CVLT Nation » Illustration

Rat Fink Rules! FUCK YEAH Ed “Big Daddy” Roth

Sean — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 08:30:32 +0000

Being a Cali kid, I’m supposed to know how to drive, but I don’t. That might be weird in way, but I do have a love for cars. Maybe this is why I have always thought that Ed “Big Daddy” Roth was a cool dude. Before I had ever seen any of his cars, I knew his cartoons featuring Rat Fink – who to me is a total icon of counter culture – plus I know for a fact he had an influence on many of the artists from the early 80′s punk scene. Ed was a man of fucking passion and was so talented, from being an expert auto painter/customizer to a barber to a cartoonist. When I look at the stuff he created it really inspires me because I realize that as long as I follow my heart, everything else will follow. Today CVLT Nation salutes Ed “Big Daddy” Roth with a huge gallery of his cartoons and outergaltic rides!

The post Rat Fink Rules!
FUCK YEAH Ed “Big Daddy” Roth appeared first on CVLT Nation.

Heroin, Cocaine, Meth and Quaaludes… 19th to 21st Century Pharmaceutical Drug Lords

Meghan — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 09:00:26 +0000

I know who the real drug lords are: not the guys chopping off heads in Mexico or ambushing the US military in Afghanistan. The real drug lords are the pharmaceutical giants, whose sales extend into the hundreds of billions every year. This post was originally going to be just about the wacko meds that were sold to our ancestors over the past century or so, but in doing a little research I cam up with some astounding figures that illustrate just how far these companies have come when it comes to global drugs sales – the “legal” kind. The US market alone accounts for over 40% of drugs sales in the world – in 2011, US prescription sales were $319,900,000,000, excluding any “Over The Counter” medicines sold, aka Tylenol, NyQuil etc. (1). The global sales of prescription drugs (again, excluding OTCs) hit a high of 856,086,000,000 in 2012 (2). Compare this to an estimated $300 billion illegal sales of heroin, cocaine and marijuana in 2012, and the illegal drug market no longer looks so lucrative (3). The funny thing is, many illegal drugs today were invented by these pharmaceutical giants – take heroin, for example, invented by Bayer in 1898 and sold for use as a cough syrup. They now boast sales of €40,000,000,000 per year for Bayer Group, not to mention money they rake in from their side projects like CropScience, research and development for GMO crops (4). Companies like Bayer, or the current largest pharmaceutical company in the world, Novartis International AG, are directly linked to the destruction of human health through products they once manufactured, and probably still do. Novartis International AG was once CIBA-Geigy, who were one of the major manufacturers of DDT in the US. DDT has been linked to diabetes – Novartis now makes diabetes drugs as one of its major focuses; DDT has been linked to breast cancer – Novartis sold $937 million in breast cancer drugs in 2007, plus it manufactures other cancer-related drugs (5).

These companies have a long track record for not giving a shit about human health, despite their claim to improve lives. Not so long ago, babies were given morphine for teething until sudden death became a side effect and depressed, captive housewives were given meth until serious addiction became a side effect…then these drugs went underground. Below find a fascinating list of 10 drugs that were routinely sold to consumers in the 19th and 20th centuries by big pharma and its ancestors – and remember that the research and development required for drugs to make it on the market today, especially in the US, is more geared towards turning a profit rather than making you healthy. However, I do acknowledge that there are circumstances that do require prescription drugs, especially as someone who has experienced serious chronic illness and cancer in my family. But the vast majority of these drugs are overprescribed and do more harm than good to human health, or else their long term effects are completely unknown, and this list gives you an idea of the kind of slapdash medicine that’s often practiced in Western societies when it comes to pharmaceutical sales. In my opinion, good health is more about building your body’s strength from within than it is about medicating it within an inch of its life. Give me Apple Cider Vinegar, Tea Tree Oil, ginger, garlic and weed any day!

In the 19th and early 20th centuries, people suffering from any number of diseases and bodily discomforts could find what were touted as cures at their local pharmacy. Chloroform, cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine were offered as solutions for everything from sore throats and toothache to coughs, insomnia and depression. These substances were often highly addictive, dangerous, and sometimes deadly. Most are now tightly restricted – if not banned from the market. Take a look and see what the field of medicine was like not so very long ago, and perhaps consider it extra motivation to get the best medical degree possible.

