centering (3)

I caught myself wondering: what's so Satanic about the kind of meditation I propose on this website? Well, let's ask a different question: what's so Satanic about Satanic magic? It's primarily a matter of perspective. It's a way of cutting through the crap, about being realistical. For example, Satanists do not use 'protective' circels to hide themselves from all the dark forces they call upon. It's stupid to suppose using these powers, while at the same time being afraid of it. For Christ's sake, even Jesus himself pointed this out (see: Luke 11:18; "If Satan also be divided against himself, how shall his kingdom stand? ..."). But then again, Satanists are not the only people who are able to cut through the crap. Satanism is also a matter of dark symbolism. Besides, this religion focusses heavily on bodily delights, like sex and tasty food. So maybe we should discuss these two things: the relationship of meditation to Satanic symbolism and the concept of indulgence.

In the second essay I talked about doing nothing, just sitting. After a while, if 'doing nothing' is done correctly (which is not quite easy), you'll notice an increased alertness. You'll find yourself sitting in your own room. This is nothing spectacular. The point is worries and fantasies begin to dissolve. You are still thinking about things, you'll always will, but this thinking is much more structured: in control. There's more time left for bodily sensations. These sensations are much easier to process, so the mind will get much more relaxed. Also, you'll be aware of the room, much more in touch with the surroundings. After a while you may even get the experience of things being-there, being present. Almost alive.

Have you ever asked yourself this: am I feeling totally comfortable and safe in my own home? Maybe you haven't. If that's the case then you can't be sure. To some extent you probably feel safe, but you may have never experienced what it is to feel truly safe. Safety and relaxation go hand in hand. It's not possible to feel unsafe while at the same time being totally relaxed. You may have noticed meditation has a lot to do with getting more relaxed. Relaxed and alert. What happens is sort of auto-hypnosis thing. If you got yourself more relaxed once the mind will remember and automatically apply this. Especially if there's some connection to something. This 'something' will be the silent presence of the objects in your own room. Everytime you feel stressful, go back to these objects. Even looking at them helps a bit, provided you did some meditation recently.

Of course the objects are around all day, also when you're not feeling relaxed, so there must be some counter hypnotic suggestion going on. However, the good thing is these objects are much less present within the mind. There's not much consciousness left to attach feelings of stress to these objects. Secondly, you'll get the feeling you're much more the owner of your own home. The house where you live and work will no longer be just 'a house', it will be your house, your home. Since a house is quite an important aspect of everyones life, this will strengthen your overall sense of being in control. Maybe this seems far-fetched. It will be till you discover your sense of security suddenly opening up, becoming flexible.

So long for the symbolism part of the story. Meditation also has a profound effect on indulgences. Do I need to explain this? Tell, me, how does an icecream taste if you - while eating icecream - end up thinking about that quarrel you had yesterday? Every sensation is much more direct if you are centered. Sex will become ten times more intense. The strange thing is, you'll find yourself unable to please yourself with just one thing. Most people need a flux of pleasing things surrounding themselves. It requires a totally different mindset to be able to appreciate only a cup of tea. Instead of watching t.v., eating chips and drinking tea all at once. This takes some time and some determination.

centering (2)

In the first essay about Satanic Meditation I stressed the concept of 'centering': being in the present moment. This is a very strange idea, because people are always in the present moment. Unless they're asleep, or unconscious due to some other reason. The problem is, we don't always have conscious control of the things we're conscious of. I do hope you're following me, because the point is important: fantasies and worries automatically trigger our minds. We don't regard this as something to be avoided, because they're always our fantasies, and our worries. We identify with them because we're conscious of them.

The point is: fantasies and worries must be useful. Fantasizing about beautiful situations can be nice, but having it in reality is quite something else. Worrying is never nice, and worries will get you nowhere if you don't act immediately. Centering is a way to strengthen the control center of the mind. Only the ideas that are really urgent will be presented to you. Not every dreamy fantasy, or silly worry can take away consciousness so easily anymore. Well, you probably want to know a bit more about the how-to part of the story, but first I have to say something about precautions. Meditation is a largely unexplored territory.

