatred and emotional imbalance and repression. Natural confidence comes from positive self-belief, years of encouragement and emotional balance and willingness to 'bite the bullet' and step out of the comfort zone. Grooming people to be 'damaged' is hardly embracing the Neo-Darwinian idea of becoming strong and brushing off bad experiences in my opinion. Seeking adventure is one thing, and life is full of enough suffering for most people if they have really got out of their homes and lived a life. But purposefully seeking pain for the sake of it, and with the purpose of emotional scarring (rather than strength in adversity or conditioning higher levels of tolerance over time) is counterproductive and unwise in my opinion.
I would like to see any traumatised and trauma-addicted individuals, of any Sinister persuasion or affiliation try to climb a Himalayan mountain, kayak solo across an ocean, survive a natural disaster through teamwork or cross a polar icecap (over a few months of constant hardship); do a few tours of duty in a warzone (or similar hardships), whilst working in a team; training extremely hard at a martial arts style or marines style training etc., enduring huge physical hardships and learning to overcome this with the mind; or indeed achieve anything of any true greatness - none of these feats and tests of character and mental and physical strength require 'bum rape' as part of their preparation or training; as opposed to an arguably borgeois, negative, and macho stategy, from a 'normal' perspective and trying to create or nuture something which under 'normal' circumstances is simply not there to any significant degree in most people. Of course, society conditions the individual to filter out certain types of experiences and sights, which are seen all the time in less modern, sanitised societies, and indeed in the natural world, i.e. faeces, corpses, blood, hunting animals. I stress this point very strongly (on the Church of Satan page) that democratic and consumerist society does make people weak and lazy, mentally and physically, in denial of the basic facts of life and indeed what is inside their own bodies or minds. That is one thing. But to seek emotional trauma for the sake of it seems extremely odd and unhealthy. Most people would not volunteer as children for a child abuse programme if such a thing existed, or to be disfigured or maimed as part of a physical abuse programme! The Nazis never deliberately subjected their own soldiers to sexual or physical abuse as part of their training or preparation, much as in battle they were often sacrificed with little concern over their worth as human beings or military strategy.
Rape is often not a sexual act, but an expression of power. Sexual orientation has less meaning in such groups. The meaning of the answer 'blood' is symbolic of the Order's belief in the Vampire God, and to feast or feed upon others or dominate others (perhaps in the LaVeyan 'psychic vampire' sense (being a negative according to LaVeyan Satanism), a Neo-Nazi sense, or simply being predatory in nature) or the willingness to spill blood to exact one's will, in some sense. The above example probably illustrates the TOB's desire to take the ONA philosophy further in some sense, to make it more extreme, or to express their version of its core essence. The initiation ritual is probably inspired by the ONA's own trial by ordeal, which can take the form of a test of strength to see if one survives, but in this case, survival seems guaranteed, but it is more intended to emotionally scar the prospective initiate.
If one takes an issue with the above case study, the main point is probably that the potential applicant was not aware of what lay ahead of him. However, for those that know what the group's philosophy is, and that they may well be brutalised as part of the application/initiation process, then they only have themselves to blame if they are indeed brutalised in some fashion. If this were always the case, then it should not really bother anyone, as it is a choice. They know what they are getting themselves into. However in those instances where it is not, law enforcement agencies might take issue with it. However, those members that do pass the initiation/screening process are afterwards probably glad they got through it and are 'conditioned', and ready to abuse other initiates, although if they had comtemplated that before the initiation, they might not like the idea (pre-conditioning). But who knows.
The Tempel ov Blood has a kind of 'astral' vampiric 'Blood Pool', a collective blood energy amongst temple members, and the blood/energy collected through vampiric attacks. Initiates are granted access to this 'astral' blood pool, but in doing so have to reliquish a large degree of their free will and independence.
Perhaps in some respects, the Tempel ov Blood is a Sinister response to Michael Ford' own semi-ethical Astral Vampirism tradition. For more information on Michael Ford, please see the Gnostic Luciferianism page.
Those LHP practitioners that are not interested in such groups will not spend much time looking at them, and will 'live and let live', and simply go about their own business. They are more than likely not bothered about the groups own internal activities, as long as they do not impose their Will onto others outside the group or partake in explicitly Neo-Nazi activities (for those individuals that independently choose to do so) - assuming they oppose Far Right political movements or acts of terrorism. They may well take the view that if some people want to 'act or be Sinister', then let them, and cause and effect will take its course according to natural law.
This short look at the Tempel of course does not cover many areas of texts, ritual, practice and magick, and is from an 'outsider's' perspective.
Above is the Dreccian symbol created in 2011 presumably by 'Camlad' (Myatt?) on the nineangles wordpress site. This appears to be almost identical to a 1930s/40s Nazi flag except with some of the arms of the Swastika reflected and folded back on itself, resembling a 'space invader' type image.
A friend of mine has informed me that the ONA as it exists today is not a Neo-Nazi organisation per se (it is not really an organisation as such but a kind of Sinister social network), but one that merely condones Neo-Nazi activity as they condone any type of violent extremism that seeks to oppose moderate western society in its current form. Clearly Myatt has a history of anti-semitism and racist activities, and whilst he went to prison and is no longer formally connected with Combat 18, he still is alleged to be writing National Socialist articles, and is now involved in Fundamentalist Islam, which is often very focussed on anti-capitalism and antisemitism. The ONA has a large catalogue of works and does offer Aryanism teachings to those that wish to pursue this, but which is not strictly necessary within the order. It is important to try to separate the activities and writings of David Myatt the white supremacist from Anton Long the occultist. Whilst the Aeonic Magic and Sevenfold Path of the ONA is non-political, it does have extremist Neo-Darwinist elements. The ONA does allude to National Socialism being the path to destroying the 'Magian' order, but refers to 'real' National Socialism rather than the racist version seen in popular culture and history. The various ONA writings on National Socialism are slightly inconsistent from my perspective. The Temple 88 writings are openly Neo-Nazi and race-oriented, and can be seen as parallel to the ONA writings and combine some of the occultic philosophy with the Aryan-centric political philosophies. Myatt's writings embody the spirit of occultic National Socialism in many respects, although not all, and his claims as Anton Long to it not being Neo-Nazi or racial are somewhat dubious in the light of his actual activities as David Myatt. Perhaps he in his personal and public life has chosen racist version of National Socialism (in the various 88 paramilitary groups and Islamic Fundamentalism) as they are the closest to what he wants to achieve in terms of 'real' National Socialism, but this could be considered highly suspect as a possibility considering his Temple 88 writings that were really directed at occultists familiar with the ONA which were only racist. It is unlikely he was just offering a choice of racist ideology to Satanists and not embracing it himself. There are inconsistencies however, in that his favourite music is classical music yet in the Temple 88 writings he says that 1930s style marching music is the only authentic music for Aryans - was he pandering to the audience as to what they wanted to hear or was this just one of his many personas? One might argue where Neo-Nazism or National Socialism is promoted or used by Myatt is done so in a magical sense (as a magical expression) rather than literal belief in these views - as he has formed an alliance with the multi-ethnic WSA 352 - but his is perhaps open to debate. By most 'normal' logic, if you assist Neo-Nazi organisations, and promote their cause, you are effectively a Neo-Nazi whether you claim to really believe in it or not.
To what extent can one consider the ONA (or at least the ONA prior to the new generation of inspired divergent groups) to be just one facet of Myatt's personality (i.e. Anton Long)? And to what extent is everything that Myatt has written ONA? And to what extent can everything he was written be used in the ONA Sinister path? National Socialism as a form of resistance seems inbuilt into the ONA, whether racially oriented and/or Satanic elite oriented.
The ONA and its Nexions today are highly syncretic, and there is more diversity available if one is interested in this area. Following the ONA writing, it could however embody any other extremist political philosophy for its own ends (be it revolutionary communist or Islamic Fundamentalist (in a loose sense with occultism still practised and adherence to extremist Islam and Allah being an excuse or pretext to kill and wage war). It just happens that no ONA member has written anything on Communism, which is arguably the same as Neo-Nazism but without the explicit focus on race (although in practice it may be just as interesting in genocide). The ONA does however still believe in and promote human sacrifice of the weak, as mentioned.
