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FORMAL GATHERING OF THE BAST CABAL

PRELIMINARY NOTES

I employ a term that I coined in a prior post. “Caballion” shall mean “member of the Cabal.”

Also, I write this as if the Cabal will meet in person. Adapting what I’ve written to fit online sessions is a simple matter. However, there’s an element of trust implicit in an in-person gathering, and this element should not be casually set aside. Even online, Caballions should show their faces and reveal their names. If you can’t rise to that level of trust with a certain group of people, you don’t belong in a Cabal with those people. The corollary is this: Every formal gathering is private; the names of its attendees, secret; and all that goes on, confidential. Whoever violates this principle shall become prey.

Finally, there’s no hierarchy in a Cabal. Every formal gathering has a leader, but that role should rotate among the members. Also, to the extent practical, the role of providing the meeting place should rotate among the members. Caballions shall treat the meeting place, its owner, and its uninvolved residents, in particular any pets, with the utmost courtesy and respect, or risk being hunted for sport.

THE GATHERING

Any time after sundown, the Cabal enters the meeting room and all take their seats. The last person entering shuts the door and turns off any electric lights before sitting down. If the room has no windows and is therefore pitch black, the last person entering uses a cigarette lighter to provide some illumination.

LEADER: “Caballions: Light your candles.”

Each member places a small purple candle on the table and lights it with a match, cigarette lighter, or utility lighter – just nothing ridiculous like a blowtorch.

LEADER: “In the name of BAST we begin.”

The leader turns to the member on his or her immediate left.

LEADER: “Caballion [Name], What lust have you under way?”

The member describes any romantic or sexual conquests he or she is embarked upon.

LEADER: “What do you ask of us who sit here?”

The member describes any assistance that could be helpful. Discussion ensues, offers are made, or not, and are accepted, or not. When common sense indicates the discussion has run its course, the leader turns to the next member on the left, poses the same questions, and allows the same discussion. This continues until all members have been heard from.

Then:

LEADER: “Caballion [Name], What greed have you under way?”

The member describes any treasures, raw materials, or resources he or she seeks to purchase, or take from the earth, sea, or sky, or steal or swindle from the unsuspecting, or sell in any market, be it black, red, gray, pink, or white*.

LEADER: “What do you ask of us who sit here?”

The member describes any assistance that could be helpful. Discussion ensues, offers are made, or not, and are accepted, or not. When common sense indicates the discussion has run its course, the leader turns to the next member on the left, poses the same questions, and allows the same discussion. This continues until all members have been heard from.

Then:

LEADER: “Caballion [Name], To what do you aspire in your envy and your ambition?”

The member describes any prominence or favor he or she is scheming to attain, and who or what might need to be displaced to make room.  

LEADER: “What do you ask of us who sit here?”

The member describes any assistance that could be helpful. Discussion ensues, offers are made, or not, and are accepted, or not. When common sense indicates the discussion has run its course, the leader turns to the next member on the left, poses the same questions, and allows the same discussion. This continues until all members have been heard from.

Then:

LEADER: “All is complete. In the name of BAST we bring this gathering to a close. Caballions, extinguish your candles.”

All do so. If needed, the person who was last entering once again uses a cigarette lighter to provide some illumination. This same person stands up, turns on the electric lights, and opens the door. All exit the room in silence. The last person leaving the room turns off the electric lights and shuts the door. Any subsequent conversation must not have anything to do with what was said in the gathering. This sets the tone for privacy, secrecy, confidentiality - and also protects against inadvertent hearing by the meeting place’s uninvolved residents.

*Note:

Black Market: Illegal products.

Red Market: Illegal services.

Gray Market: Legal products or services are sold through illegal or extra-legal channels.

Pink Market: All is legal but some delicate sensitivities might be offended, for example selling military-grade firearms, or, where legal, prostitution.

White Market: Everything is on the up and up and might even be advertised on TV.

ISCHYROS DIAVOLOS!

FORMAL GATHERING OF THE SEKHMET CABAL

PRELIMINARY NOTES

I coin a term in this post. “Caballion” shall mean “member of the Cabal.”

Also, I write this as if the Cabal will meet in person. Adapting what I’ve written to fit online sessions is a simple matter. However, there’s an element of trust implicit in an in-person gathering, and this element should not be casually set aside. Even online, Caballions should show their faces and reveal their names. If you can’t rise to that level of trust with a certain group of people, you don’t belong in a Cabal with those people. The corollary is this: Every formal gathering is private; the names of its attendees, secret; and all that goes on, confidential. Whoever violates this principle shall become prey.

