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Paganism Setianism

Prayer Against Forced Childbirth

1 min read

If you are considering an abortion, and if you’re feeling torn apart inside because people are telling you “God” wills this and “God” wills that…

  • MY God doesn’t hate you for wanting or needing to terminate a pregnancy.
  • MY God doesn’t blame you for making the best decisions you can for your own physical and emotional health.
  • MY God doesn’t hold rape survivors responsible for their own pregnancies.
  • MY God does not want to see anyone being forced to carry any babies to term.
  • MY God sees right through the hypocrisy of being “pro-life” while making it consistently harder for people to take care of their children.
  • MY God will not judge you or send you to “hell” for having an abortion.
  • And MY God doesn’t give a SHIT what anyone else’s so-called “god” might tell you. 
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Monsters Movies Paganism Setianism

The Scarlet Nemesis (2022)

8 min read

The Scarlet Nemesis is the third chapter in my “Apocalypse” trilogy (following His Nocturnal Majesty and Our Lady of Thrones). It follows the younger Shieldmaiden of Set as she hunts down the Warlock across multiple alternate realities. It is currently available for free on Bandcamp.com, and it will soon be available for purchase on Amazon, Spotify, iTunes, and other digital music platforms as well. The album can also be enjoyed for free on YouTube.

Where’s the Warlock?

She will never stop.

After the final battle in Our Lady of Thrones (“Defy the Ungod“), the younger Shieldmaiden of Set leads an attack squad back into the ruins of Atlanta, Georgia. Their target is the Warlock, the final and most powerful member of the triumvirate that ruled the now fallen Kingdom Guard. The evil magician is still holed up in his empire’s ruined capital, and he is currently working a bizarre ceremonial ritual at his headquarters.

The Scarlet Nemesis (Main Theme)

The Shieldmaiden of Set confronts the Warlock at his headquarters.

The Shieldmaiden and her team break into the Warlock’s headquarters and fight off his last remaining followers; but not before his evil spell is completed. He successfully opens a gateway to another world, and the Shieldmaiden jumps in after him at the very last second.

Across the Multiverse in 80 Seconds

The Shieldmaiden and the Warlock wrestle each other through a wormhole stretching across multiple universes. The Warlock kicks the Shieldmaiden away, and she is cast into some unknown world, where she blacks out.

The Imperishable Ones

The Shieldmaiden meets her divine Namesake and several deceased Knights in Sutekh’s Service.

The Shieldmaiden awakens, finding herself in the Desert of Set. Beside her is are several Knights in Sutekh’s Service who fell during the exorcism of the Ungod in His Nocturnal Majesty (“Giver of Winds“). The Knights explain to the Shieldmaiden that Set brought her to safety here in His heaven; but since she isn’t dead yet, she must return to one of the many worlds of the living. Whether she chooses to return home or continue her quest against the Warlock is her decision.

Ancient Enemy (Disciple of the Worm)

The Warlock in his many guises.

The Imperishable Ones tell the Shieldmaiden of Set about the Warlock’s history. They tell her he is not a human being at all, but an uncreated monster from before the dawn of time. He has many names and faces, and he orchestrates a unique apocalypse for every universe he visits. He is the alpha of all evil masterminds, and he will settle for nothing less than the total annihilation of everything that exists—including himself in the end.

The Sword and the Scarab

The Shieldmaiden’s magic khepesh sickle-sword and scarab amulet.

Set appears and gives the Shieldmaiden two gifts: a khepesh sword and a scarab amulet. The sword has been forged directly from Set’s iron bones, and it is both indestructible and extremely deadly to all creatures of isfet. It also glows bright red whenever such creatures are near, to help identify the Warlock. The amulet, meanwhile, can instantly return the Shieldmaiden to her home universe whenever she wishes. Set then asks the Shieldmaiden how she would like to proceed, and she chooses to continue her quest. He sends her to the universe where the Warlock is currently located, and the Shieldmaiden goes to work.

Holiday Fear

The Warlock has launched a multimillion dollar toy company, and all of his products have been hexed to kill sleeping families across the world on Christmas Eve. The global paranoia produced by this single act of terror will make the Ungod visible to everyone in this world, resulting in the same apocalypse suffered in the Shieldmaiden’s home universe. Can the Shieldmaiden save the holidays and stop the Ungod’s return?

Mesozoic

The Shieldmaiden pursues the Warlock to an alternate earth where humans never came into existence. This version of earth is ruled by a civilization of reptile people instead. These peaceful creatures are terrified by the Shieldmaiden’s appearance, having never seen a human before. The Warlock impersonates a reptilian priest of the crocodile god Sobek, using this position to stir up fear among the populace. But when the Shieldmaiden rescues a nursery full of reptilian toddlers from burning in a fire, their parents help her escape.

Bacillus Pestis

The Warlock has assumed control of the Illuminati, and he is using its top scientists to develop a mutant strain of bubonic plague. This strain infects and kills its hosts within minutes, reducing them to awful bloody heaps. The Illuminati’s members think the Warlock is giving them a vaccine so they can use the disease to extort every world government. In reality, they are being infected with the bacteria and will be the first to die. The Warlock intends to let this plague drive the entire human race into extinction. Can the Shieldmaiden avert this horrific act of terror before it’s too late?

Graveyard Minds

The Shieldmaiden enters a timeline where the Warlock is funding a mad scientist named Quantamaker, who has discovered the secret to physical immortality. The only problem is, Quantamaker’s procedure results in complete annihilation of the soul. His patients do become physically indestructible and cease to age; yet they also become cold, motionless voids that just stand there, staring blankly into eternity, with no will or motivation to do anything. Worse still, the Warlock has weaponized Quantamaker’s procedure and plans to zombify every living creature in this way, so as to throw all of nature out of balance.

