Alright. I promised this a week or so ago. I have just concluded my first read through of Ivan Throne’s The Nine Laws (Castalia House, October 4, 2016). I also promised Ivan, a.k.a. the Dark Triad Man, a full review. Here goes:

At the outset, here and now, I must qualify this review. First, I don’t normally review books beyond mere recommendation. Thus, in keeping with my usual ways, I HIGHLY recommend you buy The Nine Laws (click here now – $9.99 Kindle from Amazon). However, I must forewarn that the book is not for everyone. In fact, sadly, it’s not for most.

This excellent work is a self-help manual for a select few. Potential readers are:

• Men;
• Men of substantial intelligence who can control their passion and physicality; and
• Men of strength who will act through sheer power, upon thoughtful consideration.

In Ivan’s words his ideal reader must become a “warrior-priest”. He imparts a message which he obviously takes seriously; it is a Shin-den (Japanese for “sacred”) expression. Ivan is a ninja by training, the methodical and relentless nature of which comes through clearly in his words.

Others, say of stronger minds but weaker resolve, might enjoy the book though they will likely find little use for the teachings. The weak and timid need not delve deeper than the cover.

Ivan Throne / Castalia House.

The Dark World

All of this takes place in what is known as the dark world.

For many there is great fear and anxiety in response to words that are spoken or written to invoke the image of power. Words that declare ferocity. Words that speak of the dread reality of this dark world and the necessity of blood, steel, incandescent flung iron and detonations of dust and thunder as the voice of deciding finality between individuals and armies, ideologies and civilizations.

Your fear and anxiety are real, but nonetheless irrelevant to the impersonal nature of creation. 

Any desire that things be other than they are, is not even perceived by the universe.

Illusions of safety are not rewarded…

– Chapter 13, The Dark World

This world is real. It is not, in and of itself, evil. However, it is plagued with evil both spiritual and incarnate. You didn’t really need my explanation there nor Ivan’s. The nightly news is sufficient proof. So is your daily life. The world is hard. To master one’s place in it requires a man be hard. That is the nature of the nine laws.

These guideposts are presented, defined, and exemplified with great care and precision.

Refreshing Assessment

Most “similar” works fail miserably for two reasons. First they either deny or foolishly explain away the nature of the world. Ivan’s assessment is cold, brutal and honest. Second, so many “ways of living” books attempt to reassure the reader, coddling the those who should instead be fortified. Delusion is potentially fatal. Ivan fortifies with virtual steel. His approach is born of genuine concern and an apparent desire for others to thrive.

The first thing that grabbed my attention and held it was Ivan’s utter lack of equivocation. This is not simply a testament to good and clear style. It is, rather, evidence of strong presence of mind and sound devotion to the craft of living. His observations were honed by humbling experience, tactfully ingrained in the text.

And ideal living is what it is all about. Most people shuffle blindly through life. Theirs may not necessarily be a waste of opportunity. It is certainly not fulfillment.

God created the world, even the dark world. We are reminded that His Spirit, though in us, does not rule the world. Someone else does. Hence the observable evil. Stephen Hawking once noted that God set the world and its laws in motion and then stepped back – a hands off approach. We, the living, are tasked with daily adherence to the law or with existing otherwise. This accords with the fallen nature of man and his endless pursuit of Natural Law among other ideals. Ivan understands these concepts.

His expert lessons serve as a chart for purposeful navigation through the world. I find this beats the shuffling manner of the masses and the weak illusions of the gurus. Life should be lived with purpose, with reverence to loftier ideals and for a higher Power.

Getting there, by Ivan’s plan, requires serious self-assessment and the permanent adoption of personality and thinking popularly misconstrued by the shufflers. Would you consider psychopathy a positive trait? Necessary? Buy the book. Read the book.

I have one contention with whole of The Nine Laws. Ivan admonishes to never self-deprecate. This issue of mine is likely semantic in nature. My readers know I frequently lace my commentary with self-deprecating remarks. Almost as sure as my shooting at the political trash.

Considered in pari materia my joking is a form of concealment (the Second Law). And concealment may not mean what one thinks. Read the book.

In Conclusion

My favorite of the laws is number nine: no laws. My life has become a study of this phenomenon. Again, the definition and explanation may challenge one’s preconceived notions.

There are multiple parts that I look forward to rereading. Once is probably not enough. This book offers not only opportunity of understanding but a blueprint for action. The program is designed to be used.

The Nine Laws may not change the world but it could change you. A change for the better. So it is that I recommend without hesitation (beyond my initial qualification) this fine literary contribution to the world of men.

Congratulations and thank you to Ivan Throne.

*One will also note that The Beggar is spared the presence of Death, the two already being partially acquainted by circumstance.