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Asmodeus, also known as Ashmadia, most likely originated from the Persian Aeshma-deva ("demon of waith").
The apocryphal Book of Tobit describes an instance where Raguel's daughter, Sarah, was tormented by the demon. She was married to seven times, each time the Asmodeus killed off the husband before they could have intercourse. Sarah, was about to hang herself in grief, but decided against it after thinking about the shame it would cause her father. She then prayed to God for death.
God answered her prayer by sending the angel, Raphael, to her aid. He instructed Tobiah to place fish liver and heart on the embers for incense. Asmodeus was repelled by the odor:
"The demon, repelled by the odor of the fish, fled into Upper Egypt; Raphael pursued him there and bound him hand and foot." - Tobit 8:3
In the Testament of Solomon (dated 1st - 3rd centuries CE) , Solomon invokes Asmodeus to aid in the construction of the Temple. The demon appears and predicts Solomon's kingdom will one day be divided.
"My constellation (is like an animal which) reclines in its den in heaven; some men call me the Great Bear, but others the Offspring of a Dragon. Moreover, a smaller constellation accompanies my constellation, for the high position and throne of my father is always in the sky. So do not ask me so many things, Solomon, for eventually your kingdom will be divided. This glory of yours is temporary. You have us to torture for a little while; then we shall disperse among human beings again with the result that we shall be worshiped as gods because men do not know the names of the angels who rule over us."
-TSol 5:4-5
After Asmodeus had spoken, Solomon ordered him to state his name and activities, to which the demon responded that he:
"Is always hatching plots against newlyweds; I mar the beauty of virgins and cause their hearts to grow cold"
- TSol 5:7
When Solomon interrogated Asmodeus further, he learned that Asmodeus was thwarted by the angel, Raphael, as well as sheatfish found in the rivers of Assyria. He also admitted he hated water.
Milton writes in Paradise Lost
'Better pleased Than Asmodeus with the fishy fume That drove him, though enamoured, from the spouse Of Tobit's son, and with a vengeance sent From Media post to Egypt, there fast bound." - Paradise Lost , iv. 167--71.
Asmoday appears later in Mather's translation of the Goetia: the Lesser Key of Solomon as the 32th spirit.
The apocryphal Book of Tobit describes an instance where Raguel's daughter, Sarah, was tormented by the demon. She was married to seven times, each time the Asmodeus killed off the husband before they could have intercourse. Sarah, was about to hang herself in grief, but decided against it after thinking about the shame it would cause her father. She then prayed to God for death.
God answered her prayer by sending the angel, Raphael, to her aid. He instructed Tobiah to place fish liver and heart on the embers for incense. Asmodeus was repelled by the odor:
"The demon, repelled by the odor of the fish, fled into Upper Egypt; Raphael pursued him there and bound him hand and foot." - Tobit 8:3
In the Testament of Solomon (dated 1st - 3rd centuries CE) , Solomon invokes Asmodeus to aid in the construction of the Temple. The demon appears and predicts Solomon's kingdom will one day be divided.
"My constellation (is like an animal which) reclines in its den in heaven; some men call me the Great Bear, but others the Offspring of a Dragon. Moreover, a smaller constellation accompanies my constellation, for the high position and throne of my father is always in the sky. So do not ask me so many things, Solomon, for eventually your kingdom will be divided. This glory of yours is temporary. You have us to torture for a little while; then we shall disperse among human beings again with the result that we shall be worshiped as gods because men do not know the names of the angels who rule over us."
-TSol 5:4-5
After Asmodeus had spoken, Solomon ordered him to state his name and activities, to which the demon responded that he:
"Is always hatching plots against newlyweds; I mar the beauty of virgins and cause their hearts to grow cold"
- TSol 5:7
When Solomon interrogated Asmodeus further, he learned that Asmodeus was thwarted by the angel, Raphael, as well as sheatfish found in the rivers of Assyria. He also admitted he hated water.