Hell is Where the Heart is

The Shieldmaiden wakes up as a patient at a maximum security psychiatric ward. The head psychiatrist is none other than the Warlock, who is hypnotizing his patients to believe they must destroy entire neighborhoods for “Satan,” then arranging for them to escape. This is intended to spark a global witch hysteria that will kick off the Ungod’s return—a “rerun” of one of the Warlock’s schemes in Our Lady of Thrones (“Satanic Panic“). Can the Shieldmaiden resist her captor’s evil spell and break free to bring him down? Or will the Warlock succeed in appealing to her dark side and convert her to the ways of isfet?

The War Across the Worlds

The Shieldmaiden beats the Warlock like he owes her money.

The Shieldmaiden coordinates a full scale synchronized attack against the Warlock’s operations across each of the preceding universes she has visited (“Holiday Fear,” “Mesozoic,” “Bacillus Pestis,” “Graveyard Minds,” and “Hell is Where the Heart is“). She brawls with the evil wizard and chases him through yet another wormhole that stretches across the multiverse.

Dispel the Ungod

The Shieldmaiden pursues an injured Warlock to a desolate world entirely devoid of life. They have their final showdown, in which she finally separates his torso from his legs with her magic sword. She recites an execration spell as she watches him die, staring him coldly in the eye as she does so. But despite her victory, the Warlock never stops grinning, not even when he gives his final breath.

She Before Whom the Sky Shakes

The Shieldmaiden successfully returns to her home universe.

Having vanquished her foe, the Shieldmaiden of Set finally uses the magic amulet she received from the Imperishable Ones. She returns home to her own universe, finding the task force she led still waiting for her. She shows them the decapitated head of the Warlock, and everyone cheers.

The Eternal Conflict (Finale)

In each world she has visited, the Shieldmaiden has made friends and allies, uniting them to defend Ma’at against the powers of isfet. Thanks to her example, each of these brave souls now understands that Ma’at is a delicate balance and is always in danger. We can’t just sit here, hoping for a happy ending; even Gods must fight for what They wish to save.

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The Gods Can Handle Our Anger

5 min read

It’s okay to be angry or upset with the gods, and it’s okay for us to tell Them so as well. 

A very good friend of mine occasionally becomes profoundly angry with Set and/or the other Netjeru for not saving them from the horrific things they endured as a child. When this happens, they put away every religious icon they own. When they are especially upset, they might even smash these holy images in a fit of blind rage. Then they feel guilty and anxious afterwards, fearing the Netjeru will punish them for being so disrespectful.

(I will not go into details, but I do wish to be extra super double sure I’m making myself absolutely clear on this point: these behaviors are coming from a place of pain and fear, not from a place of pride or insolence. Any comments that assume otherwise will be removed. Thank you.)

When my friend confides in me about these occasions, I do what I always do. I gently remind them that no, they are not bad for feeling anger, and no, they are not bad for expressing their anger to the gods.

The ancient Egyptians got angry with the Netjeru all the time, even threatening to withhold offerings from Them if They failed to answer certain prayers in times of great need. Here, the god-and-worshiper relationship is symbiotic and reciprocal. We must give to the gods, but the gods must also give to us. If the gods give and we do not, They can condemn or abandon us; and if we give and the gods do not, we can condemn or abandon Them.

Mind you, the Netjeru are not mere genies who exist just to grant our wishes. It is unreasonable to condemn or abandon Them for not solving all of our problems for us. But it is at least reasonable for devotees to expect some kind of benefit from worshiping Them. We deserve to at least feel guided or supported by our gods somehow; and if a deity can’t even seem to deliver that much for whatever reason, it is only natural for a person to stop worshiping Them.

The idea that we are obligated to continue worshiping a particular god no matter what They do or don’t do for (or to) us is profoundly un-Setian. I would argue it is even un-Kemetic, since each of the Netjeru can potentially receive angry tirades or threats of abandonment from Their followers. Besides, even if you scream obscenities at a Netjer, you are still communicating with Them in a heartfelt manner. You are still engaging Them in a kind of prayer. You are just praying a prayer of grievance rather than gratitude, if you will.

So I tell my friend it’s absolutely okay for them to put away their religious icons whenever they feel upset with the gods. It’s even okay for them to smash said images when they are especially distressed (provided, of course, that they actually own the icons they smash, and no person or animal gets hurt in the process, including themselves).

Learning about the Netjeru turned out to be very helpful for my friend; yet they are still trying to reconcile their past with the idea that there are actually gods out there who care about them. If this is true, they ask me, why then did the gods allow them to be harmed as children?

There is very little anyone can say to answer such a question that is actually helpful (or even truthful, in my opinion at least). All I know is, if the gods are truly gods, They are big and tough enough to take our anger, especially if it’s coming from someone who is confused and hurting very deeply.

I also don’t believe for one second that the gods hold it against anyone for being traumatized and needing help. I think Set would actually prefer that my friend curse and smash His icons to having them traumatize any of the other people in their life. No matter what they might do to His icons, my friend can at least be sure they won’t hurt Set Himself; the same cannot be said for their loved ones.

There aren’t any easy answers for when bad things happen to good people. But if you happen to find yourself in a situation similar to that of my friend, I just want someone to have told you it’s okay. Set is not going to smite anyone just for being traumatized and crying out to Him for help—not even if the only way they are currently able to seek help is combative or confrontational. (He can always smite us for other reasons, of course; but Big Red is big enough to handle our feelings, even the really bad ones.) 

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It’s Okay To Have Demons

4 min read

Expecting people to be John Rambo—including Setians—is unrealistic.

It’s fucked up how the behaviors we develop to survive as kids can bite us in the ass when we are grownups.

As a kid, I was conditioned to believe that asserting myself is bad, wrong, mean, and selfish. I was taught that if I love someone, I should just keep my mouth shut whenever they do anything that disappoints me or hurts me. If I speak up about it, I am being an asshole and I don’t deserve to be loved.

How insidious it is that such conditioning can affect us even as adults. I recently lost a good friend who occasionally did things that disappointed me. I kept silent about my feelings for so long that when I finally tried to express myself, it destroyed the friendship. Then I started hating myself for even trying to talk with this person about my misgivings at all. “If I just hadn’t said anything, we would still be friends,” my brain keeps telling me. “I ruined this friendship, and it’s all my fault.”

