Everyone has heard of demons. In the Middle Ages, a detailed classification of these creatures was compiled, on which prominent European philosophers, occultists and monks worked. Russian demonology has absorbed folk beliefs based on observations of nature and domestic life.

I became interested in the issue of demonology after my sister's unsafe passion for black magic, who came to treatment in a state of prolonged depression. She made several attempts to call the demon, after which she received severe nervous exhaustion. Why are demons dangerous for people, where do they live, is it possible to get in touch with them? Let's consider these questions in the article.

Despite detailed description demons by medieval theologians, this topic has not been fully disclosed. The description of the demons is, although specific, but not completely defined. Sometimes the description of demons by one learned theologian contradicts the opinion and description of another. Christian theology is based on a dualistic perception of the world, in which good is constantly at war with evil. The battlefield of these dual forces is human souls.

Demons according to Christian teaching are fallen angels, cursed by God. They retained their angelic nature, but lost their sinlessness. The leader of the fallen angels is Lucifer, who set out to become equal to God and take his place. After God cast down Lucifer from heaven, he took a third of the angels of heaven with him. They became known as demons and demons. From now on, their main task is to spread evil and sin among people.

Since the demons and their leader Satan (the former Lucifer) cannot harm God and his army in any way, they turned all their malice and hatred against his likeness - a man. In his intrigues, Satan constantly uses lies, covering them with plausible fictions. Thus, he contributed to the creation of many pseudo-religious cults that lead and lead people away from the truth. Wrong worship of God is equated with the worship of the devil and demons, which is exactly what Satan needed.

Also, Satan is constantly trying to prove to people his strength and power, claiming a dominant position in their hearts. To do this, he uses a whole army of sorcerers and witches who seduce people with false miracles and illusions. For example, when the deceased is magically summoned, a demon comes instead of him, and a person takes the demon for the soul of the deceased. There are a great many such false miracles that sorcerers perform with the help of evil spirits.

The Old Testament mentions the following names of fallen angels:

• the devil, aka Lucifer - translated from Greek as a slanderer;
• Satan - translated from Hebrew as an adversary, a destroyer; this word denotes all fallen spirits;
• Belial - translated from Hebrew as a lecher and a scoundrel;
• Beelzebub - denotes the prince of demons, is found in both testaments - the old and the new;
• demon is an evil spirit;
• a demon is also an evil spirit.

The demonic kingdom has a clear hierarchy, it is led by 4 supreme demons: Lucifer, Beelzebub, Astaroth, Moloch. However, other sources mention Leviathan or Belial instead of Moloch.

One of the leading demonologists of the 16th century, P. Binsfeld, singled out 7 supreme demonic creatures according to the seven deadly sins:

1. Lucifer - pride;
2. Mammon - stinginess;
3. Asmodeus - lust;
4. Satan is anger;
5. Beelzebub - gluttony;
6. Leviathan - envy;
7. Belphegor is lazy.

In Kabbalistic demonology, 10 supreme devils are distinguished, which correspond to the ten dark Sefirot of the Tree of Life.

Nine Demon Orders

Some demonologists have suggested that the demonic hierarchy copies the angelic one and contains nine ranks:

1. pseudo-gods led by Beelzebub;
2. spirits of lies led by Python;
3. inventors of evil deeds, led by Belial;
4. avengers led by Asmodeus;
5. deceivers led by Satan;
6. suggestive disasters and infection led by Merezin;
7. furies led by Abaddon;
8. accusers led by Astaroth;
9. tempters and spiteful critics, led by Mammon.

Pseudo-gods are those who pretend to be the true God. These include the entire Greek pantheon and pagan deities.

The task of the spirits of lies is to mislead, using divination and prophecy. This continues to this day, a whole army of "clairvoyants" leads the people into demonic delusion and obsession. All sorts of fortune-tellers "from God", soothsayers and soothsayers lead people away from the truth, passing off a lie as the truth.

The task of the inventors of evil deeds is to evade the execution God's commandments. To this end, they created many varieties of vicious arts and activities.

The task of avengers and punishers is to make people live with thoughts of retribution instead of fulfilling the commandment of love and forgiveness. The demons convince them that it is necessary to take revenge on the one who deserves it.

Deceivers deceive mankind with false miracles. Their task is to lead away from the truth. They can take the form of just a person with the gift of God, but sometimes they are presented as a messenger of God himself.

Contagious spirits dominate the air, through which they transmit various epidemics and plagues.

The task of the furies is to incite discord, push people together, introduce them into a state of war and hatred. They work both with individuals and with entire nations and states.

Accusers manage slander, false denunciations, slander and gossip. They introduce a person into bewilderment, and send all the dirt to their leader Astaroth.

The task of the tempters is to plunge people into sins. The transformation of a God-fearing person into a sinner is considered a special success.

Three levels of dark hierarchy

Some theologians and theologians of the Middle Ages are sure that the order of the angelic hierarchy has been preserved in the world of demons.

First level

As in the world of angels, this level contains 3 steps:

1. seraphim;
2. cherubs;
3. thrones.

Occupation of demons

Evil spirits are also classified according to the occupation that it owns. This classification was proposed in the 15th century by Alphonse de Spina. The classification is rather controversial and is not recognized by many theologians due to inaccurate descriptions.

Classification according to Alphonse de Spina:

• parks;
• pure demons;
• helpers of witches and sorcerers;
• incubi and succubus;
• poltergeist;
• marching ghosts.

Parks are the three goddesses of fate in Roman mythology. De Spina considered them evil spirits, which has a direct impact on human destinies.

Pure demons, according to de Spin, attack only holy people. Of particular importance for these unclean spirits is the success in seducing the righteous and plunging his soul into the abyss of sin and passion. There are also dream demons that send nightmares and feed on the fear energy of a sleeping person.

According to de Spin, every witch and sorcerer has assistants assigned from hell. Usually they have the appearance of a domestic or wild animal of small size. It can be an owl, a cat, a dog. A separate type of evil spirits makes witches remember the Sabbaths that did not exist. That is, these are false memories that are completely misleading.

Succubus and incubus are demonic entities that seduce men and women, enter into intimate contact with them and feed on the energy of voluptuousness. In addition to these entities, de Spina also designated a demon that feeds on the male seed. According to other sources, unclean spirits were born from the spewed seed.

Alphonse de Spina also singled out marching ghosts that appear in the form of a crowd of people. The poltergeist, a noisy household spirit, was also ranked among the evil spirits.

Planetary correspondences according to Cornelius Agrippa

In ancient occult sources there is information about the spirits that patronize the planets. For example, the demons of the planets were mentioned in the ancient treatise "The Key of Solomon". Cornelius Agrippa compiled a detailed table of correspondences between demons and planets, which can be found in Occult Philosophy, vol. 4. The author described appearance creatures, behavioral features and a number of questions with which they can be addressed when called.

If you need to make a love spell or sexual binding, they turned to the spirits of the planet Venus. If it was necessary to defeat the enemy, they turned to the spirit of the planet Mars. That is, each of the seven planets solar system had its own patron demon. When calling entities, it was necessary to strictly observe all the correspondences indicated in the treatise. These include the hour of the ceremony, the day of the week, a precious stone and other paraphernalia.

Modern classification

Today, another attempt has been made to classify demons by occupation. Demonologist Stephanie Conolly did this. She made a classification convenient for the magical summoning of this or that demon and demon.

For love spells and inciting passion, they turn to Lilith, Astaroth or Asmodeus. They are also approached to attract a soulmate and search for a sexual partner.

To inflict damage and revenge on enemies, they turn to Abaddon, Andras or Agaliarept. With the help of these demons, they try to defeat the enemy, superior in strength and skill. Also, their servants help in the black business.

To kill the enemy physically, they turn to the demons in charge of necromancy. These are Babael, Vaalberith and Evrin. They are also called upon to avoid premature death.

Black magic is used not only for love spells and damage, but also for healing. To get rid of serious ailments, they turn to the demons Belial and Verrier, as well as to Verrin.

To enhance the results of magical rites and contact with the elements, they turn to Dagon, Leviathan, Lucifer. These demons control the natural elements and will be able to help in establishing contact with them.

Acquire wealth or ruin the enemy - these requests are addressed to Mammon, Beelzebub or Belphegor. These demons are in charge of the material component of people's lives, and you can also ask them for good luck to solve any issue.

The demons Python, Delilitor and Ronwe help to increase their informational baggage and comprehend secret magical knowledge. However, these demons reveal secret knowledge only to black magicians working with light forces, the path to this information is closed.

Russian demonology

The Slavs believed in evil spirits long before the baptism of Rus'. The influence of Christian doctrine somewhat changed people's ideas about demonic beings, but not radically. Rather, Christian theology added new beings to those already present.

Prominent representatives of pre-Christian and post-Christian demonology are the pledged dead, in other words, the walking dead. They were also called ghouls.

The Slavs believed in evil spirits Badzulu, who could turn any person into a tramp and drunkard. This spirit appeared on the streets of the villages in autumn and had the appearance of a woman dressed in rags. To protect themselves from this spirit, since late autumn, the peasants were suspicious of travelers.

