Welcome, listeners, to a powerful new era of The Cult of You. I’m Adam Nox, and I’m excited to share this special conversation—the very first interview recorded for our private platform. Things look a little different now, and I’ll be giving you more insight into this evolving space in the near future. But first, let’s dive into something deep, dangerous, and transformative.
Today’s episode is titled Interview with the Devil, and our guest is none other than Toby Chappell. If you’ve been with us for some time, you may remember our previous conversation exploring his groundbreaking book Infernal Geometry and the Left-Hand Path. That episode marked a moment of clarity in our collective exploration of darkness and structure. But now, he returns with something even more profound—his new book The Language of Magic.
And when I say profound, I don’t mean that in a vague, mystical sense. I mean it with precision. Toby’s work is one of the rare instances where I find a practitioner—a magician—who is lucid, technical, and intellectually exacting. He doesn’t deal in fluff. He builds architecture. And what he offers in this book is a blueprint for symbolic and psychological transformation through the grammar of ritual.
“Every act of magic is a sentence spoken into the fabric of reality—with intention as verb and ritual as its grammar.”
“You are not praying to a god—you are becoming one through the language of your own becoming.”
Magic is Structured Communication – Every magical ritual is fundamentally an act of structured communication, where language, symbols, and intention form a cohesive architecture for transformation.
The Power Triad: Intention, Language, Attention – These three components form the core of effective magical practice. Without clarity in each, the spell collapses.
Ritual as Grammar – Ritual isn’t just symbolic behavior; it’s grammatical structure in motion. Just like a sentence, it requires order, syntax, and meaning.
Self-Deification as a Magical Goal – The left-hand path reframes initiation not as submission to a higher power but as the conscious crafting of the self into a divine entity.
Symbolic Precision Over Mystical Ambiguity – Chappell’s approach emphasizes that clarity, specificity, and internal consistency in your symbolism leads to real magical results.
The Cosmos as a Responsive Entity – Magic presupposes that the universe responds to symbolic actions—when properly formulated, they act as commands to reality.
From Passive Belief to Active Agency – Practitioners are urged to move beyond belief systems into systems of deliberate action and self-authored transformation.
“Magic is not superstition. It’s structured will made articulate through symbol and act.”
“Ritual is the syntax of self-transformation—without structure, there is no spell.”
The Language of Magic isn’t just about chants and gestures. It’s a semiotic system. It’s a guide to how magic functions as a communicative act—not just to the unconscious mind or some external spiritual intelligence—but to the entire lattice of reality. In this episode, we go deep into the triad that underpins every magical act: intention, language, and attention.
Toby breaks down how each of these three components works:
Intention is your internal will, the command you aim to express.
Language is the symbolic container through which the intention becomes externalized.
Attention is the energetic fuel, the awareness that binds the act to the result.
You remove one, and the spell collapses. This model doesn’t just apply to ceremonial magic or witchcraft—it applies to everything. It’s the basis of effective transformation, communication, and creation. And it explains why some rituals work and others don’t.
One of the most powerful metaphors Toby shares is this: a magical act is like a sentence. And just like a sentence, it has to be structured. It must have grammar. It must carry meaning. The symbols you use are like nouns. The intention is the verb. The ritual is the syntax. And when you string it all together properly, you’re not just speaking to yourself—you’re speaking to reality.
We explore how different traditions express this grammar. Whether it’s the Greek Magical Papyri, chaos magic, Thelema, or the structures of the Temple of Set, the core function remains the same: to use a symbolic structure to bring about transformation through communication.
The magician is not a worshipper. The magician is a communicator—a speaker of new realities. They are a grammatical architect of experience.
Toby’s magical framework is deeply rooted in the Left-Hand Path. And that’s not about rebellion for rebellion’s sake. It’s about self-deification. The magician doesn’t seek to merge with a deity or dissolve into a spiritual field. Instead, they seek to crystallize their own divinity—to become a god by mastering the tools of communication and transformation.
We talk about how the Temple of Set has influenced this approach. Unlike systems that place divinity outside the self, this initiatory tradition places the creative force squarely within the individual. Ritual, then, becomes a method of self-sculpture. You’re not asking. You’re declaring. You’re not worshipping. You’re becoming.
In this sense, magic is not a crutch or an escape—it’s a creative technology of identity.
Toby emphasizes something that resonated deeply with me: the importance of precision. Too often, spiritual systems become vague, poetic, and ultimately hollow. The more poetic your magic becomes, the easier it is to delude yourself.
But real transformation doesn’t come from vague hopes. It comes from lucid will, clearly spoken and tightly structured. Every symbol must mean something. Every gesture must serve a function. When your magical system has integrity—symbolic, psychological, and energetic—you become a force of nature.
We discuss how modern magicians can fall into the trap of aesthetic over function, of ritual theater that lacks the bones of symbolic clarity. Toby’s work is a reminder that magic is not about performance. It’s about change. And change requires exactitude.
One of the most inspiring themes from our conversation is the idea that the cosmos responds—but only when you speak its language. This is where The Language of Magic becomes literal. It’s not metaphor. It’s method.
Magic is an act of call and response. But the question is: are you speaking clearly? Or are you mumbling into the void, hoping for a miracle?
Rituals are ways of speaking to the unconscious mind, yes—but also to the archetypal structures of existence. These structures aren’t passive. They’re responsive. But they only respond to precision. That’s why attention is critical. That’s why clarity is essential.
This isn’t about belief. In fact, Toby makes a strong point: belief is secondary. What matters is functionality. If your ritual works—if it moves you, changes you, builds you—that’s magic. Not because you believe it, but because it produces results.
Towards the end of our conversation, we talk about practical applications. How do you structure a ritual from scratch? What makes a spell effective, aside from aesthetics or tradition?
Toby offers a beautiful answer: treat your ritual like a sentence. Start with a verb—your will. Choose your symbols carefully—your nouns. Use structure—your grammar. And then speak it, not with your mouth, but with your whole being.
This simple but powerful model can guide both beginner and advanced practitioners alike. It strips away the dogma and returns magic to its primal function: symbolic causality.
You are not a follower. You are a speaker of worlds.
Toby Chappell is a musician, writer, and lecturer on the intersection of language and magic. An independent researcher and practicing magician, his interests include runes, semiotics, weird tales, and the mysteries of ancient Egypt. The author of Infernal Geometry and the Left-Hand Path, he lives in Atlanta, Georgia
“The universe doesn’t respond to wishes. It responds to coherent symbolic action.”
“Lucidity is the hallmark of real sorcery—every symbol must mean, every act must speak.”
“Your magic is only as powerful as your precision. Vague intention yields vague results.”
CVLT has over 2 decades of experience building international brands and now we have decided to focus exclusively in this space. so if you are looking to build your business then here are some of our key offerings