Milton writes in Paradise Lost
'Better pleased Than Asmodeus with the fishy fume That drove him, though enamoured, from the spouse Of Tobit's son, and with a vengeance sent From Media post to Egypt, there fast bound." - Paradise Lost , iv. 167--71.
Asmoday appears later in Mather's translation of the Goetia: the Lesser Key of Solomon as the 32th spirit.
by Someone December 21, 2003
Get the Asmodeus mug.It is time to note the difference between a psychopath and a psychotic.
Psychopath:
A person with an antisocial personality disorder, manifested in aggressive, perverted, criminal, or amoral behavior without empathy or remorse.
Psychopaths tend to lack normal human emotions such as guilt. They are also often highly intelligent and skilled at manipulating others.
Also, psychopaths seem to appear normal. You would probably never guess there was something wrong with them.
Note, not all psychopaths are serial killers.
Psychopath:
A person with an antisocial personality disorder, manifested in aggressive, perverted, criminal, or amoral behavior without empathy or remorse.
Psychopaths tend to lack normal human emotions such as guilt. They are also often highly intelligent and skilled at manipulating others.
Also, psychopaths seem to appear normal. You would probably never guess there was something wrong with them.
Note, not all psychopaths are serial killers.
by Someone December 21, 2003
Get the Psychopath mug.A noise one make's when one sits on a belaying pin.
Not to be confused with Arrr, which is a pirate noise of agreement, or, whatever the pirate wishes it to be at that moment.
Not to be confused with Arrr, which is a pirate noise of agreement, or, whatever the pirate wishes it to be at that moment.
Argh, that hurt!
by Someone December 22, 2003
Get the Argh mug.by Someone December 23, 2003
Get the Melchom mug."How art thou fallen from heaven
O day-star, son of the morning! (Helel ben Shahar)
How art thou cast down to the ground,
That didst cast lots over the nations!
And thou saidst in thy heart:
'I will ascend into heaven,
Above the stars of God (El)
Will I exalt my throne;
And I will sit upon the mount of meeting,
In the uttermost parts of the north;
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;
I will be like the Most High (Elyon).'
Yet thou shalt be brought dow to the nether-world,
To the uttermost parts of the pit."
- Isaiah 14:12-15
In Christian tradition, this passage is proof for the fall of Lucifer. However, it may be that this passage is an allusion to a Canaantie or Phoenician myth about Helel, who is the son of the god Shahar. Helel sought the throne of the chief god and was cast down into the abyss because of this. El, Elyon, and Shahar are members of the Canaanite pantheon, while the "mount of meeting" is the abode of the gods, which corresponds to Mount Olympus in Greek mythology. There is a Ugaritic poem about two divine children, Shachar (dawn) and Shalim (dusk), who were born as the result of the intercourse of the god El with mortal women. There are, however, no Canaanite sources that tell about Helel ben Shahar or a revolt against Elyon.
Many Apocalyptic writers interpreted this passage as referring to Lucifer, and wrote about the fall of the angels. 1 Enoch refers to the falling angels as stars (see the watchers) and may be the beginning of the overlap between the story of the watchers and Isaiah.
The name 'Lucifer' means light-bearer, and is not used in the New Testament, where the "bearer of light" is Christ. He was once one of the Seraphim (sometimes called the fiery, flying serpents).
Later authors, such as St. Jerome, associate Ezekial 28:13-15 with Lucifer, the greatest of the fallen angels. It has been argued that this passage was actually addressed to Nebuchadrezzar.
"You were in Eden, the garden of God;
Every precious stone was your adornment:
Carnelian, chrysolite, and amethyst;
Beryl, lapis lazuli, and jasper;
Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald;
And gold beautifully wrought for you,
Mined for you, prepared the day you were created.
I created you as a cherub
With outstretched shielding wings;
And you resided on God's holy mountain;
You walked among stones of fire.
You were blameless in your ways,
From the day you were created
Until wrongdoing was found in you
By your far-flung commerce
You were filled with lawlessness
And you sinned.
