Baneful magick with the Nekalah, part 1

Something I’ve increasingly been thinking this blog could use is more of my personal gnosis re: the Nekalah. Toward that end, this entry shares some thoughts I have on working baneful magick with these entities. There will be three entries in this sub-series: 1) Nekalah who I’ve known to be quite keen on baneful magick, but only in specific circumstances; 2) Nekalah who, despite being entities of Darkness, nonetheless lean toward solving problems in a non-baneful manner; and finally, 3) Nekalah who might plausibly described as specialists in malice. This entry will discuss those I class in the first category: Aosoth, Baphomet, Darkat-Lidagon, Davcina, Noctulius and Velpecula.

nekalah baneful magick part 1

Introduction

Some may have such presumptions about Darkness as a concept – i.e. “evil” – as to assume that all Dark Gods are baneful magick afficionados. I think this view is not entirely without justification when it comes to the Nekalah. In fact, it’s probably a factor in why certain human associates of this pantheon – i.e. the Order of Nine Angles (ONA/O9A) – have acquired such a sinister reputation.

At the same time though, I feel this pantheon has seldom been discussed in a nuanced way on this topic. I blame this on certain individuals being more enthusiastic about juvenile “evil-doing” than effective acts of magick. Now and then, unconscious insight might tie a Nekalah’s name to “evils” that aptly reflect its nature on some level. But I sense more than a little “I just want to do something evil, and this name sounds cool!” afoot. And I don’t feel that fosters full appreciation of this pantheon’s range and potential.

Sharing my gnosis strikes me as one way of doing better on this front. Not necessarily because my view is “correct” or will speak to everyone in this current. I think though that for some, it may put into concrete words some vaguer impressions they have themselves. Others may voice highly contrary opinions to mine – and in so doing, promote further conversation about these entities.

I welcome either outcome, as well as any others that raise the profile of this particular pantheon of Dark Gods.

First of three sixes: Teachers of the lessons of Darkness

In my book Nine Keys of Abyssal Darkness, I discuss eighteen entities total. For the purposes of this blog series, I have wound up subdividing them into three groups of six. I’ve done this not for a cheap Revelation reference, but just because my gnosis lent itself to such a division.

What Nekalah in my first subdivision have in common is an even mixture of destructive and constructive intent. Certainly, they are happy to do terrible things to a magician’s enemy in the right circumstances. However, what is best done with each is quite narrowly delineated by their specific nature and temperament. I would therefore not ask these Nekalah to destroy “just anyone.” There is, rather, a logic to when involving them makes sense, and attendant consequences the magician should prepare for. To fail to take this into consideration is, in my view, to fail to understand and appreciate what makes each entity distinct.

Common too between these six is, however they destroy, they seek at the same time to teach some dark lesson. This distinguishes them both from the more purely-destructive entities, and those who, though possessed of a disconcerting alien nature disturbing to humans, are not actually all that malicious – at least in my experience of them.

I’ll discuss some specifics I’ve observed in connection with each of the six entities I’ve put in this category below. As much that’s here extends insights in my book, interested parties should definitely consider getting hold of it. But for those unfamiliar, I’ll include a quick snapshot of each entity before getting into the baneful angle.

Aosoth

Appears as a woman in black with divided features – e.g., heterochromia; split light/dark hair; a half-mask; etc. May take on features of carrion birds such as crows or vultures. Aloof, cunning, disdains weakness. Gravitates toward battlefields and other places of death and danger.

Aosoth is associated with violent deaths, fatal accidents, and the terror of such events. It therefore makes most sense to send her against targets whose lives expose them to such risks, e.g. criminals, soldiers, police officers, etc. This is in accord with the second principle of Tenebrous magick: “Any transformation wrought by magick will manifest via the path of least resistance.” That is, one has to give the entity some plausible possibilities work with if one is to expect results.

Conversely, I wouldn’t involve Aosoth in a work of baneful magick unless I was 100% OK with killing the target. On her side, if the eventual prospect doesn’t include death, she has no reason to be interested in the proceedings. And on mine, I would consider carefully whether the case in question really needed “the nuclear option” or not. She seems fond enough of precision to usually spare associates of the target who are not the magician’s concern. But if there were collateral damage, I would not be surprised if it involved additional fatalities.

