In modern times, this idea has been rejected by historians as a myth made up during the 14th and 15th centuries by priests, inquisitors and judges who participated in witch hunts and trials. However, the idea of orgi-stic celebrations held at night by groups of people is not a medieval invention. Such celebrations were widespread in ancient times and connected with cults of nature based on s-xuality as a foundation of life, such as the Roman Bacchanalia. These traditions were known for their frenzied practices, licentious rites, and s-xual initiations of all participants, male and female, young and old, peasants and nobles alike. Deities worshipped in these cults, such as Pan, Dionysus, Bacchus, etc., were all phallic gods, symbolic of virility and fertility, presented in a similar way as the medieval Lord of the Sabbat. Goddesses were depicted with large bre-sts, and gods with a huge er-cted ph-llus, sometimes in s-xual positions. Like medieval rites of witchcraft, these festivals included intoxication with alcohol and hallucinogenic herbs and potions, blood sacrifices, ecstatic dancing, violent s-xual practices, and group orgies. It was the worship of primal, animal instincts in man, released during ecstatic and orgi-stic ceremonies in order to transgress human nature and to experience divinity. Therefore, whether we choose to believe that the Witches’ Sabbats were real, we need to be aware that the idea itself is a part of the much older tradition and as such it can still be useful to the modern practitioner.

In modern times, this idea has been rejected by historians as a myth made up during the 14th and 15th centuries by priests, inquisitors and judges who participated in witch hunts and trials. However, the idea of orgi-stic celebrations held at night by groups of people is not a medieval invention. Such celebrations were widespread in ancient times and connected with cults of nature based on s-xuality as a foundation of life, such as the Roman Bacchanalia. These traditions were known for their frenzied practices, licentious rites, and s-xual initiations of all participants, male and female, young and old, peasants and nobles alike. Deities worshipped in these cults, such as Pan, Dionysus, Bacchus, etc., were all phallic gods, symbolic of virility and fertility, presented in a similar way as the medieval Lord of the Sabbat. Goddesses were depicted with large bre-sts, and gods with a huge er-cted ph-llus, sometimes in s-xual positions. Like medieval rites of witchcraft, these festivals included intoxication with alcohol and hallucinogenic herbs and potions, blood sacrifices, ecstatic dancing, violent s-xual practices, and group orgies. It was the worship of primal, animal instincts in man, released during ecstatic and orgi-stic ceremonies in order to transgress human nature and to experience divinity. Therefore, whether we choose to believe that the Witches’ Sabbats were real, we need to be aware that the idea itself is a part of the much older tradition and as such it can still be useful to the modern practitioner.

In modern times, this idea has been rejected by historians as a myth made up during the 14th and 15th centuries by priests, inquisitors and judges who participated in witch hunts and trials. However, the idea of orgi-stic celebrations held at night by groups of people is not a medieval invention. Such celebrations were widespread in ancient times and connected with cults of nature based on s-xuality as a foundation of life, such as the Roman Bacchanalia. These traditions were known for their frenzied practices, licentious rites, and s-xual initiations of all participants, male and female, young and old, peasants and nobles alike. Deities worshipped in these cults, such as Pan, Dionysus, Bacchus, etc., were all phallic gods, symbolic of virility and fertility, presented in a similar way as the medieval Lord of the Sabbat. Goddesses were depicted with large bre-sts, and gods with a huge er-cted ph-llus, sometimes in s-xual positions. Like medieval rites of witchcraft, these festivals included intoxication with alcohol and hallucinogenic herbs and potions, blood sacrifices, ecstatic dancing, violent s-xual practices, and group orgies. It was the worship of primal, animal instincts in man, released during ecstatic and orgi-stic ceremonies in order to transgress human nature and to experience divinity. Therefore, whether we choose to believe that the Witches’ Sabbats were real, we need to be aware that the idea itself is a part of the much older tradition and as such it can still be useful to the modern practitioner.