Finally, there’s no hierarchy in a Cabal. Every formal gathering has a leader, but that role should rotate among the members. Also, to the extent practical, the role of providing the meeting place should rotate among the members. Caballions shall treat the meeting place, its owner, and its uninvolved residents, in particular any pets, with the utmost courtesy and respect, or risk being hunted for sport.

THE GATHERING

Any time after sundown, the Cabal enters the meeting room and all take their seats. The last person entering shuts the door and turns off any electric lights before sitting down. If the room has no windows and is therefore pitch black, the last person entering uses a cigarette lighter to provide some illumination.

LEADER: “Caballions: Light your candles.”

Each member places a small red candle on the table and lights it with a match, cigarette lighter, or utility lighter – just nothing ridiculous like a blowtorch.

LEADER: “In the name of SEKHMET we begin.”

The leader turns to the member on his or her immediate left.

LEADER: “Caballion [Name], What malice do you have under way?”

The member describes any destruction he or she is bringing to an adversary.

LEADER: “What do you ask of us who sit here?”

The member describes any assistance that could be helpful. Discussion ensues, offers are made, or not, and are accepted, or not. When common sense indicates the discussion has run its course, the leader turns to the next member on the left, poses the same questions, and allows the same discussion. This continues until all members have been heard from.

Then:

LEADER: “Caballion [Name], What misanthropy do you have under way?”

The member describes any distress he or she is bringing to a detested one. A detested one would be a weakling, an imbecile, a sucker, an incompetent, a poser, a coward, or a bellyacher.

LEADER: “What do you ask of us who sit here?”

The member describes any assistance that could be helpful. Discussion ensues, offers are made, or not, and are accepted, or not. When common sense indicates the discussion has run its course, the leader turns to the next member on the left, poses the same questions, and allows the same discussion. This continues until all members have been heard from.

Then:

LEADER: “Caballion [Name], What blasphemy do you have under way?”

The member describes any defilement he or she is bringing to dogma.

LEADER: “What do you ask of us who sit here?”

The member describes any assistance that could be helpful. Discussion ensues, offers are made, or not, and are accepted, or not. When common sense indicates the discussion has run its course, the leader turns to the next member on the left, poses the same questions, and allows the same discussion. This continues until all members have been heard from.

Then:

LEADER: “All is complete. In the name of SEKHMET we bring this gathering to a close. Caballions, extinguish your candles.”

All do so. If needed, the person who was last entering once again uses a cigarette lighter to provide some illumination. This same person stands up, turns on the electric lights, and opens the door. All exit the room in silence. The last person leaving the room turns off the electric lights and shuts the door. Any subsequent conversation must not have anything to do with what was said in the gathering. This sets the tone for privacy, secrecy, confidentiality - and also protects against inadvertent hearing by the meeting place’s uninvolved residents.

ISCHYROS DIAVOLOS!

My philosophy has two faces: one positive, one negative. Don’t misunderstand: positive and negative do not divide along some good/bad or true/false axis, nor some beautiful/ugly one. Positive is the “yes/more/do it” face while negative is the “no/less/stop it” face.

I personify the positive as BAST, the Egyptian cat goddess, to whom I assign the principles of greed, mirth, lust, love of food, smart sloth, vanity, and productive envy.

I personify the negative as SEKHMET, the Egyptian lion goddess, to whom I assign the principles of malice, misanthropy, and blasphemy.

Some people’s practice is more BAST; other people’s practice is more SEKHMET; and still others pursue a practice pretty evenly balanced between the two.

Here I’ll introduce the concept of a Cabal, which is a group of practitioners who get to know one another more intimately than people on an online forum typically would. They share with one another their goals and plans, their victories and defeats, and their good and ill fortune. They brainstorm ideas together, suggest information sources, introduce one another to individuals who might prove helpful, and even take part in one another’s schemes. They can also, if practical, dine together, enjoy cultural activities together, engage in athletics together, or have sex with one another.

As might be expected, a Cabal can lean more toward BAST or more toward SEKHMET, though there are no hard and fast rules about this. It simply makes sense that if you yourself lean more toward BAST, then you would gravitate toward other practitioners who do also, and the same would be true if you lean more toward SEKHMET.   

Know yourself. ISCHYROS DIAVOLOS!