The Slavs spiritualized all nature and inhabited rivers, forests, fields and swamps with different spirits. With the advent of Christianity, these spirits were automatically classified as evil spirits. To protect yourself and your home from negative impact evil spirits, the Slavs made special amulets and read protective conspiracies. The peasants also believed that diseases were also sent by evil spirits, therefore, when they were unwell, they began to drive them away with special ritual actions.

In Slavic folklore there are also evil spirits, earlier former people. These are mawks and mermaids. To appease the evil creatures, the Slavs made an offering to them. In addition to evil, good spirits also lived next to a person. For example, brownies. The home spirit is revered to this day, many people still believe in it, just like children believe in Santa Claus.

As you can see, Russian and Slavic demonology is different from European. The roots of Russian and European demonology are different, so there are practically no correspondences.

• To expand knowledge about the work of M.Yu. Lermontov, to help students understand the image of the Demon in the work of the poet, in art.

• education

interpretation of a poetic text;

development

the skill of thoughtful, attentive reading; aesthetic, intellectual and creative beginnings of students;

upbringing

moral and spiritual values.

Equipment:

• portraits of M.Yu. Lermontov and M.A. Vrubel;
• illustrations of paintings by M.A. Vrubel "Demon defeated", "Demon sitting";
• the text of the poem "Demon" (various editions, variants);
• poems “My Demon” (1829), “Prayer” (Do not blame me, almighty ...) (1829), “I am not for angels and paradise ...” (1831), “Angel” (1831);
• audio recording: R. Wagner "Ride of the Valkyries".

O my prophetic soul,
O heart full of anxiety!
Oh how you beat on the threshold
What a double existence!
F.I. Tyutchev

I. Introduction

– There are images in world art that have excited the minds of people for many centuries. Over time, they change, but do not disappear. More and more new generations of poets, artists, composers turn to them to unravel the mystery and have their say. The demon is one of those images.

II. Entry into the lesson

The music of Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries" sounds.

- What associations does the word "demon" evoke in you? Write it down. Read aloud. Highlight the general.

- In the work of M.Yu. Lermontov, in addition to the well-known themes of the poet and poetry, Motherland, nature, love, motives of loneliness, suffering, exile, earth and sky, struggle and protest, the search for harmony in relations with the outside world appear early.

Group work

- I bring to your attention 4 poems by M.Yu. Lermontov:

“My demon” (1829), “Prayer” (Do not blame me, almighty ...) (1829), “I am not for angels and paradise ...” (1831), “Angel” (1831).

Each of them is interesting to think about. Pick one for yourself. Get into groups of those who have chosen the same poems. Write down (briefly) what you can say about the poem you have chosen. (Separate words, phrases are written out, conclusions are drawn about how they saw the lyrical hero in these poems).

Groups perform and talk about their observations. The task of the rest is to write down individual thoughts that will help express their opinion about what they heard.

For example:

"My Demon" (1829)

dull and gloomy
evil is his element, etc.

"Prayer" (Do not blame me, omnipotent ...) (1829)

all-powerful god
i am a sinner
the tightness of the world, etc.

“I am not for angels and paradise…” (1831)

I am a stranger to the world (earth) and heaven
I am an evil chosen one, etc.

"Angel" (1831)

connection of the soul with the body
disappointment of the soul on earth - sad songs, etc.

Conclusion: the image of the demon captures Lermontov so much that it passes through all his work, starting with the early poem “My Demon” (1829) and ending with the poem “The Demon”. Studying the poetry of Lermontov, we penetrate into the inner world of the poet. A world full of contradictions, suffering, the struggle between the "angelic beautiful" and the "demonic rebellious", etc.

Lesson problem: So, what did M.Yu. Lermontov want to say with the poem "Demon"?

III. Analysis of the poem

The message of the students about the poem "Demon"

1. M.Yu. Lermontov began to write a poem at the age of 14, during his stay in a boarding school. In 1829 a plot has already been outlined, the main content of which is the struggle of a demon with an angel in love with a mortal girl. This first draft contained 92 verses and a prose summary of the content. Over the next 10 years, 7 more editions of the poem were created, differing from each other both in plot and in the degree of poetic skill. Despite numerous alterations, the first line (Sad Demon - the spirit of exile), which arose in 1829, was preserved in the last, 8th, version. The basis of the plot was the myth of a fallen angel who rebelled against God.

2. It is possible that it was Pushkin's "Angel" (1827) that led Lermontov to the idea of ​​a poem about a Demon who was disappointed in evil and reached for good. We read from Pushkin:

At the door of Eden, a gentle angel
He shone with his drooping head,
And the demon is dark and rebellious
He flew over the hellish abyss.
Spirit of Denial, Spirit of Doubt
Looked at the pure spirit
And the heat of involuntary tenderness
I was vaguely aware for the first time.
“Forgive me,” he said, “I saw you,
And it was not for nothing that you shone to me:
I didn't hate everything in the world
I didn't despise everything in the world."

3. Traditionally, they talk about the Western European roots of the "Demon". Researchers unanimously lead the “pedigree” of the hero from the biblical myth of a fallen angel who rebelled against God. Lermontov was also aware of numerous literary incarnations of this biblical story: Milton's Paradise Lost, Goethe's Faust, Byron's Cain, etc.

4. In 1837 the poet was exiled to the Caucasus, to the active army. In relation to the mountain peoples, notes of a mature assessment appeared, but admiration and fascination with the nature and customs of the Caucasus remained. They colored both the poetic narrative, and the image of the lyrical hero, and sublime tones, especially since the impression was superimposed on an interest in romanticism, on the desire to characterize the hero as an exceptional personality. Many researchers discover the "ancestors" of the Demon among the characters of Caucasian legends.

5. No less interesting and significant (but less well-known!) is the eastern component of the image of the Demon: one can find parallels between Lermontov's hero and one of the characters of the Koran - Satan (Iblis). Lermontov knew the Koran, read its Russian translation and could well use one of its plots in his work.

Work on the image of the main character

– How did you see the Demon in the poem by M.Yu. Lermontov "Demon" Find a description of the character, actions of the hero; choose all the pros and cons related to the Demon's characteristic. Fill in the table (you can offer to complete this task in pairs, groups).

- Can we say whether more positive or negative, good or evil, angelic or satanic is inherent in the character, actions of the hero?

Conclusion: at the heart of the image is a contradiction, a conflict between good and evil. The concepts of good and evil are not absolute, sometimes intersect one in the other in different circumstances.

- Prove the above idea with examples of the text.

1. The demon saw Tamara, fell in love, but this great feeling led to the death of Tamara's fiancé:

And again he comprehended the shrine
Love, kindness and beauty!...

His insidious dream
The crafty Demon was indignant: ...

2. Having comprehended the melancholy of love, the Demon cries, but instead of a cleansing tear, a burning tear flows:

The anguish of love, its excitement
Achieved the Demon for the first time...

Through the burnt stone is visible
Tears hot as a flame
Inhuman tear! .. and others.

- How does the Demon relate to the world, to the beauty of nature? Give examples from the text.

1. Nature's brilliance did not excite
In the exile's barren chest
No new feelings, no new forces;
And all that he saw before him
He despised or hated.

2. And wild and wonderful was around
All God's world; but a proud spirit
looked contemptuously
Creation of their god.
And on his high forehead
Nothing was reflected.

Conclusion: The demon feels contempt, hatred for what he sees around.

The image of Tamara ( group work)

1 group – portrait characteristic:

And not a single king of the earth
I did not kiss such an eye ...
... fountain ... with its pearly dew
I did not wash such a camp! ...
... an earthly hand ... did not unravel such hair; ...

And her wet eyes shine
From under an envious eyelash;
That will lead with a black eyebrow ... and others.

Conclusion: Tamara is the embodiment of life and beauty. In relation to the heroine, the epithet "divine" is used, which not only characterizes her charming appearance, but also contrasts the princess with the protagonist, who was expelled from paradise.

Group 2 - the fate of the heroine:

Alas! expected in the morning
Her, heiress of Gudal,
Freedom frisky child
The fate of the sad slave
Fatherland, alien to this day,
And an unknown family.

And I won't be anyone's wife!
I'm dying, have pity on me!
Give to the sacred abode
His reckless daughter ... and others.

Conclusion: Tamara's future is not cloudless, she will become a wife-slave, enter a strange family, "dark bright features" expectation of bonds, captivity, loss of freedom. After the death of her fiancé, Tamara is "reckless", her mind cannot comprehend what is happening, she cries and begs her father to send her to a monastery in order to find peace there.

- There is something secretly hidden in the narrative, the author does not tell the reader everything, the reader is forced to languish with the heroine of the poem. Thus, Lermontov prepares us for a new round in the development of action.

Hero love

- Describe the state of the Demon who saw Tamara.

The demon, "chained by an invisible force", was struck by the beauty of Tamara, he "for a moment felt an inexplicable excitement in himself", "a feeling suddenly spoke in him", etc.

- Is it only the beauty, youth of Tamara that attracted the Demon? Did the hero see few beautiful girls flying over the earth? Maybe there is something in common between them? Confirm with the words of the text.

