After reading this article, you will learn about who the demons and angels are, where they came from and what they are. You can also get acquainted with the most popular theories of the occultists of the Middle Ages regarding the invocation of evil spirits into our world.
In addition, the article describes how evil spirits are associated with magic and what effect they have on people.
Where did they come from?
There are three most common versions of who the demon is and where it came from:
- The first version is based on the fact that the first of them was a "serpent-tempter" who tricked Eve into tasting the fruits from the tree of knowledge.
- According to the second version, God created them on purpose, assuming that sooner or later people will disobey his will. For this, even before the creation of Eve, who became the mother of all people, he created Lilith. It was she who was the first woman on earth, and from her came a kind of demons who were sent with her to Hell.in order to punish sinners for their earthly deeds.
- According to the third version, Lucifer, who has received many names in the world (Satan, the Devil), is considered the master of evil spirits and, accordingly, the main evil. He imagined himself equal to God and did not want to bow to the sinful and imperfect people whom he created. For disobedience, God ordered the archangel Michael to cast Lucifer into hell, where all sinners will be sent after death. Together with him, 1/3 of the heavenly host left heaven, they, in further interpretation, became the unclean force familiar to everyone. They are responsible for the torments of sinners and incite the righteous to go astray from the true path. This theory provides the most plausible explanation for what a demon is.
Photos of these creatures periodically appear in various thematic media, but to date there is no evidence that the individuals depicted on them appeared on earth from the other world.
At the same time, regardless of the version of origin, it is noted that, once in hell, the demons lost their human appearance.
Angels
As for the angels, according to the Bible, God created them even before the creation of mankind. In ancient times, it was believed that they appear in front of especially pious or sinful people. In the first case - to encourage or test the strength of faith, and in the second - to warn the sinner about what awaits him after death if he does not correct his deeds.
In addition, it was believed that angels convey divine messages to variousOrthodox prophets to carry the word of the Lord to the masses.
Angels also have their own hierarchy. So, for example, they are controlled by archangels. In addition, they are the main defenders of people from evil spirits. They, like God, are most often prayed to, asking for help in a variety of pressing matters, to heal from illnesses and protect loved ones from misfortunes.
Mentioned in magic
According to legend, the methods of calling evil spirits from the other world were invented by the wisest of people, King Solomon. He used spirits to carry out various assignments and study otherworldly secrets. In addition, it was the rites of Solomon, who knew how not only to summon, but also to exorcise demons, that were successfully used by his followers, who wrote down the rituals in detail in their own magic books. A small part of them has survived to this day.
One of the most famous medieval magical books is Goethia (Greek "witchcraft", "magic"), which explains in detail what a demon is and how to summon it. It is noteworthy that in addition to detailed instructions for summoning and instructions for making magical attributes and pentacles necessary for the ritual, it includes the Shemhamforash chapter, which describes in detail the 72 princes of the hierarchy of hell.
The table below shows the names of eight demons who, according to ancient occultists, are most directly involved in people's lives.
| Name | The impact he has on people |
| Mammon | The tempter who is responsible for the basest desires. |
| Astaroth | The accuser who makes people desperate and submissive. |
| Abaddon | Starting wars. |
| Merezin | Brings disaster and disease to the world. |
| Asmodeus | Spreads slander and deceit. |
| Velial | Responsible for vicious art. |
| Python | Fools people with false predictions. |
| Sobun | Requires people to worship the Devil. |
Summon Seals
Most of the magical books that have survived to this day describe in detail not only who the demon is, but also what benefits he can bring if he is summoned to the human world with the help of a ritual. However, it was necessary to carefully follow the procedure described in the book. So, according to some beliefs, before starting the summoning ritual, the caller must definitely find out the real name of the summoned creature - only in this way can a person gain power over him.
There was another way to force him to comply. It consisted in the use of a secret personal symbol called a "seal". Despite the fact that in the Middle Ages their inscriptions were displayed in many magic books and ceased to be a secret, a significant number of people involved in the occult continued to claim that they could be used to perform a successful summoning ritual.
The mark of the "seals" is veryintricate, but in most cases nothing can be said about the demons themselves. So, for example, the “seal”, with the help of which the demon Shax was invoked, does not indicate in any way that he had the power to send deafness, blindness and dumbness to people. In addition, it is impossible to guess from it that his preferred form when he appeared was the image of a bird.
Devil
From time immemorial, people have tried to learn how to call on people from the other world to the human world in order to receive various benefits and privileges from them. However, cases were often recorded when people performing the summoning ritual mysteriously died or became possessed. That is why it is worthwhile to deal in detail with the question of who a demon is in magic and what role is assigned to him there.
There is a belief that the Devil does evil on earth through many of his enslaved followers - witches and sorcerers who report for the "work" done during the Sabbat. At the same time, it is believed that the Devil himself is honored at the Sabbaths, committing a lot of depraved and blasphemous deeds.
However, for example, the doctor Johann Weyer, enlightened in the occult sciences, a student of the famous occultist Cornelius Agrippa, who lived back in the 16th century, refuted the theory that witches directly worship hellish entities during the Sabbaths, arguing that the appearance of data creatures are just a figment of their diseased imagination. Although at the same time, even he does not doubt that there are 72 princes of hell, leading demoniclegions.
In his statements, Weyer referred to a special book on black magic called Lemegeton, which describes in detail who the demon and the Devil are, how they can be called into the human world. It also shows images of various pentacles and magic circles that keep these creatures from causing harm to the person who called on them. According to the same book, all demons are invisible, but one who thoroughly studies the dangerous art of summoning can order them to appear, and the evil spirit will appear before the magician in a personal, recognizable form.
How is the Devil most often portrayed?
In most ancient books, Satan is portrayed as a human, and only after the church stopped mass destruction of witches, he gradually began to acquire inhuman, monstrous features. He began to be depicted as a goat with a five-pointed star in his forehead, seated in a frame of various occult symbols. If you carefully consider the image below, you can see that the face of the Devil itself also resembles an inverted star.
Two horns represent the upper rays of the star, his ears are located just at the level of the middle rays, and his chin, which is often depicted with a pointed beard, represents the lower ray.
Who are demons and their influence on people
In the darkest days for the Christian religion, it began to be first mentioned that there are myriad malevolent entities so numerous that they cannot be counted. So, for example,according to the records of St. Macarius, after praying, during which he asked God to let him see all the existing demons, he had a vision in which God showed them to him. Macarius was astounded to discover that his name was truly legion. It was at this time that Orthodox and Catholic priests increasingly began to tell parishioners about who the demon is, why you should not get in touch with him and how to protect yourself from his influence.
In addition, according to most magical books that have survived to this day, incorporeal entities banished to hell seek to obtain a corporeal shell for themselves and for this they try to take possession of the human body in various ways. In such a state, a person becomes obsessed and cannot control his own actions. That is why the Orthodox and Catholic priests of the Middle Ages repeatedly mentioned in their records about the rites of exorcism that they performed to drive demons out of the human body.
Conclusion
To believe or not to believe in the existence of otherworldly forces, each person decides for himself, because today most ideas about demons come directly from the human imagination. In fact, back in the Middle Ages, the church managed to firmly establish in the human subconscious that it is witches and sorcerers who serve evil forces, are to blame for the fact that people commit sinful acts.
The influence of witchcraft and evil spirits explained all possible vices. That is why every person should first of all begin to fight againstits sinful essence, and not with the "demonic" appearance that is often given to it. And may divine guidance help you in this!