Although giving little children cocaine to relieve toothache sounds outrageous today, the drug’s use in over-the-counter medication was seen as acceptable from the 1880s until the beginning of the 20th century. Sigmund Freud extolled the virtues of cocaine for its supposed ability to treat depression and impotence, while Coca-Cola’s initial popularity may have been due in part to it having the drug among its ingredients.

Many medicinal beverages and tonics began to contain cocaine – long-term users of which may suffer seriously disrupted eating and sleeping patterns, psychotic delusions and hallucinations, not to mention severe depression upon withdrawal. Cocaine was banned in the US in 1920, but by then the drug already had a well-established market.

Bayer Pharmaceutical Products invented heroin (diacetylmorphine) and started selling it from 1898. The drug now responsible for a high proportion of all drug overdose deaths was promoted as a cough suppressant as well as a better and safer substitute for morphine and codeine. Heroin was welcomed with open arms as an effective remedy – this being an age when pneumonia, tuberculosis and even the common cold were scourges – and doctors by the thousand were sent free samples to try.

Nevertheless, no sooner than 1899, stories began emerging of people becoming tolerant to the drug, and over the following few years, addiction cases started to be reported. Bayer stopped manufacturing heroin in 1913, and it was banned in the US in 1924.

Kimball White Pine and Tar Cough Syrup, which contained four minims of chloroform, was marketed as an effective tonic for cold symptoms and bronchitis. Indeed, as early as 1847, chloroform was used to relieve asthma symptoms and as a general anesthetic.

But despite the drug being hailed as a good substitute for ether, cases emerged of chloroform causing fatal cardiac or respiratory arrest. Multiple patients died after breathing it in, prompting doctors to revert back to using ether. In spite of this, however, chloroform was still used in mouthwashes and ointments. Eventually, in 1976, the Federal Drug Administration prohibited the use of chloroform for human consumption after the substance was found to cause cancer in lab animals.

In 1849, Mrs. Charlotte N. Winslow launched her Soothing Syrup in Maine. The cocktail, which combined ingredients such as sodium carbonate and aqua ammonia, may have been relatively harmless – except for one point: it contained 65mg of morphine per fluid ounce. The syrup was advertised as providing relief for children who were teething, and one mother wrote to The New York Times claiming its effect on her son was “like magic; he soon went to sleep, and all pain and nervousness disappeared.”

Unfortunately, children ran the risk of being put to sleep permanently as a result of morphine overdose. The American Medical Association denounced the syrup as a “baby killer” in 1911, although it remained on the market in the UK until 1930.

Ergoapiol was a medicine made from ergot and apiol that was sold in the early 1900s to treat menstrual irregularities. Ergot is a type of fungus that grows on rye grain. From medieval times, it was used to control bleeding after childbirth and, in some cases, to bring about abortions. It can be incredibly toxic, however, as it is capable of reducing blood circulation to such an extreme that gangrene takes hold. Ergot may also cause hallucinations.

Apiol is derived from celery leaves and parsley. In small doses it can induce abortions and treat menstrual disorders, but in large quantities it may damage the liver and kidneys.

The barbiturate known as pentobarbital was invented in 1928, and the brand name Nembutal was first used by Dr. John S. Lundy in 1930. The advertisement above claims that Nembutal is an excellent drug to use “when little patients balk at scary, disquieting examinations” and “when they’re frightened and tense.”

Although pentobarbital is an FDA-approved sedative and is used to treat seizures and insomnia, it would seem dangerous to utilize it to treat nervous children (by inserting it as a suppository). Not only can pentobarbital impede thinking and slow reactions, it can also be addictive, while overdoses may be fatal.

Quaalude-300 was a brand name for methaqualone, a drug first patented in the US in 1962. It was prescribed as a sedative, a muscle relaxant and as treatment for insomnia. Come 1965, it was the UK’s most frequently prescribed sedative, and by the early 1970s, it ranked sixth on the list of best-selling sedatives in the US.