It is likely that in such extremist groups, and indeed in the more 'moderate' groups like the CoS, that people's political opinions and lifestyles are their own business, as they are there to become more powerful individuals in exacting their own will, whatever that might be. However, the political leanings of ONA members are likely to be more leaning towards the violent chaotic Neo-Darwinian and Extreme Right (not necessarily racist, although some may indeed be so).
Myatt's own writings are an interested, eclectic and highly syncretic mixture of populism, group ethics and nationalistic style socialism on the one hand, and aggressive individualism and Satanic elitism on the other hand. A desire to do the work of warriors on the grass roots level but also to be part of a Satanic elite, presumably giving the orders or being dominant in a kind of Satanic Neo-Darwinist paradise. Exactly how these are reconcilable, I am not fully aware of. Myatt himself has certainly put his money where his mouth is and lived his ideals and ideas, which even if you regard them as abhorrent, you could never accuse him of betraying his own ideals and beliefs, unlike many people. If one looks at the new breed of ONA-inspired orders, they all have a group dynamic and socialist or national socialist bias, in the framework of Satanic individualism. The Tempel ov Blood and the 352 seem to adopt a more misanthropic and militaristic model akin to National Socialism, but not of a literal racial form, but one where the elite is not the master race or white workers but a Satanic elite, which must survive and wage war in one form or other on the rest of the human race. Perhaps only the Tempel ov Blood seem to embrace Myatt's adoption of 'Magian' religions as a means to manipulating it to cause war or destruction - which the actual LHP Aeonic magic of the ONA opposes theoretically, even if it can be an expression of the Sinister Way. The Temple of THEM seem the least inclined towards violence and militarism of all these ONA Nexions, but still retain a kind of Saxon socialistic pagan ideal that recognises its ethnic roots. The WSA 352 and The Tempel ov Blood seem keen to outdo Myatt in some respects, but in a different way, and not overtly Neo-Nazi, although there is some flirtation with imagery, more so with the Tempel than the 352. Other ONA Nexions may well be open Neo-Nazis. It depends on exactly which one one is talking about and the individuals in question.
The Order of the Nine Angles, used to state that they are an anarchic 'group' or order, if such a thing is not a contradiction in terms. However, they state that Adepts may adopt extreme right wing or Neo-Nazi practices or philosophies, in their magical practice and otherwise, to suit their own purposes. In short, the group has no affilitation as such and individuals are free to use whatever archetypes or political models they choose. One might argue that using Neo-Nazism is not really anarchy at all, in the conventional sense. i.e. exercising power over others in the spirit of Hitler can never be 'anarchy', but only ever 'Neo-Nazism'. To call itself anarchic is perhaps not quite accurate, apolitical or tolerant of any political ideology including Neo-Nazism, with anarchic tendencies might be more accurate. No anarchist worth his salt is keen on Neo-Nazis imposing their will on their patch.
The ONA and their affiliated groups tend not to intermingle with any other Satanist groups as they are not generally accepted in the Satanist community, often accused of not being proper Satanists or pseudo-Satanists. Ironically they have called themselves Traditional Satanists for many decades, but are not accepted as such by Satanists from Traditional Satanists such as The Temple of Set etc. The ONA circle has the same opinion of all other Satanist groups. Bickering between Satanist groups is extremely common. Each Satanist organisation of course tends to claim it represents true Satanism and to have its own delusions of grandeur!
Anton Long states that the ONA is not necessarily Neo-Nazi although it can be in a blog response to an earlier version of this article thus:
'The ONA is heretical and subversive, in both the practical and the esoteric sense. Therefore, whatever is heretical, in a particular period of human history, and whatever is or may be useful in a subversive way, we can, or may, or will, use. Some of our members and associates have, in the past, used the form of overt National Socialism, as others have used - and some still use - the ethical National-Socialism of NS groups such as Reichsfolk. Some others have also used that causal -ology that mundanes and other term fascism...Thus, if some of our members or associates want to identify with, or use, some form such as National Socialism, for whatever reason (exoteric or esoteric), that is their choice. If some of our members or associates believe in such an -ism or such an -ology, that is also their choice, which they are free, at liberty, to make. Their belief may or may not change, over causal time, and a result of their experiences, practical, and Occult. Or it may not. Their wyrd is their wyrd.
To summarise, it is difficult to say to what extent Neo-Nazism is adopted and promoted within the ONA today. It has clearly been involved in Neo-Nazism in the past. David Myatt is still involved in antisemitism today, although that can be seen as his own personal expression of the Sinister path. Whether it is incidental or institutional is not really clear. In most ONA Nexions, Neo-Nazism is a personal choice and expression of the Sinister and is not condoned or discouraged. Michael W. Ford's departure would however suggest it is perhaps more than that, or was at least so in 1998, when Moult and Myatt allegedly consisted of the majority of the ONA activities and writings. Published works and interviews would suggest historically that it directly promoted Neo-Nazism. However, the historical picture is rather clouded and certainly today the direct link with Neo-Nazism is refuted by many by not all. There is still a strong emphasis on National Socialism (whether racial or not) within the many of the ONA Nexions today. The promotion of a Neo-Darwinian style execution of the weak is very much inspired by Neo-Nazism, whether it has a racial component or not. Their anarchist credentials are far from clear or entirely convincing. It is more a case of being in a position to express oneself in a violent manner, whatever political philosophy or criminal gang affiliation required to achieve this.
The Joy of Satan Ministries (aka JOS) is a 'cult' dedicated to 'Spiritual Satanism', created by Maxine Dietrich. She is married to Clifford Herrington, the ex-president of the National Socialist Movement (NSM) in the USA. Some regard it as an inverted form of Christianity or Devil Worship, with the ancient Sumerian deity Enki regarded as the true creator God, i.e. Satan or Lucifer, Jehovah being a fictitious entity; the ideology confusing deities and demons as being the same. However, some might say it was similar to Christianity in some senses with creator God worship, and its associations with the largely Christian NSM. It is anti-Catholic as one would expect. It is widely accused of anti-semitism and of being a cult. Most Satanists are said to hate the organisation. The organisation started off as far as I am aware as a Spiritual Satanist organisation, dedicated to Buddhist influenced Theistic Satanism. I am informed by an associate of his that Maxine Dietrich was once a student of Nate Laved and his Seven Scrolls of the Black Rose. It was only later that the far right influence pervaded the organisation. Today, whilst not all members are far right extremists, one could say that a general negative attitude towards Jews exists, for cultural or spiritual reasons, or otherwise. It is likely there are parallels to the ONA's distaste for the 'Magian', and some might say parallels between the WSA352 and the JOS in theological terms. The Old Gods, as defined by the JOS, are extra-terrestrials (i.e. aliens). The JOS seems to use Enki, Satan and Lucifer interchangeably from what I can gather.
Whilst not openly Neo-Nazi, it does contain a number of links to an openly Neo-Nazi Satanist web site 666blacksun.com. These links are not all from the links page but are found on the main JOS home page, e.g. Satanic Symbols. The 666 Black Sun web site contains links to the JOS web site, and has a page written by the JOS High Priestess Maxine Dietrich, so one can assume the two sites are directly affiliated, perhaps the JOS site being the more politically correct version and the 666 Black Sun site being more blatant and open in its ideology. Funnily enough on the JOS web site link page, there is a link to 'Afro American Satanism'.
The Satanic Symbols page, hosted on the openly Neo-Nazi Satanist web site 666 Black Sun, includes a Skull and Cross Bones, very similar to the Nazi SS version, an inverted pentagram with a lightning bolt (c/f SS), A Germanic Iron Cross and also the Black Sun symbol.
The 666 Black Sun (shortened to 666 BS?!) web site's home page features a picture of Heinrich Himmler, who is cited as being the the 'Satanic Coven Grand Master'.
