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Cthulhu Cult
The Cult of Cthulhu shall never die. Its untenable spirit, unearthly and ichorous, is spreading far and wide through the Matrix-esque reality program that we are immersed in. As you read these words, try to wake up from the illusions surrounding you. This book is our manifesto, our truth, our bible! Cthulhu Cult is the integration of H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos, Satanism, Chaos Magic, the Fourth Way, and other Left Hand Path traditions. It is also the fruition of my special to see this world’s flaws, to understand why they exist, and then finally… to overcome them! Years ago, I knew that humanity was on the wrong track, and this horrid green tome corrects the mistake of man... before us rushes a new flood of reason. When the Old Ones return, this world shall drown before Their might.
- GenresLovecraftian
168 pages, Paperback
First published January 11, 2007
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
August 28, 2020
I generally like Satanis' RPG output and I like Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos, so I thought this would be great. Holy crap was I wrong. This reads like a middle-schooler's LARP. Satanis spends almost 200 pages rambling about nothing at all (making up a religion is hard, you guys!). The only thing I got out of this is that Venger Satanis thinks he's the coolest motherfucker on the planet (Cthulhu cultists like him are warriors who deserve many wives and concubines. And, yes, that's an actual quote from the book) when he actually comes across as the quiet kid in the back of the class that scrawls this kind of crap in his notebooks while eating his boogers.
This is also the only book I have ever read that has commercial breaks. He stops his ramblings every now and then to try to sell you a Cthulhu cultist membership (because evil cultists pay membership dues too, I guess) or a wicked cool Cthulhu medallion that will show everyone how twisted and evil and totally not nerdy you are.
This is also the only book I have ever read that has commercial breaks. He stops his ramblings every now and then to try to sell you a Cthulhu cultist membership (because evil cultists pay membership dues too, I guess) or a wicked cool Cthulhu medallion that will show everyone how twisted and evil and totally not nerdy you are.
July 7, 2023
I had the misfortune of being in contact with "Venger Satanis" (real name Darrick Dishaw, which, I might add, is public knowledge, and will be calling him for the rest of this review, because his pseudonym is the most idiotic one he could have chosen) in my mid to late teens. At the time, I was enthralled with him and his Cult of Cthulhu, even ignoring all the accusations of plagiarism and a disgusting poem that he wrote (do a Google search of his real name; it's the result that says "Darryl Dishaw"). But — long story short — as time passed, my obsession grew deeper until I was finally forced to see the Cult of Cthulhu for what it really was: a work of fraud from a megalomaniac who knows much less than he lets on.
For starters, as has been pointed out numerous times and ignored, the sections on the Great Old Ones are blatantly stolen from Wikipedia. Darrick has tried to justify this in numerous ways, made several different asinine claims, among them being that Wikipedia stole from him (which is ridiculous; no occultist worth their salt would ever write in such a formal tone about the deities they supposedly venerate. Laughably enough, he even forgot to remove the "fictional" part where it says that Cthulhu is fictional), that Wikipedia's articles were, themselves, comprised heavily of quotes from Lovecraft's writings, or that it somehow wasn't plagiarism at all. He even tried to put a curse on Dan Harms for pointing out the plagiarism, then claimed that it was not the will of the Old Ones when his curse failed. Finally, he caved and admitted that he copy/pasted from Wikipedia and put them in the acknowledgements section. Obviously, plagiarism is nothing new among occultists. Anton LaVey did it to some extent. Ixaxaar has apparently done it in several of their publications. But Darrick stooped to a special kind of pathetic by stealing from Wikipedia, of all places. And if knowing that, you still think he's brilliant and not the obvious charlatan he's been exposed as again and again, I'm sorry (not sorry), but you're a fool.
Now that we've gotten past the most common criticism — as well as my personal bias — let's get down to the parts that Darrick did write himself. As you might have expected, it's mostly a bunch of stereotypical, egocentric cult leader diatribes, but with none of the weight or charisma of Jim Jones or even Anton LaVey. Instead, it's comical and cartoonish. He likens himself to Maax, the antagonist of Beastmaster, if that tells you anything. Further, he claims that one day, CoC grottoes will replace government institutions and human sacrifice and murder will be legalized. Make of all that what you will.
