Dark Deals and Hard Lessons

A Cunning Man's Journal

In this journal entry, I reflect on the story of Black Sabbath, a magician who fell victim to a group of old crafters during his travels, mistakenly believing he was undergoing a magical initiation. In reality, he had unknowingly offered himself as payment in a ritual involving Santa Muerte. After suffering physical and spiritual consequences, he sought my help. While I managed to break the contract, explaining that Santa Muerte wasn’t truly interested in him and the harm he experienced was more of a warning, the situation reminded me of how often dabblers in magic end up in over their heads when dealing with real practitioners and powerful entities.

This situation with Black Sabbath is not unique. I’ve encountered many who dabble in magic without understanding the seriousness of what they’re getting involved in, and more often than not, they end up in trouble. When I share stories of these experiences, particularly at local moots or in online communities, I’m often accused of fear-mongering or being overly involved with "dark arts." It’s frustrating, as many modern practitioners ignore the reality that magic, like nature, isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. The "love and light" crowd tends to overlook the dangers that come with crossing powerful forces without proper knowledge or respect, often resulting in hard lessons that could have been avoided.