In this episode of Sacred Tension I’m joined once again by the incredible Shiva Honey to talk ritual, nontheistic mysticism, and Satanic Tarot. Find Shiva Honey at https://www.serpentinae.com/
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Stephen Bradford Long 
When I left my Mormon faith, the first thing I wanted to do was eschew ritual. I flew so fast out of the religion, that I found atheism very comforting. For the first time in my life, Sunday was “second Saturday”.
However, after I found secular Buddhism, I found myself slowly easing back into ritualistic practice. First, it started with just a regular meditation session counting breaths, the purpose of which was to train my mind in staying focused over a long period of time. I then found using beads a tool that made it easier to stay focused. Then burning incense, as the smell kept my attention at my nostrils. Now, I have incorporated simple mantras as part of my practice on the cushion.
When I found The Satanic Temple, I was slightly curious in what a TST ritual would look like. Some rituals, like unbaptisms made sense. But for the most part, I couldn’t really figure anything else out. Then it hit me- make Satanic meditation beads, like a Satanic rosary. So I made some: https://redd.it/dm1z6z/ (see the top comment about symbolism). After making those, I started thinking a little more out of the box, and thought about tarot. Can I use tarot cards in a strictly secular fashion, like meditation? I think so.
You know how you get fortune cookies after eating at a Chinese restaurant, or how some newspapers will print horoscopes? For the most part, I read them, laugh at them, and move on with my life, not giving them a second thought. But sometimes, they remind me of something in my life that I have otherwise forgotten about, whether it’s a relationship, priority, or whatever. That pause for reflection, because I read my horoscope or the fortune in the cookie, can be the foundation for a secular tarot practice.
For me, I only use a few cards from the deck. I’ll thoroughly shuffle the deck (and I mean thoroughly), then draw a card, and interpret it. Maybe it will remind me of something I’ve forgotten that I should not have. But for the most part, it’s just a fortune cookie, and something to laugh at. I’ve also done past, present, and future spreads, treating it like a puzzle to see if I can create a unifying theme across the timeline. If so, maybe it’ll again kick start something in my brain that I should give more focus to. But probably not.
If anything though, the constant shuffling and drawing cards is meditative and liberating. I can free myself, if only for a moment, away from the troubles of the world, and focus on the spread in front of me. I don’t believe in any supernatural or paranormal reading from the cards, and nine times out of ten, the “reading” is meaningless, much like my weekly horoscope or fortune cookie.
Anyway, sorry for rambling. It was a good episode, and I noticed that the Indigogo campaign was successful. That’s awesome there is a Satanist-specific tarot/oracle deck for regular ritual practice. I’ll be curious to see what else pops up in that space.
BTW, I too am a runner. 🙂
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