Tamara personifies youth, beauty, kindness for the hero. For a long time, the demon “outcast wandered into the deserts of the world without shelter” and now sees in Tamara a kindred soul - seeking, doubting, thirsting for knowledge.

Tamara is waiting for a meeting with the Demon, listening to his speeches addressed to her alone and no one else understands:

She often heard speech.
Under the dome of the gloomy temple
A familiar image sometimes
He glided ... Manil and he called ... but - where? ...

Full of longing and trembling,
Tamara is often at the window
Sitting alone in thought...

All the feelings in her boiled suddenly;
The soul tore its shackles! and etc.

– What size is the poem? Why does the XV chapter of Part I change poetic size poems? (Based on homework).

Lermontov wrote the poem in iambic four-foot with a variety of rhymes that helps to show all the beauty of the world, and in the XV chapter of part I of the iambic he replaced the iambic with a four-foot trochee (acceleration of speech): love illuminates the days of the hero, changes everything in words, in appeals to the heroine one hears a call to change her life …

... Be to the earthly without participation
And as careless as they are!

- What does the Demon want, having fallen in love with Tamara?

The demon hopes that through love for Tamara he will be able to touch the world harmony again:

Me good and heaven
You could return with a word
Your love with a holy cover
Dressed, I would appear there
Like a new angel in a new brilliance...
The demon even makes an oath to Tamara that:
From now on, the poison of insidious flattery
Nothing disturbs the mind;

– What stylistic device does the author use to help inspire faith in the words of the Demon, to give them weight?

I swear on the first day of creation
I swear by his last day...

I renounced the old revenge
I renounced proud thoughts; ...

I want to reconcile with the sky
I want to love, I want to pray...

– What does the Demon promise to give Tamara in return for her love for him?

And I will give you eternity in a moment; ...
And you will be the queen of the world
My first friend...

I will give you everything, everything earthly -
Love me!.. etc.

problem questions ( can be given as a creative task or to hold a discussion):

1. Can the Demon find harmony? Why?

2. Why does God forgive Tamara, and her soul goes to heaven?

1. Demon love is selfish. Instead of purifying his soul, he is ready to destroy Tamara's bush. That's not what lovers do. In love, he did not rejoice, but triumphed, experienced a sense of personal superiority. Sacrificial love is pure, but what does the Demon sacrifice?

Love me!..
………………………….
A mighty gaze gazed into her eyes!
He burned her.
………………………….
Alas! the evil spirit triumphed!
………………………….
"She is mine! - he said menacingly, - and others.

Pride, this mortal sin, which always encroaches on the shrine, is the reason for the defeat of the Demon, this is the source of his suffering. Initiation to harmony due to love for an earthly woman and at the cost of her death was not realized. The evil inclination again appeared in the Demon:

And cursed Demon defeated
Dreams are crazy...

2. Tamara's soul is carried away by a guardian angel. It is he who saves her for paradise. The soul of the deceased Tamara is still full of doubts, a “trace of misconduct” is imprinted on it, which the angel washes away with tears:

... And the sweet speech of hope
Dispelled her doubts
And a trace of misconduct and suffering
He washed away her tears.

It was God who sent a test to Tamara. Having accepted the evil inclination inspired by the Demon, the heroine sacrifices herself, protecting the eternal values: Good, Peace, Beauty, Love. Therefore, she deserves forgiveness. Forgiven, Tamara goes to heaven, where access is closed for the hero:

... And again he remained, arrogant.
Alone, as before, in the universe
Without hope and love!

Lesson summary

– What did M.Yu. want to say? Lermontov's poem "The Demon"? And why does the image of the Demon go through all the work of the author?

The demon appears in the poem as a spirit of exile, flying over the sinful earth, powerless to break away from it and approach heaven. He is expelled from paradise, thrown out of heaven and therefore sad. He sows evil, but it does not bring him pleasure. Everything he sees brings either cold envy or contempt and hatred. He was bored with everything. But he is proud, he is not able to obey the will of others, he tries to overcome himself ...

Unearthly love helps the hero fight evil within himself, and his suffering soul wants to reconcile with heaven, wants to believe in good. This conflict between good and evil is like a clash between light and darkness.

Two principles merge in him, and he appears before us, ready to turn his face to both good and evil:

That was not hell, a terrible spirit,
Vicious martyr - oh no!
It looked like a clear evening:
Neither day nor night, neither darkness nor light!

The essence of the hero is in irreconcilable contradictions, in the assertion that even such concepts as Good and Evil are not absolute. These contradictions are embedded in life itself. A person receives the ability to know and fight, and in the soul of everyone lives his own demon.

M.Yu. Lermontov is distinguished by a dual world, a tragic understanding of the abyss between earthly and heavenly, bodily and spiritual, real and ideal. The only, narrow, shaky, but indestructible bridge across this abyss remains the human soul. The soul, eternally balancing on the verge of "double being", as F.I. Tyutchev:

O my prophetic soul,
O heart full of anxiety!
Oh how you beat on the threshold
What a double existence!

Homework

Demons are close to the spiritual world of their authors. M.A. Vrubel, whose illustrations of paintings you see, like M.Yu. Lermontov, early felt his chosenness. M.A. Vrubel would never have painted his “Demon” if the image had not been part of the artist himself. What can you say about the author of the pictures? What connects the "Demon" Vrubel and Lermontov? This is the theme of your creative work.

There were a lot of attempts to determine the degree of influence and types of evil spirits, and among Christian demonologists there was no consensus either about the boundaries of the power of demons or about their hierarchy.

Thus, in 1563, the skeptical physician Weyer wrote:

Satan has great courage, incredible cunning, superhuman wisdom, sharpest insight, perfect judgment, incomparable skill in weaving the most cunning intrigues and a vicious, boundless hatred of all human things, [hatred] ruthless and enduring.

French witch judge Boden wrote the following about demons (1580):

Devils have the deepest knowledge of everything. No theologian can interpret the Holy Scriptures better than they, no lawyer knows the laws and regulations, no doctor or philosopher understands better than they the structure of the human body or the power of stones and metals, birds and fish, trees and grasses, earth and heaven.

Obviously, it is in this capacity, as described by Bodin, that the demons appear in the "Small Key of Solomon", in the section "Goetia"

Classification of demons according to the degree of their power Alphonse de Spina established 10 varieties of demons: Parks. These demons were credited with the power to interfere in the fate of man; Poltergeists are spirits that make small mischief at night in the house: they move and break things, they do not let you sleep at night with noise, but, as a rule, do not cause much harm; incubi And Succubi are demons who have sexual intercourse with humans. According to the author, nuns are especially susceptible to the attacks of these demons; marching ghosts , appearing as a crowd of people making a lot of noise; House spirits of witches - geniuses-guards of witches and sorcerers, as well as all other spirits imitating the angel from the book of Tobit; Nightmares - demons that cause terrible visions in a dream; Demons formed from male semen - demons that induce fantasies about women in men in order to obtain seed, to create other demons; Deceiver demons - demons fooling people, appearing in human guise; Pure demons- demons that attack only saints; Demons that deceive old women , inspiring them with the idea that they allegedly flew to the Sabbath.

.Classification of demons according to their habitat In Guazzo's Compendium Maleficarum published in 1603, and later in Henry Heliwell's Melampronoea (1681), the authors quote Michael Psellos, who classified demons according to their habitat: Fire demons that live in the upper layers of the air, do not descend to the ground to people. The author believed that their appearance will occur only inJudgment Day . Air demons that live in the air around people. They can cause atmospheric phenomena such as storms and storms, can sometimes become visible people capable of descending into hell. The spirits of the air are the demons mentioned in the Teurgia Goetia. Lesser Key of Solomon». Earthly demons living in forests and groves, where they set up insidious traps for a person. They lead astray, and some live a secret life among humans. Water demons that cause storms on the seas, where they sink ships and exterminate living creatures in reservoirs. They often appear before a person in female images. Their temper is violent, restless and full of deceit. Underground demons live in caves and mountain crevices. They cause earthquakes, destroy the foundations of houses and harm the miners. Light-fearing demons cannot stand the light. According to Psellos, they are completely incomprehensible to humans, since inside they are completely black, their temper is full of dark passions, anger and restless excitement. When meeting a person at night, these demons attack the person and kill him, suffocating or poisoning him with their breath. They cannot be conjured by any conspiracies and kept by any witchcraft, because they shun human voices, all noise and run from the light.