The advertisement above claims that Quaalude-300 is a non-barbiturate, and while this is true, the drug does have barbiturate-like effects. Methaqualone depresses the central nervous system, reduces heart and respiration rates, and numbs the fingers and toes. Frequent users of Quaalude-300 could have developed a tolerance to the drug, and methaqualone overdoses can also result in death. In the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, people increasingly used the drug recreationally, and it has been off the market in the US since 1982.

During the mid-19th century, two prominent physicians began to champion smoking as a treatment for asthma. One of them, English doctor Henry Hyde Salter, believed that asthma was caused by nervousness or excitement, which were said to lead to spasms of the bronchial tube muscles.

Salter advocated a range of so-called treatments, including the use of stimulants, to draw what he called “morbid activity” from the lungs. He also recommended taking tobacco as well as sedatives like chloroform and stramonium to relieve and suppress irritation. As we now know, smoking can in fact exacerbate asthma – and indeed trigger asthmatic attacks – rather than relieving it.

Laudanum is an alcoholic extract containing around 10 percent powdered opium. A powerful narcotic and pain reliever, from as early as 1676 it was promoted as a remedy for various conditions, and by the 1800s it was used to treat everything from meningitis and menstrual cramps to yellow fever.

Babies were spoon-fed the drug, which an advertisement for Atkinson and Barker’s Royal Infants’ Preservative claimed provided relief for teething pain, bowel problems, flatulence and convulsions. It also said that laudanum was “no stupefactive, deadly narcotic” but rather a “veritable preservative of infants.” The ad failed to mention that, besides its addictive properties, laudanum can cause constipation, itching, respiratory distress, and constriction of the pupils. Although it is still available, its use is restricted both in the US and UK.

Norodin is one of the most frightening supposed medicines on this list. It was the brand name for methamphetamine, the potent drug withdrawal from which causes depression, and which is strongly associated with suicide when used for long periods of time.

The advertisement above claimed that Norodin was “useful in dispelling the shadows of mild mental depression” and that it has “relatively few side effects.” Never mind the fact that it can result in various alarming physiological effects, including anorexia, tooth grinding, irregular heartbeat, insomnia, abnormal blood pressure, heart attacks, and strokes. It is also extremely addictive and is one of the hardest dependencies to overcome. Surprisingly, methamphetamine is occasionally used today as a treatment for ADHD and obesity.

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19th to 21st Century Pharmaceutical Drug Lords appeared first on CVLT Nation.

Unreal Art Celebration Feat: Alan Forbes – Arik Roper Glyn Smith – David V. D’ Andrea – Viral Graphics

Sean — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 07:00:21 +0000

I can’t front, I’m a child of the 70′s and from birth I was injected with a love for cycodelic poster art! When I was young, color was all around me, from the clothes that the Black Nationalists wore to the feral gear that hippies wore. My mom always taught me never to judge someone by the clothes they had on. The same went for art – this is why I loved going to the Sunset Strip back in the day because counter culture rock art was everywhere. There was a whole generation of kids that were turned on to the drugged out artistic lines of the day. Many of them have become some of the most influential artists in the underground today. I’m talking about ink wizards such as Alan Forbes, Arik Roper, Glyn Smith, David V. D’ Andrea, Viral Graphics and many more. Today CVLT Nation wants to celebrate the kind of art that gets us high every time we see it!

Alan Forbes & David V. D’ Andrea

Alan Forbes

Alan Forbes

Arik Roper

Glyn Smith

David V. D’ Andrea

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Glyn Smith – David V. D’ Andrea – Viral Graphics appeared first on CVLT Nation.

Fuck Yeah! 80′s New York Hardcore Flyer Gallery & Video Essay

Sean — Tue, 28 May 2013 09:00:06 +0000

I’m glad that I have always been a music nerd, because it means I have been able to watch scenes grow from afar. This is exactly how I got into New York Hardcore early on. I would go to my local book shop and gaze at the Village Voice every week and see what bands were performing at the CBGB’s matinees. Then I would go to my local record shop and pay them to record on to cassettes the latest Reagan Youth, KRAUT, Cause For Alarm, Murphy’s Law, The Mob and many more. I have said it before – the west coast & east coast scenes had their differences, although both groups shared their love of creating kick ass flyers for their shows! So today CVLT Nation going to celebrate NYxHC through art and a live footage essay!…If you have any cool NYxHC photos & flyers past or present, contact The New York Hardcore Chronicles 1979-2015…all flyers from this feature came from their page!