'Satan is the God of the Gentiles (non-Jews), though he does not turn individuals away who are loyal to him; Yaweh's chosen are deeply hated and are cosmic enemies. All of the Demons are Gentile Gods.'
The web site features direct quotes from 'Satan' (!). Many critics accuse 'conspiracy theorists' of being anti-Jewish, and indeed, there is a bias towards anti-Catholicism and anti-Semitism in certain quarters, or rather, racists who use join the conspiracy theory 'scene', but this is not of course always the case. However, the 666 Black Sun web site features a strong anti-Semitic version of the NWO conspiracy theory.
It would appear that 666 Black Sun (and presumably JOS) are therefore not actually universally racially motivated, as Afro Americans seem to be accepted, but are just anti-semitic. As discussed on the Difference page in the psychology section, it is easy to confuse what the term 'Jew' actually means, as it is used to apply to members or a religion and a 'race' in different contexts. However, 666 BS's understanding of history and of the Nazis seems to be tenuous at best, denying the holocaust and assuming that their philosophy was similar to Himmler's. Himmler was probably more pragmatic than other Nazis, and did not appear to be so bothered about the exact workings and exact implementation of the Final Solution. The Nazis were pro-'Aryan Germanic' and Hitler himself detested Negros. The Nazis did not just seek to rid Germany of Judaic influence as the 666 BS web site puts it, but imprisoned, enslaved and executed many other groups, including other non-'Aryans', Gypsies, political activists, handicapped, those with chronic illnesses and so on. The Nazis also persecuted Freemasonry, which 666 BS claims was Luciferian. 666 BS claims to be engaged in spiritual warfare against Christianity and Judaism, but is clearly missing out other monotheistic religions as it's 'enemies', like many Satanists tend to do, like Islam and Sikhism, for example. It should be noted that the Nazis were not on a spiritual crusade at all, to cleanse Germany of Christian and Judaic influence, but only of political threats, ideological threats, undesirables and any 'races' they did not like. To perceive this as a goal is not correct. Hitler himself used Christian rhetoric and was influnced by Aryan Christianity as well as Germanic nationalist philosophers of the 19th and early 20th Centuries. There were Christian Nazis who wished to persecute Jews because they were perceived as Christ killers. Everyone brought different reasons and motivations to the persecution table. Christians were tolerated as long as they were racist and nationalist. It should be noted that the Nazis persecuted Christianity and Freemasonry, because of their promotion of a universal brotherhood. This is discussed in more detail on the Mainstream Religions page. Perhaps Himmler is idolised as he was the leading Nazi most interested in occultism (and possibly least interest in the Final Solution - relatively speaking). There is clearly some major conceptual confusion here and gratuitous use of rose tinted spectales. You can't have your cake and eat it.
Critiques of the JOS can be found at the links below.
Ironically, 'Clifford Herrington...once made a speech about how the U.S.A. should be home only to "white European Christians!"Ê Herrington was chairman of the National Socialist Movement (NSM), which, according to the Anti-Defamation League, was "America's Largest Neo-Nazi Group" as of June 2006.'
Many of the sources and influences on LaVey Satanism, and indeed the Left-Hand Path in general (e.g. Gnostic Luciferianism and Bestian Gnosticism), including Plato, Nietzsche, Machiavelli, Miyamoto Musashi (warrior code), Sun Tzu (Art of War), authors who are held in high regard by Neo-Nazi groups such as the the elite of the prison gang Aryan Brotherhood (a.k.a. AB). The Aryan Brotherhood's elite are given a reading list as part of their grooming, as part of their shift in morality, embracing of the warrior code and the principles of survival of the fittest, war strategy and the propensity to dish out extreme violence to maintain order to instill fear in others. Hitler himself was heavily influenced by such works. Clearly there are many conceptual differences however, as gangs and Neo-Nazi groups may embrace survival of the fittest etc. and the glorification of power and the individual, but that the collective (i.e. the gang or state) and it's order supercedes the rights of the individual gang member, who is killed if he does not obey an order.
The UK Far Right fanzine 'The Final Conflict' warns of the infiltration of Far Right groups by Satanists. Presumably such traditional right wing groups, although not expressly religious (probably nominally Christian or Protestant) seeking preservation of certain perceived cultural traits and an idealised view of UK culture and nation (whatever the means - see the Difference page in the Psychology section). As discussed below, many in the far right do not like the presence or infiltration of Satanists in their movement, as they are primarily concerned with their individual liberal rights (as well as the thuggish far right Darwinian attributes). In addition, many Satanists simply use the far right for their own ends and are often only half hearted about it. They also give the movement a 'bad name' on account of the prejudices of the general public about Satanism (which far right Satanists are keen to embody when it is in the form of racial or cultural prejudice, in other words when they are on the giving end, not the receiving end). In addition, if the far right opposes 'Islamification' of the UK, then how much more will it oppose 'Satanisation' or 'Satanification' of the UK, turning it into some kind of Satanic 'freak show', rather than preserving current nominally religious Protestant national identity.
This '100 page booklet' is referenced also on the Death in June (DIJ - a National Boshevik band) web site, although DIJ have open affiliation with Fascist and Far Right Satanists:
The Aryan Satanic Brotherhood (connected with the prison criminal gang The Aryan Brotherhood or 'AB'?) changed their name to Soldiers of Lucifer and use a similar symbol to a Swastika, which is actually the 'Black Sun' symbol. I am not certain whether this is a LaVey Satanic group or a Theistic Satanic group or a little of both, like many are.
The term Black Sun (German Schwarze Sonne), also referred to as the Sonnenrad (the German for "Sun Wheel"), is a symbol of esoteric or occult significance, notable for its usage in Nazi mysticism. Today, it may also be used in occult currents of Germanic neopaganism, and in Irminenschaft or Armanenschaft-inspired esotericism. The term Black Sun may originate with the mystical "Central Sun" in Helena Blavatsky's Theosophy. This invisible or burnt out Sun (Karl Maria Wiligut's Santur in Nazi mysticism) symbolizes an opposing force or pole.
Heathens Against Hate is a web site dedicated to opposing racism and sexism. The page below examines the plethora of far right groups and bands who use pagan or Satanic imagery or practices.
Vexen Crabtree is a well known LaVey Satanist from the UK. His web site is listed below, where you can enjoy his excessive use of the British flag. Whilst this does not prove he is a racist, it certainly implies a certain nationalist attitude. Some might argue that his handle 'Vexen' is pretentious and gratuitously 'dark' and 'Satanic'.
Vexen in his July 2006 review of Edward O'Toole's Sophia Bestiae, that argues that the Gnostic Christians and Jewish Christians such as the Ebionites were the original Christians, and those that followed the true teachings of the 'Aeon Luciferi Christos', in contrast to Orthodox Christianity and the later Roman Catholic Church which was not.
This view is however flawed. One or the other could perhaps be that (in theory), but not both. Gnostic Christians and the Ebionites did not share the same beliefs, and so
presumably either or both could not have been completely correct in their understanding of Jesus. Specifically, Gnostic Christians believed that the God of the Hebrew Bible was an evil God and that the true God sent Jesus as an Aeon or angel (in spirit only, resembling human physical form, but not actually in physical form) who did not die on the cross. The Ebionites on the other hand were strict followers of Jewish Law and tradition, and believed Jaweh, the God of the Hebrew Bible, to be the one, indivisible, true God. The Ebionites believed in Adoptionism, in contrast to the concept of the Trinity, in that Jesus was simply a man, who was 'adopted' by God and became divine over a period of time. Jesus was not regarded as co-eternal with God in this sense but became 'God' in his 30s.
Why indeed an 'atheist' LaVey Satanist is reviewing a Polytheistic book in the first place (and indeed giving it a favourable review) is indeed beyond me.