The whole concept of the Sabbat, the Black Mass and other similar rites is based on the principle of reversal and transgression — dancing widdershins or back to back, jumping on a left leg, reciting Christian prayers backward, kissing the Devil’s behind – all these were meant to reverse the natural order of things. This is a very old idea, based on a conviction that by reversing and transgressing order we can enter the sphere of chaos, darkness and the unknown. The same conviction underlies myths and legends of the Witches’ Sabbat. Nocturnal rites and ceremonies reject the light and affirm the dark. They occur in the wilderness and in desolate, hidden places, as opposed to the structured, civilized world of man. They are held at night, at the time of the full or dark moon, which is the mythical time of werewolves and malefica, works of darkness that are hidden from the light of the day. The whole Sabbat is based on the concept of unconstrained freedom on all possible levels of existence, sacred transgression of mundane laws and regulations. Here the world of man is replaced by its inverted and distorted version: the heavenly by the infernal, the conscious by the unconscious, the right by the left, the waking by the sleeping, the rational by the irrational, the godly by the bestial, the day by the night. Illumination is sought in darkness.

That is why the Lord of the Sabbat is black and terrifying. He arouses lust and at the same time embodies the terror of death and the dreadful essence of the reaper who cuts the cord that binds the soul to its mortal vessel. This act of liberation is feared because it separates us from the safe, predictable world that we know in our day-to-day life. Many times while working with other magicians I’ve heard complaints that they can’t do a ritual outdoors because going to a forest or another desolate place is “not safe” – but that’s the whole idea behind these practices. They are meant to take us out of our comfort zone, and the more they push our personal limitations, the more power they release. The same rule applies to s-xual elements of the Sabbat and other transgressive forms of s-x magic.

Terror and ecstasy mixed together are the foundations of the Witches’ Sabbats. In modern times, the criteria of what is “antinomian” (against the grain) or transgressive are obviously different than in the Middle Ages. Therefore, the idea of the Sabbat may seem a relic of the past. We may have an impression that what we see in myths and legends is only a group of people having fun in a sinister way. Nothing could be more wrong than that. Today the practice of trampling the cross, dancing backward, desecrating the host or having group s-x may not be seen as something special, but in medieval times such practices provided a powerful tool of liberation through transgression. The Sabbat was therefore not only an occasion to have fun but also a powerful initiatory experience, opening the participants to the unknown, releasing their bestial side and helping them transgress their personal barriers and limitations. Today we may have different barriers to transcend than our ancestors, but the idea of freedom through transgression is still vital to our personal development.

All components of the Sabbat are to a lesser or greater extent aimed at liberation from personal barriers and limitations. They include terror (the terrifying Lord of the Sabbat), pain (painful aspects of s-x with the Devil), and ecstasy (feasting and fornication) because these are the most liberating forms of experience. There is a great initiatory potential contained within s-x and fear, and by using them as tools of transcendence you can release a lot of energy and free yourself from many forms of personal bondage. Of course, this doesn’t mean that you have to do all that is described in accounts of witchcraft. In the old times, the participants of the Sabbat desecrated the host and the cross and reversed Christian ceremonies. Obviously, if you are not Christian, this will not have any liberating value. It may, however, become a powerful tool of transgression to someone who is religious or has been raised in a strictly Christian environment. Practices such as group s-x, inc-st, adultery, sodomy or zooph-lia, which were reputedly part of the Sabbat, are still highly controversial, often illegal, and generally considered as forbidden and immoral, therefore they still hold a potential of personal transgression. I’m absolutely not saying that you should explore them and I’m strongly against any form of abuse – you won’t find this in the book, either - but if you want to use s-x as a tool of transgression, you have to be prepared for doing things you haven’t done before or those that you consider a “taboo.” This doesn’t have to be anything illegal or harmful to anyone, but it has to provide a feeling of liberation from your personal barriers. It is the same with other practices of the Sabbat, such as sacrificing babies and eating their flesh or making magic ointments from the fat of non-baptized children. They can give you an inspiration for your own transgressive practices, but they shouldn’t be taken in a literal way.

In Rituals of Pleasure we discuss the power of s-x magic in personal transformation and the idea of org-sm as a gateway to altered states of consciousness, but we also tread into many controversial and “forbidden” areas. The Witches’ Sabbat is only one of these subjects and in the book itself you will find a lot more. We will take a look at pleasure derived from pain, transcendence initiated by surrendering control as well as acting as an operator, and magical trances achieved through the gnosis of terror and ecstasy. We will discuss the question of domination and submission within the ritual space, both while working alone and with a partner, and we will speak about many other transgressive practices that can be combined with s-x in magical operations and used for the sake of self-empowerment.

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Darkest Blessings,