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80′s New York Hardcore
Flyer Gallery & Video Essay appeared first on CVLT Nation.

Angel of Death…South of Hanneman

Meghan — Tue, 28 May 2013 08:30:32 +0000

South of Hanneman is a project started by illustrator Justin Bartlett to honor the memory of Jeff Hanneman, someone who has had an untold influence on music. This is very much a community project, with some sick fucking artwork brought to the table by five artists – Justin Bartlett, French, Mark Riddick, Farron Loathing, Antichrist Kramer – to be printed on tees and sold by Holy Mountain (pre-order here!), with the first (maybe only?) run slated to ship after 6/6/13, so all orders have to be in by then! All of the proceeds will go to a charity which will be determined by a vote, and the SoH project is asking for your suggestions at #SouthOfHanneman. The tee designs are wicked and a just tribute that any Slayer fan would be proud to wear! Check out photos of the tees below plus the South of Hanneman promo video which gives you a good idea of what they’re all about.

First run, place orders by 06.06.13.
After that, we’ll see.

All proceeds to whatever Jeff Hanneman would have wanted, TBD. Suggestions welcome. #SouthOfHanneman

Artists: Justin Bartlett, French, Mark Riddick, Farron Loathing, Antichrist Kramer

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The Dance Of Reality:First Look At ALEJANDRO JODOROWSKY New Film Now Showing!

Sean — Wed, 22 May 2013 07:30:09 +0000

Via Dangerous Minds

Guardian film critic Peter Bradshaw called La Danza de la Realidad (“The Dance Of Reality”), Chilean cinematic trickster Alejandro Jodorowsky’s first film in 23 years, “a triumphant return, which mixes autobiography, politics, torture and fantasy to exuberant, moving effect.”

La Danza de la Realidad was shot in Jodorowsky’s hometown of Tocopilla, deep in the Chilean desert. The film, which premiered at Cannes tells the story, sort of, of the his Communist father, Jaime Jodorowsky, with whom the director obviously had a very complex relationship:

Of course, the entire story is swathed in surreal mythology, dream logic and instant day-glo legend, resembling Fellini, Tod Browning, Emir Kusturica, and many more. You can’t be sure how to extract conventional autobiography from this. Despite the title, there is more “dance” than “reality” — and that is the point. Or part of the point. For the first time, Jodorowsky is coming close to telling us how personal evasiveness has governed his film-making style; his flights of fancy are flights of pain, flights from childhood and flights from reality. And now he is using his transformative style to come to terms with and change the past and to confer on his father some of the heroism that he never attained in real life.

As a child, young Alejandro is played by Jeremias Herskowits, and as an old man by the director himself, who cuts a distinguished, Haneke-like figure with his white hair and trimmed beard. His father Jaime is played by the director’s son Brontis Jodorowsky, which lends the project an intriguingly Freudian flavour. (Until this moment, I thought the scene in Michael Powell’s Peeping Tom in which the director dropped creepy-crawlies on his son’s pillow was the roughest father-son moment in cinema. But here Jodorowsky films a scene in which Jaime is tortured by the state police, and a naked Brontis Jodorowsky has electrodes attached to his testicles in full camera view. Ouch.)

Cannes 2013: La Danza de la Realidad (The Dance Of Reality) – first look review (The Guardian)

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First Look At
ALEJANDRO JODOROWSKY
New Film Now Showing! appeared first on CVLT Nation.

The Post-Punk // New Wave Super Friends by Butcher Billy

Sean — Fri, 17 May 2013 08:30:28 +0000

Now this is just totally fucking AWESOME…some of my favorite musical heros have been given a superhero make over! Brazilian designer Butcher Billy re-works the images of Siouxsie Sioux, Mark Mothersbaugh, Ian Curtis, John Lydon, Morrissey, Robert Smith and Billy Idol as comic book superheros. His series is entitled The Post Punk/New Wave Super Friends! Jump on a dirty bassline and check it out!

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New Wave Super Friends
by Butcher Billy appeared first on CVLT Nation.

