This is something I have been wondering lately. I frrl happier the more I follow my path but I also feel more strange because of it. I feel like my beliefs and my practices and how I deal with things in life are vastly different from how others deal with theirs (talking about normal nonpagan people). Sometimes I wonder if I AM crazy and I should just wander aimlessly only in the material world like some people seem to do. But I did that for many years and it made me very depressed because I was just pretending and not following my path. But I am inceeasingly afraid of people deeming me crazy if they find out about my witchcraft practices. I’d love to hear your thoughts on this. Also why isn’t it crazy when big religions have worldviews but it is when marginalized groups have? Sorry, I have been a bit blue tonight.
Well one thing I can tell u…every one is crazy n if you feel like the world is against you the whole occult family has your back yes when we start on this path it’s like our eyes have opened to see the world in a different matter around u it’s a normal thing it’s like a new cycle of change things aren’t as bad as they seem you know
In the beginning I did. I beat myself down for years about not thinking about things for years, especially my more cruel aspects of my mind. But over time, I have come to understand two key concepts. The first is that our species is entirely mad in general, especially in comparison to the rest of the animal kingdom. We enslave ourselves to far more than any other species, ranging from the need of social acceptance (something that was needed in the past for physical survival but is more to fulfill emotional needs now) to those of currency or political means. We surrender our power and even our means of survival too easily these days.
The second concept is that everyone wears a mask these days, mainly out of fear of being rejected or viewed as insane. It has gotten to the point where people wear masks to hide from themselves, leading to destructive habits emerging from allowing things to fester underneath the surface. In the end, I decided to shed my mask from myself and walk the lonely path as a madman instead of continuing to walk in fear or shame. Never have regretted that decision since.
Good point. Humans have this bad habit of only noticing what others do, while becoming completely blind when it comes to their actions and beliefs.
On the other hand. If you think about it… you need to be crazy to practice the occult. You’re basically doing what your mind and society are telling you is impossible, logically doesn’t make any sense, and almost completely the opposite of mainstream… everything!
That’s why in my opinion, maintaining mental health for occultists is more important than ordinary people. Personally, I try to be extremely skeptical in my practice as protection mechanism. Having duality of mind to keep that required balance. Spirituality and physical evidence. Magick and science. Gods and energy. I do my best to stay centered and deal only with what I can prove, while keeping an open mind when it comes to anything “I believe” without evidence. It’s not perfect by any means, but good enough.
I truly believe we’re born spiritually open for the purpose of growth through gaining knowledge of our true selves and how the universe really works. It’s because of social “norms” and us being “different” that we’re supressed internally and externally into our current states of crazy so we don’t wake up and progress. Think about it: it’s easier to breed a horse than to break a stallion. When we go against the grain and take complete control of ourselves, our lives and dig deep into the way our universe works is when we start gaining freedom in the ways we want and live the way we want.
Every demon, angel, spirit, etc all have a common phrase and it boils down to “fuck the norm when it serves you no good. Fuck a system that’s soul purpose is to suppress and slave you out. When you stop letting the way others think and how they act affect you is when change happens.”
I find that doing my best to stay grounded helps keep me sane. Interpret what I encounter symbolically first and from there pluck out the information that leads to practical action and effects in my life. If I can’t take it and use it in a practical manner it’s not of much use to me.
That doesn’t mean I don’t think spirits exist. I think they very much do exist outside myself. But I have to be able to take a few steps back control my emotions and ask myself “How can I apply this?” & “How does it benefit me?”
Otherwise it’s like floating in another dimension all the time which can make me feel out of touch with this one and definitely wondering about my sanity.
It comes with the territory of being a mage I guess
I am, my mind is pretty much ripped in several places as a result of engaging my spiritual work.
Talking about depression, insecurity, fear, OCD (< unable to trust your instincts by not knowing what voice is real).
As I try to tell people on this forum, I don’t dabble, I am in it 100% and results have been bordering on maddening.
I am never in control, and it is hard to settle into that, I know there is a voice in me instructing me, but sometimes it turns on me and I don’t know which one is real (leading to OCD), depression from the never-ending hammering on my mind to become better, to change all the time, never good enough, poverty and social isolation to ensure no corruption of the becoming process.
For me it is not a question of insanity anymore as much as recovering from it.
I nearly lost my mind when I was a christian. The occult helped me find it and keep it secure.
Not really. I’m too stubborn and accepting, ironically. Plus I rationalize everything.
There’s your antidote to crazy in case anyone missed it. 
I honestly never been afraid that I’d lose my mind mainly because I like to keep my mind with some skepticism, as I’ve been in occult communities long enough to notice what to avoid by watching others let their brains fall out. Easier to learn by observation not by following.
I’ve thought for a long while that there is some form of enlightenment in madness, I’ve dealt with crazy people a fair amount (the ones in hospital) and often you’ll find they will say or do something that they just shouldn’t know or shouldn’t be possible. I randomly mentioned the “edge of the coin” theory (if there are only two possible outcomes to a situation there is a minute chance of there being a third but it’s nearly impossible to achieve) and the man literally took a coin out of his pocket and dropped it landing on its edge three times in a row. The moment I said to myself “fuck it, I’m crazy and I embrace it” was the moment I started to feel more sane and comfortable. Not in form of dillusional thinking, but completely more rational and clear, like the mere acceptence of the possibility liberated me from it.
That all being said I wouldn’t recommend going insane to advance yourself, I’m just saying I think there is definitely something there. “Being well adjusted to a profoundly sick society is no mark of sanity”
I love all these posts, straight from the heart, saying basically the same thing in response to the original question: “Sure, but I am far more afraid of losing my mind WITHOUT the LHP.”
I try and try to lose my mind, but the damn thing keeps finding me again.
No, never. I’m a very logical, skeptical person by nature, plus I overthink everything. My brain never shuts up, but I understand exactly how it works.
I do think that not sharing my practice with non-occultists helps. They can’t tell you “that’s impossible” or “you’re crazy” if they don’t know anything.
I lost mine already before the LHP so much easier to navigate 
I edited that because I never really walked the RHP
Let me tell you something about Madness, and his sanity while working within the occult.
It is inevitable. The deeper you go down the rabbit hole, there weirder shit you’ll encounter. And eventually, you will start to question what is real and what is not. I like skirting that edge, seeing as how I have no connections to get drugs, this works just fine. Driving myself directly to the Edge of Insanity, and sometimes, a few steps into it is such a rush.
Whenever the veil between the worlds become so thin that it’s hard to distinguish between this world and the spiritual, that is my personal heaven.
I like losing my mind on occasion, I like not knowing if the world around me is real, and I enjoy pushing my own mind to the farthest limit I can take it.
May nothing be left unknown to me.
Whenever you are fully immersed in the insanity , and you have completely dropped mind , you are at the proverbial Crossroads, you are on the edges of this world, and the spiritual world that you have created. That is where magick happens.
To quote a certain Warhammer 40K character, “Sanity is for the weak!”
Once you’ve been insane as well as privy to genuine occult experience, they’re quite easy to distinguish.
Sanity is for the weak.
I do not know. Let me ask my talking dragon.