So I have struck you down
From the mountain of God,
And I have destroyed you, O shielding cherub,
From among the stones of fire."
Later interpretations of the fall tell that Lucifer was upset because God the Father made Lucifer's brother, Jesual, the Son. From his head, he gave birth to Sin, and by copulating with her, fathered Death. He was then cast out of heaven.
There are characters similar to Lucifer in other mythologies. In Egypt, there is a serpent god, Sata, whi is father of lightning and who likewise fell to earth. A Babylonian god, Zu, was also a lightning god who fell as a fiery flying serpent.
O day-star, son of the morning! (Helel ben Shahar)
How art thou cast down to the ground,
That didst cast lots over the nations!
And thou saidst in thy heart:
'I will ascend into heaven,
Above the stars of God (El)
Will I exalt my throne;
And I will sit upon the mount of meeting,
In the uttermost parts of the north;
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;
I will be like the Most High (Elyon).'
Yet thou shalt be brought dow to the nether-world,
To the uttermost parts of the pit."
- Isaiah 14:12-15
In Christian tradition, this passage is proof for the fall of Lucifer. However, it may be that this passage is an allusion to a Canaantie or Phoenician myth about Helel, who is the son of the god Shahar. Helel sought the throne of the chief god and was cast down into the abyss because of this. El, Elyon, and Shahar are members of the Canaanite pantheon, while the "mount of meeting" is the abode of the gods, which corresponds to Mount Olympus in Greek mythology. There is a Ugaritic poem about two divine children, Shachar (dawn) and Shalim (dusk), who were born as the result of the intercourse of the god El with mortal women. There are, however, no Canaanite sources that tell about Helel ben Shahar or a revolt against Elyon.
Many Apocalyptic writers interpreted this passage as referring to Lucifer, and wrote about the fall of the angels. 1 Enoch refers to the falling angels as stars (see the watchers) and may be the beginning of the overlap between the story of the watchers and Isaiah.
The name 'Lucifer' means light-bearer, and is not used in the New Testament, where the "bearer of light" is Christ. He was once one of the Seraphim (sometimes called the fiery, flying serpents).
Later authors, such as St. Jerome, associate Ezekial 28:13-15 with Lucifer, the greatest of the fallen angels. It has been argued that this passage was actually addressed to Nebuchadrezzar.
"You were in Eden, the garden of God;
Every precious stone was your adornment:
Carnelian, chrysolite, and amethyst;
Beryl, lapis lazuli, and jasper;
Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald;
And gold beautifully wrought for you,
Mined for you, prepared the day you were created.
I created you as a cherub
With outstretched shielding wings;
And you resided on God's holy mountain;
You walked among stones of fire.
You were blameless in your ways,
From the day you were created
Until wrongdoing was found in you
By your far-flung commerce
You were filled with lawlessness
And you sinned.
So I have struck you down
From the mountain of God,
And I have destroyed you, O shielding cherub,
From among the stones of fire."
Later interpretations of the fall tell that Lucifer was upset because God the Father made Lucifer's brother, Jesual, the Son. From his head, he gave birth to Sin, and by copulating with her, fathered Death. He was then cast out of heaven.
There are characters similar to Lucifer in other mythologies. In Egypt, there is a serpent god, Sata, whi is father of lightning and who likewise fell to earth. A Babylonian god, Zu, was also a lightning god who fell as a fiery flying serpent.
Lucifer: From Latin, Lux, Light, and Fero, to bear, - A Light Bearer. There is a name “Lucifuge” also employed occasionally, from Lux, Light, and Fugio, to fly from, - He who shuns the Light.
by Someone December 23, 2003
Get the Lucifer mug.Among certain sections of the Jews, Belial was considered the chief of all the devils. In The War of the Sons of Light and the Sons of Darkness (1QM), one of the Dead Sea scrolls, Belial is the leader of the Sons of Darkness:
'But for corruption thou hast made Belial, an angel of hostility. All his dominions are in darkness, and his purpose is to bring about wickedness and guilt. All the spirits that are associated with him are but angels of destruction.'
Belial is also mentioned in the Fragments of a Zadokite Work (which is also known as The Damascus Document (CD)), which states that at the time of the Antichrist, "Belial shall be let loose against Israel, as God spake through Isaiah the prophet." (6:9). The Fragments also speak of "three nets of Belial" which are said to be fornication, wealth, and polution of the sanctuary. (6:10-11) In this work, Belial is sometimes presented as an agent of divine punishment and sometimes as a rebel, as Mastema is. It was Belial who inspired the Egyptian sorcerers, Jochaneh and his brother, to oppose Moses and Aaron. The Fragments also say that anyone who is ruled by the spirits of Belial and speaks of rebellion should be condemned as a necromancer and wizard.
Belial is also mentioned in the Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs. The author of the work seems to be a dualist because he presents Belial as God's opponent, not as a servant, but does not mention how or why this came to be. Simeon 5:3 says that fornication separates man from God and brings him near to Beliar. Levi tells his children to choose between the Law of God and the works of Beliar (Levi 19:1) It also states that when the soul is constantly disturbed, the Lord departs from it and Beliar rules over it. Naphtali (2:6, 3:1) contrasts the Law and will of God with the purposes of Beliar. Also, in 20:2, Joseph prophesies that when Israel leaves Egypt, they will be with God in light while Beliar will remain in darkness with the Egyptians. Finally, the Testament describes that when the Messiah comes, the angels will punish the spirits of deceit and Beliar (3:3) and that the Messiah will bind Beliar and give to his children the power to trample the evil spirits (18:12).
In The Martyrdom of Isaiah, Belial is the angel of lawlessness and is the ruler of this world.
"And Manasseh turned aside his heart to serve Beliar; for the angel of lawlessness, who is the ruler of this world, is Beliar, whose name is Matanbuchus." - Martyrdom of Isaiah 2:4
In Milton's Paradise Lost
Belial came last; than whom a Spirit more lewd
Fell not from Heaven, or more gross to love,
Vice for itself. To him no temple stood
Or altar smoked; yet who more oft than he
In temples and at altars, when the priest
Turns atheist, as did Eli’s sons, who filled
With lust and violence the house of God?
In courts and palaces he also reigns,
And in luxurious cities, where the noise
Of riot ascends above their loftiest towers,
And injury and outrage; and, when night
Darkens the streets, then wander forth the sons
Of Belial, flown with insolence and wine.
Witness the streets of Sodom, and that night
In Gibeah, when the hospitable door
Exposed a matron, to avoid worse rape.
-Paradise Lost, i. 490-504
Belial appears later in Mather's translation of the Goetia: the Lesser Key of Solomon as the 68th spirit.
'But for corruption thou hast made Belial, an angel of hostility. All his dominions are in darkness, and his purpose is to bring about wickedness and guilt. All the spirits that are associated with him are but angels of destruction.'
Belial is also mentioned in the Fragments of a Zadokite Work (which is also known as The Damascus Document (CD)), which states that at the time of the Antichrist, "Belial shall be let loose against Israel, as God spake through Isaiah the prophet." (6:9). The Fragments also speak of "three nets of Belial" which are said to be fornication, wealth, and polution of the sanctuary. (6:10-11) In this work, Belial is sometimes presented as an agent of divine punishment and sometimes as a rebel, as Mastema is. It was Belial who inspired the Egyptian sorcerers, Jochaneh and his brother, to oppose Moses and Aaron. The Fragments also say that anyone who is ruled by the spirits of Belial and speaks of rebellion should be condemned as a necromancer and wizard.
Belial is also mentioned in the Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs. The author of the work seems to be a dualist because he presents Belial as God's opponent, not as a servant, but does not mention how or why this came to be. Simeon 5:3 says that fornication separates man from God and brings him near to Beliar. Levi tells his children to choose between the Law of God and the works of Beliar (Levi 19:1) It also states that when the soul is constantly disturbed, the Lord departs from it and Beliar rules over it. Naphtali (2:6, 3:1) contrasts the Law and will of God with the purposes of Beliar. Also, in 20:2, Joseph prophesies that when Israel leaves Egypt, they will be with God in light while Beliar will remain in darkness with the Egyptians. Finally, the Testament describes that when the Messiah comes, the angels will punish the spirits of deceit and Beliar (3:3) and that the Messiah will bind Beliar and give to his children the power to trample the evil spirits (18:12).
In The Martyrdom of Isaiah, Belial is the angel of lawlessness and is the ruler of this world.
"And Manasseh turned aside his heart to serve Beliar; for the angel of lawlessness, who is the ruler of this world, is Beliar, whose name is Matanbuchus." - Martyrdom of Isaiah 2:4
In Milton's Paradise Lost
Belial came last; than whom a Spirit more lewd
Fell not from Heaven, or more gross to love,
Vice for itself. To him no temple stood
Or altar smoked; yet who more oft than he
In temples and at altars, when the priest
Turns atheist, as did Eli’s sons, who filled
With lust and violence the house of God?
In courts and palaces he also reigns,
And in luxurious cities, where the noise
Of riot ascends above their loftiest towers,
And injury and outrage; and, when night
Darkens the streets, then wander forth the sons
Of Belial, flown with insolence and wine.
Witness the streets of Sodom, and that night
In Gibeah, when the hospitable door
Exposed a matron, to avoid worse rape.
-Paradise Lost, i. 490-504
Belial appears later in Mather's translation of the Goetia: the Lesser Key of Solomon as the 68th spirit.
by Someone December 23, 2003
Get the Belial mug.The Apocryphal Book of Enoch gives the following description of this monster's origins:
'And that day will two monsters be parted, one monster, a female named Leviathan in order to dwell in the abyss of the ocean over the fountains of water; and (the other), a male called Behemoth, which holds his chest in an invisible desert whose name is Dundayin, east of the garden of Eden.' - 1 Enoch 60:7-8
Leviathan was a large whale-like sea creature, who may have had 7 heads according to some legends. A lengthy description of him comes from the Book of Job:
'His strong scales are his pride,
Shut up as with a tight seal.
One is so near to another
That no air can come between them.
They are joined one to another;
They clasp each other and cannot be separated.
His sneezes flash forth light,
And his eyes are like
the eyelids of the morning.
Out of his mouth go burning torches;
Sparks of fire leap forth.
Out of his nostrils smoke goes forth
As from a boiling pot and burning rushes.
His breath kindles coals,
And a flame goes forth from his mouth.
In his neck lodges strength,
And dismay leaps before him.
The folds of his flesh are joined together,
Firm on him and immovable.
His heart is as hard as a stone,
Even as hard as a lower millstone.
When he raises himself up, the mighty fear;
Because of the crashing they are bewildered.
The sword that reaches him cannot avail,
Nor the spear, the dart or the javelin.
He regards iron as straw, Bronze as rotten wood.
The arrow cannot make him flee;
Slingstones are turned into stubble for him.
Clubs are regarded as stubble;
He laughs at the rattling of the javelin.
His underparts are like sharp potsherds;
He spreads out like a threshing sledge on the mire.
He makes the depths boil like a pot;
He makes the sea like a jar of ointment.
Behind him he makes a wake to shine;
One would think the deep to be gray-haired.
Nothing on earth is like him,
One made without fear.
He looks on everything that is high;
He is king over all the sons of pride.'
- Job 42:15-32
Also, according to Isaiah 27:1, on the Day of Judgement the Lord will slay Leviathan:
'In that day the Lord will punish,
With His great, cruel, mighty sword
Leviathan the Elusive Serpent--
Leviathan the Twisting Serpent;
He will slay the Dragon of the sea.'