Killer Interview!The Heavy Mental.vs.SCARFUL

Sean — Tue, 14 May 2013 17:00:17 +0000

Text & Photos via The Heavy Mental

Scarful has an aura around him. If you know him well enough you understand what I am talking about. It’s a thick, shiny cloud floating around him probably because his odd-shaped skull is filled with wisdom nectar. Even though he is usually a very peaceful creature, if the cloud is dark and stormy, you better stay away or you can get blasted by his thunder. His knowledge on occult arts and crafts is enormous and he is constantly experimenting with them in his studio in Tor Pignattara, in the suburb of Rome. Alessandro Maida, also known as Scarful has done with inks and drawings pretty much what Sasha Shulgin has done with psychedelics. Fertile as Gengis Kahn in conceiving artwork for record covers, posters, and fanzines, he is a Belzebub of cross-media collaborations. He wears black and has asthma like Darth Vader.

You are always busy doing all kind of things at the same time. What are you doing now?

Considering what’s going on with the Italian economy today, I am trying to do as much as I can to not go bankrupt or totally depressed. I’m working on the artwork for the roman rap duo, Gast & Chicoria. A couple of cover-arts for the hardcore band ANTIYOU, one of which is for a Maximum Rock’n’Roll. On long-term projects I am about to finish a series of etchings and mezzotint, two of the oldest techniques with a big span of experimentation. Also Rumore Nero is a project inspired by the contemporary time of my country, abstract shapes in black china on packaging paper. And I am still producing some small-scale sculptures using aluminum, with CNC and fusion.

CNC. Do you mean Numerical Control? Since you left full time jobs as creative/art director for advertising and fashion brands how much computer are you using these days?

Yeah, Computer Numerical Control. It can create incisions, sculptures, embossings and such with extremely high precision.

However, it is very important for me to start with an idea sketching out with traditional methods and tools like charcoal, china, pencil or whatever. I also always build models and prototypes with cardboard or wood to see shapes and what to fix. Computer is the tool to optimize my workflow, graphic design, or illustration but I always put manual skills into everything I do.

Right. I guess in your enormous inspiration bin, most of the items are from sans-computer arts. Would you name a few all-time favorites?

I began to love illustration looking at the covers of Metal Records, Joe Petagno’s work for Motorhead or Iron Maiden’s by Derek Riggs… those were my major influences growing up in the 80′s. I loved everything illustrated on Metal Records.

Then punk records…. Raymond Pettibon and Pushead’s artworks… everything from Winston Smith too.

Let’s say that Raymond Pettibon is still my favorite, absolutely a genius.

How and when did you jump from Pettibon to explore all kind of obscure and occult forms of art like.. I don’t know, like ancient Japanese book binding or Tibetan drumming using human tibias and skulls…..

My teenage distress mixed with an obsession with the macabre and influenced probably by the music I listen to got me very curious on the subject. Obviously Satan is a classic icon in Heavy Metal. Bands like Venom, Possessed, and Celtic Front were filled with pagan references, so everything related to the occult was an ingredient for my artwork. Could it be Tibetan or Crowleyan….

Last time I was in your studio you were meticulously feeding water and salt to a thick metal slab shaped like an old-school skateboard deck. Was that just to get that thing rusty where and how you wanted it or…. are you secretly working on the philosper’s stone alchemy? Are you trying to turn raw steel into gold?

HA HA ‘right. If I was born in the 1700′s I could have probably turned out as a deranged alchemist… You know, like the Conte Raimondo di Sangro… Although I am not a blue-blood and not even close to being rich so the only experiments I can actually afford are on scrap metal with salt and Rome’s water.

Ha! But… What if you somehow manage to turn rusty metal skateboards into solid gold, what would you do with it? Buy the revolution? A coup d’etat to extort the leadership of our tormented country? Damn I am sure the flag and the currency of the new-born nation is going to look pretty sick

With that cash power I’d fill the financial hole of Italy and design a new flag, vicious, with spikey geometries. I’d pay all the politicians to get out, is that corruption?

…and I’d find a nice place, actually many nice places, to settle down and create new ventures with friends and family.

What’s up with the Grim Reaper Tattoo? Isn’t that a new venture you are doing with friends and family?

Grim Reaper Tattoo is the new creature of two big Roman tattooers, Luca Mamone, who runs Santa Sangre Tattoo and Nello Rossini, who owns Battle Royal Tattoo and their assistant, Cuns. They both wanted to start a studio together, a special place where, beside tattoos, they could create and collaborate.