This kind of childhood conditioning can even affect your professional life. If I land a better job and my current employer gets upset that I am leaving, I feel like a horrible person. I feel like I’m an ungrateful prick. I feel like I’m being mean and something bad is going to happen to me, as a “punishment.” Even when my logical mind knows I am doing something good for myself, even when I remember that other people hire into better jobs all the time; I still feel like I am bad.

Well the reality is that NONE of these things is true. The voice that whispers these awful things to me inside my brain is not my own voice, but the voice of my childhood trauma. When I blame myself for ruining that friendship, or when I hate on myself for doing something that’s good for my own professional development, it is not really me that’s speaking; it’s my male parental unit. It’s the man who bullied me and manipulated me when I was little; the man who was never impressed by anything I tried to do; the man who delighted in making me feel powerless, trapped, and afraid.

I resonate with Set because He refuses to control or be controlled. Like Him, I chafe at the thought of anyone telling me who or what I can or cannot be. And like Him, I absolutely detest the idea of trying to control anyone else’s life. When I came to Set at age 14, it drove my male progenitor nuts. Here was something he couldn’t take away from me, no matter how much he hit me or tried to shame me. He could burn all my books and break all my sacred objects, but he could never remove Set from my heart. And this gave me the resilience I needed to truly start defining myself apart from the toxicity in which I was raised.

But even though I started on this quest all those years ago, the journey is still in progress. I am still learning how things in my childhood are affecting my adult life. I am still learning how to not hate myself when I do things that are good for me. I am still learning how to love myself and not listen to that ugly voice in my mind that expects me to fail. I am still learning how to determine myself and to not let anyone else define me.

So take it from a Setian who has been walking with Big Red for over 24 years… Ain’t NONE of us here are “Nietzschean supermen.” It’s totally OK if you are still fighting demons from your childhood. Nobody, least of all Set, expects you to be John Rambo. (And even if Rambo were real, he’d be suffering from PTSD too, just like all the rest of us.) If you struggle with hating yourself because of traumatic things that happened to you, you are not alone by any stretch of the imagination. And it’s absolutely OK. Just try to remember that when you get to feeling that way, it’s your trauma talking; it is NOT reality. And try to remember too that talking about your feelings is a STRENGTH, not a weakness. Listening to others talk about their feelings, and helping them feel comfortable enough to share them, is a strength as well.

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It’s Setian, Not “Satanic”

4 min read

Christians and Satanists might hate each other’s deities, but Setians can honor Set and Osiris at the same time. 

One of the more annoying misconceptions against Setianism is this idea that Set is the “Egyptian devil” or “god of evil,” and that we His followers are all a bunch of raving psychopaths who thrive on chaos and violence. Another annoying assumption is the idea that if you ever attract Set’s attention to yourself, your house will burn down and your entire family will drop dead. (Or something like that.)

People who describe Set as “evil” have no business pontificating on Him (or any other Netjer or Egyptian deity, for that matter). He is really not comparable to the Christian devil at all. He is not a “fallen angel” who tries to drag people down into hell with him. He is a full-blown GOD in His own right. He is a SAVIOR who wards off the monsters of chaos.

Yes, Set has some drama with certain other members of the Egyptian pantheon; but this is not at all relatable to the “God versus Satan” dynamic of Christianity. The antagonism between Set and Osiris, for example, is not about some moral dichotomy of “good versus evil”; it is instead a theological metaphor for how ecosystems and agricultural cycles work. Christians and Satanists might hate each other’s deities, but it is not unusual for Kemetic polytheists to honor Set and Osiris together at the same shrine. This is because we know BOTH gods are really necessary and good, and that BOTH deserve to be loved and appreciated. That’s just how polytheism works.

And I have never met a single Setian who resembled a real-life Mad Max character, gleefully running from one explosion to the next. Every Setian I know is a regular everyday person who values consistency, security, and safety. We get PTSD when bad things happen to us, just like everyone else. Many of us also seem to work in fields relating to public health, helping other people achieve a better quality of life. I am actually super fucking impressed with the number of Setians I personally know who work as counselors, caregivers, educators, and other similar roles. I think this alone demonstrates that our God is neither as “chaotic” nor as “destructive” as certain people like to think.

As for the idea that reaching out to Set will cause a bunch of chaotic shit to happen in your life… Well I’ve been worshiping Him for more than 24 years now, and it has never caused my life to fall apart. In fact, my life has only become more *organized* and *secure* since I first met Him at age 14. Besides, chaotic things will happen to us no matter WHAT we do. They will happen whether we pray to Set or not. They will even happen if we pray to someone else, or if we pray to no one at all. Worshiping Set does not increase anyone’s chances of having chaotic things happen to them; it also doesn’t PREVENT such things from happening, either. But let me tell you, it sure does help to have the Red Lord in your corner during a crisis. Setians do not thrive on chaos; we thrive on SET, who helps us PERSEVERE against chaos. 

One other idea I find super annoying is this notion that Setians are supposed to be having intense paranormal experiences all the time, like on a near-daily basis or something. Ghosts, visions, and prophetic dreams are actually just as rare for me as they are for most other people. I suspect this is true of most other Setians, as well. 

You don’t have to be a psychic or a ghosthunter to be Setian. Hell, some people don’t even need rituals. Maybe you just don’t “feel right” going through the motions for whatever reason. Maybe you feel more comfortable just meditating, or trying something different. As long as you have Set in your heart, you’re Setian enough by my standards. If people can still be Christian without going to church every Sunday, you can still be Setian without keeping any shrines or casting any spells. We each get to walk with Big Red in our own way.

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Our Lady of Thrones (Coming 11/1/2021)

8 min read

Coming November 1, 2021 to gbmarian.bandcamp.com

Our Lady of Thrones is the follow-up to last year’s His Nocturnal Majesty (2020). Both stories revolve around the appearance of a monster called “the Ungod” in the sky. But while His Nocturnal Majesty concerns one group of characters and their efforts to repel this monster back to the Other Side, Our Lady of Thrones concerns a very different group of characters and their efforts to rebuild human civilization. It is also a double album, with Disc One taking place prior to His Nocturnal Majesty, and Disc Two taking place afterwards.