According to a passage in the T.B. Baba Bathra (75a), at the time of the resurrection, Gabriel will fight against Leviathan and overcome.
However, in Psalms 74:26 God is praised as having crushed the heads of Leviathan:
'it was You who crushed the heads of Leviathan,
who left him as food for the denizens of the desert'
In Paradise Lost, Milton mentions Leviathan twice referring to his enormous size.
By ancient Tarsus held, or that sea-beast
Leviathan, which God of all his works
Created hugest that swim the ocean-stream.
-Paradise Lost i, 200-203
Wallowing unwieldy, enormous in their gait,
Tempest the ocean. There Leviathan,
Hugest of living creatures, on the deep
Stretched like a promontory, sleeps or swims,
And seems a moving land, and at his gills
Draws in, and at his trunk spouts out, a sea.
-Paradise Lost vii, 411-416
'And that day will two monsters be parted, one monster, a female named Leviathan in order to dwell in the abyss of the ocean over the fountains of water; and (the other), a male called Behemoth, which holds his chest in an invisible desert whose name is Dundayin, east of the garden of Eden.' - 1 Enoch 60:7-8
Leviathan was a large whale-like sea creature, who may have had 7 heads according to some legends. A lengthy description of him comes from the Book of Job:
'His strong scales are his pride,
Shut up as with a tight seal.
One is so near to another
That no air can come between them.
They are joined one to another;
They clasp each other and cannot be separated.
His sneezes flash forth light,
And his eyes are like
the eyelids of the morning.
Out of his mouth go burning torches;
Sparks of fire leap forth.
Out of his nostrils smoke goes forth
As from a boiling pot and burning rushes.
His breath kindles coals,
And a flame goes forth from his mouth.
In his neck lodges strength,
And dismay leaps before him.
The folds of his flesh are joined together,
Firm on him and immovable.
His heart is as hard as a stone,
Even as hard as a lower millstone.
When he raises himself up, the mighty fear;
Because of the crashing they are bewildered.
The sword that reaches him cannot avail,
Nor the spear, the dart or the javelin.
He regards iron as straw, Bronze as rotten wood.
The arrow cannot make him flee;
Slingstones are turned into stubble for him.
Clubs are regarded as stubble;
He laughs at the rattling of the javelin.
His underparts are like sharp potsherds;
He spreads out like a threshing sledge on the mire.
He makes the depths boil like a pot;
He makes the sea like a jar of ointment.
Behind him he makes a wake to shine;
One would think the deep to be gray-haired.
Nothing on earth is like him,
One made without fear.
He looks on everything that is high;
He is king over all the sons of pride.'
- Job 42:15-32
Also, according to Isaiah 27:1, on the Day of Judgement the Lord will slay Leviathan:
'In that day the Lord will punish,
With His great, cruel, mighty sword
Leviathan the Elusive Serpent--
Leviathan the Twisting Serpent;
He will slay the Dragon of the sea.'
According to a passage in the T.B. Baba Bathra (75a), at the time of the resurrection, Gabriel will fight against Leviathan and overcome.
However, in Psalms 74:26 God is praised as having crushed the heads of Leviathan:
'it was You who crushed the heads of Leviathan,
who left him as food for the denizens of the desert'
In Paradise Lost, Milton mentions Leviathan twice referring to his enormous size.
By ancient Tarsus held, or that sea-beast
Leviathan, which God of all his works
Created hugest that swim the ocean-stream.
-Paradise Lost i, 200-203
Wallowing unwieldy, enormous in their gait,
Tempest the ocean. There Leviathan,
Hugest of living creatures, on the deep
Stretched like a promontory, sleeps or swims,
And seems a moving land, and at his gills
Draws in, and at his trunk spouts out, a sea.
-Paradise Lost vii, 411-416
Leviatan: From Hebrew, LVIThN (usually written Leviathan instead of Leviatan), - the Crooked or Piercing Serpent or Dragon.
by Someone December 23, 2003
Get the Leviathan mug.