Ok, you say, where is the Satan in Satanism? Do you worship the Devil or what? Cause worshipping the Devil isn't very smart you know, the Bible says he loses in the end. You're absolutely right. The Christian concept of Satan does indeed lose in the end, according to the Christian Bible. But the Christian Devil has absolutely nothing to do with the Satan of Satanism. Really the only thing these two have in common is the name Satan, which actually pre-dates Christianity, so we're in the clear when we use it.
The Christian Satan is no more than a scapegoat, a mean little man who runs around messing up anything God does. He is something Christians can blame for their problems... "Oh the Devil sure is tempting me today, Bob..." or "Satan is after those kids, just look at the way they disregard the authority of the Preacher."
Gustave Doré, Depiction of Satan, the antagonist ...
English: Satan as Antichrist
Outside SatanSatan is the ultimate Bad Guy, the enemy of man's relationship with God.
In Satanism, however, Satan doesn't spread destruction, death, carnage, hatred, or any of those foul things. In fact Satan doesn't do much of anything, because he isn't a real being. That's right, in Satanism, Satan is only an idea -- an idea conjured up by individual Satanists, defined to each person's individual taste, and used accordingly. Satan is an idea that represents the things that a Satanist holds sacred, or at least worthy of respect.
Satan represents, first and foremost, Human Nature. It is a disgusting untruth spread by Christians and most other religions that Human Nature is "evil." We are taught from childhood that we are vile and wicked because we have "fallen from the grace of God." We are to look upon our mortal condition with disdain and guilt. Satanism takes this lie head-on. Satan, representing Human Nature, stands for enjoyment of our earthly existence. This is, after all, the only existence we can be sure of! All other hallucinated visions fall by the wayside when one realizes that his time is now and his world is here! Humans are not vile creatures doomed to eternity in the dark, we are the highest achievement of nature, at least on this planet, and we should be proud of that! Existence is not a sin, it is a state we should never take for granted. We should enjoy it! Why sacrifice earthly pleasure and gratification for a make-believe life after death, in the clouds? Satan represents, as part of Human Nature, deeds and ways of thinking that promote and enhance the enjoyment and prolonging of this existence. If we are attacked, we will fight back fiercely, for self-preservation is the highest law. If we turn the other cheek and love our enemies, then we are at their mercy, and I for one just can't imagine an existence like that being enjoyable. Satan stands for the enjoyment of our fleshly bodies, that's right.. sex. Sex isn't an evil thing, or a disgusting thing. Lust is a very basic instinct, and the most important for without lust there would be no Humanity! Greed, ambition, envy as well are good things. If man never had a desire to improve his situation and environment, you would not be reading this on a computer, in fact you wouldn't be reading at all! You would be wandering around like an unevolved ape catching small animals to eat raw. Without envy or greed there never would have been a civilization to spawn the "great" religions which preach against them! How hypocritical it is to reach a point in development where you turn your back on everything that got you there! Satan represents respect of the environment as far as the environment is both necessary and beneficial to human existence. That means we don't go burn down forests just to see the pretty colors in the sky (who knows how many trees have been cut down to print millions of Bibles). In fact this applies to everything in Satanism, because we will do as our will dictates, but every action has a consequence. It is only common sense to weigh the results of anything you do, so Satanism actually makes for more socially responsible citizens! Satanism stands for the complete autonomy of the individual, as long as that doesn't interfere with someone else's autonomy. This is for the better, or for the worse. It means no safety nets. It means allowing people to slip through the cracks and reap the benefits of their own decisions. If a person makes a wise choice, they will benefit; if they make a stupid choice, they will suffer the consequences. How else will people learn to live successfully? No one should be protected from the effects of his own stupidity. And there should also be no limit to the amount of wealth or power someone can gain through his own wisdom! Satanism stands for religious freedom as well, knowing that people will naturally follow the spiritual path that makes them happiest. Not everyone will arrive at Satanism as the final way, and many Satanists might move to other paths. We do not claim to have any "superior truth" that others do not have.
Illustration of the Devil in the Codex Gigas, foli...
sigil of lucifer, home-made by the user
The Sigil of Baphomet: emblem of the Church of Sat...