Hexing The Patriarchy and Political Occultism From a Thelemic Perspective
Alice Scarlet Death
This might draw some ire, but I think it needs to be said.
There is a movement I have been seeing online and in person at protests with signs that read, “hex the patriarchy.” I have seen a lot of people rolling their eyes at this and I can understand why. However, I think it’s an important movement to follow.
The first argument I usually hear against hexing political figures is that people don’t want to cause harm to another person. I have sen many Pagans and Pagan Thelemites hold this view to do the ‘an harm ye none’ bit.
Perhaps that’s why they do binding rituals instead of hexing.
However, I said this was from a Thelemic perspective, so here goes:
Liber OZ says that, “Man has the right to kill those who would thwart these rights.”
Things like the patriarchy, the cisarchy, misogynists, and Donald Trump are thwarting my rights to do my Will. Now, there are still consequences for killing someone. “Do as thou wilt, but you’re still an idiot” as they say. This doesn’t mean you should kill anyone, but it is your right to stand up against those wish to thwart them.
World War II saw a few examples of political occultism. Gerald Gardner did his famous “Cone of Power” in an attempt to foil Hitler. Aleister Crowley is rumored to have invented the peace sign. V for victory. The V-sign was an allusion to the sign of Apophis and Typhon, meaning destruction, which is part of the LVX formula. The “L” part of this formula represented a swastika, so showing a “V” symbolized destroying the swastika and the Nazis who used it.
The second major complaint about political occultism is the efficacy of doing a ritual versus direct action. Sitting around in an empty field burning effigies of Donald Trump and sacrificing animals to destroyer gods isn’t going to do anything except making you feel better. What really needs to happen is direct action.
Magick changes you on a subconscious level so that your conscious actions can be changed. You’re tricking your brain into being the kind of brain that achieves what you were intent on doing.
I don’t find anything terribly wrong with staying at home and doing private rituals, but I would argue that it is ineffective.
They need to hear us, see us, and feel us fighting in a very tangible way. Ritual is fine, but direct action shows the opposition we are ready to fight. There needs to be a mixture of both. At least inasmuch as the occult and pagan communities are concerned. Magick is the science and art of causing change to occur in conformity with Will, as defined by Crowley. Every conscious act is a magical act.
Perhaps you are drawn to a certain aesthetic. Maybe you want to burn some incense and meditate on dismantling the patriarchy. That’s all well and good, and I support you. Going to marches, writing your elected officials, boycotts, and protests can cause more change than anything, in my opinion. In my own city of Seattle I have seen it change things. I know it can work.
Ceremonial magick won’t heal your broken leg. You have to go do the doctor and get a cast. Ceremonial magick won’t change the fundamental flaws in our society, but it can help start the conversation. You have to start somewhere, but more is better. Going directly to the source is always better than that just praying your patron deity will fix your leg.
If you are disabled, fight the fight the best you can. I understand you may not have the spoons or physical capability to do as much as you’d like. What you do is always appreciated.
To the rest of you I charge you:
Don’t just stay at home. Bring your magick to the streets. Fight. Resist.