(For more detailed character biographies, check out His Nocturnal Majesty & Our Lady of Thrones – Cast of Characters.)

Album Art

The Whole Story:

Sorceress (The Prophecy)

When the Sorceress was a girl, Lady Isis spoke to her in dreams, showing her the end of the world. “You must gather as many of your sisters in humanity as you can,” the Goddess advised. “Together, go forth and build the city of New Sennebytos. Those who follow My guidance will survive to heal this world from the horror that is soon to come.”

Witchfinder

No one knew the Witchfinder’s true name or origin, but he could hear thoughts. He knew when other people had similiar abilities to his own. He killed as many such “witches” as he could, one by one, by any means necessary. No matter what was done to stop him, the “God” that commanded him to kill would not let him die. And the Sorceress, still a young girl, was next on his list…

The Church of Many Mothers

The Sorceress traveled far and wide, bringing women together in spirit from across the continent. Caregivers, educators, public servants…all became sisters in Lady Isis, and all pooled their resources to buy land in the West. Together, they built the community of New Sennebytos and made preparations to survive the coming disaster.

Initiation

When Rae first learned of the Church of Many Mothers, she thought they were just another doomsday cult. But it soon became clear the Sorceress was no false prophet. And when Rae saw for herself how safe, happy, and powerful these women were together…she began to realize she was one of them at heart.

The Reverend President

He was a televangelist. He hypnotized the masses into swallowing his toxic brand of Christianity. He advised several American presidents on both foreign and domestic policy. Then the people voted him into the White House, and the Church of Many Mothers became Public Enemy Number One.

Satanic Panic (Disciple of the Worm)

The Reverend President enlisted the aid of the Warlock, who engineered a spell to possess thousands of viewers through their television sets. Like flicking a switch, the evil magicians drove entire communities to commit acts of mass violence and terror. This horror was then blamed on “cults” like the Church of Many Mothers, and the world descended into madness.

Go With The Goddess

It was time for New Sennebytos to retreat underground, but the Sorceress refused to abandon those members of her church who had not yet escaped to the city. She sent her best warriors to rescue as many of their sisters from across the country as they could. One sister chosen for this quest was Rae, who had since taken a wife named Autumn. The lovers feared they might never see each other again.

Escape to New Sennebytos

Along with a warrior named Adrienne, Rae was assigned to rescue those Isians who were trapped in Atlanta. While there, the women were pursued by the Witchfinder. Rae sacrificed herself so that Adrienne and the other women could escape. It broke poor Autumn’s heart when her wife did not return home; but there was nothing to be done. For the end was about to begin…

The Screaming Sky

As civilization decayed, Ma’at began to unravel. Then the Ungod appeared in the sky, just as the Warlock had secretly planned. The monster’s countless tongues slithered down from its gigantic mouth to slowly encircle and devour the entire world. Most everyone who witnessed this immediately went insane. Our planet would never be the same again…

The Shieldmaiden’s Daughter (Part I)

While the Church of Many Mothers remained hidden beneath New Sennebytos, the Shieldmaiden of Set fought to survive above. One day, the Shieldmaiden found an orphaned baby girl, whom she adopted as her own. Whenever mother and daughter both felt hopeless at night, Lord Sutekh appeared and gave them comfort. “You are My Shieldmaidens,” He explained, “and the Ungod will tremble when you are near.”

After the End

After the elder Shieldmaiden of Set repelled the Ungod back to the Other Side, the earth slowly returned to life. The Church of Many Mothers returned to the surface and began to rebuild civilization. They welcomed refugees into their society, and they helped neighboring communities rebuild themselves too. The women of New Sennebytos then became legendary defenders of civility and peace.

Sentinels of Sekhmet

Meanwhile, the Reverend President and the Witchfinder had both survived as well. Together, they transformed Atlanta into a theocratic totalitarian empire: the Kingdom Guard. In time, the Church of Many Mothers sent a special taskforce—the Sentinels of Sekhmet—to infiltrate the Kingdom Guard and help those of its citizens who were trying to escape. Autumn was chosen to lead this quest. She believed her wife Rae might still be alive in Atlanta, and she was desperate to find out.

The Kingdom Guard

The Sentinels of Sekhmet infiltrated Atlanta, searching for citizens who sought refuge. While there, they witnessed just how horrible things within the Kingdom Guard really were. They were soon captured and imprisoned, whereupon they found a tortured and beaten Rae, near death. Sobbing, Autumn embraced her wife and gave thanks to Lady Isis.

The Shieldmaiden’s Daughter (Part II)

Just when the Sentinels of Sekhmet thought they were done for, the second Shieldmaiden of Set appeared, now fully grown. She helped the women break free, and she battled the Witchfinder as they made their escape. All of the women, including the Shieldmaiden, safely returned to New Sennebytos…But not in time for Rae’s life to be saved.

Resurrection Ceremony

Back in New Sennebytos, Autumn begged the Sorceress to use her magic and restore life to Rae. The Sorceress agreed, but explained that her magic could only resurrect Rae for a limited time. Once that time was up, Rae would have to return to the Other Side with all the rest of the dead. The Sorceress performed the ceremony, and Autumn and Rae were able to spend one last night together after all.

Last Embrace

Autumn and Rae spent their last night together in each other’s arms. Rae promised to do whatever she could as a ghost on the Other Side to help Autumn in her battles. Autumn swore she would never take another wife so long as she lived.

Warlocked (Disciple of the Worm)

Before she left this world, Rae told Autumn what she had seen as a prisoner of the Kingdom Guard. Even the Sorceress was surprised to learn the Reverend President was actually long dead, and that his corpse was but a rotting puppet. The Warlock had been the true mastermind all along, manipulating the entire Kingdom Guard for his own purposes. Now he sought to facilitate the Ungod’s return…by destroying New Sennebytos.