Classification of demons by angelic ranks During exorcism daemon Balberit, who moved into the Madeleine fromProvence, reported that since the demons are fallen angels, their ranks ascend to the angelic ranks established as early as the 4th century. n. e. in the treatise "Divine Names" of Pseudo-Dionysius. In total, the demon mentioned nine ranks, divided into three faces of three ranks each: IN first facespirits entered in the rank of Seraphim, Cherubim and Thrones: Beelzebub (Seraphim), the second after Lucifer, inclines people to pride; Leviathan (Seraphim) inclines to heresy and sins contrary to faith; Asmodeus (Seraphim) is the prince of luxury and wants to seduce all people with it; Balberit (Cherubim) - inclines to squabble, slander and suicide; Astaroth (Thrones) - inclines to idleness and laziness; Veren(Thrones), second after Astaroth - inclines people to intolerance; Gressil(Thrones) - inclines people to impurity and slovenliness; Sonnelone(Throne) - excites hatred of enemies in people. In second facespirits entered in the rank of Dominions, Forces, Powers: Elle(Domination) - incites people to break the vow of poverty; Rosier(Domination) - incites to lust; Verrier(Prince Sil) - inclines to break the vow of obedience; carro(Power) - inspires cruelty; carnivan(Power) - inclines people to shamelessness. IN third facespirits entered in the order of the Beginnings, Archangels and Angels: Belial (Beginning) - inclines to arrogance, inspires women to adorn themselves in accordance with fashion, corrupt children, chat with them during mass; olivius(Archangel) - inspires cruelty and ruthlessness towards the poor.

It is rather difficult to classify demons, since often the abilities and nature of different spirits are intertwined and interrelated. However, the Dutch physician and occultist Johann Weyer, in his book Pseudomonarchia Daemonum, (1588), provides a detailed classification of demons and instructions for those who wish to call them.

In general, there are several main groups:

Geniuses are guardian demons assigned to a person, object or area. This may include various folklore characters such as goblin, water, brownies, house spirits, witches (familiaries), nymphs of idriads, guardians of palaces of ancient cultures like shedu, and guardians of the person himself like a guardian angel

Spirits not tied to a specific place, such as elemental spirits: gnomes, elves, mermaids, satyrs, etc. (according to the Christian teaching that all supernatural forces come from the Devil, if not from God)

Archons are demons who act as personifications of the forces of nature and the cosmos, which maintain the order of natural things unchanged or serve as immortal prototypes for all creatures on earth (which makes them related to the concept of archetype and ideas in philosophy). Decans from the Hermetic writings can be attributed to such beings.

Classification of demons in connection with the seven sins

This kind of classification was based on the idea that demons incite a person to sin. So, in 1589, the demonologist P. Binsfeld gave such a connection between higher demons and vices:

Lucifer - pride;

Mammon - greed;

Asmodeus - lust;

Satan - anger;

Beelzebub - gluttony;

Leviathan - envy;

Belphegor is lazy.

In 1801 the occultistFrancis Barret published in Londonthe book "Magus or Celestial Intelligencer", in which he changed the connection of demons with sins. According to Barrett

Mammon is a demon of tempters and seducers;

Asmodeus - prince of the avengers;

Satan is the demon of deceit;

Beelzebub is the lord of false gods.

In addition, the following were added to the list of demons:

Python - the prince of the spirits of lies;

Belial - the receptacle of vice;

Merihim is the leader of the spirits that cause contagious diseases;

Abaddon - demon of wars;

Astaroth is the demon of accusers and inquisitors.

They are vile ... just as it is impossible for a sinner to look at the light of an angel, so it is terrible to see demons, because they are vile.

Reverend Seraphim of Sarov

Satan himself takes on the form of an angel of light

For such false apostles, deceitful workers, assume the form of the Apostles of Christ. And no wonder: because Satan himself takes the form of an angel of light, and therefore it is not a great thing if his servants also take the form of servants of righteousness, but their end will be according to their deeds (2 Corinthians 11:13-15).

Venerable Theodora of Constantinople

(ordeal)

I turned away my eyes so as not to see their terrible faces.

Seeing her, Grigory was delighted and asked how her soul was separated from her body, what she saw at her death, how she went through the air trials. To these questions Theodora answered him thus:

“Child Gregory, you asked about a terrible thing, it’s terrible to remember it. I saw faces that I had never seen, and heard words that I had never heard. What can I tell you? Terrible and terrible I had to see and hear for my deeds, but with the help and prayers of our father, the Monk Basil, everything was easy for me. How can I convey to you, child, that bodily torment, that fear and confusion that the dying have to experience! the last hour destroys a man. Truly terrible is the death of sinners like me! So, when the hour came for the separation of my soul from the body, I saw around my bed a lot of Ethiopians, black as soot or pitch, with eyes burning like coals. They raised a noise and shout: alone roared like beasts and beasts, others barked like dogs, some howled like wolves, and some grunted like pigs, all of them, looking at me, raged, threatened, gnashed their teeth, as if they wanted to eat me, they prepared charters in which they were written all my bad deeds. Then my poor soul trembled; it was as if the torment of death did not exist for me: the terrible vision of the terrible Ethiopians was for me another, more terrible death. I turned away my eyes so as not to see their terrible faces, but they were everywhere and their voices were carried from everywhere.

An evil spirit in appearance and being

I

The devil is an evil mental force that has departed from God, ormental evil spirit, and his superior dignity(Eph. 6:12).

Thus, the demons, being of the same spiritual nature with the angels, but voluntarily deviating from good to evil, became in the image of being - in contrast to the first (lights) - darkness.

The ancient pagans and their magicians, who were in direct contact with demons, whom they respectfully called gods, of course, should have known more about their nature than people of the 20th century, who do not even believe in the existence of demons. Therefore, spells (a kind of “prayer”) of sorcerers and sorcerers, especially Assyria and Egypt, where the latter were powerful, can, on the negative side, provide some material, if not adding anything new to patristic or biblical data, then still illuminating in its own way case. And it’s enough that the “dogmatics” of incantations coincides with Christian dogmatics and, therefore, shows how low the current culture and its worldview, which is so at odds with the foundations of faith, have fallen! ..

For example, I will give two spells from the ritual of black magic of the ancient Chaldean priests.

First (against the “great maskims” - the name of one demonic class): “Seven, there are seven of them! Seven of them in the deepest depths of the sea. Seven troublemakers of heaven; they rise from the deepest bowels of the ocean, from the innermost recesses. They are not men and they are not women; spread like a web. They have no women, no children are born; honor and goodness are unknown to them; they do not listen to prayers and requests. Evil spirits born in the mountains, the enemies of the god Ea, they are the instruments of the wrath of the gods... Enemies! Enemies! Seven of them, seven of them, twice seven of them!

Another spell against Umu* - a separate category of demons:

“They (demons) are the fiends of hell ... They penetrate from one house to another and you can’t keep them with doors, you can’t lock them with locks, they crawl through the doors like snakes; they prevent a wife from conceiving by her husband ... They are that ominous voice that, cursing people, pursues everywhere.

Since angels, as we have seen, cannot be limited to any physical place, then, consequently, demons, by their nature, cannot be spatially defined and measured by our vershoks, arshins and sazhens. Thus, the question of scholastic theologians "how many demons can fit on the point of a needle?" may be called idle, but not stupid, not illogical, not unreasonable. Due to the above properties of their spiritual nature, they can fit hundreds, thousands, billions, quintillions ... The theological concepts of a “spiritual place” are explained in the above spells and the properties of demons to penetrate material things and locked locks. I will give a few more examples that clearly show the many different abilities of spirits.

Renowned scientist, prof. V. Bogoraz-Tan, who studied (of course, not believing in demons) shamanism, witchcraft and magic first-hand, that is, from the words of the shamans themselves and from their own experience (he himself was subjected to their spells), wrote a whole book on this topic in connection with Einstein's newly discovered ideas, embodied in the so-called theory of relativity. I borrow something from her.

The learned intellectual kept asking in what form the demons appear to the sorcerers, how exactly they appear and what sizes they are. The professor says: “Chukotka shamans pointed out to me more than once: “It is difficult to understand what kind of spirits there are, large or small. You look at the spirit - and it is smaller than a midge. cliff and his feet are below on the sand... Look at him from afar, through a light mist - and he rises like a whole mountain..."

“When you begin to get acquainted with shamanism,” their incapable and incomprehensible student continues, “first of all, this smallness of the spirits called by the shaman strikes. They are often hundreds, the shaman gathers them into a tambourine, shakes them - and they are squeezed together and rolled into a ball.

Then he shakes the tambourine, the spirits wake up all over the room, swarm and buzz, break out and, sticking around the room from all sides with a thick layer, protect it from enemy attacks.

“The sizes of spirits at meetings,” Bogoraz-Tan continues, “constantly change... The spirit that attacks a person, a terrible soul hunter, is huge, gigantic... The same spirit, defeated, tamed by a shaman, on the contrary, is small, even tiny.

Without multiplying extracts from the vast shamanic practice, I will add that such examples are found in every folklore and every magical ritual. Even those folk traditions that have been processed and passed through the hands of poets and writers with a purely positivist direction have retained the main grain of truth.

Let everyone remember only his school and gymnasium years and find as many examples as he likes from the books he read at that time, out of duty and according to his own disposition.

Here, King Solomon from the Thousand and One Nights, the Arabian tales of Scheherazade, puts a huge genie - a spirit (which in a free state stood on the ground with its feet and went into the clouds with its head) into a small bottle and, having sealed it with a magical seal, throws it into the sea.

In another fairy tale, "Aladin's Magic Lamp", genies-demons also appear in a giant form.