They’re my closest friends, my family. We even have a publishing house (Surith Press) for tattoo related-books together and they’ve been trying to make me grab a tattoo machine for years… I always loved tattoos, I tattooed myself the blue oyster cult logo on my hand when I was 13.

But I was too paranoid to permanently fucking up people’s skin. Then one day they ask me to join them in the new studio. Having 2 teachers like them is a unique privilege.

Finally a place where everything can happen: tattoo, paint, screen print, engraving…

Anyway I’m tattooing more and more these days… It will be my new adventure…

Amazing. You are going to be even busier. You better plan to come back and visit us to this side of the world before that starts.

Yes! I’d love to come back there and do things with you guys! We could do something darker than black. I just need a nod and a FCO-JFK flight ticket for 3! Can’t get there without Elisabetta and Leonardo Rodan, last time we were there he was only 8 months old!

02 Studio Scarful
03 Aluminum sculpture 1
04 Aluminum sculpture 2
05 Criminale Album Cover Art
06 Illustration Examples
07 Studio Detail
08 Sette
09 Explosion

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The Heavy Mental.vs.SCARFUL appeared first on CVLT Nation.

Amazing! Wrekmeister Harmonies Time Lapse Video Feat. Simon Fowler Drawing!

Sean — Tue, 14 May 2013 09:30:04 +0000

Wrekmeister Harmonies is a project from Chicago helmed by JR Robinson, and his new album You’ve Always Meant So Much to Me is an experiment on the outer edges of heavy music. I could list all of the unreal humans that contributed to this record, but I won’t. This sonic vision into another reality will be released via Thrill Jockey Records on June 11th. Right now check out this 11 minute video of Simon Fowler drawing the cover art…Space is the Place!

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Time Lapse Video Feat.
Simon Fowler Drawing! appeared first on CVLT Nation.

The Goat of MendesA History of the Baphomet

Meghan — Wed, 01 May 2013 07:00:54 +0000

The Baphomet sigil has become one of the most ubiquitous symbols of the “dark side” in our culture today, second only to the inverted cross. It adorns our bodies in the form of jewelry, t-shirts, leggings, hats and other clothing good or bad. It’s almost like the Che Guevara of metal – people who have no idea of its meaning or history plaster it all over themselves. In the interests of staying informed about one of the most important images in metal culture, check out the informative essay about the history of the Baphomet below, taken from Angelfire.com, home of the Joy of Satan Ministries. They outline its pagan roots, ties to Christianity through the Templar and the Inquisition, and it’s evolution as the logo of the Church of Satan. It’s a good read and for some of you may be enlightening about this almost “pop culture” symbol.

Illustration: Mark Riddick

A History of the Baphomet
Text via Angelfire.com

The origin of the name Baphomet is not clear. It appears to be a combination of two Greek words baphe and metis meaning “absorption of knowledge.” Other authors claim it is a corruption of “Mohamet” (Mohammed), but the first definition seems to be more accurate. Baphomet has its origins in the “Goat of Mendes.” Baphomet was also one of the aliases of Aleister Crowley. Baphomet has also been called the “Goat of Mendes” and the “Black Goat.”

The goat also has to do with fertility and is symbolic of the Magnum Opus of alchemy when one’s energies from kundalini increase. Spiritual alchemy is of Ancient Egypt and is the transformation of the human soul into the godhead. This is completing our Creator God Satan’s work.

The most famous historical account of Baphomet began with the Knights Templar. The Baphomet at the time of the Templars was believed to be an idol, represented by a human skull, a stuffed human head or a metal or wooden head with curly black hair, or sometimes a black cat. The idol was said to be worshipped by the Knights Templar in their latter days as the source of fertility and wealth. The Knights Templars also known as the “poor knights of christ” was founded in the year 1118 by Hugh de Payens of Champagne France.

The order began with nine or eleven men who were sent to the Holy Land to dig beneath the “Temple of Solomon” for several European families of wealth who had claim to certain artifacts buried there before it was destroyed in 70 CE. The order took on the oath of asceticism, celibacy, devotion to the Catholic Church and poverty. They were forbidden ownership of any personal property. Any wealth accrued by the order was to be shared in common. When excavating beneath the temple, the knights discovered gold and ancient relics, and also many scrolls.