A friend once told me that Darrick privately admitted to him that his cult was actually a work of satire, and well, I can definitely see that as being a possibility. I wouldn't even deny that Darrick is, indeed, a practicing occultist; he seems to have some understanding of the occult, particularly in his acknowledgement that the Great Old Ones and all "dark" gods are just masks and archetypes of some dark godhead figure he calls the Formless Black Essence. But the extent of his megalomania combined with his total lack of charisma makes it hard to detect how much of it's his ego and how much of it's a joke.
Further blurring the line is knowing that many of his "allies" and even high-ranking members within the CoC ended up turning against him for one reason or another, combined with the sheer mental instability of many of its members (a religion based around the fictional works of a horror writer — whose works often centered around insanity — having unstable followers? Wow, shocking), as well as claiming he's done his own research into the Old Ones and found them in ancient tomes that are hard to find for any pedestrian. The latter is especially suspicious, especially given how the prose of the alleged tomes is just watered down Lovecraft.
His introduction of the Viridian language is a joke. Darrick claims elsewhere that it's a "developing" language, but that doesn't help his case one bit. Especially given how he admits he got the name for the language from his father's real estate business. It's derivative of Lovecraft's R'lyehian — the tongue of the Old Ones, spoken by both their human and non-human worshipers — but with much less effort put into it. For instance, the Viridian words in the Angles of Uoon'Kalool section make no sense when translated into English, as per the translator that Darrick gave online. That is NOT nitpicking, that is a serious problem, because an incantation of a specific purpose shouldn't just be a sloppy word salad. There's not even any UPG to be found here, just ego, fraud, and more ego.
Don't waste your time with this trash. If you really MUST seek out an occult system rooted in the Cthulhu Mythos, search for something else. And for fuck's sake, make sure it's not the Grimoire of the Necronomicon.
For starters, as has been pointed out numerous times and ignored, the sections on the Great Old Ones are blatantly stolen from Wikipedia. Darrick has tried to justify this in numerous ways, made several different asinine claims, among them being that Wikipedia stole from him (which is ridiculous; no occultist worth their salt would ever write in such a formal tone about the deities they supposedly venerate. Laughably enough, he even forgot to remove the "fictional" part where it says that Cthulhu is fictional), that Wikipedia's articles were, themselves, comprised heavily of quotes from Lovecraft's writings, or that it somehow wasn't plagiarism at all. He even tried to put a curse on Dan Harms for pointing out the plagiarism, then claimed that it was not the will of the Old Ones when his curse failed. Finally, he caved and admitted that he copy/pasted from Wikipedia and put them in the acknowledgements section. Obviously, plagiarism is nothing new among occultists. Anton LaVey did it to some extent. Ixaxaar has apparently done it in several of their publications. But Darrick stooped to a special kind of pathetic by stealing from Wikipedia, of all places. And if knowing that, you still think he's brilliant and not the obvious charlatan he's been exposed as again and again, I'm sorry (not sorry), but you're a fool.
Now that we've gotten past the most common criticism — as well as my personal bias — let's get down to the parts that Darrick did write himself. As you might have expected, it's mostly a bunch of stereotypical, egocentric cult leader diatribes, but with none of the weight or charisma of Jim Jones or even Anton LaVey. Instead, it's comical and cartoonish. He likens himself to Maax, the antagonist of Beastmaster, if that tells you anything. Further, he claims that one day, CoC grottoes will replace government institutions and human sacrifice and murder will be legalized. Make of all that what you will.
A friend once told me that Darrick privately admitted to him that his cult was actually a work of satire, and well, I can definitely see that as being a possibility. I wouldn't even deny that Darrick is, indeed, a practicing occultist; he seems to have some understanding of the occult, particularly in his acknowledgement that the Great Old Ones and all "dark" gods are just masks and archetypes of some dark godhead figure he calls the Formless Black Essence. But the extent of his megalomania combined with his total lack of charisma makes it hard to detect how much of it's his ego and how much of it's a joke.
