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Archdevil (D
In some occult and similar writings, an archdemon (also spelled archdaemon), archdevil, or archfiend is a spiritual entity prominent in the infernal hierarchy as a leader of demons. Essentially, the archdemons are the evil opponents of the archangels. Christian traditions Archdemons are described as the leaders of demonic hosts, just as archangels lead choirs of angels. Based upon the writings of Saint Paul (Col. 1:16; Eph. 1:21) the angelic court had been constructed by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite and comprised nine orders of angels with three orders each to three hierarchies. The first hierarchy consists of seraphim, cherubim and thrones. The second hierarchy consists of dominations, virtues and powers. The third hierarchy consists of principalities, archangels and angels. This system of classifying angels has been accepted by the majority of Christian scholars. However, no similar consensus has been reached on the classification of demons. This is largely due to t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seven Deadly Sins
The seven deadly sins (also known as the capital vices or cardinal sins) function as a grouping of major vices within the teachings of Christianity. In the standard list, the seven deadly sins according to the Catholic Church are pride, greed, wrath, envy, lust, gluttony, and Sloth (deadly sin), sloth. In Catholicism, the classification of deadly sins into a group of seven originated with Tertullian and continued with Evagrius Ponticus. The concepts were partly based on Greco-Roman and Biblical antecedents. Later, the concept of seven deadly sins evolved further, as shown by historical context based on the Latin language of the Roman Catholic Church, though with significant influence from the Greek language and associated religious traditions. Knowledge of this concept is evident in various treatises; in paintings and sculpture (for example, architectural decorations on churches in some Catholic Parish (Catholic Church), parishes); and in some older textbooks. Further knowle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Astaroth
Astaroth (also Ashtaroth, Astarot and Astetoth), in demonology, is considered to be the Great Duke of Hell. He is described as a male figure, most likely named after the unrelated Near Eastern goddess Astarte. Background The name ''Astaroth'' was ultimately derived from that of 2nd millennium BC Phoenician goddess Astarte,Lon Milo DuQuette and Christopher S. Hyatt. ''Aleister Crowley's Illustrated Goetia'' (1992). New Falcon: Temple, AZ, USA, p. 52. an equivalent of the Babylonian Ishtar, and the earlier Sumerian Inanna, and the later Greek Aphrodite (Roman Venus). She is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible in the forms ''Ashtoreth'' (singular) and ''Ashtaroth'' (plural, in reference to multiple statues of it). This latter form was directly transliterated in the early Greek and Latin versions of the Bible, where it was less apparent that it had been a plural feminine in Hebrew. Otherwise, the male demon ''Astaroth'' is entirely unrelated to the benevolent goddess ''Ashtor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Astarte
Astarte (; , ) is the Greek language, Hellenized form of the Religions of the ancient Near East, Ancient Near Eastern goddess ʿAṯtart. ʿAṯtart was the Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic equivalent of the East Semitic languages, East Semitic goddess Ishtar. Astarte was worshipped from the Bronze Age through classical antiquity, and her name is particularly associated with her worship in the ancient Levant among the Canaanite religion, Canaanites and Phoenician religion, Phoenicians, though she was originally associated with Amorite cities like Ugarit and Emar, as well as Mari, Syria, Mari and Ebla. She was also celebrated in ancient Egyptian religion, Egypt, especially during the reign of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt, Ramessides, following the importation of foreign cults there. Phoenicians introduced her cult in their colonies on the Iberian Peninsula. Name The Proto-Semitic language, Proto-Semitic form of this goddess's name was . While earlier scholars ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Baal (demon)
Bael (Ba’al or Baal) is a demon described in demonological grimoires such as ''The Lesser Key of Solomon'' and the ''Pseudomonarchia Daemonum'' (where he is the first spirit mentioned) and also in the ''Dictionnaire Infernal''. He is described as a hoarsely voiced king with the power to make men invisible and ruling over sixty-six legions of demons.Baal, as a deity, is also listed in an earlier and separate entry, though de Plancy does connect the two. ''The Lesser Key of Solomon'' describes him as appearing in the form of a cat, toad, human, some combination thereof, or other "diverse shapes", while the ''Pseudomonarchia Daemonum'' and the ''Dictionnaire Infernal'' state that he appears with the heads of a cat, toad, and human simultaneously. Jacques Collin de Plancy wonders if Bael is the same as the Canaanite deity Baal, a reasonable assumption. In the , Bael (as Beal) is described as a king ruled by Oriens (himself a demon overseeing the cardinal direction east, or th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Baal
Baal (), or Baʻal, was a title and honorific meaning 'owner' or 'lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the Peerage o ...' in the Northwest Semitic languages spoken in the Levant during Ancient Near East, antiquity. From its use among people, it came to be applied to gods. Scholars previously associated the theonym with solar god, solar cults and with a variety of unrelated patron deity, patron deities, but inscriptions have shown that the name Ba'al was particularly associated with the storm god, storm and fertility god Hadad and his local manifestations. The Hebrew Bible includes use of the term in reference to various Levantine mythology, Levantine deities, often with application towards Hadad, who was decried as a false god. That use was taken over into Christianity and Isl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paganism
Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the Roman Empire, individuals fell into the pagan class either because they were increasingly rural and provincial relative to the Christian population, or because they were not '' milites Christi'' (soldiers of Christ).J. J. O'Donnell (1977)''Paganus'': Evolution and Use, ''Classical Folia'', 31: 163–69. Alternative terms used in Christian texts were '' hellene'', '' gentile'', and '' heathen''. Ritual sacrifice was an integral part of ancient Greco-Roman religion and was regarded as an indication of whether a person was pagan or Christian. Paganism has broadly connoted the "religion of the peasantry". During and after the Middle Ages, the term ''paganism'' was applied to any non-Christian religion, and the term presumed a belief in fal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Judaism
Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of observing the Mosaic covenant, which they believe was established between God in Judaism, God and the Jewish people. The religion is considered one of the earliest monotheistic religions. Jewish religious doctrine encompasses a wide body of texts, practices, theological positions, and forms of organization. Among Judaism's core texts is the Torah—the first five books of the Hebrew Bible—and a collection of ancient Hebrew scriptures. The Tanakh, known in English as the Hebrew Bible, has the same books as Protestant Christianity's Old Testament, with some differences in order and content. In addition to the original written scripture, the supplemental Oral Torah is represented by later texts, such as the Midrash and the Talmud. The Hebrew ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Belphegor
Belphegor (or Baal Peor, Hebrew: בַּעַל-פְּעוֹר baʿal-pəʿōr – “''Lord of the Gap''”) is, in Christianity, a demon associated with one of the seven deadly sins. According to religious tradition, he helps people make discoveries. He seduces people by proposing incredible inventions that will make them rich. According to some demonologists from the 17th century, his powers are strongest in April. The German bishop and witch hunter Peter Binsfeld (ca. 1540–ca.1600) wrote that Belphegor tempts through laziness. According to Binsfeld's ''Classification of Demons'', Belphegor is the main demon of the deadly sin known as sloth in the Christian tradition. The anonymous author of the Lollard tract ''The Lanterne of Light'', however, believed Belphegor to embody the sin of gluttony rather than sloth. Belphegor derives from the Assyrian Baal-Peor, a Baal worshipped at Mount Peor, to whom the Israelites were associated in Shittim ( Numbers 25:3) and who was associ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Satan
Satan, also known as the Devil, is a devilish entity in Abrahamic religions who seduces humans into sin (or falsehood). In Judaism, Satan is seen as an agent subservient to God, typically regarded as a metaphor for the '' yetzer hara'', or 'evil inclination'. In Christianity and Islam, he is usually seen as a fallen angel or jinn who has rebelled against God, who nevertheless allows him temporary power over the fallen world and a host of demons. In the Quran, Iblis (Shaitan), the leader of the devils (''shayāṭīn''), is made of fire and was cast out of Heaven because he refused to bow before the newly created Adam. He incites humans to sin by infecting their minds with ''waswās'' ('evil suggestions'). A figure known as ''ha-satan'' ("the satan") first appears in the Hebrew Bible as a heavenly prosecutor, subordinate to Yahweh (God); he prosecutes the nation of Judah in the heavenly court and tests the loyalty of Yahweh's followers. During the intertestamental period, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beelzebub
Ba'al Zabub , Ba'al Zvuv or Beelzebub ( ; ''Baʿal-zəḇūḇ''), also spelled Beelzebul or Belzebuth, and occasionally known as the Lord of the Flies, is a name derived from a Philistine god, formerly worshipped in Ekron, and later adopted by some Abrahamic religions as a major demon. The name ''Beelzebub'' is associated with the Canaanite god Baal. In theological sources, predominantly Christian, Beelzebub is another name for Satan. He is known in demonology as one of the seven deadly demons or seven princes of Hell, Beelzebub representing gluttony and envy. The '' Dictionnaire Infernal'' describes Beelzebub as a being capable of flying, known as the "Lord of the Flies", "Lord of the Flyers", or the "Lord of the Flying Demons". He is also referenced in the well-known novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding due to his ties to hell and the themes of the book. Judaism Hebrew Scriptures The source for the name ''Beelzebub'' is in the Books of Kings (), written ' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leviathan
Leviathan ( ; ; ) is a sea serpent demon noted in theology and mythology. It is referenced in several books of the Hebrew Bible, including Psalms, the Book of Job, the Book of Isaiah, and the pseudepigraphical Book of Enoch. Leviathan is often an embodiment of chaos, threatening to eat the damned when their lives are over. In the end, it is annihilated. Christian theologians identified Leviathan with the demon of the deadly sin '' envy''. According to Ophite diagrams, Leviathan encapsulates the space of the material world. In Gnosis, it encompasses the world like a sphere and incorporates the souls of those who are too attached to material things, so they cannot reach the realm of God's fullness beyond, from which all good emanates. In Hobbes, who draws on Job 41:24, Leviathan becomes a metaphor for the omnipotence of the state, which maintains itself by educating all children in its favour, generation after generation. This idea of an eternal power that 'feeds' on its ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