It is an interesting distinction as to how some people view Satanism and the self, and interpret it according to their own personal philosophies. Satanism is intended to be about the self, but as to how one relates to others depends on one's own personal philosophy and values. People will always disagree on the fine print. According to LaVeyan Satanism, one is not supposed to meddle in the affairs of others, and only mess with someone else if they are bothering you. Some Satanists regard the imposition of their values on the rest of the world, in order to 'free them', and to ensure their Satanic paradise and playground is secured so that they themselves can be free within it, according to its own internal logic and definition of freedom. In many instances, this takes the approach of 'spiritual warfare' on Christianity and the mainstream. This is discussed above, and is ironically and exact mirror image of the intolerance, prejudice and imposition from certain areas of society and Christianity. One might argue this is no form of progress but just a childish knee jerk reaction. For some, to truly be an individual means being a leader, and to be a leader, there must be followers and people who do your bidding for you and act out your Will; and you use the world as your canvas to express yourself, perhaps at the expense of others. For other Satanists, being an individual means being a leader for yourself and no one else, and does not mean being a leader of anything, apart from your own destiny. Being Neo-Darwinian in philosophy does not necessarily equate to enforced or unnatural selection, according to the personal prejudices or concepts of what it mean to be weak (rather than an objective one). Some take this latter stance, imposing their Will on others, as it is believed to be for the good of society, by their definitions, but of course at the expense of others. They would not adopt this view if they were on the receiving end of this 'over-enthusiastic' Eugenics or social interfering. This is arguably not in keeping with the philosophy of Satanism, and actually much worse than the society we have today that they claim to hate for a variety of reasons. The French Revolution started with good intentions, enforcing 'happiness' and 'brotherhood' on people, and turned into a blood bath, and the more it tried, the less it achieved its goal. In the end it was a never-ending reign of terror, a process rather than a goal. The goal which would never actually be achieved.
Most forms of extreme Satanism, or offshoots, make various claims to be chaotic or anarchic, in some respect, and being anti-mainstream society, whether this is an expression of anarchist philosophy or chaotic fascism comes down to personal interpretation. Perhaps some adopt this as a form of over-machoism, to be more extreme than regular Satanism, to show the greatest 'strength' and to take it further in some way, distorting many of its principles in the process. For some it may be a little bit of 'fun' or simply an exercise in psychological exploration, to be taken with a pinch of salt, a phase they go through, to come out the other end more laid back or maybe even a Christian!
Anton LaVey defined that Satanism was pro-capitalist, as capitalism was the philosophy of material gain and hedonism. However, as argued above, this is far from problem-free, and many aspects of capitalism are in conflict with the Nietzsche and Neo-Darwinian models of existence, consumerism breeding weakness and laziness in many individuals, and distortion of the truth for personal financial gain (i.e. advertising and selling). Capitalism can mean many things, and need not be associated with the welfare state etc, nor democracy (e.g. China), but can be many things. One could argue that too harsh a totalitarian regime does nothing but breed fear in people, and too much fear turns people into spineless jellies with no sense of self; who are not allowed to express themselves; and such a state of affairs is hardly conducive to individualism and indeed Satanic philosophy and self-empowerment.
Some segments of Satanism, whilst claiming to embrace capitalism and science, are in some senses reactionary or 'dangerous' in moral terms, as they wish to dispense with mainstream morality and traditions. Anarchy is not incompatible with capitalism or free market trading, and indeed, this is the way many anarchic societies or small communities have evolved. Anarchy can be many different things to different people. There will always be some anarchic element to Satanism, but whether it is fully fledged 'anarchy' is another matter entirely. However, such societies may well evolve into tyrranical run organisms or indeed corrupt or hypocritical capitalist societies that we see today. Some view anarchism as being a form of socialism. Many punks who claim to be anarchists are really socialists or communists, but whose methods and approach are anarchic (e.g. Jello Biafra). Whether these actions would be tolerated in these idealised socialist societies if they were ever to exist is another matter. Other anarchists see anarchy as a vegetarian or vegan hippie paradise - where everyone is expected to behave in a certain way - like an unspoken conformity that they don't want to have to enforce, as they want to be 'free'. Others see it as a chaotic, dangerous and wild society where anything goes, with no safety blanket for the weak.
Some people are of the view that anarchy should be some kind of egalitarian ideal, without the hypocrisies and gratuitous exploitation of hyperconsumerism, capitalism and indeed totalitarianism, where people have the right to do and be whatever they wish to be. The problem with most anarchist models is that they ironically adopt a communist style social structure, within small, independent communities, and are subject to the 'law of the lynch mob', and thus not quite as forgiving and nurturing as the 'hypocritical democratic societies'. Indeed, such communities would rely on the good nature of the inhabitants to look after and protect the weak, and invariably would not provide such a safety net as more industrialised societies with free healthcare systems etc.
If we look to the punk rock scene of the late 1970s, we might ponder about the type of anarchy that was being promoted. What is punk really? It is generally regarded as a philosophy rather than a style, a grass roots movement for people to express themselves, in particular their dissatisfaction, and to do or say what they want, often to deliberately wind up the establishment. It is in a sense anti-establishment or old order, but not necessarily 'anarchist'. As discussed above, Satanism is considered by some to be 'spiritual punk rock', but it aligns itself more to the meaner side of punk and anarchism. For example, if we take the example of the Los Angeles punk scene of the late 70s, many of the punks there were ex-surfers, who were far from peaceful drug taking middle class kids as were found in the New York scene, but were more crazy and violent. West Coast surfers were far from a mellow bunch of hippies, but were very competitive and often quite violent. When fused with punk rock, this became an explosive mix. There was often violence at the male dominated concerts, much to the dissatisfaction of the actual bands, who were often quite reasonable, mellow people. Just because you are an anarchist does not mean you are necessarily a nice person. You do what you want and it may well be at someone else's face's expense. In a sense it is a selfish philosophical standpoint. It is not the friendly, politically correct, middle classed version of anarchism and punk rock of the late 70s.
One can take the standpoint that personal strength and mental strength is what punk or anarchism was about, and this can often translate into gratuitous macho or testosterone-fuelled behaviour or Darwinian type thinking. The vast majority of punk bands had an aggressive or confrontational attitude on stage, however mellow or not they actually were in person, so to some extent there was an element of Neo-Darwinism there. Being independent and not dependent on others to tell you what to do etc. Have the strength or courage to do what you want. Freedom for those with strong enough Will. Of course not all punk bands were 'anarchist', socialist or apolitical. The Oi scene of the 1980s was about working class values. There were many right wing or Neo-Nazi punk or RAC bands who were equally angry about society, but who were perhaps angry about slightly different things or who expressed their anger in different ways. However they were all angry and aggressive in stance. Apolitical or violent stances can sometimes appear to be unsympathic or mean, and be interpreted as 'Fascist' or 'Neo-Nazi' when in fact they are not; especially if there is some flirtation with Neo-Nazi imagery.
So it is one thing being a little mean, and it is another being a hateful bully, projecting your Jungian shadow and insecurities onto others, justified with philosophical rhetoric, as it the case with many far right Satanist groups. Is the far right a genuine route to freedom? Some believe so, but it is yet to actually be proven to be the case in reality.
So how much anarchy do we actually want in anarchy? It is ironic but true. Do anarchists really want anarchy? Or just anarchy when it suits them and on their terms, and according to their values? Or do they just mean it as a metaphor to behave anarchically when they want? Without the pressure of those particular social conventions that might inhibit such activity (but not disposing of other social conventions that would result in them being annoyed or inconvenienced by others)? For most, it is an excuse to 'selfishly' do what they want, and as much as the rhetoric means, they probably wouldn't want a primordial type society where they could not enjoy all the junk food, consumer goods, luxuries and so on, and where anything goes - where Warlords jockey for power and lynch mobs kill anyone they don't like the look of or heard an idle rumour about. Some anarchists are like teenagers who talk about sex but are too scared to actually do it.
Many Satanists talk about not being afraid of violence, as it is part of the natural order, whether this be to defend oneself, to 'destroy' those who are bothering us, or to beat up or kill people who are behaving in ways at odd with their Satanic ideal in society, to actively pouring out malevolence, hatred and death onto society as some kind of knee jerk expression of anger at society and to represent some kind of 'dark order' or 'new age' - which is meant to represent freedom in a perverse Neo-Darwinistic manner. Perhaps this is why so many extreme Satanists idolise the mentally unstable Adolf Hitler. The exact balance of protecting one's freedoms from those imposing their values on us, and to what extent one wants to tolerate violence on others is a fine balance. How free and how messy are we prepared to get to keep society 'honest', transparent and 'truly accountable'.
