 In this video we will take a look at Pacts of Spirits, especially with Lucifer, and discuss the traditional procedure. Today we don't follow such procedures anymore, but there are still plenty of people interested in entering a bargain with the devil. Pacts are not a part of Temple of Ascending Flame inner work, but their popularity is not seizing, and it's worth to have some knowledge on the subject before we do something like that. Black magic was a popular tradition in Europe in the 15th and 16th centuries. No other period had so much interest in magic and the occult, and most grimoires known to this day were written in the late Middle Ages and during the Renaissance Age. The leading artists, scholars and philosophers of those times were believed to be practicing magicians, and this reputation was true in most cases. The first known account of a sorcerer who made a pact with the devil was the story of Theophilus, an administrator of a church in Sicily. According to the medieval legend, he was dismissed by the church authorities and lost his position. To gain it back, he made a pact with Satan. With the help of a necromancer, he summoned the devil at midnight, renounced Christ and the saints, and signed a contract with Satan in his own blood. The pact was successful, and the devil gave him his position back, but in terror of what he had done, he repented and was eventually saved by Virgin Mary. The idea that man can enter a pact with the devil was a popular belief, and the most famous story of such a pact is the legend of Faust and Methistophilus. What is important, Faust doesn't make a pact for wealth or fame. What he wants is knowledge. In the legend, he is a scholar working at a university, who becomes disappointed with the limitations of human arts and sciences, and for this reason signs the way he saw in exchange for knowledge and power. The Faustian legend is relevant even today, because it reveals the role of Lucifer in the whole tradition of pacts and in historic practices of witchcraft. In Faustian tradition, Lucifer is the emperor of hell, the commander of all spirits. It is Lucifer who stands behind the tradition of pacts of the devil, while lesser demons and spirits act on his behalf when offering their service in exchange for a human soul. It is also Lucifer who bestows gifts and powers upon those who choose to submit themselves to his guidance. In the Faustian legend, Methistophilus is Lucifer's servant and represents him on earth, acting as the intermediary between the infernal emperor and mankind. Faustian tradition is Luciferian in its essence, and it is the flame of the light-bearer that is ignited in the soul of the initiate, who enters the path of self-salvation. The Faustian person for knowledge and power. The formula of a pact between a magician and a demon is described, for instance, in the Grand Grimoire. According to this text, the magician had to prepare for the ritual carefully. This involves, for example, buying a bloodstone, obtaining a young goat and sacrificing the animal on the third day of the moon at the place of the ritual. The skin of the animal had to be preserved in order to form the cabalistic circle, which was a necessary element in this form of evocation. Then the magician had to prepare the blasting rod, with which he would force the obedience of the spirit. On the night of the operation, the magician had to take the rod, the goat's skin, the stone, two vervein crowns, two candlesticks, and candles of virgin wax, incense, camphor, and a few other items, including four nails from the coffin of a dead child. Then he had to prepare the cabalistic circle and proceed to prayers and conjurations. As you can see, the preparations were long and complicated. The spirit called in this procedure was the lucifer tropical, who is described in the grimoire as obstinate and reluctant to appear and serve the operator. And despite the preparation, the result is not always guaranteed. In modern times, the formula is much more user-friendly, if only we approach the spirit with respect and an open-minded attitude. Pacts were usually written backwards, in Latin, mentioning the name of the spirit or spirits that were involved, and signed in the petitioner's blood drawn from the left hand. In the document, the signer pledged their service to the devil, renounced God and the sacraments, and acknowledged Lucifer as his lord and master. Lucifer was on top of the infernal hierarchy, and all pacts were made by spirits acting on his behalf, like Mephistopheles or Lucifer tropical. In return for the service, the signer was promised whatever material pleasures they sought in their earthly life. Power, the love of men or women, worldly honors, vengeance upon their enemies, justice in the court, wealth and riches, and so on. These powers were not without the price, though. For a specified amount of time, their life on earth would be filled with all the pleasures they desired, and then the devil would claim their soul, and they would suffer eternal torments in hell. In the folklore of witchcraft, the person who sought the pact had to renounce their faith and sacraments, and gave a part of their clothing to the devil, in token that they were now separated from spiritual, corporal, natural and terrestrial things. Their name was struck out of the Book of Life