My Musical Sunday School Sessions - "The 20 Commandments from the S...

Last week in a dark corner of an old church I opened: The Satanic Bible, written by Anton LaVey. I shared some insights on LaVeyans' take on Satanism.

The main finding must be that nowhere in the book does it mention worshipping a deity named Satan.

My Musical Sunday School Sessions - "Know Thy Enemy (What´s The Satanic Bible Really About)"

LaVey's religion is more a philosophy emphasizing individualism and carnal pleasure, the pursuit of personal gratification and fulfillment without guilt or shame.

That was all fun and games, and it ended up being a very interesting and unexpected insight into something that has such an obscure ring to it. But I had to shelf something, or rather two things
The Satanic Bible held two lists I did not go into, or at least not in depth.

The Nine Satanic Statements
The Eleven Satanic Rules of the Earth

The Nine Satanic Statements

The Nine Satanic Statements are a set of philosophical principles outlined by Anton LaVey in "The Satanic Bible." They serve as foundational tenets of LaVeyan Satanism, emphasizing individualism, self-preservation, and the rejection of conventional morality. Here are the Nine Satanic Statements:

Satan represents indulgence instead of abstinence
Satan represents vital existence instead of spiritual pipe dreams
Satan represents undefiled wisdom instead of hypocritical self-deceit
Satan represents kindness to those who deserve it instead of love wasted on ingrates
Satan represents vengeance instead of turning the other cheek
Satan represents responsibility to the responsible instead of concern for psychic vampires
Satan represents man as just another animal, sometimes better, more often worse than those that walk on all-fours, who, because of his “divine spiritual and intellectual development,” has become the most vicious animal of all
Satan represents all of the so-called sins, as they all lead to physical, mental, or emotional gratification
Satan has been the best friend the Church has ever had, as he has kept it in business all these years

I am not explaining each of the nine statements, but it supports the idea that mankind is an animal, and due to its intellect it tries to raise itself above the animal kingdom by putting limitations and spiritual goals above instinct. Something that goes against human nature.

These statements encapsulate the core principles of LaVeyan Satanism, promoting individualism, rationality, and the pursuit of personal liberty and fulfillment.

The Eleven Satanic Rules of the Earth

Do not give opinions or advice unless you are asked
Do not tell your troubles to others unless you are sure they want to hear them
When in another's lair, show him respect or else do not go there
If a guest in your lair annoys you, treat him cruelly and without mercy
Do not make sexual advances unless you are given the mating signal
Do not take that which does not belong to you unless it is a burden to the other person and they cry out to be relieved
Acknowledge the power of magic if you have employed it successfully to obtain your desires
If you deny the power of magic after having called upon it with success, you will lose all you have obtained
Do not complain about anything to which you need not subject yourself to
Do not harm little children
Do not kill non-human animals unless you are attacked or for your food

Now those are rules I can live by, not one of them sounds out of my league while if I look at 10 other well-known rules I do struggle with some.

How different are their rules, or maybe how similar, and which of these two guys makes more sense on paper?

Let me show you:

You shall have no other gods before Me - This assumes I have a God and if I have one I am not allowed another one. Why would an omnipotent God tell me this?
You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth - I am lost how do I know what is in heaven, no one ever came back to tell us. I get God does not want me to paint his old bearded face, but no paintings of fish, worms, coral as well....why?
You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain - Okay if I hurt myself I will say fuck and not G dammit, this I can do but is Fuck what the lord wants us to curse with if we can´t use his name?
Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy - Sabbath, used to be Saturday but someone moved it to Sunday, was that an Epic Fail?
Honor your father and your mother - And what if they do not deserve that honor? Not everyone is a good and righteous parent, there are monsters out there.
You shall not murder - How many murders have been committed in thy name my lord? And should I turn the other cheek when attacked, because my attacker ain´t obeying your rules? The 11 Satanic rules are similar but a bit more useful in my opinion as I can kill for food and protection. It even holds animals' lives higher than the bible seems to do because this reference does not include animal killings.
You shall not commit adultery - The first rule I fully agree with. If you want to fuck around do not get married, it´s as simple as that. If I give myself to one person, it might not be the animal thing to do, but it´s a promise you make. And Thy Should Not Brake Any Promise Made, better to not promise at all than to break a promise (that is a rule in my book).
You shall not steal - We saw this one as well in the 11 Satanic rules
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor - Does this mean I can lie about the guy two blocks down the road? Why does it not say You shall not lie, is this a loophole so that we can be lied to?
You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s - Don´t desire what is not yours, I was already not allowed to steal it, or sleep with it, and now this? I can not desire the beautiful house of my neighbor about whom I am not allowed to give false testimonies.

Comparing Notes

I would not go as far as to call myself a follower of LaVeyan´s Satanic Philosophy as I like to make up my own rules. But those 20 Satanic Commandments do sound more logical, more fair, and more thought-through than the 10 Biblical ones.

Bikini Bottom Line

It might be the age difference, that makes them resonate more nowadays, but I think that even when they were handed down to the first person documenting them they sounded a little doggy. They leave room for misusage in ways the 20 Satanic rules do not.

Now that is of course my humanoid brain speaking, my animalistic me. Because from a divine point of view, the 10 Commandments make a bit more sense. If you believe in spiritual growth, there is something there.

Something about respect, using words that are soft in the mouth, and honor. It might be the age difference again that makes some of those Ten stand out just a bit more on the path to enlightenment.

Overall I think a well-balanced combination of both rule books, would make us better humans, and allow the right kind of spiritual growth instead of oppression by dogmas.

Oppression by dogmas: the use of rigid and unquestionable beliefs or doctrines to control or limit individuals' thoughts, actions, or freedoms. Oppressively used dogmas restrict individual autonomy, suppress critical thinking, and enforce conformity to a particular worldview.

And one last thought before I leave, if the Christian God is an old bearded man, and Satan is the representation of God's counter-culture, should Satan not be a girl?

And a young girl with no beard...... and a little bit of Wednesday Adams, right?

I think I am done covering this Satanic Bible Book, but I did wonder; what if I truly want to devote myself to a deity like Satan or Lucifer, what books should I then read?
Let me look into that for you!

Dear Reader, there might be one more darkish session hitting your screens soon, so don´t say I did not warn you.

Previous Sunday School Sessions

Soundtrack Of The Book of Revelations

My Book of Revelations Soundtrack - Part 1 - The Ladies of Revelation
My Book of Revelations Soundtrack - Part 2 - The Biblical Bad Guys
My Book of Revelations Soundtrack - Part 3 - The Bad Guy That Goes By Many Names

Thank goodness you made it till the end Pees, Love and I am out of here!

[Source Pic](All by MyI & AI)

Disclaimer One: The texts I use for these sessions are real, although like many scholars my ignorance and arrogance might cause me to misinterpret things, or explain things from my limited perspective. I therefore appreciate all critical feedback.

Disclaimer Two: I think everyone has a right to believe, and a right to disagree. I try to take a light philosophical approach and add some humor. If you're offended please check yourself, because being offended by something written by a simpleton as WhyWhy is a signal that you might have bigger issues.

My Musical Sunday School Sessions - "The 20 Commandments from the Satanic Bible"