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			WHAT IS SATANISM?
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   I always throw people for a loop when they come into my home 
   and see various reprints of the Satanic Bible lying around
   or my collection of hand-fired (excuse the pun) inverted
   pentagrams. Why? I suppose I just don't fit the media hype image
   of what a Satanist is, and what she should look like. She should
   be aloof, mysterious, ever ready with a caustic comment and the
   gleam of Hell in her chartreuse eyes.
   
   Well, that's not me. These pages are pretty exemplary of how I
   approach Satanism--pratically. Sure, I have my accoutrements.
   They're fun, they're psychologically reassuring, and besides, I
   think they're neat to look at. But all of that superficialia is
   NOT what Satanism is to me. It should mean something different to
   everyone who indulges in Satanic thought. Two Satanists should
   not think exactly alike, although they may agree on larger
   ethical issues.
   
   For me, Satanism starts here--IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH A LITERAL
   SATAN. That ol' Devil as he appears in the Hebrew Bible and the
   Christian New Testament doesn't figure into my Satanism any
   further than in its name. What I mean is that side of nature
   which is chaotic, untamed, even savage. It is that side which
   "civilization" fights to stamp out, while at the same time it is
   responsible for procreating the species. Satanism is being aware
   of my physical incarnation, of being here, right now, and
   celebrating every moment of it.
   
   So you can see, there's no red guy with horns and a pitchfork
   goading me on to do evil. I'm sure I do as much bad as any other
   human being, but at least I take responsibility for it. I have no
   scapegoat. And there is another factor in the Satanism I
   practice.
   
   This brings me to the concept of the god within. This is
   different from saying, "I am God", which means I would be
   presuming a position of power over a group of people I do not
   want following me. What it means is that divine spark comes from
   within me. I need not be a supplicant, I need not suckle at the
   teat of organized religion. Everything I need, I either already
   have, or will learn how to gain.
   
   That's what Satanism is to me, in a nutshell. I'm sorry if it's
   not as gory or fervent as you might have been hoping. Then again,
   I am neither gory nor fervent. I like to think of myself as a
   rational being, enjoying a rational philosophy.
  
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