Witchfinder General

The Sorceress and the Witchfinder faced each other on the battlefield. The Sorceress was mighty, but even she could not phase her opponent. Then she shouted a word only the Witchfinder could hear. It was a name no one else understood. When the Witchfinder heard this, he froze like a statue…and he never moved again. Exhausted from her injuries, the Sorceress smiled…and then she died.

Defy the Ungod

The women of New Sennebytos launched their final assault against the Warlock’s hordes. They were joined in battle by the Shieldmaiden of Set, who had just returned from reuniting the Knights in Sutekh’s Service. When these mighty Setian warriors joined their Isian sisters on the battlefield, the Kingdom Guard soon dissolved into chaos.

Long Live the Queen

After defeating the Kingdom Guard, the Church of Many Mothers and the Knights in Sutekh’s Service returned to New Sennebytos. All who fell during the battle, including the Sorceress, were given the most beautiful funerals anyone had ever seen. Autumn was then coronated Pharaoh, and with their new Queen, the women of New Sennebytos went forth to continue rebuilding our world.

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Episode #67: I Believe (Album)

3 min read

My second full-length album with vocals, with hymns to various Middle and Near Eastern divinities. 

This is a collection of Setian hymns to various Middle and Near Eastern divinities of interest, including the cow goddess Hathor, the jackal god Anubis, and the peacock god Tawusê Melek. 

Available for streaming and download on Spotify, Apple Music,
Amazon, Bandcamp, and other digital music platforms!

 

Lyrics

 

Jaws of Sobek

[Instrumental]

I Believe

I believe…in me
I believe…in you
I believe…in us
I believe…in them

The Tadpole’s Prayer (Heqet)

Praise be to Heqet
O sprouter of seed
Mother of mothers
Whose guidance we need

Amphibious Goddess
Tender midwife
Grant every child
A full happy life

Such a treacherous path
From Duat to Earth
But our Lady Heqet
Assures a safe birth

Peacock King (Tawusê Melek)

All hail the Peacock King
The first of seven angels, sing
Custodian of all this world
The Earth is Your entrusted pearl

You refused to worship man
Devoted to Your Maker’s plan
And though You are by men maligned
You rule this cosmos for all time

O guiding light of Sheikh Adi
Your solar feathers flying free
Help us all to understand
This wayward beast, the ape called man

Turn to the Sun

Pray to the Son

Naqada

[Instrumental]

Lady of the Sycamore Tree

Lady of life
Queen of the sky
Milk cow of heaven
Goddess on high

When my time is done
Help me reach the Sun
Please welcome me
To Your Sycamore Tree

Oooh
What more can one ask for?
Oooh
Dining with Hathor

Syzygy

One dark night, a friend and me
We met alone, just him and me
We called upon Him, that we might see
And learn our true identities

Candles aglow, all black and red
Sacred incantations said
Image of the God with equine head
Hymns to the One all serpents dread

I AM THE HURRICANE INSIDE YOU
YOU ARE THE COMPASSION IN ME
WE’RE HEAVY METAL THUNDER
WE ARE IN SYZYGY

(Chanting: Dua Set! Dua Set!)

Many hours later, weary from prayer
We blew out the candles and got some air
We heard sound of things that were not there
And knew it was true, we were under His care

Years gone by, and we’re still here
Despite all the haters who reacted in fear
Through thick and thin, we persevere
We still walk with Set, we still hold Him dear

Imhotep

[Instrumental]

Theme For a Different Jackal

When our bodies die
There is no goodbye
Souls and spirits fly
On the Other Side

Dark terrors abound
But there is a Hound
Who is always there
To help us take care

When I was a child
Small meek and mild
You captured my heart
And that was the start

Set Happens

It really doesn’t matter
What other religions think
Whether they accept Him or not
Set Happens

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Episode #66: Set Is Now (Album)

2 min read

My first full-length album with vocals, inspired by my experiences as a Setian teenager in Satanic Panic America.

Songs of faith and devotion to the Egyptian god Set, the Egyptian goddess Taweret, and the Akkadian goddess Ishtar. This album is my first venture into songwriting with lyrics (with the exception of “Mama Riverhorse [Taweret],” which is an instrumental).

Available for streaming and download on Spotify, Apple Music,
Amazon, Bandcamp, and other digital music platforms!

 

Lyrics

 

Setian Prayer

God of Deshret
Hear my prayer
From beyond
The Great Bear

Weaken the mighty
Empower the frail
Straighten our spines
That we may prevail

Cut the wrappings
That keep us bound
Open our mouths
And give us sound

True evil will tremble
Its servants shall flee
For we are with Sutekh
And we shall be free

Morningstar

Repent all you sinners
Before the Morningstar
Our Lady of Babylon
All praise unto Ishtar

“If you don’t give me the Bull of Heaven
I will knock down the Gates of the Netherworld
I will smash the doors
And leave the doors flattened down
And will let the dead go up to eat the living.”

– The Epic of Gilgamesh, Tablet VI

Deception of a Generation

Burn all my records
Shame me for my lust
Broken faith
Violations of trust

Call me a sinner
Consign me to hell
Force me to eat
The fecal matter you sell

Torment me
Or cut me to the bone
I define me
And my will is stone

Dua Set
O Prince of the night
Thank You for bringing me
Into the light

Mama Riverhorse (Taweret)

[Instrumental]

In the Name of Sutekh

In the Name of Sutekh
Gonna bring you down
Won’t stop for nothin’
‘Till it’s all turned ’round

In the Name of Sutekh
No prophets, no kings
Just us and them, together again
Everybody sings

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Monsters Movies Paganism Setianism

His Nocturnal Majesty & Our Lady of Thrones – Cast of Characters

12 min read

INTRODUCTION

His Nocturnal Majesty and Our Lady of Thrones both hinge on a central apocalyptic event that occurs sometime in the not-too-distant future, and which I first envisioned when I was in high school back in the 1990s.

The key to understanding this apocalyptic event is Ma’at, the Egyptian concept of truth, justice, and healthy reciprocal relationships between sentient beings and the rest of nature.