There is a balance between views of the individual and individual freedom and expression, to carry out one's affairs in the manner one chooses, even if it is in a manner that society may frown upon on occasion, and in wanting to eliminate those elements of society or indeed the world that one finds distasteful. To achieve independence and freedom, it may only be necessary to adapt to one's environment and know how to get the best from it, or perhaps to carry out part of one's activities unseen. The concept that one necessarily needs to change the whole world or 'attack' it is not quite true. Those who want to exact their will onto society as a whole may claim to be doing so to promote the idea of the strong doing what they want, but the goals are sometimes somewhat confused. By focussing on the elimination of the weak, that are seen to be holding everyone down or back, one may in fact be reinforcing the constraints over one's liberty even more than actually reducing them. For example, by moving to a more Neo-Darwinian model, the powers that be may prefer to be more brutal and oppressive and not pay any lip service to political correctness or being reasonable or democractic. Everyone likes to blame an 'enemy' for their problems, but a Neo-Darwinian approach may not always produce the desired result. Far Right Satanists often want a mixture of Libertarianism, Anarchy and Totalitarianism, which is a syncretic mix and most probably virtually impossible to attain. If it was attained, what one would likely end up with is a variety of rival groups bickering and fighting with each other. If Neo-Darwinism is a chosen path for its own sake, because by being 'Sinister' or culling the weak, and imposing one's will onto the weak, then this is often done so for spiritual reasons, with the hope of some Sinister 'Abrahamic' type reward at the end of it, but in an inverted sense.
One theme common to both Anarchist, apolitical or far right Satanists is that they believe in the concept of personal responsibility, which is often missing in our modern societies, i.e. that you have to take responsibility for your own actions. This may manifest itself on a personal level in some individuals, who would do their own 'policing' themselves, or expect a harsh treatment from others if they overstepped the mark from them (regardless of the political system they found themselves in); and on an institutional level in totalitarian Neo-Darwinian nation states, where one would expect the state to mete out justice in such cases, to maintain the 'ideal' social order. But the core values could be remarkably similar. However, some might adopt the view that it is up to the individual alone and no business of the state to get involved or interfere, at least with certain types of matters.
Damios, a polytheist Satanist friend of mine, clarified the complex fusion of liberalism and brutality, elements which are normally found on opposite ends of the political spectrum. Some Satanists fight against infringements of their personal liberty from government or pressure groups, wishing to remove moral judgement from society in most respects. This might include the right to gay marriage or to consume drugs or otherwise. Or express one's beliefs etc. However, few understand how this sense of 'liberalism' ties in with their claimed lack of morality as this seems to be in contradiction to such 'political correctness'. Such Satanists may also demand other freedoms such as the right to kill or to injure if the situation is justified. The exact extent of this may come down to the individual, and to what extent they consider retribution, self-defence or retaliation acceptable. Some may only entertain violence if one is first attacked. Others may seek or claim to entertain violence if an individual is treating him or her disrespectfully or being a big nuisance. This however may be regarded by some as a form of morality which many Satanists find distasteful. Everyone has their own moral code, and the line has to be drawn somewhere. There is much disagreement as one would expect, and the degree to which one embraces capitalism, free market enterprise, law and order and so on. This eclectic mixture of liberalism and primal self-determinism and brutality is hard to understand from a left-wing/liberal perspective and also from a far right perspective. The difference between this strange brand of anarchist and the far right favouring Satanists, is that the latter wish to legislate strength or encourage it, and to intervene with individuals or trends that encourage a perceived weakness. Similarly, others should have the right to kill the Satanist too, or try to, if that situation arose. Such individuals may show distaste as the moral fabric of society, trends towards certain types of degenerate behviour, potentially, which is a form of non-liberalism in some sense, and how they frame this in their minds may come down to the individual (as prejudice and judgement or proactive 'extermination' when it merely apes the extreme far right). Either position is easy to confuse with the far right, as both may appear to be rather unsympathetic and Neo-Darwinian. However, the far right school of Satanism is often divided in such issues as homosexuality, where some are strongly opposed to it in a moralistic, far right type stance, and others regard it as irrelevant and as an amoral issue. Race may be a similar issue again. As there is no scientific basis for race, many argue that racist Satanists are in fact not really proper Satanists as they are not following logic and science, but acting and thinking emotionally.
So is individualism about personal philosophy and individual freedom? Or does it have an intrinsic political component? If we are talking anarchy, does it have to include a political manifesto? For many punks, it just meant self-expression, and to be obsessed with politics would have been stupid. For others, it was interpreted as a cause or set of political and moral beliefs, more dogmatic than those they were opposing for being dogmatic in the first place.
One should consider that totalitarianism is not the chosen world order for the majority of industrialised Western societies. Over-regulation and high security against 'terrorism' is one thing, but blatant Fascism is a step too far. Most consumers would never stand for something so obviously oppressive. It would have to be a politically correct, sanitised, capitalist version. Satanism and Neo-Nazism are never likely to be philosophies of the average Joe, nor are they likely to ever represent the status quo or indeed the Elite (officially). Satanism is too much about personal freedom and individualism, Power to Will and breaking down of Judeo-Christian morality and social conventions, which is not what many hyperconsumerist societies are all about. Satanism will always be reactionary, whether the personal philosophies of the adherents are anarchism, apolitical or far right. Either way, they will always be somewhat 'against' something, and slightly socially unacceptable. Whether you agree with any of the sub-groups and their beliefs, that is the bottom line. Some Satanists try to come up with the most extreme political philosophy they can, to take Satanism to its logical conclusion, and often in the process, taking it to a twisted destination which is at odds with the spirit of what it was supposed to be about. How messy do you want to get? Are you prepared to get your hands dirty? Is it all talk to make yourself feel better or is it what you really want?
As discussed above, some anarchists are politically motivated and politically obsessed, often to the point of not being able to see the world as it is right now and appreciate it and move freely within it. They have become slaves to their moral values and sense of duty, often at their own expense, leading to limiting their actions and behaviour to be 'right on'. They may feel the need to convince all others of their views and not tolerate anyone with different views from themselves; or listen to the views of others; or not tolerate any other views. There is only one truth to such individuals. They are right. Others are wrong. They are addicted and obsessive. This is not to say that political conviction is always a mental illness! As we clearly have examples of success through perseverence.
However, the converse view of anarchy, that of nihilism, not caring about anything but your own personal and mental liberty in this moment; not caring about the world whether it goes down the toilet (from whatever biased viewpoint you use and what methods of measurement you prescribe). In this stance, you may or may not care about the thoughts of others. It is clearly not an absolute choice and there is plenty of grey area in the middle. However, the trend amongst LHP practitioners is to believe in personal psychological liberty, in that they often don't care what others think. This is in a sense an inverted form of political correctness or 'democratisation' of anarchy. In a sense, it is the view that vastly different political views can co-exist in harmony, and that no one will try to impose their beliefs on others. Unfortunately the world does not always work like that, and if you tolerate someone with Neo-Nazi or otherwise extreme right wing views, as you can empathise with a few of their issues but not the majority, sooner or later, they will try to get into a position where they can impose their views on you and impinge on your personal freedom. At that point, this inverse politically correct nihilistic paradise is suddenly shattered and you have an 'enemy' to fight. However, if one considers that one should fight them from the very beginning, maybe this would be seen by some as 'uncool'. So there are clearly problems with both types of standpoint. When do you challenge the views of others and when do you live and let live?
