Satanic Lockpicking
Locks are fascinating contraptions. They date back further than ancient Assyria and have provided the means to keep untold amounts of secrets, delights, and horrors hidden throughout history. Despite how far our technology has evolved, by and large we still employ the same basic principles from thousands of years ago to protect some of our most valuable and guarded assets. For those who know the mechanics, the exploits of these systems are glaring and are the perfect illustration of the illusion of security. They provide a sense of protection when, in reality, they are so easily manipulated against the owner’s intent that their benefit is largely psychological. This benefit is protected by the ignorance of most who have never stopped to take an even rudimentary look at how a lock functions – if they did, their shortcomings would be too obvious for even Joe Average to miss. Locks also take a prominent position in one of Anton LaVey’s most insightful treatises on magic, which happens to be one of his most overlooked.
The Combination Lock Principle appears on page 35 of The Devil’s Notebook and explores a comparison of the mechanics of magical process with the functions of a lock. Despite its humble length of 2 pages, LaVey does this in a way that provides us insight into a novel model of magical operation. He paints the magical process as being similar to the processes that cause a lock to open, namely the falling into place of pins that allows a lock to turn. The combination, he insists, changes depending on the magician and their intent. As LaVey points out, it is not possible to know precisely what the combination is – but the falling of each pin does reside within 3D space. Examples of pins falling into place are reading the right book at the right time, happening upon an old friend and remembering something you need, finding that particularly elusive trinket at an antiques shop, and the list could go on. These phenomena seem to be rooted magically in time and, as LaVey theorizes, this fourth dimension is the locale of all magical phenomena. If you have the three-dimensional actions performed correctly, this fourth pin falls into place. If you are an even somewhat competent magician, you will be familiar with the peculiar coincidences that fall into place to provide you with the opportunity for your working to succeed. They are opportunities because, as LaVey continues, one must be open to recognize these pins as they are made available to us – something far easier said than done. Why? When one looks for the combination they need, it is impossible to see in the midst of it. As is true with the rainbow, there can be no sight of it while standing inside of it. Beyond the rainbow is where we need to cast our eyes.
I have always been drawn to information that one is not supposed the have, information that has the potential to turn upstanding corporate citizens into pesky, independent ones. Lockpicking is one of the troves of PG-rated forbidden material available and it doesn’t take much time to learn to pick some of the most widely used locks on the market today. The ability to see past the surface of things and learn how to make them work to your advantage is an inherently Satanic concept and, similar to how we act as magicians, we are trying to open locks without knowing the combination and without having a key. It’s more apt to look at the magical process through the lens of picking a lock as opposed to merely opening it, and more accurate to consider the function of a pin tumbler lock than a combination lock. Before we can do this, it will help to briefly explore how locks function in a bit more detail.
While locks vary in their size and less so in their base mechanism, when we conjure an image of a lock in our minds what we are likely thinking of is the cylinder. This is the outer casing that houses the plug, the part of the lock that turns with the correct key when inserted into the keyway. Inside the plug there are 2 sets of pins – driver pins and lower pins. Driver pins have springs above them that push them down onto the set of bottom pins. When the correct key is inserted, the combination of grooves on the key raise each lower pin to the correct height that aligns the driver pins above them. When aligned, the driver pins are just above the plug and no longer prevent the plug from turning. This line formed just above the plug by the driver pins is called the sheer line. When picking a lock, you use tools to move the lower pins into place so is that the driver pins rest on the sheer line. Raise the lower pins any further however and they themselves prevent the plug from turning. While I’m sure you’re grateful for this short tutorial, you must be wondering how this can help us expand on LaVey’s theory.
Unlike with a key, the lockpicker cannot simultaneously raise each lower pin to the correct height. The first tool inserted to pick a lock is a tension wrench, this usually ‘L’ shaped tool applies torque to the plug to keep pins from being pushed back down after they are correctly set at the sheer line. Most magic materializes outside of the ritual chamber, at least most magic worth doing anyway. As the magician enters her ritual chamber to perform her work, if the appropriate ingredients for magic are present (see The Book of Belial), the working acts as a tension wrench of sorts. The working provides magical torque that allows the pins to be manipulated and is the first step towards having the world change in accordance with your will. This torque resonates with and allows the entry of fourth-dimensional elements, setting the stage for pins to begin to be picked. The importance of ensuring the magical ingredients are in place with the correct measurements cannot be understated, as without torque applied no pins will move and no lock will turn.
A combination lock metaphor suggests that the spinning of numbers into place by chance or process of elimination is equatable to magic. I disagree. Here again the pin-tumbler lock gives us better insight. With torque applied, our would-be lockpicker uses a myriad of tools at their disposal to push up on the lower pins. Consider these tools similar to the opportunities LaVey talks about, they come in different forms and you have to be able to recognize them when they appear to make the most use out of them – but not all lead to the pin being picked into place. We’ve already established the correct combinations cannot be seen when looking for them, so what do we do? Well, we don’t look for them – we look at them in retrospect after they’ve come into being. They say hindsight is 20/20 and as magicians this is one of our most useful tools. An important component of lockpicking is understanding The Binding Principle. In short, the binding principle states that one must manipulate the pins in a particular order. That order is specific to the combination of pins for that specific lock. As magicians, we are effectively trying to pick our own locks. The combination of pins is unique to each witch or warlock and is unique to the goal they are trying to accomplish. Part of being a successful magician is understanding your lock’s special nuances, the patterns in combinations you find as you go about your magical work. Depending on what you are trying to accomplish, be it destruction, compassion, or lust, patterns will emerge that will be visible after the fact. Examine the order of magical coincidences that set into place and what factors they involve after your chamber work is complete. Is the first pin usually an encounter with a person when desiring compassion, or is it a piece of literature? Do unexpected travel opportunities appear when seeking lust, and what appears before and after? Once established, look into the deeper significance of each correct tool and investigate the undercurrent running through it. Deciphering the recurring order of magical phenomena after successfully accomplishing your goal will open your eyes for future magic, allowing you to see the rainbow from memory while inside of it. There will of course always be differences as no magical attempt is the same as the last, but there will be similarities. This will help you to notice the tools and discern which ones are needed depending on your goal.
It is not necessarily the events or phenomena themselves that make the magic, but when they occur that does. LaVey got it right when he said timing is everything. Understanding your own binding order will help you direct your attention to the right opportunities at the right time, leaving you to use them and push the pins as appropriate and find your combination with greater ease than groping around aimlessly. This is not an excuse to shut yourself off from opportunities that fall outside of your newly formed paradigm, instead it provides you with a workable rubric to guide your attention and efforts. Always remember that patience, a gentle touch, and a sensitive ear will help you crack even the most daunting of safes.
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