In Goethe's Faust, the demon, the "genius of the earth", called by spells to frighten Faust, appears on a huge scale, but the same demon under the guise of Mephistopheles, wanting to please Faust and seduce him, takes on already modest dimensions - to be afraid, they say I have nothing...

Our poets do the same. In Pushkin's songs of the southwestern Slavs ("Marko Yakubovich"), the spirit changes its appearance three times in a short time, successively turning from a giant into a small dwarf.

In the poem "Demons" the coachman says to the poet:

Look: out, out playing,
Blows, spits on me...
There's an unprecedented milestone
He stood in front of me
There he flashed a small spark
And disappeared into the darkness of the night ...

Pushkin takes a closer look:

I see - the spirits have gathered
Among the whitening plains.
Endless, ugly
In the muddy moon game,
Various demons swirled
Like leaves in November...

Or here is another mocking (when it’s not at all funny) phrase of a non-intellectual:

You will catch a hundred of them in a bubble ...

Nekrasov

II

He is incapable of remorse

“It may be that before the creation of man, there was still some place for repentance for the devil,” says St. Basil the Great. - But as soon as the dispensation of the world, and the planting of paradise, and man in paradise, and the commandment of God, and the envy of the devil, and the murder of the exalted one, appeared, since then a place for repentance has been concluded for the devil. For if Esau, having sold the birthright, did not find a place for repentance, then is there any place for repentance for him who killed the first-created man and through him brought death?

III

Demons don't know the future

Once a demonic power appeared to Pachomius the Great († 348) in the form of a wife. At the end of a long conversation, which I omit, the saint said to the devil:

Do you know that after our death future monks will not work for God as faithfully as we do?

I know well, - the demon answers.

You lie on your bad head: to know the future is the business of God Himself alone, and you are a lie and you own a lie! ..

Even if I don’t know anything by foreknowledge,” the devil answered the elder, “however, comparing the past events with the present, I conclude about those that will happen in the future.

“The one who multiplies the demon blesses,” adds the life, “the Monk Pachomius in the name of Jesus Christ, rebuke him, and the demon with all his hordes will disappear.”

Another example. One day the demon appeared blissfully. Andrew, for Christ's sake, the holy fool († c. 936 in Constantinople), and made a prediction about future, that is, current, Christians.

In those days people will be wickeder than me, he said, and little children will surpass old people in cunning. Then I will begin to rest, then I will not teach people anything! They themselves will fulfill my will! ..

How do you know it? - asked the blessed one. - After all, the demon knows nothing by foresight?

The latter replied:

Our smartest father, Satan, while in hell, conjectures about everything through sorcery (to put it in our language, with the help of the enormous occult, unknown forces inherent in him, he sort of solves problems for compiling equations regarding the relationships and clashes of peoples, just like a chemist, physicist, an astronomer or mathematician, with the help of his knowledge and various actions on acids, gases, planets, makes his predictions about various physico-chemical and astronomical phenomena) and transmits to us, but we ourselves do not know anything.

But it is clear that Satan himself does not know anything, but mixing human passions like different acids, pouring from one person into another who works for him, various poisons of malice, slyness, self-love, he draws probable conclusions.

IV

Despite their ignorance of the future, demons, as just mentioned, constantly take false predictions

"And they are not to be believed, even though they speak the truth many times in the manner we have spoken of."

V

Demons also know the Holy Scriptures

“Even in Scripture, this murderer is versed,” says St. Gregory the Theologian. - From one place he will say: it is written about bread, from another: it is written about angels. It’s written more, - speaks, - like an angel to command you about you, and they will take you in their hands(Ps. 90:12). O cunning one for evil, for which I did not finish the next (I firmly remember this, although you will keep silent), that, protected by the Trinity, I will step on you - asp and basilisk(13) and I will trample snake and scorpion?(Luke 10:19).”

“One day,” says Rev. Ephraim the Syrian about his friend St. Avramias, - when the blessed one, according to custom, ate food, the enemy entered his cell in the form of a young man and approached him with the intention of overturning his cup.

But he guessed and kept her, and he continued to eat food, not caring about his deceit. The young man, jumping back, stood in front of the blessed one and, placing a lamp with a luminary burning on it, loudly began to sing a psalm and say: Blessed is the undefiled one who walks in the law of the Lord...(Ps. 119:1.) So he pronounced most of the psalm (there are 176 verses in it. - Bishop Barnabas).

VI

But human thoughts (unless they are inspired by them themselves) demons do not know

“Satan does not know by what passion the soul will be conquered,” says the ancient Egyptian ascetic Abba Matoy. He sows, but he does not know if he will reap. He sows thoughts of fornication, thoughts of slander, and also other passions. To what passion the soul shows itself inclined, that he inspires it. “Demons, although extremely unclean, however, are not hidden from each other in their ranks, but they do not see two ranks that are higher than them (that is, angelic and spiritual, our human. - Bishop Barnabas),” says St. Isaac Sirin.

I will also cite the testimony of Abba Serena, the famous Egyptian ascetic. “Even those thoughts that they inspire, whether they are accepted or how they are accepted, they recognize not by the nature of the soul itself, that is, not by the internal movement hidden, so to speak, in the brains, but by the movements and signs of the external person. For example, when gluttony is instilled, if they see that a monk with curiosity fixes his eyes at the window or at the sun, or carefully asks about the hour, then they will know that he has a desire to eat. If, suggesting fornication, they notice that he patiently accepted the arrow of lust, or they see that the flesh was indignant, or, at least, he did not breathe, as he should, against the suggestion of impure voluptuousness (remember, reader, how to act, according to reason and the work of the holy fathers, in such cases! - Bishop Barnabas), then they understand that an arrow of lust is stuck in his soul's insides.

So, let's remember that at any time of the day or night there are demons around us and literally, as they say, look into our mouths. “Every one of our movements is observed with curiosity,” says another great seer, Rev. Nilus of Sinai, - and nothing is left unnoticed in us, no uplifting on the bed, no sitting, no standing, no word, no way out, no look, they look at everything intently, they use everything, all day learn from us flattering(Ps. 37:13), in order to slander the humble mind during prayer and extinguish the blessed light in it. And that's enough about that. To write and speak aloud to the uninitiated, this same holy father restrains me more clearly and in more detail, just as he himself refrains from the same, and the reason for this, whoever wants to know, let him read it himself.

VII

Demons invented every vice, as well as impure passions

The character of the devil is clearly defined in the Word of God - he proud(Ex. 14:12,14), cruel (Luke 8:21), malicious (Job 1:9; 2:4), deceitful (Matt. 6:13; 13:19), deceitful (John 8 :44), conceited (Matt. 4:9). And all the power of the hateful nature of demons is directed at people.

With the advent of Christ, the power of the devil has already been completely broken, and he now acts only in sons of disobedience (Eph. 2:2).

“You are deposed by the Cross, mortified by the Life-giver, lifeless, dead, motionless, inactive, and although you retain the image of a serpent, you are betrayed to shame on high!” - exclaims Gregory the Theologian in the "Sermon for Holy Pascha".

Satan himself once said to the great psychic Saint Nifont (326-373), bishop of the city of Constantia: "Since Jesus was crucified, indeed, I have become weak ...".

But that's not how he acted before. (Apparently, our times are approaching when he will begin to boss around and torture mankind with his former strength. See: Rev. 11:7; 17:8; 20:3.) The ancient pagans learned well on their back (Ps 128:3) all the vindictiveness, malice and hatred of demons towards the human race. This popular belief was developed by the ancient Greek tragedians. Thus appeared among them the "spirit of vengeance."

In Aeschylus, he appears as a demon-tempter, continuously acting in destinies known kind. So, in the Atrid family, a whole string of new ones grows out of one main sin; Alastor, avenging one crime, causes another, new one, which again in turn is followed by revenge and another new crime, and so on without end. In Sophocles and Euripides, the evil character of this demon remains the same, but with slight modifications.

At any rate, the strength of his hatred had not diminished. So, in Sophocles in Oedipus at Colon we read:

But here's what will happen: in Thebes My avenging spirit, settled forever... etc.

In Homer himself, demons are almost never found as good deities, but as evil forces, especially with the application of the epithets στυγερος, χαλεπος, κακοσ *, (* terrible, severe, evil (Greek)) often come across. Directly, without any roundabouts, in the meaning of "evil, death" (Verderben) or "death" (Tod) stands δειμων in the Iliad (VIII, 166).

The philosopher Socrates, who must have known a good deal about all these things, because he himself had, in his own words, a demon always accompanying him, inspiring him this and that, speaks of the evil character of the demons.

Here is an excerpt from Plato's Lysis (223A):

“Having said this, I (Socrates) thought it was already to touch someone else, older. But here like some demons teachers came up - one Meneksenov, the other Lizisov - together with their brothers and ordered them to go home ... "

Of course, here the word "demon" is used in the sense of a hostile force that interferes with our intention. Thus, we also have evidence in favor of the same from the side of the two philosophical minds of Greece, on which, like on pillars, the whole ancient intellectual worldview rested.

After this, the longing of mankind until the First Coming of Christ the Savior for the Redeemer and gratitude to God (for deliverance) together with the joy of the first Christians, who before that fear of death through all life, blame the work of the devil(Heb. 2: 14-15).

VIII

Demons are powerful (Eph. 2:2; 6:12)

When St. Averky, the apostolic husband, Bishop of Hierapolis († c. 167), being in Rome, expelled the demon from the royal daughter, then as a punishment for forcing him in his old age to make such a long journey for the sake of this exile (from Hierapolis, near the present Turkish Bambuk-Kalasi, to Rome), said to him: “Here lies a stone (in front of the palace lay a huge block of stone, which many people could barely move; the saint pointed to it); I command you, devil, in the name of my Lord Jesus Christ, to carry this stone all the way to my homeland, to Hierapolis, and put it there at the southern gate of the city. The devil, like some kind of slave and captive, bound by an oath, leaving the royal daughter, picked up that stone and, groaning heavily, carried it through the air through the hippodrome (the place of races and spectacles of the people). All the people watched with great surprise how this stone was rushing through the air, they also heard the loud cry of the groaning devil, but, of course, they could not see him himself. The devil, bringing the stone to Hierapolis, threw it at the place where St. Averkiem. The inhabitants of the city, seeing a stone suddenly fallen from the air, were very surprised, not knowing this secret, until the saint returned to them and told them everything.

Averky carved an epitaph on this stone and then ordered the townspeople - his spiritual children - to put it on his grave as a monument. Which was done with great difficulty by common efforts.

Of course, unbelievers, reading the life of Averky and his most tombstone inscription, always considered it to be fairy tales. But in 1883 God put them to shame. In that year, during excavations at the site of ancient Hierapolis, this stone was unearthed. The aforementioned epitaph carved on it, which was considered a “priestly invention,” in modern terms, has also survived intact. Science, as always, greedily pounced on the "novelty" and had to recognize the truth of everything that had denied before. At present, the authenticity and antiquity of the epitaph are recognized by such scholars as the famous archaeologist de Rossi.

Rev. Seraphim speaks of the power of the smallest of the demons, that he is able to turn the whole earth with one claw.

IX

But despite this, Satan trembles at the name of Jesus Christ and at the sign of the cross

When insuring (at midnight, in dark places, etc.), St. John of the Ladder teaches to do this: “Arm yourself (with prayer), spread your arms (with the cross) and beat the adversaries with the name of Jesus, for there is no strongest weapon either in heaven or in substitute."

Even when people who commit sin cross themselves, due to habit or upbringing, but also in order to protect them from dark forces, then those receive help.

St. Gregory the Theologian relates an interesting incident from the life of Emperor Julian the Apostate, which took place during his initiation into one of the mystery cults. It was necessary to go to the "gods", that is, demons, in some underground caves, in order to conjure and confer with them there. “But when our brave man,” narrates the holy father, “goes forward, he is seized with horror, with every step he becomes more frightening; they also talk about unusual sounds, about stench, about fiery manifestations, and, I don’t know about what, ghosts and dreams. Struck by surprise, as inexperienced in such a matter, he (Julian) runs to the cross this ancient benefit, and is signified by him against horrors, calls for the help of the Wronged One (that is, Christ). What followed was even more terrible. The sign worked, the demons were defeated, fears dissipated. What then? Evil comes to life, the apostate again becomes impudent, tries to go further, and again the same horrors. He crosses himself again - and the demons subside. The student is at a loss, but with him is a mentor (the magician and sorcerer who accompanied him - Bishop Barnabas), reinterpreting the truth. He says: "They were not afraid of us, but they abhorred us." And evil took over. As soon as the teacher said - the student believes, and the one who convinces leads him to the abyss of death.

Another example. One day, blessed Vasily, a fool for Christ, a Moscow miracle worker, came, performing his difficult feat of foolishness, to a tavern (tavern, tavern), where the owner was angry at heart and brought wine with abuse, often repeating the name of the demon. Blessed Basil stood at the door and, grieving in spirit, looked at those who came to "drink." Following him came one "wine-drinker shaking with a hangover," who asked the kisser to give him wine for money as soon as possible. But out of impatience, in a fit of anger, he shouted at him: “Let the evil one take you, drunkard, who prevents me from offering you to the best.” Hearing such a word shielded himself sign of the cross who came, accepting wine from his hands, and blessed Basil, as if foolish, laughed loudly, clapped his hands and exclaimed: “Good, you have done good, always do so in order to be saved from invisible enemy". Those in the tavern asked about the reason for the laughter. The saint, now casting aside his foolishness, answered them wisely:

“When the owner called on the name of the evil one, he went up with his word into a glass, when he who wanted to drink protected himself with the sign of the cross, a demon came out of the glass and fled from the tavern. I laughed with great joy and praise remembering Christ our Savior and overshadowing themselves in all their deeds with the sign of the cross, which reflects all the power of the enemy.

X

Demons change and transform

With the permission of God, the demons change and transform into the form they want in accordance with their imagination, starting from bright angel (2 Cor. 11:14) and ending with every kind of cattle, reptiles and monsters. The latter kind is the most suitable for them, and in their appearances they often appear to people in a different way. Only for the sake of seduction take on a “light” look. Why is that?

The image of the appearance of the spirit, good or evil, corresponds to something in the spiritual world, some kind of spiritual essence, which we, due to our “carnality”, as it is said, “cannot understand and perceive”. But if there were no angelic and non-appearances for people, then we should have concluded that they should formally differ: some spirits should take on a beautiful, pleasant appearance, according to their beautiful and good nature, others - on the contrary. With ghost visions, indeed, this is what happens. Angels always appear in a beautiful way, and demons, as you will see, in a different, repulsive way. Rev. Seraphim of Sarov, when asked by a layman if he had seen evil spirits, answered with a smile: “They are vile ... just as it is impossible for a sinner to look at the light of an angel, so it’s terrible to see demons, because they are vile.”

Why, I repeat, so? Because their inner nature, darkened and perverted after being cast down from heaven, into whatever image they are transformed, even into Christ and into an angel of light, always shines through the accepted charming (not to be confused with charming) appearance. Therefore, no matter how beautiful the form of the appeared demon was, but since it serves as an expression and revelation of a disharmonious, distorted essence and crooked nature, it cannot be completely corrected. Just as an artist who is in the dark, although he would be brilliant, will not be able to draw the right picture and select the right colors, so the demon is unable to depict the good that he has lost. It will all be “on its side” and “inside out”. The personality remains with the demon, but it is crooked, incomplete, or, as the Lord Himself defines it, false, not true(John 8:44), but always changing, transforming. That is why the people expressed themselves in the proverb about a deceitful, dodgy person: he spins like a demon. And no matter how hard the demon tries to “dress up” and “beautify”, but from the one who sees the vile nature of demons ( received the gift of discerning spirits (1 John 4:1) and cleansed the eye of the mind completely from passions), cannot be hidden. The saints see its ugliness, that is, without an image (of course, god-like) appearance, and internal disorder with an external brilliant appearance, and soon drive away and dispel the dreamy ghost. Those who have not reached this measure of spiritual knowledge are easily caught by demons, especially when they are presumptuous, for it cannot be denied that they skillfully counterfeit things.

And this transformation into decent images happens to demons when they want to seduce someone, and usually they appear in an unattractive and vile form. I will mention some here.

1. I'll start with the "light" look just mentioned. “The light seen in them is not the real light,” says St. Anthony the Great, “or rather, the demons bear in themselves the beginning and the image of the fire prepared for them. In what they will burn, they will try to frighten people. In this form, the devil appeared to St. Nikita, a recluse of the Caves, venerable Simeon the Stylite, St. Pachomius the Great (in the form of "Christ") and others.

2. The constantly occurring image of their appearance and images - in the form of an Ethiopian, murin, according to the lives of the saints, or a Negro, speaking in modern terms, with an ape-human face, sometimes on goat legs with or without a tail, with horns or only with horns, shaggy. Briefly, a type inherent in the traditions (folklore) of all peoples, of all times, and at the same time so persecuted by ridicule and blasphemous remarks about church beliefs on the part of modern society. Obvious proof that this view best conveys the spiritual nature of the devil in three-dimensional boundaries and that the latter does not like it very much when the Church exposes his disgrace for show to all people.

The fact that peoples who have never communicated with each other, some of which have been buried for millennia under the sand of the plains of Egypt, Assyria, Phoenicia, Greece, Rome, have images of demons similar to the smallest detail when they appear to people, is very remarkable and shows that such a stable image really corresponds to some real essence, one and the same, outliving those that it once was. So, during the latest excavations at the place of residence of the ancient Phoenicians, they find teraphim, small idols, in the form of what? - in the usual ugly image for us with ponytails, horns, with pitchforks (tridents), sometimes presented in the highest degree cynically. The same can be seen among the treasures archaeological sites produced in countries once inhabited by Semitic peoples. Among the amulets sometimes found in such in large numbers in the Punic graves of ancient Carthage, there are very often heads with horns and the face of a satyr and with an expression that today is given only to the faces of demons.

From the time of Ancient Greece and Rome, thanks to the preserved vast material of classical literature and sculpture, the cultural world inherited a widely and detailed demonology. All this is too well known to require any examples or bibliographic data.