Some tend to pick on 'uncool' targets, such as Christianity, in a radical and hardline manner, becoming just as intolerant if not more intolerant than the people they are trying to fight, or rather destroy their belief systems that they are perfectly entitled to have if they so wish. Marilyn Manson is a good example of this. Conversely, such individuals do not make any significant fuss over Neo-Nazi Satanist groups, which although they conflict with their own values much more than the 'uncool' targets like the Christians, and are arguably a minor threat, but a much more dangerous threat potentially. It is as though they are 'ok' because they are eccentric Satanists, and are expressing their anger in a different way. Clearly there is a large amount of hypocrisy.
Above we have examined some of the high profile groups and individuals who are associated with the far right in varying capacities. Some of the organisations are not explicitly Neo-Nazi, although it could be argued that they are certainly Fascistic, for example, the Werewolf Order, who wish to promote values such as Domination as well as Leadership. The context in which Domination is expressed can vary according to the individual, but clearly on a larger scale, this would be equated to Fascism. However, it could be interpreted in a more anarchic sense, albeit a 'slightly uncool' one. In some respects, Satanism is under attack by Christian organisations and speakers, in the same way that Satanism wishes to attack Christianity. Christianity is gradually losing its hold on the moral fabric of modern, western, industrialised societies. Satanism is gaining in popularity especially with the music industry and the goth, industrial, Black Metal and National Socialist Black Metal (NSBM) scenes, especially in its more vocal and reactionary forms. Some believe that Theistic Satanism is on the rise at the expense of LaVey Satanism.
Is it really necessary to 'attack' and bring down society in order to ensure one's personal freedom, rather than educate or put one's views across intelligently? As part of a gradual evolution of consciousness of society? Of course, the whole Biblical stereotype of Satan does not help, and if Anton LaVey had no called it Satanism but Neo-Darwinian Jungian Atheistic Occultism or something else, then it surely would not have created so much resistance in society as a whole. So a problem of their own making to a large extent. However, despite all that, and because of teenagers desire for rebellion, it has established itself although it is still far from socially acceptable. Will Satanists be able to practice their lifestyle and beliefs without persecution or suppression from society as a whole? Most probably. However, with regards to lawless retribution and brutality (perhaps a tendency for those of a more misanthropic vs philanthropic nature), for those that favour this anarchic side of Satanism, then it is still illegal, and will not be tolerated any time soon. This is perhaps why some Satanists wish to either destroy society, restoring the 'natural order' after a disaster, war or other chaos resulting in a harsh reduction in the world's population (much like the goal Eugenics movement but which operates in terms of industialised societies and through careful management and non-democratic action); or to take over society with such arguably criminally optimistic (wannabe?) Satanic organisations and possibly create brutal like regimes or a Satanic state - which would likely be labelled as the most dangerous state in the world (even if it was minding its own business, but knowing the macho Neo-Darwinian bias, probably not) and probalby be invaded by the United States (ironically the most Satanic state in the world already in many respects). Whilst chaos, depopulation and other processes are deemed necessary by some to move towards a sustainable world population that is not a burden on the environment and that can adopt a less 'herd' like and more decentralised and independent/self-supporting format, it is likely that this idealised is never likely to occur, even with such harsh processes involved. It is likely that the main characteristic of mass destruction and killing takes over as the ongoing reality, where the idealised goal is never actually reached. The French Revolution and indeed Russian Revolutions are a case in point, where all that occurred was terrorisation of the population and very little actual freedom, where process and fear of losing power and insecurity took over from the actual original objective or goal. Or if it is reached, people are so used to mass killing that they lose the whole spirit of the enterprise and are thus not ready for it when it is actually possible. So to want to see global disaster or totalitarian regimes that conduct genocide in order to achieve this anarchic goal is really a rather flawed strategy or concept. It is perhaps better to take the approach that the world will always be flawed and if we stoop to a level where we just butcher people for no good reason, then we have lost our way even more than we have at present. If we accept that society is inherently flawed but will likely never actually be perfect, then if we make do with what we've got and focus on ourselves and self-actualising and being the best we can be; being individualistic and never a follower. Always doing one's own thing, following one's dream or being a leader, then one is as free as one is ever going to be. Whilst many people have moments of feeling misanthropic, the 'herd' being rather uncharismatic, self-centred, ignorant, being a demand on the environment yet not really contributing anything of much value to society besides wanting to make money, the alternative is hardly an improvement. I believe the only realistic and reasonable option is a gradual education and enlightenment of the populace, albeit whilst still destroying the environment to some extent. If we put the environment over human life (in the literal sense of killing people for the 'crime' of being alive'), then our values have reached rock bottom. It is ironic that some use ant-environmental misanthropic movements as an excuses for environmentalism, taking them completely out of their original context.
Is Fascism the new Anarchy? No, Fascism is Fascism. The confusion arises over the belief and taking on the qualities of the belief. To be an anarchist, does one have to be 'dangerous' and chaotic towards society itself? Anarchy as a chaotic commodity was embodied in the punk rock group the Sex Pistols, and many of their forebearers, such as Iggy Pop and the New York Dolls etc. Rock and roll has always tried to shock or be rebellious. Is the adoption of Fascist imagery and stances merely an attempt to be 'anarchic' or to offend or is it really sincere? The Dead Kennedys wrote a very amusing song entitled 'Anarchy for Sale'.
Also read the section above regarding the links of certain branches/lodges of Freemasonry to racism.
Indeed, many Neo-Nazis have adopted Satanic or Nordic/Odinist pagan symbolism (but whether they really follow these religions may be a matter of debate!)
The 'archetype' of Satan is said to represent power, strength, science and technology. These are indeed the qualities and principles on which the Nazi party were based. Satan is meant to represent the 'adversary' or 'rebel' and Neo-Nazism is viewed by some as being as anti-conventional society as it is possible to be (as opposed to Anarchism). There is also the Neo-Darwinian slant and the Nietzschian concept of Will to Power of both philosophies/movments as well as the belief in hard justice, whether executed by the individual on a personal basis or by the state. One can clearly see the potential for overlap between modern Satanism and Neo-Nazism. Of course, whilst there is a heavy overlap philosophically, Satanism in its pure form is about individualism (as long as it embodies strength and the qualities of Satanism), whereas National Socialism and Neo-Nazism is about collectivism and hard rule - which some perceive to be about freedom or social justic as long as they are not being persecuted or having any of their interests restricted of course; and indeed locking up and perhaps killing anyone they feel like, as usually happens in totalitarian states. The key difference is in the use of the word 'socialism' in National Socialism. However, some Satanists do indeed adopt a National Socialist standpoint, strangely not regarding it as socialism somehow.
In the examples about, some of the groups are explicitly Neo-Nazi, for example, the Joy of Satan and the Aryan Satanic Brotherhood. Others have Neo-Nazi connections or condone Neo-Nazism within their ranks - the exact extent of which is not known, and it is still possible they are secretly Neo-Nazi groups pretending to be overly macho Neo-Darwinian dark anarchists and Chaos Magicians. According to one inside source, every Satanist group he has been involved with contains a significant contingent of open Neo-Nazis. Of course, not all Neo-Nazi occultists are Satanists, and in the NSBM (National Socialist Black Metal) scene, Nordic style Odinist religion is also popular, as it represents an Aryan anti-Christian heritage, the 'true culture' of Northern Europeans (well Saxon and Nordic tribes). No one has clearly pointed out to the NSBM bands that heavy metal is derived from Afro-American blues, so that Neo-Nazi pagans are playing in effect amped up 'black' music! The joke is perhaps on them, even if some of the library of music is ok musically.
It is quite easy to dismiss everything Hitler did or stood for, but we should be selective about what we are condemning. After all, our modern society has incorporated a number of technological innovations from Nazi scientists, nuclear bomb making and rocket science. 50-something centre-right hippocrites driving Porsches should bear in mind that the company was given a hefty grant by Adolf Hitler himself, as he felt this was the type of company that typified modern Germany and the German spirit. You don't see the Porsche shareholders (the most profitable car company of the Noughties) giving this money back to Jewish families now! With interest. So it is really certain components of Hitler's agenda that one should take issue with, rather than everything. At the end of the day, clothes are just clothes. If one likes black leather, so what!
