Within

chaos magic Chaos magic, also spelled chaos magick, is a modern tradition of magic. It initially emerged in England in the 1970s as part of the wider neo-pagan and magical subculture. Drawing heavily from the occult beliefs of artist Austin Osman Spare, ...

, a servitor is a psychological complex, deliberately created by the magician for a specific purpose to operate autonomously from the magician's consciousness.

Concept

A servitor is an entity "specifically created by the magician to perform a set range of tasks".

Phil Hine Philip M. Hine is a British occultist and writer. He became known internationally through his written works ''Condensed Chaos'', ''Prime Chaos'', and ''Pseudonomicon'', as well as several essays on the topics of chaos magic and Cthulhu Mythos mag ...

writes that servitors are created "by deliberately budding off portions of our psyche and identifying them by means of a name, trait, symbol", after which "we can come to work with them (and understand how they affect us) at a conscious level."

Servitors can be created to perform a wide range of tasks, from the specific to the general, and may be considered as expert systems which are able to modify themselves to take into account new factors that are likely to arise whilst they are performing their tasks. They can be programmed to work within specific circumstances, or to be operating continually.

Servitors form part of a

thoughtform Tulpa is a concept in Theosophy, mysticism, and the paranormal, of an object or being that is created through spiritual or mental powers. Modern practitioners, who call themselves "tulpamancers", use the term to refer to a type of willed imaginary ...

continuum: from

sigils A sigil () is a type of symbol used in magic. The term has usually referred to a pictorial signature of a deity or spirit. In modern usage, especially in the context of chaos magic, sigil refers to a symbolic representation of the practitioner ...

, to servitors, to egregores, to godforms. At the start of the continuum are "dumb, unintelligent sigils", which represent a particular desire or intention. When a complex of thoughts, desires and intentions gains such a level of sophistication that it appears to operate autonomously from the magician's consciousness, as if it were an independent being, then such a complex is referred to as a servitor. When such a being becomes large enough that it exists independently of any one individual, as a form of "group mind", then it is referred to as an

egregore Egregore (also spelled egregor; , ) is an occult concept representing a non-physical entity that arises from the collective thoughts of a distinct group of people. Historically, the concept referred to angelic beings, or watchers, and the specif ...

. Alternatively, a magician may choose to create servitors from negative aspects of their psyche, such as "habits, shortcomings, faults, revulsions", rather than positive desires or intentions. In doing so, they can interact with those traits as personal demons, and bind or

banish Exile is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons and peoples suf ...

them to eradicate them from the psyche.

History

Austin Osman Spare Austin Osman Spare (30 December 1886 – 15 May 1956) was an English artist and occultism, occultist who worked as both a draughtsman and a painter. Influenced by Symbolism (arts), symbolism and art nouveau his art was known for its clear use o ...

stated that psychological complexes could be deliberately created through his

sigil A sigil () is a type of symbol used in magic. The term has usually referred to a pictorial signature of a deity or spirit. In modern usage, especially in the context of chaos magic, sigil refers to a symbolic representation of the practitioner ...

technique, referring to sigils as "sentient symbols". According to Spare, feeding sigils with free belief incubates "obsessions", which in turn gives rise to complexes.

Peter J. Carroll Peter James Carroll (born 8 January 1953) is an English occultist, writer, and physics graduate. He is one of the originators of chaos magic theory and a cofounder of the Illuminates of Thanateros. Career In the late 1970s, Peter Carroll and ...

writes: "These beings have a legion of names drawn from the demonology of many cultures: elementals, familiars, incubi, succubi, bud-wills, demons, atavisms, wraiths, spirits, and so on." Hine, in turn, compares the servitor to the Tibetan Buddhist concept of the

tulpa Tulpa is a concept in Theosophy, mysticism, and the paranormal, of an object or being that is created through spiritual or mental powers. Modern practitioners, who call themselves "tulpamancers", use the term to refer to a type of willed imaginary ...

Concept

History

See also

References

Further reading