When Ma’at is upheld, human civilization, the forces of nature, and even Duat (the Spirit World or Other Side) are all made to flourish. But whenever Ma’at is forsaken, it makes a crack in the very fabric of Creation itself. And there are all kinds of nasty things out there in the nothingness outside Creation—the myriad Powers of Isfet—that would like nothing more than to rip our multiverse apart from within.

Chief among these malevolent forces is an entity so utterly toxic and poisonous, even lesser Powers of Isfet are afraid to speak its true name. For the purposes of my narratives at least, this ancient enemy of all gods and creatures is simply called the Ungod.

Each of the Netjeru or Egyptian gods and goddesses plays various roles in upholding Ma’at and repelling the Ungod at a higher, cosmic level of existence. This prevents the foul thing and its hordes from simply swallowing the entire multiverse whenever they want.

But part of Ma’at requires appreciating the autonomy of all sentient beings, and human mortals are sentient. This means the Netjeru can’t just come down here and uphold Ma’at for us in all of our affairs. We are responsible for upholding Ma’at in our own dealings with each other, our environment, and any other sentient species we might eventually encounter. And so long as there are enough people upholding Ma’at across the world, the Powers of Isfet can never just seep into our area of the multiverse…

The flip side to this, of course, is that when human beings finally become too rotten and despicable in general, all bets are off. The Ungod will slither through the cracks we have made in Ma’at and un-create us (physically, mentally, spiritually, etc.), doing so as slowly and maliciously as it can. The gods will be unable to save us, as well, for we will have chosen this fate for ourselves by our own catastrophic actions. And this is exactly what I saw in my nightmares as a teen. One day, when it seems there’s just no more hope for humanity at all, the Ungod physically appears to everyone as a giant mouth in the sky. Its massive tongues reach down to devour all the people below. And the damned thing is in absolutely no hurry to eat us all at once, either; it prefers to play with its food first, since we taste much better when we are insane with fear.

I’m pretty sure I dreamed all this up from reading the Lament of Hermes, a Greco-Egyptian “prophecy” that foretells of the world falling apart due to a complete absence of Ma’at among humanity. But in my version of events at least, we still have a chance of reversing all this bullshit and exorcising the Ungod. There are still handfuls of good people across the earth who try to uphold Ma’at, even after the monster breaks loose and slithers into our atmosphere. These include the protagonists of both His Nocturnal Majesty and Our Lady of Thrones, who fight to repel the Ungod and restore enough Ma’at so it can’t return.

Our Lady of Thrones is a double album, and the first disc takes place during the final years before the Ungod breaks loose. The second disc takes place after the events of His Nocturnal Majesty, in which the Ungod is repelled by the Shieldmaiden of Set and the Knights in Sutekh’s Service. Once that particular battle is won, the protagonists of Our Lady of Thrones set to work trying to rebuild our world, and they also face off against the Ungod’s surviving mortal allies (who actually want to bring the monster back).

THE SHIELDMAIDEN OF SET

There are actually two Shieldmaidens of Set: a mother and a daughter.

The elder Shieldmaiden was born and grew up long before the Ungod appeared, and she was a police detective. She earned her chops hunting and apprehending some of the most dangerous human predators imaginable. She first encountered Lord Sutekh during a near-death experience, when He warned her of the doom that was to come. After she recovered, she became a survivalist and a martial artist.

When the Ungod appeared, nearly everyone who looked up to the sky went dangerously insane…except for the Shieldmaiden. Somehow, she could look at the Mouth above without losing her nerve. And with this indomitable nerve of steel, she went forth to rescue as many lives as she could during the apocalypse.

One life she saved was that of the second Shieldmaiden, who was just an orphaned baby girl at the time. The woman adopted the child as her own; then they traveled the dying earth, following Lord Sutekh’s instructions. The mother found other people who remained sane at the sight of the Ungod, and she raised a mighty army. The Knights in Sutekh’s Service then launched a counterattack against the Ungod, and the elder Shieldmaiden worked a spell that banished the monster back into the void. She had to attract all of the monster’s attention entirely to herself in the process.

When the Knights saw the gigantic red hand of Sutekh reach into our atmosphere and grab the Ungod in a chokehold, they knew they had won. Then the heroes all dispersed and went to live out their lives in the wilderness (as recounted in His Nocturnal Majesty). 

In the years that followed, the elder Shieldmaiden taught the younger everything she knew. The two became known far and wide among the various civilizations that developed after the apocalypse. They were beloved as heroes in most places, but were also feared for being friendly with Lord Sutekh and other Powers people couldn’t understand.

As an adult, the second Shieldmaiden reunited the Knights in Sutekh’s Service to help prevent another visit from the Ungod, which is just part of the story in Our Lady of Thrones. 

THE SORCERESS

Like the elder Shieldmaiden of Set, the Sorceress was born and grew up long before the coming of the Ungod. When she was still a young girl, Lady Isis showed her the coming apocalypse in her dreams. These nightmares were terrifying, but the Sorceress took them to heart. Lady Isis told the girl everything she needed to do to plan for and survive the apocalypse as an adult, and the Sorceress followed Her instructions faultlessly.

When she came of age, the Sorceress traveled the world and brought women of different backgrounds together. They became the Church of Many Mothers, and they pooled their resources to buy land and build the town of New Sennebytos somewhere in the West. Not only would this town be dedicated to Lady Isis and the Church’s way of life; it was also equipped with plenty of bunkers and provisions for when the apocalypse began.

In time, the Church of Many Mothers became subject to greater scrutiny and was even perceived as a dangerous terrorist group by the federal government. Members of the Church were hunted down, arrested, even murdered. But the majority survived and hid deep within the bunkers of New Sennebytos when the Ungod appeared. After the monster was banished by the Knights in Sutekh’s Service, the Church returned to the surface and began to rebuild human civilization.

Members of the Church regarded the Sorceress as their prophet and Queen. Some have said she could even raise the dead. Later, she and her Church joined forces with the Knights in Sutekh’s Service to try and prevent the return of the Ungod. 

AUTUMN AND RAE

Autumn and Rae were two of the greatest warriors in the Church of Many Mothers. Both thought the Church was just another “doomsday cult” until they saw for themselves how safe, happy, and powerful the women of New Sennebytos really were. After a few years of being members, Autumn and Rae fell in love and were married by the Sorceress.