Hitler or Nazi iconography can clearly be used as an archetype for strength also, and a metahpor for destruction, which is very fashionable with Satanists. Damios, a polytheistic Satanist friend of mine, has commented that he respected Hitler's resolve to exact his will; to destroy those elements of 'weakness' or 'disease' in society he detested; his power to influence; as well as the 'attractive' nature of Teutonic military design; whilst not particularly agreeing with his racist ideology or indeed Racial and some of his Eugenics policies; the extent of his killing rampage; nor particularly respecting his competence as a military leader (in some phases of WWII) and as an economist and patriot. It is a case of being inspired by certain aspects of his persona and legacy, and not by others. Hitler's relentless desire to eliminate and destroy what he perceived to be elements of weakness or disease, could be taken as a metaphor for eliminating one's own areas of mental weakness, neuroses, materialistic obsessions or indeed other psychological disorders - and possibly even the 'weaker' emotions. It might also be less of a metaphor and more of an inspiration for eliminating what one might perceive to be the weaker trends or elements in society, the safety net and excessive comfort and laziness that discourages personal growth and strength and encourages mental illness, weakness and laziness - so not racial per se but more about attitude, belief and molycoddling.
Of course, for some Satanists, a desire and belief that one can conquer the whole world is appealing! Some Satanists clearly like the idea of exacting one's will and stomping on those that get in our way or try to mess with us, but do not particularly like the idea of mass enforcement of an ideology on them, and persecuting people based on this, even if it does overlap with some of their views. The manner in which one can 'utilise' the symbol of Hitler or Nazi-inspired symbolism is clearly heterogeneous in nature. Some will always find it distasteful and dubious, and believe it can only mean one thing; and that those who use such symoblism but deny being Neo-Nazi sympathisers are in fact not being honest with themselves - or are being very childish. Perhaps for some, it is also a means of offending people or being 'shocking', offensive, 'evil-looking' or provocative, in the same way that using the name 'Satan' or 'Satanist' when one does not actually believe in Satan or any religious deity or spirit (e.g. the more militaristic/Teutonic looking/dressed CoS members). One could argue it is pershaps slightly unoriginal, and overworked metaphor in whatever context it is used. For example, it is an internet forum faux pas to compare anyone to a 'Nazi', not because it is offensive, but because it doesn't mean very much and is so over-used. There is clearly not always a simple interpretation that applies to everyone, and there will always be personal variations in interpretation and metaphor, conscious and subconscious.
For some Satanists or occultists, utilising 'local power' or local forms of identity or genetic memory as leverage can be said to help make one's magick stronger. The definition of 'local power' is however problematic. Does this instrinsically have to mean 'race'? One physical form is part of one's identity for many people, but skin colour is just one component of one's physical form. One could focus on being human or being 'me' which is essentially what the LHP is supposed to be about. One could focus on one's eye colour or clothes, or one's most treasured possessions, for example. Skin colour is microscopic fraction of the total information, active and recessive, stored in our genes (determining past and present biochemical pathways and adaptations). If one is to focus on 'genetic memory', why do people automatically look at 'race'? Local power could also mean local pagan monuments or similar. The leap for many automaticaly to Nazism is a rather big leap. Nazism was a recreationist Germanic identity, and not strictly accurate to past traditions or practices. If anything it was influenced in some respects by Greek and Roman paganism, which were not Germanic at all. Aryan Europeans and American white supremacists may see Nazism as representing their ethnic identity, but this often comes out of ignorance of their cultural and ethnic origins. For example, Celts had nothing to do with Germanic tribes and had entirely different cultural and religious traditions. How useful any of these concepts are is debatable on account of the extent of cultural and ethnic mixing in Europe over the last 2000 years, and indeed the evolution of culture and cross-fertilisation of culture. The Nation State has not existed so long historically speaking either. Which point in time do we want to freeze and what version of this snapshot in time do we want to believe or what aspect do we want to focus on? At the end of the day, all these things are relative, and whatever a person attributes to be of personal and subjective significance is what can be powerful. That is not so say that whatever that is then is an objective and absolute truth however. Related issues are examined on the Identity and Difference page in the Psychology section.
Some LaVeyan music artists admit to being Fascists or having Fascist-like ideas, but often deny the specific accusation of being Neo-Nazis, desite using Nazi iconography and imagery in their music, videos and dress etc, including the use of Swastikas. It is easy to argue it is simply a metaphor - Fascism being more 'politically correct' and 'socially acceptable' than Neo-Nazism. But if one indeed was a Neo-Nazi, and wanted to spread Neo-Nazism, then this would indeed be the best way to do it, in a somewhat ambiguous manner, so one could have a convenient get out clause if people accused on of being a real Nazi. Using the excuse of 'art'. How is anyone going to tell the difference between genuine Neo-Nazi Satanists and those that simply flirt with the imagery and rhetoric? Unless one makes explicit statements about race, then one cannot prove that the person in question is really a Neo-Nazi, and they can continue doing what they do. It will be very hard to determine the actual extent or sympathy for Neo-Nazism within the CoS and indeed Satanism as a whole for these reasons.
It could be argued that Church of Satan celebrity music artists who use Nazi style iconography and imagery are being deliberately confusing and ambiguous, and merely courting controversy for the sake of it; or are simply a bunch of 'fakers' or bandwagon jumpers, who don't believe in eithe Satan or in Nazism, who embrace the 'cake and eat it' school of thought. By embracing or flirting with certain archetypes, many LaVeyan Satanists only have themselves to blame if people assume they are Devil Worshippers or Neo-Nazis.Why not just be yourself and say what you think, rather than such posturing, posing and flirtation? Be honest and congruent in what you say, how you look and what you do. Congruence is a fundamental principle of influence, and if you do not appear congruent, the mind does not take it in or believe in it. Gratuitous posing or association with any form of symbolism or uniform is arguably a sign of deep-rooted insecurity, lack of confidence and self-esteem, and lack of self-knowledge. Perhaps it is a sign of weakness, the one value that such individuals claim to detest so much.
A byproduct of using Nazi iconography or aesthetics is to influence young, naive music fans, Satanists or occultists, who are largely uneducated and with little life experience, to flirt with Nazism and in many cases embrace Nazism. Such bands encourage Neo-Nazi skinheads and other Neo-Nazis, and also make such movements more 'hip' and socially acceptable. The fact that many of the fans are not particularly intellectual thugs, in contrast with the bands' or key figures' elitist, intellectual stance, is quite ironic. There are leaders and there are followers. The NSBM scene is a case in point, and undoubtedly encouraging many 'goths' and metallers to listen to music with National Socialist lyrics who would otherwise not do so, and many may well end up adopting these ideas and philosophies, to varying degrees. If one was to listen to racist proganda long enough, one would likely be more open to embrace such ideas. Losing the stigma attached to Nazi iconography could perhaps open the mind more to these ideas, as much of the pain associated with such philosophies has been eroded away. A little like being around drugs makes many (but not all) youths more likely to try them, having previously stayed away because of shock tactic TV campaigns etc. (i.e. through fear and stigma) and many ending up psychologically dependent and exacerbating their psychological problems. The militaristic and National Socialist ethic is attract to some teenagers who lack the self-confidence to know better, and suppressing some of their softer emotions can be an attractive form of escape and rebellion.
Clearly citing isolated examples of LaVey Satanists who are Neo-Nazis or appear that they 'might' be racists is clearly no real evidence that LaVey Satanists are 'all' Neo-Nazis or that LaVey Satanism contains disproportionately more Neo-Nazis that other religions. There are clear examples of famous LaVey Satanists who are clearly not racists, for example, the man who calls himself 'Marilyn Manson'.