Shortly thereafter, magnificent cathedrals and other buildings sprung up all over Europe. Most of the Goetic/Gothic Demons are known for their expertise in architecture and there are legends claiming many bridges and buildings in Europe were built by Satan and his Demons.²

The true meaning of the “Temple of Solomon” is the TEMPLE OF THE SUN. “Sol” “Om” and “On” are all words for the Sun. “Sol” is the Latin word for the Sun and is close to the English word “soul.” “Om” is a name given by the Hindus to the Spiritual Sun and “On” is an Egyptian word for Sun. The symbolism of the Temple of Solomon was stolen and made into an actual character, as with the fictitous nazarene and nearly everything in the Judeo/Christian Bible.

The Templars were eventually appointed to protect the Holy Land and keep it from the Moslems during the wars of the Crusades. The order grew into the thousands and groups were organized throughout Europe, but France remained their stronghold.

Their seal depicts two men riding one horse because in the early history of the order, the knights could not afford a horse each.

During their journeys to and from the Holy Land in the Middle East, they encountered many different peoples. It is possible, they learned of the Goat of Mendes as the Moslems kept records and had knowledge of the history of Ancient Egypt where the Goat of Mendes originated.

The Templars grew in both size and wealth, reaching their peak in the 14th century. The ending of the wars of the Crusades did not have any impact on the order as they used the opportunity to travel and enter into commerce and money lending. They established a very profitable business relationship with the enemy in times of truce. The order accumulated vast wealth and power. They eventually became the victims of both the greedy Catholic Church that was aware of their forbidden knowledge and King Philip IV of France who was said to be heavily in debt and owed the order a considerable sum.

*From what I have researched, it appears the real reason the Templar order was persecuted by the Catholic Church was for their occult knowledge and power they obtained from excavating beneath the Temple at the Dome of the Rock. This power brought them vast wealth as it is supposed to do for those who have it and the knowledge on how to use it.

Philip IV plotted along with Pope Clement V to destroy the order. October 13th 1307, Philip IV had Grand Master Jacques de Molay and 140 other knights arrested in the Paris Temple. More arrests followed throughout France.

The Templars were subjected to torture en masse. The Catholic Church with its inquisitors, accused them of Devil worship, blasphemy, sodomy, and idolatry. There was secrecy surrounding their meetings and wild rumors spread concerning bizarre initiation rituals that did much to promote public suspicion of the order. Under torture, members of the order admitted to renouncing the nazarene, spitting, trampling and urinating on the crucifix, engaging in intercourse with Demons, indulging in “sexual perversity” and to worshipping the idol of Baphomet. Many of the Templars were burned at the stake and murdered by the inquisition, the most noted being Grand Master Jacques de Molay. After being imprisoned and tortured for seven years, he was burnt alive at the stake.

The Shroud of Turin was of the blood and body fluids of Jacques de Molay as he was laid on a soft feather bed to recover for more torture from the Catholic inquisitors. Upon close examination, it is obvious given the position of the body (the top part is shown below), there is no way this was the Nazarene.

The shroud was also inspected by several diverse scholars who proved beyond any doubt, given the material and constituents, the item was no older than the 12th century. The Catholic Church being the prolific liar that it is, continues to scam people to this day

**I would also like to add in revising this article in light of new knowledge, Christianity appears to have manifested with the Inquisition. It is nowhere near as old as the “two thousand years” they claim it to be. History is and has been rewritten with lies, while being destroyed at the same time.

A very blatant example is what is now and has been occurring in Iraq. What we have been indoctrinated to believe in history class is not necessarily the truth. Ancient relics and architecture speak for themselves. In addition, history was written and told by the winners of every war. Remember, there are always two sides to every account. ONe side is usually the only one that is heard along with permissible opinions only. Along with the “Shroud of Turin lie (the Nazarene is fictitious and was stolen from an alchemical concept of a working which had its origin in some 18+ PAGAN Gods, such as Odin, who hung from a tree and Set who was crucified on a Furka, Osiris who died and was resurrected, etc.), many PAGAN Gods have been passed off as the Nazarene such as Apollo Images by the hundreds of Pagan Gods are now labeled as the Nazarene. This is no different from the Christianization of Pagan holidays, such as Easter (of Astaroth), the Yule (which originally had nothing whatsoever to do with the fictitious Nazarene) of which xian fundies are now weeding out the Pagan traditions and replacing them with lies, as they have done with Pagan Temples which were destroyed and had xian churches built directly over them.**

Before he was murdered at the stake, Molay cursed both the Pope and the King and predicted the death of both within the year. (Both did die within that time period).

