Hell, Paradise, angels, demons, God, religion. Disputes about the existence of certain mystical realities do not subside to this day. Scripture says that after death all souls go to Paradise or Hell. This happens according to their deeds on earth.
But, regardless of the strength of faith, angels invariably appear as bright, highly spiritual beings, who with one touch are able to quench sorrows and relieve pain. Angels - the army of God, fighting in the eternal struggle against the forces of evil.
Demons became their exact opposite. Evil dark creatures, leading their existence deep in the underworld. They hunt for the innocent souls of people and are at the heart of sins.
The seven deadly sins - laziness, gluttony, lust, anger, envy, greed and pride - are the essence of demons. They lure people into the forbidden fruit and make them turn astray. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse: Death, Famine, Plague and War. Faithful warriors of Satan, foreshadowing the end of an era.
But Hell is much larger than it seems to a simple person, and much larger than the nine circles of Hell Dante. In the underworld there is its own hierarchy and classification of demons. There are those who rule and those who obey orders.
Hell's Hierarchy
Humanity, for the lack of facts, has not been able to compile a single hierarchical map of Hell. But people do not lose hope and try to represent the underworld in a clear outline.
In the ancient editions of the 16-17th centuries, Lucifer, one of the archangels of the Lord, was called the emperor of Hell. Beelzebub is a demon worshiped by many, the prince. Astaroth, on the other hand, became the great duke, subordinate to whom are thousands of minions from high circles.
Other grimoires add another Prince of Darkness to the three great demons of Hell. In various scriptures it becomes either Moloch, then Velial, or Leviathan himself.
The demonologist who worked in the sixteenth century, P. Binsfeld, composed his own hierarchy of demons. He believed that hell was ruled by seven supreme demons, each of which represents one mortal sin. Lucifer is pride, Beelzebub is gluttony, Mammon is stinginess, Satan is anger, Leviathan is envy, Belphegor is laziness, and Asmodeus is lust.
Late Kabbalah states that the ten darkest Sephiroth, or Archdeevils, rule Hell: Lucifer, Beelzebub, Satan, Astaroth, Naamah, Lilith, Adramelech, Baal, Belfegor and Asmodeus.
However, the researchers were not able to come to a single hierarchy that would tie together all the famous demons of Hell.
The emergence of demons
Christian theology adopted a double vision of the world and divided it into good and evil. Angels and demons play an important role in the origins of religion. According to the scripture, people, their souls and the Earth itself is an eternal battlefield between God and his antagonist - Satan.
To somehow explain the appearance of evil in the hearts of people, Christians created a theory according to which the fallen angels are to blame for all sins. At the beginning of the creation of the world, the younger archangel Lucifer succumbed to mortal sin, namely pride. He considered that people are not worthy of love, and they must be destroyed.
Then the Lord expelled his son from Paradise and imprisoned in the underworld. But Lucifer, who was later called Satan, did not give up just like that. He decided to take revenge on God. His goal was the hearts and souls of his father’s favorite creations - people.
For the first time the concept of “demon” was applied to those angels who fell from heaven and who became unworthy to be called messengers of the Lord. Initially, the word "demon" was not synonymous with universal evil and Hell. That was the name of only the fallen angels.
But in the Middle Ages this concept was transformed. Against the background of the Church's total struggle with the rebels: sorcerers, warlocks and witches, the underworld was expanded, and not only the fallen angels began to be called demons, but also every dark creature that came out of the underworld, including Beelzebub, the demon of many vices.
Classification of demons
Many grimoires and ancient scriptures have created a fairly ramified system of classification of the inhabitants of the dark world.
Alphonse de Spina divided all the demons into 10 distinct subtypes:
- Parks are demons whose main task was to intervene in the fate of people.
- Poltergeists are almost harmless spirits that live in houses. As a rule, they do not cause much harm.
- Succubi and incubus are demons of lust. Most often, they lure the righteous into their networks.
- Marching demons are ghosts appearing in huge numbers and making a lot of noise.
- Witch's house spirits are the helpers of sorcerers who protect them from attacks and threats.
- Nightmares are demons that come to people in dreams and are terrifying.
- Trickster demons are liars and liars who bring the righteous Christians into turmoil.
- Pure demons are the creatures of hell, the main purpose of which is the saints.
One of the legends says that during the rite to exile the demon, Balberit informed his enemies that all the higher demons are fallen angels, and therefore they are divided according to the ranks of the angels. The demon also added that there are nine ranks in Hell, each of which has three faces.
The first rank included:
- Seraphim: Beelzebub - the demon of pride, Leviathan and Asmodeus.
- Cherubs: Balberite.
- Thrones: Astaroth, Verenus, Gressil, Sonnelon.
The second rank consists of:
- Dominions: Elle, Rosier.
- Prince of Strength: Believe.
- Authorities: Carro, Carnivan.
Third rank:
- Start: Velial.
- Archangel: Olivius.
Beelzebub - name etymology
Beelzebub is a demon of the highest rank. Often it is put on a par with Lucifer himself. Often Beelzebub, the demon of Hell, is perceived as the leader of the entire dark army. But, regardless of the sources, he is always a close associate of Satan and his most faithful assistant.
Beelzebub is a demon whose etymology of its ancient name is still being considered. Translated from Old Slavonic, this name means "devil."
For the first time, Beelzebub, the demon Baal Much, was mentioned by the Philistines and the Canaanites. His most famous oracle lived in the small town of Akron. Once a seriously ill Israeli king turned to the oracle of a demon and asked if he would recover. But Beelzebub was offended and condemned the king to death.
The inhabitants of Israel were not afraid that Beelzebub was a demon, photos of ancient sketches depict him as a fly. Perhaps the people of Canaan chose this appearance due to the fact that the name of the highest demon is translated as "lord of the flies."
Many people know that Beelzebub belongs to the highest rank. “The demon of what this creation is?” - such a question is encountered quite often. Most often, this dark and gloomy name is given to the demon of gluttony.
Beelzebub in modern science
The overeating demon Beelzebub is a common research topic of modern scholars. The interpretation of his name haunts the best minds of mankind. Such demons - Beelzebub, Lucifer, Leviathan, etc. - will never be a thing of the past. They are an important part of the modern understanding of Hell and Paradise, good and evil.
In recent years, several new interpretations of the meaning of the name Beelzebub have appeared. Scientists have found that in ancient Jewish society the name of Satan was pronounced in Latin as zabulus, which became a distorted version of the Greek word "devil". In this case, Beelzebub — the demon and the realist — means “Baal the Devil,” or simply “Satan.”
Another version is based on the Hebrew verb zabal, which in translation means "to endure impurities." This verb was used in religious literature to denote the impurities of the human soul. Thus Beelzebub is a filthy demon.
And if you start from the Jewish zebul, then the insidious demon becomes the guardian of the hearth.
Beelzebub and the Gospels
Beelzebub is the demon of Hell, but his name is often found in various parts of the Bible. According to the Holy Scriptures, Jesus Christ himself carries a particle of the Beelzebub demon. The Gospels of Matthew and Luke say that the son of God cast out demons from the bodies of men by the power of the Prince of Darkness.
Christ, in the Gospel of Matthew, noted that the disciple does not stand above his teacher, the servant is above the master. And if the mentor was called the reservoir of Beelzebub's strength, then his wards are all the more susceptible to the influence of the forces of evil.
The overeating demon Beelzebub was also called to himself by King Solomon. He casts curses and showers the kingdom with a fiery rain, but nevertheless he submits to the king. The power of the magic ring forces the Prince of Hell to kneel before the mortal.
Beelzebub the demon himself speaks a lot about himself. His description is this: he was one of the first angels in heaven, but after his exile he began to rule the evil spirits in Tartarus. He has a descendant who always comes to the call of the creator and shows what evil he committed.
Beelzebub is a demon that destroys empires and states. He makes many alliances with the warring countries, forcing them to start a war. The prince of Hell assigns to each living soul his demon, who will try to turn a person from the true path. He encourages people to kill, steal, war and other sins.
Mention in grimoires
And the apocryphal Gospel of Nicodemus, the demon Beelzebub is represented as the ruler of the underworld. At the time when Christ went down to Hell, the closest assistant to Beelzebub Infernus called the owner "the three-headed Beelzebub." It is because of this source that the demon of gluttony is considered to be the ruler of the empire of Hell. He is often identified with Satan.
In one of the fourteenth-century manuscripts, Beelzebub sits on the "death tree." He rules the ball of Darkness. It is Beelzebub the demon who represents the seven major mortal sins. The classification of demons, regardless of the source, always leads the Baal Mukha to the highest ranks.
Authors such as A. Greban, Milton, Barrett, Faust and others consider Beelzebub a cruel and powerful demon. His features are magnificent and reflect a clear mind. He is empowered to continue the struggle with God even after he was cast out from heaven.
Baal of the Flies in the “Acts of the Saints”, along with his minions, settled on the island of Gallinaria. They left their shelter with a noise and howl. But soon Saint Amator expelled the fallen from this place.
Exile
In the middle of the sixteenth century, Beelzebub took possession of the body of Nicole Aubrey, who lived in Verwen. For a long time, the girl’s mind was clouded, and the Prince of Darkness disposed of her body at his discretion. But poor Nicole was not left in trouble. The strongest exorcists gathered to conduct the rite of exile.
But the process was difficult. It took several hours to free the girl’s soul. The exiled demon appeared before the exorcists in the form of a huge ox. Beelzebub vanished during the thunder.
At the end of the sixteenth century, Beelzebub again entered the human body. This time the choice fell on the Frenchwoman Marta Brasier. Being in her body, he prophesied, spreading panic and confusion.
Tazhke Beelzebub was one of six hundred and sixty-six demons who were responsible for the obsession with the servant of the monastery of St. Ursula in the seventeenth century.
Beelzebub, Lucifer and Leviathan, who were Seraphim in Heaven, were the first to fall from this rank and led the army of dark beasts. Beelzebub, whose heavenly adversary became St. Francis, inclines the souls of men to one of the mortal sins - pride.
Sorcerers and black magic
Along with the birth of the Christian faith, the name of the demon of gluttony, Beelzebub, appeared. Spellcasters and warlocks believed that he, along with Lucifer, was the ruler of Hell. In the rites for calling small demons, the names of the two most powerful demons have always been used. Sorcerers believed that seraphim were capable of summoning any child of darkness in one word.
Beelzebub can only be summoned using special characters that must be deduced using the blood of the caster or the blood of a turtle living in the sea. If the call did not succeed, then witches and sorcerers used emeralds and rubies. Symbols of appeal were applied to the surface of the gemstones.
However, all warlocks believed in the power of Beelzebub. They knew that it was not worth quarreling with such a powerful demon, otherwise the calling demon might die during the ritual. A special honor came to Beelzebub in 1595. The Prince of Darkness was worshiped on the Sabbaths. The sorceresses praised him and prayed to him.
At the end of the nineteenth century, the occultist Alistair Crowley decided to deal with his direct competitor. To do this, he called Beelzebub and his subordinates: 49 demons who went for Mathers Macregore to Paris.
The images
The demon Beelzebub appears on the pages of ancient grimoires in a large number of images. They all differ in dark and scary forms. An unrealistically large cow, a mutilated calf, a terrible goat with an unnaturally long tail - all this is Beelzebub the demon. Photos of the demon can be found in ancient publications, but not one of them depicts the Prince of Darkness in a light image.
But why is Beelzebub also named Baal Much? Everything is simple. In ancient times, the fallen angel was depicted as a huge white fly. So Beelzebub became the master of insects. One of the strongest demons is presented in images that terrify the imagination: the winged giant, a woman, and, of course, a snake.
In various sources, Beelzebub in rage can spew out flame or water, as well as wolf howl. Faust wrote that Beelzebub is a creature with flesh-colored hair that grows on the head of a bull. The ears are huge and terrifying. Two wings peek out from behind the demon: one is white and the other is green. Flames are constantly burping from under the wings. And the cow tail completes the picture.
The spirit of Mephistopheles called Beelzebub one of the four rulers. The demon rules in the northern lands and terrifies the souls of people.
It is worth noting that the images and popularity of Beelzebub vary depending on the environment. In the west, he is one of the strongest demons, the Lord of Hell and the Prince of Darkness. However, the ancient Slavs Beelzebub was not a "living" character. He did not inhabit people, did not eat the soul. The prince was only a book character. Beelzebub was considered the second most important demon, he was cunning, smart and strong. Its main image among the Slavs: a demon sitting under the Death Tree. Since the beginning of centuries, Beelzebub has been ringing The Bells of the Seven Deadly Sins and forcing human souls to turn into darkness.