Shall we take folk traditions so recently and only partly known to the cultural world? Far East, namely - the Land of the Rising Sun, and here in its folklore, fairy tales, legends, beliefs we will see the same. And here the devil is depicted "with bull horns on an ugly disheveled head, sharp fangs in his mouth, tenacious claws on his feet and hands" (the fairy tale "The Ship of Happiness"), with "long, shaggy arms with claws" ("The Hero Ranko and the Devil") and takes possession of a person because of his cruelty and love of money (“Basket with imps”).

I omit all the boundless material on this issue of our Russian writing and oral tradition. But I consider it useful to mention how our civilized people, denying in words the existence of demons and mocking their depiction by the Church in the form of Ethiopians and Murins, actually see them in reality in the same image. So, the philosopher “Spinoza, waking up in the morning, saw an image by the bed Negro”, - Professor P. Kovalevsky testifies about him, as if about his personal patient. To say only - Spinoza, this sharpened mind (from the point of view of a cultured person), is among the clients of the madhouse! A man distinguished by a special disbelief - in the role of a spectator of demons in the form of black, disgusting murines! .. But no matter how you explain the matter and gloss over it, the fact remains.

3. It is not possible even briefly to list all the forms in which demons appear to people. I will cite here only a few, exclusively from the lives of the saints and from their picturesque images in icon-painting originals, facial Apocalypses, and ancient Slavic manuscript collections.

Rev. Anthony the Great says that demons are "deceitful and ready to turn into anything, taking on the likeness of women, beasts, reptiles, giants, many warriors" (Job 41:9-11; 18:22-23).

About St. Hilarion the Great tells that “I rely on the nakedness of my wife, shamelessly mocking, to the resting saint.” During his prayer, the demon sometimes appeared to him in the form of a howling wolf, sometimes in the form of a galloping jackal.

Rev. Sergius, the wonderworker of Radonezh, demons appeared in the form of many snakes that filled his entire cell, sometimes in the form of animals or disorderly soldiers in Lithuanian uniforms and pointed hats (shishaks).

By order of St. Martyr Tryphon, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, a demon appeared to a multitude of people in the form of a black dog with fiery eyes.

In ancient church icon painting, there is often an image of Satan with a second face in place of the shameful parts to show what his personality is and what his personality is aimed at: two faces means double-mindedness, inconstancy, deceit of a diabolical nature, and the place where the second person is placed indicates its second feature - passion for fornication.

There are images of the devil with his tongue hanging out, with a woman's face and hair, and so on.

Notes:

Black magic must be distinguished from white. Demons are cunning. Since the idea of ​​God cannot be eradicated from a person’s soul, but can only be perverted, replaced by something else, they inspired the pagans with such thoughts: there are de bright gods, merciful, who require such and such reverence (there was a learning complex and diverse a pagan cult, representing a perverted likeness of the genuine (Compare: "Fundamentals", Section III. Ch. 5. §4) and replacing faith in the true God). Otherwise, the demons continued to suggest, there are still unmerciful gods who must be revered in a different way (an exposition of the science of magic spells, witchcraft, etc. followed). In both areas, therefore, there were ministers, priests and magicians. And again two religions: one is permitted, official, and the other is usually forbidden, persecuted, mystery; on the one hand - white, on the other - black magic; on the one hand - supposedly veneration " true gods”, on the other - “unclean spirits”. But in fact, all the same demons were revered and appeared, accepting only different types(2 Corinthians 11:14).

It is important here to pay attention to the fact that the demons not only know the Psalter by heart (the book that they read against them), but they themselves can sing it with impunity. (Although so demons only with Old Testament they turn, but they do not endure the New, Holy Gospel; see the life of St. Nikita, the recluse of the Caves, commemorated January 31: Paterik of the Caves. Kyiv, 1883. Sheet 151/ob-152). Therefore, only then can we drive away demons and thoughts with the words of prayer and the Holy. Scriptures when we speak them with by faith and with heart feeling.

St. Isaac the Syrian. Creations. P. 69. Word 17. As a passionate person, he cannot look directly into the face of an angel or person embraced by the Holy Spirit (cf. Motovilov’s answer to St. Seraphim when he was in the Spirit: “I can’t, father. To look at you, because Lightning is pouring out of your eyes. Your face has become brighter than the sun..."), so the demon cannot look at the human soul, especially when it is pious. In our ordinary life, this is reflected in the fact that the possessed, for example, cannot look into the eyes of the ascetic. Even passionate people, sinners, experience the same sensation in front of pure people (cf. the expressions: “running eyes”, “looking ashamed”, and others), but about the look of such persons as Fr. John of Kronstadt, Ambrose of Optina and others, the sinners themselves say that he "burns" them.

The look of a goat is most suitable for a demon, because there is nothing more dear to him than lust, which distinguishes these animals so much. This explains Herodotus' mention that among some ancient peoples women were given to a goat in order to "honor God": the devil appeared in the form of a goat, they thought that nothing could be more "holy" than this animal and connection with it. And it was also beneficial for the demons in practical terms - to captivate a person into the abyss of vice and destroy him through it.

Abba Evagrius of Pontus

The limit of spiritual work is love, but the limit of knowledge is theology; the beginning of the first is faith, and the beginning of the second is natural contemplation. And those of the demons that come into contact with the passionate part of the soul are, as they say, opponents of spiritual work, and those that annoy the rational part of the soul are called enemies of all truth and enemies of all true contemplation.

Demons in demonology

Despite detailed study, not all types of demons are listed in modern demonology. It is only known for certain that each representative of the dark forces has his own sphere of responsibility. It is forbidden for demons to go beyond the circle of their duties.

In the Middle Ages, researchers of evil spirits divided its representatives into classes. It is known that many demons used to be celestial beings - angels. First, angelology was created, and already in its likeness - demonology. The angels who angered God, did not want to obey his laws, went over to the dark side and created their own hierarchy, which is not much different from heaven.

Demonic ranks

Today there are nine ranks of angels and demons. Each rank is described in sufficient detail, but has not yet been fully studied.

1. False gods rule under the first rank. These are the demons who pretend to be gods. These include the deities of the pagans and all other deities that are not related to the Lord. The head of evil spirits of the first rank is Beelzebub.
2. Demons of lies have a second rank. They must mislead people through divination and sorcery. Under their patronage are magicians and soothsayers. The head of evil spirits of the second rank is Python.
3. The third rank was occupied by those who struggle with the laws of the Lord. They force people to break the commandments, introduce mankind into vices. Prince Belial heads the demons of the third rank.
4. The demons of vengeance occupy the fourth rank. Their task is to inspire a thirst for revenge and a desire to punish someone who supposedly deserves it. Lord of the dark forces of the fourth rank - Asmodeus.
5. Evil spirits of the fifth rank are obliged to mislead people with the help of pseudo-miracles. They can take on any form: from a person endowed with the gift of clairvoyance to the messengers of the Lord. They are controlled by Satan.
6. The sixth rank is occupied by the lords of the air. They bring diseases and epidemics, natural disasters and destruction. They are led by Merezin.
7. Furies are representatives of the seventh rank. These demons are required to stir up conflicts and direct military operations. Their leader is Abaddon.
8. Dirty demons occupy the eighth rank. They carefully watch a person, in anticipation of his misdeed. Feelings of guilt, quarrels and conflicts, pettiness and fuss, minor troubles and losses - this is their work. The lord of dirty tricks is Astaroth.
9. At the very bottom are the tempters. Evil spirits of the ninth rank pushes a person to sin. The greatest achievement of these demons is considered to lead the righteous astray and let him fall into all serious sins. These demons interact directly with humans. Satanic sects, black magicians work precisely with this evil spirit, which is led by Mammon.

Hierarchy of fallen angels

In demonology, there are not only ranks, but also levels. According to records that have been preserved since the Middle Ages, after the expulsion, the demons took their places in the underworld in the exact order in which they were in heaven. The classification of demons and demons is divided into three levels.

Demons of the first level

On the first level there are former seraphim, cherubim and thrones. All levels are subordinate to Prince Lucifer. Second in importance after Lucifer is Beelzebub. He occupies the same place in the hierarchy of demons as the archangel Metatron in the heavenly kingdom.

Beelzebub causes pride in people, and the seraphim Leviathan turns a person away from faith in God, presents vices as the highest pleasure of earthly life. At this time, Asmodeus makes people chase after money and luxury attributes.

Cherubim Balberit inspires people with thoughts of suicide, he also forces them to conflict, break off relations with relatives and friends, in anger to say words that will offend or offend another person as much as possible.

The throne of Astaroth introduces a person into depression, laziness and despondency. Favors idleness, and the throne of Veren teaches a person egocentrism and selfishness. The throne of Gressin is responsible for unsanitary conditions, pushing for unwillingness to observe hygiene and neatness. The throne of Sonnelon instills hatred and a desire for revenge in the soul.

Demons of the second level

On the second level are the demons of domination, princes and archangels. The dominance of the demon Elle makes a person resist what he has and demand more, and the dominance of Rosier beckons with debauchery and gluttony.