But Hippo, buddhists meditate for two thousand years already, this is science..! No it is not. Buddhism is a religion and religion is based on dogma, which just gets passed on. Tradition doesn't change so easily. You'll find the same ideas in old sutra's as in newer books about meditation. Buddhism has not changed drastically. It's pretty much as good, or as bad, as it was when Siddharta founded it. To my opinion meditation must be helpful. If it doesn't feel natural, doesn't clear things up and you get headaches from it, please stop. Repeat: please stop! Also, don't overdo. Don't go meditating one hour a day, it's madness, even if there's no meditation at all a healthy mind has enough strength to organize mental things nicely. This is just a faster, more efficient way.

In meditation the body is important. If the body is tense, it's impossible for the mind to relax. So if you're going to sit in a 'beautiful' lotus position, you'll never reach a truly relaxed and aware state of mind. Please sit comfortably, loose clothing. Don't lie down, because then you'll fall asleep. Sitting still is important. If the body is still, the mind automatically also gets more relaxed (I'm not going to argue about this, just test it). But then again, if you need to move: move. Not moving would be holding back tension. Please look around now and then when you sit. Be aware of the room and your body. Instead of having only an 'internal' awareness.

The session should take about fifteen minutes. What you're going to do is the following: nothing. Just sitting (=shikantaza). A lot of things are very important, like writing e-mails, doing homework and organizing personal finances; but not during these fifteen minutes. During these minutes maybe the whole world burns down, but you are not going to do anything about it. Another thing. Don't go 'concentrating' on something. Concentration can't be developed. Even small children know how to concentrate. It happens automatically. Just think of something if you need to think of something. Try to be aware of this proces. Think consciously.

acceptance (2)

Some people completely transcend others. Their most often smarter, have stronger energies, are more crucial personalities (once you've met them, you're going to remember that person the rest of your life), have a high emotional sensitivity and are artistically developed in more than one way. This kind of people are scarce. I'd say, two out of thirty. And then I'm talking about students, who are generally smarter than 'normal' people.

To my opinion these people should rule over others. To some extent. The problem is, often they just seem to get along nicely in groups. Doing their own part of the work very, very well, but often they just do not rule. It seems they don't know how to actualize their strength. To make it known to others. To force people to relate themselves to this greater strength. Some go completely unnoticed. Having strength is great, but it doesn't imply at all that you'll automatically be able to use it in relationships.

There's a huge problem with great strength. The greater the strength, the difficulter it will be for other people to accept it. Someone with great strength should try to lower himself temporarily; hold back power. The other person will interpret this as acceptible behaviour. If this works out well for a certain period of time the other will send out subtle signs of acceptance. The point is: now they relate themselves to you. People always to some extent comprehend great power. In the back of their minds they will always realize their talking with someone great. The moment you have gained some acceptance this realization seems to come out of the shadows. Suddenly they start to realize with whom they've just made friends.

At this point things get really interesting. You've found yourself an entry to the person in question. Everytime you meet him or her you can use this experimental knowledge, which will come automatically. Although the person may be scared of you to some extent (people are always scared of greater strength), you will be able to force this person to display friendliness to you.

This may sound a bit negative, but we need to be realistical. This is a way to manipulate people. It's a way to 'force' people into a state of friendliness. The funny thing is, most people will thoroughly enjoy it, because they think they've found themselves a strong ally. Which is foolishness of course.

substance

Not many people think in terms of manifest results. Of actually making, or doing something that matters. This is a very strange observation, because everyone lives in a very material world. A world in which a lot of things people do are continuously being structured by objects. Even big objects like buildings have huge effect on the way people behave. You're certainly more relaxed in your own home than in a police office. Even if you haven't committed any crime. The point is, we are completely surrounded by objects. If being in a police office has such a profound effect. What does a computer or a television do with your brain? This is hardly imaginable.