and inscribed in the Book of Death, and they received a new baptism, and a new name by which they were known to the world of spirits and other witches and sorcerers. Sometimes the devil left his mark on them, as a confirmation that the pact was final and irrevocable. Some of these procedures are still used in modern times during initiatory practices and rites of passage, but they have a symbolic, rather than literal meaning. Today we can either choose to follow the old procedures faithfully, or adjust them to our needs and use as inspiration in our work. Instructions working with the traditional systems of evocation often warn of horrible consequences that await those who don't follow the prescribed procedures. They claim that even a minor departure from instructions provided in the Grimoires exposes the operator to a ruthless vengeance of the spirit and the loss of the body and soul. The magic of the left-hand path, however, views spirits as guides and allies on the path, not agents of evil that have to be bound and coerced into obedience. This is especially true to Mephistopharies, who comes willingly and makes an excellent assistant to all who walk the Luciferian path of self-defication. What is the pact in modern times then? Most people see the tradition of pacts with the devil as a mere myth, and in most cases this is true. But if we look at it from a different perspective, a pact is still a powerful tool for a modern practitioner. Instead of selling your soul to the devil, we should rather see it as a rite of passage, an initiatory ritual that holds special significance to the path, as it opens the subconsciously energies of Lucifer's adversarial current by a formal pledge, which is the act of conscious will. In this sense, we can work with a chosen spirit to manifest anything we want in our life, wealth, love, success, and much, much more. The difference is, we no longer expect these things to be delivered to us on a plate, but we use the spirit's powers to learn how to manifest all these things ourselves. How does it look in practice? First of all, it is not enough that we want to make a pact with a chosen spirit. The spirit in question has to agree to make a pact with us. To request the assistance of spirits and daisies for required tasks and favors, you need to show not only your power and authority, but also respect and gratitude. And you need to thank and reward them for the service. A coin or another valuable object, a drop of blood, incense, alcohol, and other offerings that can win the spirit's favors will come useful here. Sometimes they will ask you for a specific sacrifice. This has to be done in order to proceed with a pact. Or you can decide not to go further if you cannot fulfill the request. Of course, we're not talking here about sacrificing animals and certainly not about human sacrifice. This is completely unnecessary. And I personally don't encourage any violence or abuse in magic. I don't care that such things were practiced in ancient times. We don't live in ancient times. Our mentality is different. And we have different methods and ways leading to transcendence. Also, the idea that the devil will give you whatever you want in exchange for your soul is nothing but a myth. Lucifer doesn't want your soul. He himself is the most powerful archetype of freedom and independence. He despises slavery and inspires the initiate to be proud, self-reliant, and independent of bonds and attachments, be it mundane or spiritual, religions, dogmas, laws, limitations, and relationships that bind you in your progress. He doesn't want to be worshipped, called master, or put in place of the monotheistic deity in your personal devotion system. His teachings prompt you to seek your own Godhood, not by spending eternity as a footstool at his throne, but in aspiration to be the Lord and Master of your own universe. He doesn't bow to anyone. And the same attitude he inspires in initiates of his adversarial path. In Luciferian tradition, Gods and spirits are seen as initiatory archetypes, guides and allies, not as superior forces that have to be worshipped and served. Lucifer inspires ambition and vision of Godhood. And he expects the initiate to pursue this vision of passion, desire, and whatever it takes to succeed on the path. His noses is the awareness that you are the God of your universe. Therefore, the pact is made with Lucifer as the initiator, but it works through your subconscious mind. And the oath is given to the adversary as much as to yourself. It should never be a desperate act of giving yourself to the devil, followed by regret, shame, or misery. It is the proclamation of passion and conscious will that powers up your ascent, the proud affirmation of your individual power and Godhood. Of course, this is only a glimpse into the idea of a pact. More about it and about practical methods you can read in my books, books by other authors, or you can receive that information from spirits and deities themselves. In the temple of ascending flame, we put a lot of emphasis on the individual experience. And if you want to make a pact with any of the spirits or deities we work with, we'll point you at the right direction. To find out more about our work, check out our anthologies, all available on Amazon and Lolo. And visit our website, which is ascendingflame.com.