The late Anton LaVey's and other senior members of the CoS's Neo-Nazi connections are however somewhat concerning and the extent to which the higher levels of the organisation was populated by Neo-Nazis is a matter of debate. To what extent racism or Neo-Nazism amongst members has simply been ignored as one's own political views are one's own private business, and to what extent certain parts of the CoS are a breeding ground for the far right, and is actively used to brainwash members into far right thinking or to bully other members is not something I can comment on with any authority. One can only speculate. The Satanic stance is one of amorality rather than immorality, and as such this logic can perhaps justify tolerating those with extreme beliefs, even if potentially those beliefs (with a twisted moral basis) if enforced could impinge on their own personal freedom. To regard LaVeyan Satanism as purely amoral would not strictly speaking be correct, as clearly there are strict moral codes regarding animals and children, just not 'guilty' adults! However, one could argue that this attitude amongst many Satanists allows a breeding ground for the far right to develop within their organisations. If the Church of England, for example, had a large proportion of priests who were affiliated with Neo-Nazi groups, individual members of the church would be extremely concerned and there would be a major overhaul of the church. However, most Satanists aren't so bothered or are not aware of the extent of adoption of National Socialism or Fascism, whether explicitly or in a 'closet' form, within their respective Orders or Churches. Some orders are better than others, and indeed certain orders, e.g. The Ordo Luciferi (Luciferian Order - not strictly speaking 'Satanists' but the more spiritual Luciferian variety) take an extremely firm stance of Neo-Nazi applicants or members. Perhaps the Church of Satan should take note. If you condone something, you are in a sense encouraging or approving it, or regarding it as innocuous. It is a fine balance as to how much to respect people's own personal beliefs, but it could be argued that Neo-Nazis are non-logical and have no place in the rationalism of Satanism in its conventional forms at any rate.
Clearly when it comes to racism, there is plenty of racism evident amongst 'practitioners' of Christianity, Judaism and Islam, who conveniently forget the basic tenets of their own religions when it comes to their own personal prejudices and excesses of their egos. It would be quite easy to search the internet for far right Satanist groups and use them as 'evidence' that Satanism as a whole is actually promoting Neo-Nazism. This would not be exactly very scientific and one could similarly do this for Christianity or any other belief system.
However, when it comes to the adoption of Neo-Nazi ideologies, the desire for mainstream religions, or at least the mainstream versions of them, seems to disappear on the whole as they embody 'weakness' or are a little 'cissy' (of course with exceptions), and a desire for either atheism or religions that embody strength are more desirable, for example, Satanism. Of course, some extremists do adopt darker and more violent forms of their own religions, for example, Aryan Christianity or Fundamentalist Islam. The KKK often claim to be Christian, but this is in some doubt and there is evidence to suggest many are actually either Luciferians or Satanists. Much like many Freemason branches that are formally aligned to Christianity or Islam but are in fact heavily populated by occultists.
Satanism claims to be all about the individual and personal freedom, so by that definition, Satanic organisations themselves should allow people to hold whatever ridiculous beliefs they want, however socially unacceptable or extreme, as long as they don't try to impose those on others. This is the concept of true freedom. However, the irony is that many of these belief systems do not promote personal freedom but rigid rule and collectivist type models or brutal totalitarianism and have little to do with securing people's personal liberties and more about a minority of individuals using the human population as a canvas to express and exact their Will, to express themselves, which is not of course always in everyone's interest. But if people are too dim witted and are easily conditioned, then arguably they only have themselves to blame for the consequences.
The vast majority of white supremacists and white separatists dislike Islam and want to do everything they can to prevent 'Islamification' of the UK. This is likely to be more for cultural than racial or religious reasons. However they may point to the anti-democratic aspects of fundamentalist Islam to justify their position, which makes up a small minority of UK Muslims. However, if far right supporters dislike Islam and 'Islamification', then the last thing they want is 'Satanisation' or 'Satanification' of the UK - permeating the 'national culture' and turning it into some kind of 'pagan freakshow'; rather than preserving current nominally religious Protestant national identity. Most people in the far right probably have a right wing Biblical view of Satanism, and although they are not strong Christians, they may oppose anything that is not Christian. Of course, the far right is heterogeneous, and many supporters and atheists and non-religious. Some Satanists do make up a minority of the far right supporters, but one can question their dedication to the cause, in that they may well just be using the far right and its archetypes for their own ends, and when it comes down to it, although they may pay lip service to an Aryan collective, are in the first instance concerned with their individual rights. This is brought out in the desire amongst the vast majority of Satanists to have full freedom of speech, promotion gay rights (as this is not seen to have anything to do with one's proclivity for racial or cultural prejudice) and also pro-abortion stance. Satanism thus in many respects is promoting personal freedom, but for far right Satanists, in the context of the collective. Thus it is a form of extreme Darwinian liberalism. The right to do and say what you want but also the right to fight and if necessary kill one's enemies, which is not a characteristic of liberalism. Thus far right Satanists will always have a slightly strained relationship with mainstream supporters of the far right, who may tolerate them as long as they are fighting for most of the same goals (but of course may not publicly want to be associated with them). Satanists may be perceived as giving the far right movement a 'bad name' on account of the prejudices of the general public about Satanism (which far right Satanists are keen to embody when it is in the form of racial or cultural prejudice, in other words when they are on the giving end, not the receiving end). The far right has always had its internal conflicts, with division over the race issue etc. The far right has always been a firm advocate of law and order, but syncretically it also seems in extreme cases to be promoting violence, criminality and lawlessness. Far right thugs who are involved in criminal gangs or football hooliganism for example put themselves and their own desire for criminality and selfishness first, whilst opposing criminality of others and calling for tough police action. The police are often loathed amongst extreme far rightists, but equally they like the police but wish they would tackle crime in a different way. The actual politics in such cases in not very well thought through, and takes a back seat to all other activities the individual is involved with. It is in many senses a case of one rule for us, another one for them. Perhaps Satanism has a similar internal conflict, in that it tries to embody technology, liberal freedoms but also strength, brutality, and a retrogressive cultural view that harks back to the Middle Ages. Of course, Satanists are a very syncretic and heterogeneous bunch, and each person has his own political beliefs. However that is not to say that just because a given individual may adopt certain modalities of the far right, that does not mean that most far right supporters would want anything to do with him if they knew what he was really about. This is why many Satanists keep quiet about their affiliations when networking with far right extremists and Neo-Nazis. If Britain for example did adopt a Neo-Nazi style government, it is likely that a return to the 'good old days' of picking on anyone deemed to be different would occur, including Satanists. A strong, militaristic style government can of course exist in a democratic or liberal framework, for example, ancient Greece and perhaps the far right will evolve over time, in the same way the Labour party did to move with the times and appeal to the middle classes and wealthy.
It is not uncommon in such LHP groups for members to dislike each other on certain levels (i.e. think of some members as assholes), but also to respect each other's 'power' and strength of will (e.g. a worthy adversary etc.) Being an 'asshole' is quite widely accepted in many LHP circles, and being likeable to some is not important. Being a bit of an asshole at times may also get you kudos, as a sign of a strong Will, outspoken and unwaivering nature and a sign of strength. Anyone who is too 'nice' may be seen to show signs of weakness of Will, which to some is definitely not an attractive trait. The purpose of the LHP is generally accepted to not be about being popular, which is not important or relevant, unless one wants it to be.
When it comes to the LHP in general, people tend to follow their interests, and take little interest or spend little time studying that which they are not interested in. For many LHP practitioners, the ONA is not to their tastes or liking, and are simply not interested in actively studying them; and if members knowingly risk their lives to join and die, well that is their problem. The internal activities of other occult groups that one doesn't particularly 'dig' are simply not of interest to most LHP practitioners. Not relevant and not their problem. If you don't like it, don't join.
Some LHP adherents may however object to the activities of Neo-Nazi organisations which seek to uproot the stability of society (although not all LHP practitioners care about this or are afraid of violence or killing when strictly necessary) and infringe on their personal liberties or those of others. Clearly there are many aspects to Satanism, Dark Occultism, Luciferianism and the Left Hand Path, and there will always be some group out there that focuses on some aspects and deviates from or ignores others, to create a niche or extreme group; and equally there will always be those that want to take things further and to be more 'powerful', whatever that might mean in absolute terms, and in terms of further repression of their softer emotions. Whether such individuals are highly misguided or enlightened, or both, is up to them to figure out, or not. Or for them to be arrested if they are caught breaking the law.
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