I. VAMA MARGA Foundations Of The Left-Hand Path - staticfly.net

through sexual induction into the cult.
The flagellation phase of the Dionysian initiation, it has been
theorized, was not only a yielding to the death of the initiate's former self to
her new identity but a kind of purification through pain. Physiologically, the
endurance of pain would also have raised the adrenaline level of the
novitiate, freeing her inhibitions to the inspired dance, and making her ready
for the ecstatic culmination of the marriage to the god.
Something of the same Dionysian combination of ecstasy and pain
can be observed in the practice of some Sufis, especially among the
"whirling dervishes". At the height of the dervishes' spinning dance, which
propels them into a profound altered state of consciousness, the reeling
dancers will mutilate their flesh with sharp hooks especially devised for this
ritual. In the ecstasy of the dance, pain is transmuted into pleasure,
overcoming all opposites and dualities – a practice much in keeping with the
goals of the left-hand path.
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Modern readers can easily accept that altered states of consciousness
were attained through eroticized suffering in ancient limes, in exotic cultures,
among people safely removed by time and space into an abstract category of
otherness. But this archaic legacy of initiation through ecstatic pain continues
today in the rites of dominance and submission practiced by devotees of
S&M.
S&M = Sadism And Magic?
It can truly he said that human sexual behavior takes on a ritualistic – even
religious – aspect when viewed through the magician's eyes. All lovers
engage in certain repetitive actions in the course of their erotic interaction
that can well be compared to the ceremonies of the magician. The intricate
(lance of courtship and flirtation that precedes even the most unimaginative
libidinous dalliance consists of a complex communication of spoken and
unspoken verbal and physical signals. This relay of hidden information on an
unconscious level partakes of many of the same principles that inform the
magical worldview.
During the sexual act itself, these rituals continue – the shift into a
favored position at just the right juncture, the familiar endearment (or
expletive) at the moment of orgasm, the exactly right touch to obtain the
desired increment of pleasure – all of these ritual activities performed by
lovers are the carnal equivalent of the transmissions the magician makes to
the daemonic realm in the course of a working. Indeed it's because sex is
such an obviously contained and semi-ritualistic event occurring in a distinct
space of its own that magicians have always tended to utilize the powerful
energies activated thereby for sorcerous and initiatory purposes.
If all of this is so for any run-of-the-mill copulation, these qualities of
religious/magical ritualism are even more prominent in the complicated
formalities attendant to the erotic art generally known as sadomasochism.
The administration of sexually charged pain and pleasure in all of its forms is
epitomized by such features as an esoteric language incomprehensible to
outsiders; strictly systematized training programs; a tradition of enforced
etiquette understood by all initiated into the cult; as well as uniforms;
implements and symbolism coded with archetypal meaning.
In short, the subcultural world of sadomasochism is astoundingly
similar to the subcultural world of traditional magic. Not the least of these
similarities is the fact that both the S&M and magical spheres are (literally)
dominated by individuals answering to the title of Master!
In many ways, the precisely defined erotic experience many S&M
practitioners are wont to call a "session" is analogous to the "working" of the
magician. The experienced devotee of pleasurable pain is already aware that
the detailed preparation, build-up of adrenaline, and highly stylized and
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