Shortly before the Ungod appeared in the sky, the monster’s human allies tried to systematically exterminate the Church of Many Mothers. Members were targeted for death in every major city. So the Sorceress appointed a special team of warriors to go and save as many of their sisters in Isis as possible. Rae was chosen to lead the rescue team in Atlanta, and though she managed to save her sisters there, she did not return home herself. Autumn was mad with grief when she and the rest of New Sennebytos were finally forced to retreat underground.

After the Ungod was defeated and the women of New Sennebytos returned to the surface, Autumn trained like hell to become the deadliest warrior in the entire Church. Years later—when the second Shieldmaiden of Set was fully grown—Autumn would lead an excursion back to Atlanta and try to find Rae, assuming she was even still alive…

THE WITCHFINDER 

No one knew the Witchfinder’s true name or origin, but he first appeared long before the World Fell Apart, when the Sorceress was still a young maiden. His existence was really known mostly to the Church of Many Mothers. What little media coverage he received was very closely monitored and censored from the general public.

The Witchfinder was absolutely impervious to any physical injury; he never became ill, and neither blades nor bullets nor blasts could bruise him. He was also a born psychic and could hear thoughts. He knew when other people had paranormal abilities, and he relentlessly stalked and killed as many of these “witches” as he could. He did this because he heard a voice in the sky telling him to do so—the insidious hiss of the Ungod.

The Witchfinder first attacked the Sorceress shortly after she started receiving her prophetic visions from Lady Isis. He relentlessly stalked her entire Church (among others) for decades afterwards. Then the end came, and after the Ungod was repelled, the Witchfinder became the second highest authority in the Kingdom Guard. He would eventually lead the armies of this brutal regime to war against the women of New Sennebytos, and with zero intent of taking any prisoners.

THE REVEREND PRESIDENT

The Reverend President began his career as a televangelist. He heard the hiss of the Ungod, whispering to him from the sky. He mistook it for the voice of “God,” and things always seemed to go his way when he heeded its advice.

He preached that “the Lord” was displeased with society recognizing the freedoms of women, the LGBTQ+ community, minority religions, and atheists and agnostics. He wanted his creeds made into law, requiring Americans to convert and obey upon threat of public execution by the state. The Reverend further taught that if this were not made to happen very very soon—within the next seven years, in fact—”the Lord” would give this world to Satan, and it would be forever destroyed.

As if on cue, the country was besieged by a cult of domestic terrorists who claimed to worship Satan. Even normal rational people started buying into the Reverend’s wild-eyed claims. It wasn’t long before the Reverend was voted into the White House and started issuing executive orders that tyrannized anyone who didn’t worship him and follow his every command. Suspected “witches” were harassed, assaulted, even murdered by their neighbors all across the country, and institutions like the Church of Many Mothers became Public Enemy Number One.

Then the Ungod appeared, and the World Fell Apart.

While the Knights in Sutekh’s Service fought to repel the Ungod back to the void, the Reverend President and the Witchfinder joined forces in Atlanta, which became the capital of their new empire. Known as the Kingdom Guard, this regime invaded and enslaved as many surviving communities across the country as it could. All who were occupied were either converted or exterminated. Those who encountered the Kingdom Guard and escaped with their lives have consistently described its citizens as monsters in the shapes of men.

Our Lady of Thrones culminates in the final confrontation between the Kingdom Guard and the Church of Many Mothers.

THE WARLOCK

The Warlock or “Disciple of the Worm” was known by many names across multiple universes. He wasn’t human, though he had a thousand human faces. Each world he visited soon decayed into nothingness. He used the same method for interdimensional travel as beings like the Fae—by walking between the worlds on different Halloween nights in history (a theme also explored in Summer’s End II)—and he first arrived in this reality in 1982. The Warlock then used (at least) two fake human identities to engineer the end of our world.

In one of his roles, the Disciple was a multimillion dollar media tycoon whose TV programs made him insanely rich. He pretended to be a born-again Christian, and he used his media wizardry to help the Reverend President win the White House.

In his other role, the Warlock was a psychiatrist who worked with the criminally insane. He discreetly hypnotized his patients and helped them all escape. Once free, his patients burned down entire neighborhoods in the name of Satan. The Warlock then encouraged the Reverend President to capitalize on these “satanic terrorists” and seize more and more power over time.

When this evil spell had spread across enough of the globe, the World Fell Apart and the Ungod appeared in the sky. The Warlock was seldom seen afterwards; yet his presence continued to be felt, especially in cities occupied by the Kingdom Guard. His true appearance remained unknown, and it was rumored he could create doubles of himself. Perhaps not even the Reverend President had ever seen the actual Disciple of the Worm face-to-face.

How could anyone know who, when, or where this master of misdirection really was?

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Paganism Setianism

I Believe

1 min read

I Believe, my second full-length album to feature lyrics, was released in July 2021 and is now available at gbmarian.bandcamp.com, Amazon, iTunes, Spotify, and other digital music platforms.

 

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Set Doesn’t Need A Church (And Neither Do We)

8 min read

I have been asked before: “Why don’t you start your own church?” Here are some reasons why this is not only unnecessary for Setians, but probably undesirable as well.

The question has been raised before: why not start a new Setian church—one that speaks to those of us who actually revere and venerate Set, and which honors Him above all other gods?

It is certainly true that some things are easier to accomplish in groups, and that there are limits to what any one individual can do alone. But what exactly do we need to “do” for Set in large crowds? He does not demand to be worshiped by the masses. He is a hunter god who is always on the prowl, and who is much more concerned with saving all our butts from crazy hellbeasts than He is with micromanaging our lives. Divinities like Set are loners who tend to prefer the company of other loners, if They desire any company at all.

