Lesson 2
Cthulhu
Get a summary of this lesson by viewing the video below:
If you haven't yet read The Bible of Cthulhu this may all seem quite perplexing to you.
So let's start with the absolute basics, shall we?
Who (or what) exactly is Cthulhu?
Cthulhu is an ancient cosmic entity first introduced to the world by H.P. Lovecraft.
This is the exact description of an idol of Cthulhu from The Call of Cthulhu:
... a monster of vaguely anthropoid outline, but with an octopus-like head whose face was a mass of feelers, a scaly, rubbery-looking body, prodigious claws on hind and fore feet, and long, narrow wings behind. This thing, which seemed instinct with a fearsome and unnatural malignancy, was of a somewhat bloated corpulence, and squatted evilly on a rectangular block or pedestal covered with undecipherable characters. The tips of the wings touched the back edge of the block, the seat occupied the centre, whilst the long, curved claws of the doubled-up, crouching hind legs gripped the front edge and extended a quarter of the way down toward the bottom of the pedestal. The cephalopod head was bent forward, so that the ends of the facial feelers brushed the backs of huge fore paws which clasped the croucher’s elevated knees.
Since the publication of that story, Cthulhu has found His way into all sorts of popular culture as an enduring symbol of our own small, insignificant roles in the universe and the vastness of the cosmos around us.
And it is for this reason that He is the figurehead of The Cult.
Here's what The Bible of Cthulhu has to say:
Cthulhu is oftentimes depicted as inherently evil but this characterization could not be farther from the truth. Cthulhu is amoral, with an ethic that transcends conventional notions of good and evil. In most belief systems man's significance in the universe is validated by his connection to divine agents with similar moral values. This is a fallacy. Common human laws, interests and emotions have no validity or significance in the vast cosmos-at-large. Cthulhu’s apathy represents that of a true god. Why would a divine creator or overseer bother himself with something as trivial as the ‘sins’ of the billions of people beneath him? Azathoth, The Cold One, creator of all, is a Blind Idiot God, slumbering, unknowing, ruler of all that we perceive.
Cthulhu (descendent of Azathoth) and His ties to deep space and the cosmos represents the infinity of everything around us and our own microscopically insignificant position in the universe. He represents the meaningless of life and the inevitability of death. The notion that life means anything is laughable to any accurate personification of the cosmos and yet the thought that life means nothing flies in the face of every other belief system of every religion and, to some degree, the face of the human condition itself. Surely we are here for a purpose…
Understanding that we are not flies in the face of primal reason and sanity itself. This insanity is embraced by The Cultist wholeheartedly, with joy. It is for this liberating reason that Cthulhu is the figurehead of The Cult.
To The Cult of Cthulhu, He is the representation of our own insignificance and the personification of the beauty of all of creation: the cosmos, our planet, and the evolutionary process.
In some ways this belief system can be seen as both atheistic and nihilistic. But this is far from the whole Truth, for the Cult has elements of deism, pantheism, absurdism and existentialism too.
To pigeonhole The Cult into any one of these boxes would be a mistake, for it is an entirely new belief system - hence its existence!
We are a belief system based on cosmicism and the wisdom to be found in The Bible of Cthulhu.
Only by completing this course and by doing your own research can you hope to truly uncover everything it means to be a Cultist in The Cult of Cthulhu.
TASK
Thought Experiment:
Try to open your mind to the idea that there are no true gods that care about you, and that everything you know, think, and feel, is utterly meaningless and inconsequential in comparison to the sheer scale of the cosmos.
At the same time, try to open your mind to the possibility and acceptance of wonder again.
There is so much beauty and wonder in this cosmos, and while it is usually impartial and unaffected by how you feel, it exists nonetheless.
Extra Credit:
Like and comment on the video that summarizes this lesson.