The Baphomet evolved over the centuries. The most widely known representation of the Baphomet is the drawing by 19th century French magician Eliphas Levi called “the Baphomet of Mendes.” Levi combined the images of the Tarot Devil card and the he-goat worshipped in the city of Mendes in Ancient Egypt. It is unclear whether the Ancient Egyptian women had intercourse with the goat during religious rites for fertility, but the Catholic Church claimed this and this is more than likely where the notion that the Devil had intercourse with his witches came from.

Levi’s famous drawing of Baphomet depicts a male/female image representing the dualistic nature of life. Female breasts and the phallus, one arm masculine, the other feminine, one arm pointing up and the other pointing down representing the Hermetic principle of “as above, so below.”

The Levi Baphomet is very similar to the Egyptian Akhenaton, which is both male and female (note the male and female features of the body and the serpentine facial features which symbolize the serpent kundalini) portraying the hermaphrodite which is symbolic of merging the male and female aspects of the soul, the ida and the pingala and achieving the godhead. The “monotheism” is another allegory, as the “gods” are in many ancient writings, code-words for the chakras of the soul and when one works to achieve the godhead of the Magnum Opus, all of the chakras are transformed and united into gold. Yoga is a branch of alchemy and the word “Yoga” means “union.” This is the unification of the soul.

His illustration combines the goat headed Devil of the Witches Sabbats, the God of the Templars and the Devil in the Tarot cards. In Levi’s view, this image represented the power of the universe depicting both good and evil influences.

The image continued to evolve over the years. Anton LaVey spotted an illustration in the book “A Pictorial History of Magic and the Supernatural” by Maurice Bessy © 1961, English edition © 1964. This was the first known published work where the goat headed pentagram was surrounded by two circles and included the Hebrew letters reading “Leviathan.” The names “Samael” and “Lilith” were also included in this depiction. “Leviathan” also known as “Cthulu” is a name for the kundalini serpent.

Anton LaVey eliminated the Samael and Lilith and decided this particular symbol best represented the Church of Satan and made it the Church’s logo in 1967. Because of the Hebrew lettering and the circles which are highly offensive to Satan and his Demons, JoS Ministries has removed them and replaced them with cuneiform script reading “Satan.”

The sign of Capricorn, symbolized by the goat represents the new winter sun being reborn again as the days get longer. The goat is one of Satan’s sacred animals. In the fifth century BCE, Herodotus reported that the people of Mendes in the Nile delta venerated all goats, particularly male ones. For the Greeks and Romans, the goat represented virility. Goats are fertile and known to be lusty. The city of Mendes reached its cultural peak when the Ram-God was worshipped, whom the Greeks later equated with Pan. Pan was known as a “satyr.” Satyrs had the horns, legs, hooves, and beards of goats. Pan’s symbol was the phallus and he was invoked for the fertility of the flocks or an abundant hunt. He tended flocks and danced through the woods, playing his panpipes, which he invented. As the lusty leader of Satyrs, he chased the Nymphs.

The goat (sometimes a ram was used) was the master of fertility and was celebrated as “copulator in Anep and inseminator in the district of Mendes,” where women were blessed with children. During rituals, women danced naked before the image. The Order of Nine Angles claims another perspective to Baphomet. 7,000 years ago a civilization known as Albion had various rites associated with a Dark Goddess who was known as “Baphomet.”

References:

¹The Second Messiah : Templars, the Turin Shroud, and the Great Secret of Freemasonry by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas. Published Shaftesbury, Dorset ; Boston : Element, 1997.

²Witchcraft, Magic and Alchemy by Grillot de Givry 1931; translated into English 1971.
Chapter XI: Involuntary Demoniacs

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A History of the Baphomet appeared first on CVLT Nation.