Finally, it’s worth noting Aosoth seems to approach her baneful involvement as if she is “testing” the target. In all likelihood, they will “fail,” i.e. die. However, if they “pass” – i.e. suffer a clear brush with death, but survive – I’d take that as a sign. Perhaps I need to reconsider my enemy, rethink why I targeted them, learn something from my past interaction with them that I haven’t learned yet, etc. Such are the sorts of lessons I associate with Aosoth.

Baphomet

Appears as a dark-haired woman, dressed plainly or in animal skins stained with blood, wearing a horned headdress. Typically appears holding a severed head, or other parts of dismembered bodies. Speaks bluntly and expects the magician to be unfazed by the gore. Gravitates toward wild places, e.g. woods etc.

Baphomet is O9A’s mistress of “nature red in tooth and claw.” A surface impression of wanton cruelty belies what is actually just an incarnation of fundamental predatory impulses, and hence amoral. This is relevant to why I see her as a teacher of lessons rather than inherently malicious.

An advantage of working baneful magick with Baphomet is that the right metaphor makes much nuance possible. Consider the full range of processes of harm and decay in nature and decide: which of these best reflects what you want to happen to your enemy and their fortunes? The better one’s intuitive understanding of nature itself, the broader one’s options re: method (loss, infertility, disease, etc.), dynamics (sudden or gradual), etc.

Beyond that, much about Baphomet reminds me of things I’ve heard about Santa Muerte in Hoodoo tradition: effective, but she’ll want a sacrifice and you will provide it. At minimum, one might get away with shedding a bit of one’s own blood. But for bigger demands, I’d expect her to demand more in turn. Obviously this raises ethical difficulties for some, but that’s a topic for another entry. For here, I’ll just make an obvious recommendation: if you are adamantly against such things, then do not work with her.

What Baphomet teaches is that in nature, things have a price. And if you want results, you will have to pay it. The would-be Satanist who has led a too-comfortable life could often benefit from a hands-on lesson on this topic.

Darkat-Lidagon

A “Whore of Babylon” -like figure, nearly nude but adorned with jewels. The scorpion, serpent and orchid are among her symbols, and she may appear horned or fanged. Bold, sensual, and disarmingly intelligent. If addressed as Lidagon, she comes armed with a sword and attired for war, riding a monstrous sea beast or chimera.

The Nekalah equivalent to Lilith, Darkat-Lidagon is similar to that figure in both nature and temperament. Her primary expertise lies more in the passionate arts than in the destructive. Baneful-magick-wise though, there are a couple types of people she can be very effective at making trouble for:

  • As Darkat: addicts who can be edged into bringing misfortune on themselves via poor self-control.
  • As Lidagon: hypocrites who would be destroyed if their vices were to become known openly.

Under both guises, the concept is the same. In accord with the principles of Satanism, our goddess prizes willful indulgence. Therefore, she hates those who indulge in ways that ruin sex, intoxicants, and other such pleasures for themselves and others. Her aeonic goals favor a maximization of responsible freedom in such matters. This gives her a motive to destroy slavish wretches who can neither moderate themselves nor take pride in their “sins.”

Darkat-Lidagon is unimpressed by petitions for destruction from those who cannot manage their own affairs when it comes to indulgence. And the target must genuinely fit her profile, as opposed to being dismissively defined as such by the magician’s prejudices. (e.g. “My ex is a dumb slut” – but is she really?) Working with this entity thus requires one to rise to a certain standard of self-awareness and self-discipline. Those with sexual hangups especially should beware, lest she feign cooperation only to destroy the magician instead of the target.

Davcina

Appears as a queen of antiquity, beautiful in features and attire, but neither gaudy nor overtly sexual. May have some dryad-like attributes, or come accompanied by a green dragon. Dignified and composed in most instances, but may turn hostile if she senses disrespect. One of the most humanlike of the Nekalah, she rules over an acausal haven where certain walkers of the sinister path may temporarily abide between causal lives.

Although Davcina’s energy is very different from Baphomet’s, they are comparable in evoking themes of balance and consequence. But whereas Baphomet embodies wild nature, Davcina embodies a sort of Apollonian harmony between nature and culture. As such, she stands for the reaping of deserved rewards and equally deserved punishments. Her baneful aspect arises primarily in connection with the latter.

In initial encounters with this entity, she struck me as perhaps the least likely Nekalah to work baneful magick with. But in subsequent visions, I learned of two scenarios where she would likely take interest in the magician’s baneful doings:

  • The situation involves a betrayal of kinship (or comparable ties) driven by Dogmagian ideology. For example, a Satanist disowned by fundamentalist family members.
  • The situation involves bad actors bringing dishonor upon the sinister path. For example, the gratuitous abuse of women and children by certain edgelords bereft of acausal empathy, insight or discipline.