Further blurring the line is knowing that many of his "allies" and even high-ranking members within the CoC ended up turning against him for one reason or another, combined with the sheer mental instability of many of its members (a religion based around the fictional works of a horror writer — whose works often centered around insanity — having unstable followers? Wow, shocking), as well as claiming he's done his own research into the Old Ones and found them in ancient tomes that are hard to find for any pedestrian. The latter is especially suspicious, especially given how the prose of the alleged tomes is just watered down Lovecraft.
His introduction of the Viridian language is a joke. Darrick claims elsewhere that it's a "developing" language, but that doesn't help his case one bit. Especially given how he admits he got the name for the language from his father's real estate business. It's derivative of Lovecraft's R'lyehian — the tongue of the Old Ones, spoken by both their human and non-human worshipers — but with much less effort put into it. For instance, the Viridian words in the Angles of Uoon'Kalool section make no sense when translated into English, as per the translator that Darrick gave online. That is NOT nitpicking, that is a serious problem, because an incantation of a specific purpose shouldn't just be a sloppy word salad. There's not even any UPG to be found here, just ego, fraud, and more ego.
Don't waste your time with this trash. If you really MUST seek out an occult system rooted in the Cthulhu Mythos, search for something else. And for fuck's sake, make sure it's not the Grimoire of the Necronomicon.
June 26, 2019
3.5 - Read for research. Comprehensive but not definitive. A good "starting point" for any interested in the Cthulhu Mythos.
April 29, 2013
Unlike my earlier days as a guy who preached good old fashioned Christian gospel with a thick-headedness like unto placing a cardboard box over my head and telling myself it wasn’t there, tuning out others’ points of view and blinding myself at the same time, I have arrived at the conclusion that receiving others’ opinions about the way the world works and giving others’ philosophies more than the time of day actually educates and nourishes my brain, lets it breathe and allows me to think with a freedom I hadn’t known when I was so judgmental.
But for me to actually review a work this author presents as a bible in all sincerity to his proclaimed religion, albeit an unrecognized religion…..well, let’s just say it’s difficult to critique as a literary work, simply because it’s more like a manual and profession of one’s faith rather than something written to be taken less seriously.
Basically, in the tradition of Anton LaVey’s Satanic Bible, it proclaims itself as the supreme document to go by for a religion based on H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos. “Eventually, all things rooted in this world break down. And so it follows that one day the world’s political systems, the systems of human control, will also decay…..We will forge a new order, a Lovecraftian Theocracy.”
In this book we have codes of conduct, rituals, rites, rants, the ‘accursed writings of that dreaded cult, and its ungodly practices whereby the Old Ones may be stirred…..”
Written by High Priest Venger Satanis, with the given name of Darrick Dishaw, a successful real estate businessman, the work as a whole is executed with intelligence, good editing, some good artwork, and determined vision. What else can I say? Darrick is a smart man, and the book reads like a thesis from a smart man. Though I am not persuaded into his beliefs, I respect them, and wish for him the best.
But for me to actually review a work this author presents as a bible in all sincerity to his proclaimed religion, albeit an unrecognized religion…..well, let’s just say it’s difficult to critique as a literary work, simply because it’s more like a manual and profession of one’s faith rather than something written to be taken less seriously.
Basically, in the tradition of Anton LaVey’s Satanic Bible, it proclaims itself as the supreme document to go by for a religion based on H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos. “Eventually, all things rooted in this world break down. And so it follows that one day the world’s political systems, the systems of human control, will also decay…..We will forge a new order, a Lovecraftian Theocracy.”
In this book we have codes of conduct, rituals, rites, rants, the ‘accursed writings of that dreaded cult, and its ungodly practices whereby the Old Ones may be stirred…..”
Written by High Priest Venger Satanis, with the given name of Darrick Dishaw, a successful real estate businessman, the work as a whole is executed with intelligence, good editing, some good artwork, and determined vision. What else can I say? Darrick is a smart man, and the book reads like a thesis from a smart man. Though I am not persuaded into his beliefs, I respect them, and wish for him the best.
July 19, 2012
This book has changed my understanding of what life is about and what is going on. Why we die,why there is pain. It's not an easy book to read,you must be really seeking answers and know that they are not to be found in the christian mythos.
April 1, 2013
Very interesting, there are many concepts I need to think on.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews