"Nothing is Forbidden, Everything is Permitted"
~ Hassan-i-Sabbah, "The Old Man of the Mountain"
Any further comment, or explanation would only cheapen the wisdom found within these words. Go forth now all ye rules-lawyers and meditate upon this simple phrase...
8 comments:
Pants-less gaming. Definitely not permitted at my table.
Neophyte!!!
:-)
OK, *almost* everything is permitted!
I prefer "Hassan CHOP!" as a maxim.
Isn't the first part of the quote often given as "nothing is true?"
Which, I guess, fits gaming, too.
Sounds a little "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law". Not that I am opposed to that:)
@Trey - I read from several sources that the "nothing is true" was a slight misinterpretation of the phrase, and that "nothing is forbidden" is closer to the actual translation. See here for more detail: http://www.phinnweb.org/neuro/assassins.html
@Bat - my blog already looks like the homepage for a black metal band without me quoting Crowley... :-) But yeah the two phrases are practically interchangeable.
Has anyone else noticed that a significant number of OSR bloggers have at least some knowledge of The Western Mystery Tradition, A.C., etc., and does that strike anyone else as kinda interesting?
@James - I think it just comes with the territory. Especially if you have more than a passing interest in Lovecraft and CAS. I have always had a strong interest in occult and esoteric subjects, and I would imagine this is mainly due to the influence of all the weird tales I read in my youth. The first Lovecraft I ever read was "Rats In the Walls" when I was 11, and it was shortly there after that I read Smith's "Return of the Sorcerer". All downhill from there... :-)
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