Of course not everything which affect our minds is material. Yet I'd like to defend the view that apart form our own mental control, our own thinking, everything which has a lasting influence has a certain solidness. Is substance-like. Think of music. This is clearly not a material thing. But for music to entertain it must have a certain level of achievement. In different ways; technically, melodically and perhaps in terms of style (it's not so easy to make exemplary death-metal). This relates back to our own musical development and interests, but theoretically this is not so relevant. The important thing is, music needs to have substance in order to satisfy.

There's another reason for things to have a certain influence on our minds. Everything which matters was built once. Someone needed to work for it. Hard. You may object. A lot of things are produced in factories. These people did their jobs, but you don't know if they worked hard. The point is, I'm talking about influence. Not all things have equal influence. To my opinion most things of high emotional or intellectual influence have an equal amount of work behind them. Also, even producing a small thing like paperclips, requires people to set up complex organizations. A friend of mine once said programming a comprehensive text-editor is like building a skyscraper.

From this point of view, thinking in manifest results is the highest level of functioning humans can achieve. It's getting the mind thinking continuously on the level of substance.

f.a.q.

I didn't get any questions so far, but I thought it would be nice and useful to have a 'frequently asked questions' section.

q Who or what is Hippo?
a A dutch student. I've almost finished my philosophy studies [...I finished them recently, please adress me as "drs." in the future :P ]. 'Hippo' is the name I use on the dutch satanic forum: www.satanisme.nl. Hippo actually comes from Hippocrates, the father of medicine. Who came up with the famous 'oath of Hippocrates'. But I'll do everything I can to make you believe hippopotamuses are cool.

q The essays are so difficult to understand!
a This is not a (valid) question.

q What's the purpose of this website?
a To inspire people. To develop practical insights which make life easier. To let you know how to love life, how to get rid of anti-social behaviour, how to be productive, charismatic, emphatic and self-aware.

q Can I publish some of these little essays on my website?
a Well, maybe. Send me an e-mail. (But why not making something new yourself?)

q Can I make a comment?
a Sure, but please say something friendly and/or intelligent (unfriendly, but intelligent comments are fine. I don't believe in positive criticism).

q What if I only see some straight 'lines', instead of an essay?
a Copy/paste these lines in to a text-editor.

q Hippo, are you a really a Satanist?
a No..! Of course not! And if I were, I wouldn't tell you.

centering

Could there be something like Satanic Meditation? In Satanist literature meditation is often frowned at. The subject seems to attract a lot of spiritual nonsense. Also people unconsiously use it to satisfy emotional needs; after all, who's able to meditate long hours will gain much respect... Two questions need to be answered. Is it useful to apply such a controversial concept? And secondly, in what sense would it fill a void - is the satanic practice of magic not comprehensive enough?

The answer to the first question comes in two parts. Firstly, I think it's largely a matter of definition. I regard meditation as a way to center; to be in the present moment. Instead of being controlled by stressful fantasies, which are mostly thoughts about problems that need to get solved. Merely worrying about problems doesn't make them go away. To actually solve problems one needs to be centered mentally. To be able to act. NOW. Secondly, the way of meditation I'll describe in a following essay, is based on a form of Zen-meditation. To be precise: shikantaza. Zen is a form of Buddhism, yet it is extremely down to earth. Even the Buddhist concept of (spiritual) awakening is interpreted as being one with the path to awakening; the meditative practice. Of course this still is vague and prone to all sorts of assumptions I'm not willing to make. So I've decided to skip the whole awakening thing, and concentrate on the how-to-center.

To answer the second question, the fundamental difference between the practice of magic and the practice of meditation, is the way emotions are dealt with. Magic uses specific emotions, while meditation regulates the whole spectrum of emotion. Emotions are often out of conscious control. They just happen. Anger for example, can reside endlessly within the mind. Sometimes it's useful to express anger, but it can also waste a lot of energy. The optimal way of dealing with anger is as follows: expressing and letting go. In reality this is often the case: expressing and internalising. Which will cause a stressful mental reliving of the situation. In the most worse case, this happens: somebody doesn't dare to express and (further) internalises all anger. Mentally this means there's still an unsolved problem which needs a lot of attention. In other words: there is a void, and meditation would fill it.