If you are to take a closer look, you'd find this space to be liminal. Liminal spaces tend to be transformative, although they demand courage; they are realms of contemplation and daring, and this space, of course, is no exception. It is a haven for those who choose to mold their own ethos. A dialectical shadow land that we shall navigate together. This darkness does not conceal monsters or child sacrifices, but it may challenge you in ways that no grotesqueness of imagined horrors ever could.
Before I open the gates and guide you into the velvet embrace of this contemplative darkness, where the only light is one's desire to know and willingness to learn, I would like to introduce myself.
If just for a moment we are to entertain comfortable and familiar character archetypes borrowed from fiction, I would introduce myself to you as The Observer. Being the quietest person in the room, my teachers often labelled me “mysterious”, and in my lifetime, I have had so many teachers. And there are many teachers I am yet to have, because I never stop learning.
I'm one of the longest-standing members of The Satanic Temple in Canada that you have never heard of. I was there at the very beginning of the Toronto congregation; in fact, I introduced some of the current TST leadership to the (back then) unofficial local Friends of TST group. I was there at the first official Black Mass in Canada, in the city of Ottawa — I was performing at that ceremony. I've held personal pilgrimages to Salem's TST headquarters, and quietly wandered the rooms listening to conversations happening within the walls. During the great collapse of the TST leadership, I was there too, holding informal thoughtful discussions on the challenges of satanic self-actualization. And yet, it's quite possible that you have never heard of me, even though we may belong to the same congregation.
I am far from a passive lurker — I read discussions in the TST groups and Discord servers, but for the most part, I let these conversations run their course. There's a right time and space for everything. And likewise, the right time has come for this project, and this space, which I am unfolding before you.
Hypatian Satanism is not an offshoot of Satanism, nor is it a denomination like LaVeyan Satanism or whatever the Church of Satan is. In fact, Hypatian Satanism is closely aligned with the tenets and principles of The Satanic Temple: it concerns itself with empathy, objection to tyranny, autonomy, and alignment with scientific truth. At the same time, it aims to bypass one of the major roadblocks on the way of satanic self-actualization: the obsession with the Christian-Satanic binary. Allow me to elaborate, but first, to explain where I am coming from.
I grew up in a non-religious household, in a family of doctors and engineers as a third-generation atheist, so for me, the extensive effect of Christian trauma is hard to imagine and quantify. Yet, I acknowledge its far-reaching influence: in countless conversations with friends, co-workers, and acquaintances, I have observed the scarring and the tugging void that the often unsolicited "bonding" with Christianity leaves. This kind of void is what attracts many to Satanism in the first place: they have learned to crave the familiar and desire a faith-based community, even though with Christianity, both these aspects demanded complete surrender of one's identity. Nevertheless, both these things are understandable to crave, and so those who come to Satanism with religious trauma crave them, often without due processing. Sometimes they also seek to re-create the familiar dichotomy within Satanism.
The Satanic Thought cannot thrive as inverse Christianity. Besides, Christians themselves have engraved their perverse hierarchy upon Satanism, and this pitfall is often hard to avoid. In this setup, self-actualization becomes difficult if not impossible, for, in one’s imagination, the rules that dictate such self-actualization lead back to Christianity.
Relating to the Satanic canon as a Christian inversion speaks neither to the Seven Tenets nor to the humanistic values enclosed within. Yet, the binary is pervasive; and with the lack of a Satanic Ethos, naturally, with the aid of media and pop culture, the Christian inversion becomes the unsubstantiated and unquestioned default.
But Satanic Thought, realized through tenets and the underlying guiding principles, is far older than Christianity; for the origins of truth, humanism, and scientific knowledge exchange run deeper than any organized religion. It is learning the origins of such principles that makes unhindered Satanic self-actualization possible. It is learning the origins of these principles that allows one to avoid clinging to the roundabout of Christian canon, thus liberating Satanism from artificially imposed constraints and connecting it to a broader cultural and historical context.
I believe it is vitally important to pursue such a connection to fully realise the potential of The Satanic Temple as a religious movement that appeals not only to those weaning off religious trauma, or those with affinity for “fuck Christianity” messaging, but also to those who come from a broad range of backgrounds and religions, seeking a secular community of the like-minded, guided by the Seven Tenets. In these circumstances, the linkage of Satanism to Christianity does not disappear, but becomes its own pattern within the tapestry of the multilayered Satanic Ethos. And together, we are here to begin weaving this tapestry.
Hypatian Satanism borrows its name from Hypatia of Alexandria, a female Neoplatonist philosopher, astronomer, and mathematician who was considered a prominent thinker and teacher at the time. Hypatia was neither Christian nor pronouncedly “pagan”; her true dedication was to truth, philosophy, and to scientific thought. Allegedly, Hypatia could play any instrument, and the aesthetics of art and music were an inseparable part of her philosophical explorations. Beloved by pagans and Christians alike, Hypatia was tolerant to the latter, for despite the Christianity’s damning reputation, the ingroup “siege” mentality is both inherently unscientific and unhumanistic. Even without consciously being so, in her philosophies and principles, Hypatia was a Satanist. And for that, she paid the ultimate price.
In March 415 AD, Hypatia was murdered in the church of Kaisarion by a mob of Christians led by a liturgical leader named Peter. Her murder was gruesome and ritualistic; it shocked the empire and transformed her into a "martyr for philosophy", leading future Neoplatonists to become increasingly fervent in their opposition to Christianity. Despite her popularity and impeccable reputation, Christian leadership attempted to discredit her name and work, accusing Hypatia of engaging in "satanic practices" to influence Alexandrian politics. Even back then, in Ancient Alexandria, the “Satanist” label served Christian leadership in scapegoating fashion, justifying their political agenda; it was aimed at discrediting the reason, wisdom, and knowledge that Hypatia represented. Hypatia’s story serves as a good example for tapping into the origins of non-Christian-centric Satanism; even though the Christian-Satanic binary is still present (Hypatia was proclaimed “Satanic” after all), it prods for the deeper exploration of what stands behind “Satanism”, which is a set of philosophical, humanitarian, and scientific principles that guide human goodness.
Exploration of Hypatian Satanism is first and foremost rooted in the Satanic qualities manifested through the Seven Tenets; such explorations will unavoidably lead us through Christian slander of such qualities, but also would help us to uncover the context beyond. This journey will lead us through ancient history, philosophy, arts, sciences and finally, onto the path of truly knowing ourselves. Welcome aboard.