In such scenarios, I’ve known Davcina to not only agree to assist, but openly call for war against the offenders. Here, then, the lesson is primarily to those who violate Satanic considerations of honor. The issue is not a moral one of dishonorable behavior being “wrong.” Rather, it is a pragmatic one: the violation of relational ties comes with consequences. The honorable “make” their own “karmic retribution.” Such is Davcina’s lesson.

Noctulius

Appears as an attractive man with long hair, clad in silver, wearing a moonstone circlet and a veil of darkness. Sometimes carries a white serpent, who may speak in place of the man holding it. Aloof, with a presence both inspiring and disturbing, befitting of a fallen angel. O9A’s equivalent of Lucifer, and the mate of Darkat-Lidagon.

As with the Nekalah mentioned above, this one too I do not associate primarily with baneful purposes. His specialization seems to be more in the acquisition of hidden wisdom for the purposes of self-evolution. Circumstances can arise, though, where a magician’s self-evolution is hindered by other people and the obstacles those people create. In such instances, the enemy without can give rise to a subtler an enemy within, i.e., a divided part of one’s own personality that is self-thwarting and self-sabotaging. The magician may then call upon Noctulius to assist in the simultaneous destruction of both enemies.

Noctulius’ resultant style of doing baneful magick and shadow work at the same time may be overwhelming for some. Those able to manage the personal trials inherent in this, however, are rewarded with accelerated progress on the sinister path.

This Nekalah can also be talked into assisting baneful works against “servants of the Light” who oppose the magician. He seems to prefer, however, to advise on how to undertake such works, rather than to take a direct hand. This makes sense insofar as such an approach is better for encouraging the magician’s own self-development. It’s also in accord with Tenebrous Satanism’s preference not to over-rely on acausal entities to do what one ought to do oneself – an issue I’ve previously alluded to here. Noctulius thus teaches self-reliance as well as introspective awareness and reconciliation with the personal darkness within.

Velpecula

Appears as an athletic young woman, wearing Greco-Roman style armor and a metal mask that conceals her face. May also take the form of a fox with unusual coloration, a missing limb, or similar striking features. A skilled teacher who is patient with beginners, but stern toward those who fail to apply themselves. Not to be trifled with, but a better choice than many other Nekalah for first contact from an inexperienced magician.

Velpecula can be thought of as a wisdom goddess who enjoins sinister path-walkers toward self-improvement in all things. With enhanced self-insight and more diligent application, how might one do more, do better, etc., than one’s past self? A Satanist cannot compellingly live so as to “be one’s own God” without asking and answering such questions.

Accordingly, Velpecula seems to have her own “curriculum” in mind for each individual, and will turn any matter the magician consults her on into an opportunity to advance this agenda. Thus, if involving her in baneful magick, she may advise approaching matters in a way that seems idiosyncratic at first, only for the magician to go through the process, look back on it, and realize that reflecting on each step along the way offers a wealth of insights regarding everything from the art of magick itself to the psychology of oneself and others, etc.

Experienced magicians with narrowly-conceived baneful goals to be accomplished ASAP may not be well-served by such an approach. But for situations of “I’m angry and something must be done” amid uncertainty as to whether baneful magick is necessarily even the right choice, consulting Velpecula may be the start of an adventure that teaches oneself much about oneself in addition to arriving eventually at a good long-term solution to the problem.

Concluding thoughts

When speaking briefly of the Nekalah, with the intent of what’s said being readily followed by those who may not be advanced occultists, one risks misrepresenting these entities as more approachable and “human” than they actually are.

To attempt to counter this, I close by emphasizing: these are Dark Gods. And one should understand in accord with that descriptor that words inevitably fail re: what it’s like to actually contact these beings. Success in the ritual chamber comes with experiences of the uncanny and the sublime that must be felt for oneself. To read what is described here and reduce it to “that’s just like [pagan deity]” is to miss the point. Beneath whatever may sound familiar and approachable lies the Abyssal Void of Darkness. To proceed with anything other than caution would therefore be dangerous folly. And I figure when one is contemplating baneful magick, this is doubly so.

As per “research the entity before you mess around with it too much,” then: what do readers think? If any have experiences with any of these entities, how do they compare to my experiences? Both accord and discord can enlighten on this front, so please let me know in the comments.

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