It will be pointed out, of course, that His Nocturnal Majesty was worshiped in certain ancient Egyptian temples. This is quite true, but Egyptian temples worked very differently than modern churches do. Their innermost sanctuaries were closed to the public, and the priestly rituals for a temple’s god(s) were generally private. Though public piety existed, the Egyptians had no concept of “going to church” as such; they more often honored their ancestors and/or the god(s) of their choice at home, or at neighborhood shrines that technically weren’t on temple grounds. Along with just being good neighbors and citizens, this was the basic template for religion in ancient Kemet; there were no dogmatic litmus tests for “membership,” and there was no real concern for what individuals might or might not believe theologically. I think it’s probably fair to say most Setians, Kemetics, and polytheists in general are already living this way by default, and we clearly don’t need a church to continue doing so.

It’s also worth noting that our Western model of religious affiliation appears to be slowly going extinct. The most vocal and visible churches continue to deny science and harbor known evildoers among their leadership. Such institutions have consistently raped, murdered, or otherwise oppressed countless innocents throughout history. The masses have grown tired of their bullshit, and church attendance is now at an all-time low. So perhaps starting a church in today’s environment would not be the wisest investment of anyone’s time and resources. Again, our god doesn’t necessarily want to be worshiped by large crowds of people anyway; nor does He want us to waste our energy fighting each other, which we are much more likely to do when we gather in large numbers. Virtually every organized religion has been fragmented by its own rival sects over time; it is human nature for groups of people to quarrel and eventually schism. I therefore see little point in trying to coordinate such a project, only to have it eventually fall apart or become corrupt.

Church corruption is most blatant when it comes to our tax exemption laws, which are meant to help them invest as much of their funding into charity as possible. This seems perfectly legit—money that is used to help others ought not to be taxed. But the problem is that most church spending around the world does not actually go into charity. Most of that spending goes into building lavish cathedrals, lobbying for (usually conservative or right-wing) political causes, and acquiring more converts (i.e., donors). In some cases, the money just goes straight into the leadership’s pockets. The truth is that churches are really more like businesses than anyone wants to admit. Time and time again, the government has given stimulus money to corporations so they can pay better wages to their employees, only for the employers to predictably keep all that money for themselves. Churches function in much the same way, except they don’t have to pay any of what they keep back to the rest of society, and the government bails them out every fucking year.

The saddest part of all this is that if we DID tax churches, we would have MORE than enough money in the national budget to shelter all of our homeless citizens, improve all of our schools, and finance other badly needed social initiatives—things churches are supposed to do with all their money, but don’t. It seems clear to me at least that organized, institutionalized religion holds us back from evolving and growing into a truly advanced society; it always has, and it always will.

Maybe if churches operated more like Ghost, I’d like ’em better.

I realize I must sound like an atheist to some people. I am not. My faith in Set and other divinities, though unique, is considerably devout. I did not say religion is the problem—I said that organized, institutionalized religion is the problem. We are taught in this culture to think of faith as something that must always be standardized and static, never being allowed to change. But once upon a time, religion was much more personal and fluid for the vast majority of believers across the globe. Some of us, including yours truly, still adhere to this perspective today, and it may very well become the norm again quite soon.

It is true that churches can provide avenues of critical social support for their members; yet there are safer and more sensible alternatives today. If Sally Setian needs money for an operation, we can launch a Kickstarter drive for her, and all the money donated to her will actually go to her bank account; it won’t be divided up (or outright stolen) to pay for some pastor’s new limousine. I enjoy sending donations to random people I know online who really need it whenever I can; but I would not enjoy being pressured to donate money to a church at regular intervals (upon fear of being considered “un-Setian” if I don’t).

Yet there is another, deeper reason why starting a Setian church doesn’t seem too worthwhile. We do not need to “serve” Set by “bringing more people” to Him. He neither expects nor even wants us to actively seek converts. If what we do helps others to find Him, it is a blessing and a work of great magic; but to try and aggressively expand our numbers is antithetical to the Setian disposition. It also suggests that Set needs us to go around convincing people to believe in Him, when He is perfectly capable of doing this Himself. If it is important enough to Him that someone should believe in Him for whatever reason, it is for Him and that person to decide together, and no one else. So most of us who are drawn to Set deplore proselytism, and would find the idea of “winning souls” for Him quaint at best.

I propose an alternative to all of this church nonsense: simple social networking. We are already talking to each other, collaborating with each other, and helping each other right here on the various social media we all frequent. And each of us is already doing and contributing about as much to our scene as we probably would if we were all in a church together (or in rival churches, bickering and quarreling with each other). I think this is more or less how walking with Set is meant to be. Our faith is not a dogma but an art, and our god is not a micromanager but a muse. Must artists join organized groups with rules and regulations to be artists? No, that isn’t how art works; and it isn’t how Setianism works either. We are not a congregation in need of a church; we’re more like a bunch of individual artists who just network with each other as needed or desired.

As a final note, some readers and listeners have referred to the LV-426 Tradition as a “church.” Just to be clear: we are not and have never claimed to be any such thing. LV-426 currently consists of only four people who grew up knowing each other; so I would sooner describe us as “a very small coven” at best.

I am sincerely grateful to Setken, Siobhan Welch, and several other beloved friends and family for their generous help in preparing this sermon for the public, and for encouraging me to preach again. Thank you all, and thank Set for each of you.

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Paganism Setianism

Near Death Experience

2 min read

I almost died in October 2003. For reasons that remain evasive, I started bleeding in my colon at an alarming rate. At the hospital, they told me they would need to remove the part of my colon that was bleeding; and they further explained that this would be an extremely risky procedure considering my youth. For a while there, I was really scared I might die in the operating room.

But when the morning of the procedure came and the nurses wheeled my bed into the hospital’s surgical wing, I saw a tall, muscular shadow standing in the hallway. It had long rectangular ears and glowing eyes. If I had been anyone else, I would have been terrified; but being me, I recognized the presence of Set immediately. I knew I wasn’t seeing Him with my physical eyes, either, but with the eyes of my ka or spirit.

I only saw Set for a split second that day, but it was enough. As they hauled me into the operating room and put me under for the procedure, I rest assured that no matter what might happen, my Lord would be with me.

And here I am, 18 years later, still alive to tell the tale.

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