Prince Verrier forces promises to be broken, vows to be broken, and Carro fills souls with callousness and cruelty. Under the rule of Carro, a person cannot have compassion and sympathy. The power of Karnivan overshadows the mind so that the feeling of guilt from the committed sin does not lead to repentance.

Demons of the third level

On the third level are the former angels, archangels and principles. Belial is responsible for arrogance, he is the founder of fashion and beauty, the pursuit of perfect appearance and the desire to be the best. Belial inclines to chatter, especially likes to distract during worship. Under the influence of Belial are women and children.

Archangel Olivius makes you hate those who earn little. He inspires contempt for those who ask for alms and makes them treat such people with particular cruelty.

Where the demons dwell

Monk Michael Psellos, who lived more than a thousand years ago, concluded that not all demons live in Hell. Psellos wrote many works of historical, religious and philosophical direction, in which he singled out several places where evil spirits settled. Primary sources are not completely preserved, but on Wikipedia you can find information about the records of Psellos.

fire demons

There is a version according to which fire demons are located in the upper layers of the atmosphere. They don't descend to Earth and they don't descend to Hell. Psellos claimed that they would appear before people only on the day of the Last Judgment.

Air demons

Unlike fire demons, air demons live in the world of people. Managing natural disasters and lunar cycles, these demons are the most dangerous for the human world. Sometimes they visit Hell. In Goetia there are references to evil air spirits, which completely coincide with the evil spirits of the air.

Demons of the Earth

Demons of the Earth live in the world of people. They hide in the mountains, in dense forests and swamps. People are well acquainted with them from children's fairy tales, everyone remembers the images of the goblin or kikimora. The mountain echo, confusing the traveler, is also the machinations of demons living on earth. Earthly demons are harmless, they are only capable of minor mischief. Some of them take the form of a man and live an ordinary worldly life. They mess with the neighbors, swear in the queues.

water demons

Water demons live wherever there are springs. They are aggressive, restless and often appear in the form of mermaids. If a navigator meets a mermaid, expect trouble. Everyone could see the siren in the pictures. Do not think that sirens or mermaids are inventions of the authors of fairy tales and books. In fact, they exist. Sirens sing with beautiful voices, luring you into the abyss of water. They are deceitful and harm not only people, but also aquatic animals.

Dungeon Demons

The varieties of demons include the inhabitants of the dungeon. They are responsible for damaging the foundations of buildings and destructive earthquakes. Underground evil spirits include light-haters, heliophobes or lucifugas.

They all live in Hell and never go out into the human world. Psellos classified them as unattainable and incomprehensible to mere mortals. Having met with representatives of the world of the dungeon, a person will be instantly destroyed. It is impossible to summon these demons with the help of rituals, they do not respond to human calls.

Michael Psellos wrote that only air, water or earth evil spirits can be called. The call of water and earth evil spirits is done in the area corresponding to the element of the demon, but the air one can be called anywhere, since air is present everywhere.

Occupation of demons

Alphonse de Spin's classification

Types of demons in demonology are divided not only by elements, levels and ranks, but also by type of activity. By occupation, you can determine what power an entity has. The more powerful the demon, the more power he has over people and over the world. Alphonse de Spina was the first to classify representatives of the dark forces by occupation. He did it in the 15th century.

De Spin's division is still criticized because no source mentions the duties of evil spirits.

According to Alphonse de Spin, parks are demons-schemers. They build intrigues, call for gossip, drive a person into a web of lies and secrets. Demons - liars come to people only in human form, they try to push them to sin in order to get his soul.

Nightmare demons control dreams, send horrors and take away the energy of a sleeping person. Sorcerers and black magicians can take such demons to their service. They take the form of an animal - a black cat or a raven.

Incubi and succubus are demons that feed on human energy. They can also help black fortune tellers, enhance their abilities. De Spina attributed to them another demon that sucks out male energy through masturbation. Fans of films marked 18+ are subject to the influence of this demon. In Christianity, masturbation is a sin. This is based on the fact that dark entities are born from the male seed obtained with the help of a demon.

Classification by Stephanie Connolly

IN modern time The science of demonology does not stand still. Demonologist Stephanie Connolly also tried to divide evil spirits into different levels and ranks. It is the classification of this priestess that is considered the most convenient for those who work with black forces. In any case, it will not be possible to call the most important representatives of Hell, but they can send their assistants of a lower rank. Usually such assistants are small demons who agree to work for the saturation of human energy, without which they simply cannot exist.

According to Stephanie Connolly, three demonesses are responsible for carnal pleasures - Lilith, Asmodeus and Astaroth. They are approached during a love spell, sexual addiction, or to arouse passion and irresistible sexual attraction in a person of interest.

To induce damage, they appeal to the demons of hatred and revenge - Andras, Abaddon and Agaliarept.

Demons can not only destroy and kill, but also heal. Responsible for good health and getting rid of the diseases of Verrin, Verrier and Belial. They will help in the fight against an incurable disease, if you turn to them in a black ritual. You can also get help from the demons of death - Evrin, Vaalberit and Babael. They are asked to be saved from certain death. They patronize necromancers.

Lucifer, Leviathan and Dagon are asked for help in working with the elements, and Belphegor, Beelzebub and Mammon will provide easy wealth. Their competence includes obtaining easy money or a passive source of income. They are responsible for luck, winning, victory and a lucky break. With their help, you can pass any exam, practically without preparing for it.

Python, Ronve and Delepitora can only help the black magician with advice.

Cornellius Agrippa's classification

The German physician Cornellius Agrippa studied demons. Being not only a doctor, but also an alchemist, he was interested in the occult sciences and astrology. In view of this, he classified the demons according to the position of the planets.

Ancient sources indicate that each planet has its own patron spirit. The spirits of the planets are described in the book "The Key of Solomon". Christian demonology refers to evil spirits everything that is not connected with God or opposes him, therefore it is difficult to say whether the described spirits of the planets are related to demons.

Cornelius Agrippus wrote the book Occult Philosophy, in which he described in detail the classification of dark forces. This work has become popular among the occult diabolical and demonic books of all time. In it, each demon is assigned its own demeanor, its own appearance, as well as certain questions that can be asked to one or another demon are highlighted.

The spirits of the planets appear before a person in a different form, they correspond to different phenomena. For example, when the Moon spirit appears, it rains, and the spirit of Mercury makes you fall into horror. The demons of the planets should be called at a certain time of the day, certain metals, colors and stones should be used in the ritual.

Christian demonology

Biblical teaching determines the influence of demons by the sins that a person commits. This is especially true for those who lead a righteous life, but suddenly fall into sin, for no good reason. In the 16th century, the demonologist P. Binsfeld compiled a list in which he wrote the names of demons and the sins for which they are responsible:

After familiarizing himself with the writings of Binsfeld, the London occultist Francis Barret changed the definition of Mammon and from the 9th century he became a demon of seduction. Asmodeus, according to the British mystic, controls not the desire for material wealth, but anger and hatred. Barret attributed Satan to the great liar, removing from him the authority to control people's anger. Beelzebub got the post of head of the pseudo-gods, and Mammon received the title of demon of gluttony. Francis included a few more demons on his list:

Features of Russian demonology

The origin of Russian demonology began before the Orthodox faith came to the ancient Slavs. At all times, people believed in evil spirits. Under the influence of Orthodoxy, Slavic demonology has undergone changes, new characters have been added to it. The brightest of them are ghouls and the living dead.

The Slavs also believed in the existence of people who could subjugate all kinds of demons to their power. They were called zdukhachs or double souls. These people could get complete power over any person.

The demon Bazula is able to turn any person into a vagabond or a drunkard. He takes the form of a woman in rags and appears in cities and villages with the onset of winter. If you let this woman into the house to spend the night, then the family will become impoverished. In connection with this belief, travelers were allowed into houses in winter with caution, since in winter an ordinary person does not leave his place, does not go on a long journey.

All the demons that exist in Russian legends have been preserved in fairy tales. These are kikimors, goblin, river and field evil spirits. Devils have always lived among people, unlike entities that live in their element. The evil spirits described by our ancestors are also remembered. The most popular of them are Sinister, Potvora and Pesigolovets.

People made attempts to protect themselves from the dark forces that ravaged the fields, set fire to houses and baths, and caused inconvenience. Basically, amulets with symbols that drive away demons were powerful protection.

In the course were conspiracies that destroy the spell. Many diseases were cured by symbolic figures or charmed herbs. So that the spirits do not bother, the Slavs tried to appease them.

Among the representatives of the other world there are neutral spirits, these include Home (aka Brownie, the spirit of the house) and Bannik (the spirit of the bath). They protect the premises from negative people, but if they are not appeased, they can become angry. Bannik is able to make the bath spontaneously catch fire. These two entities are cajoled to this day.

Conclusion

In today's world, when almost everything can be explained scientifically, the supernatural is perceived as a focal point. But do not lose vigilance, because until now science and medicine cannot explain many things. It often happens when a person is very ill, but all his medical indicators are normal. Nevertheless, the person continues to experience pain, lose vitality. In such situations, even the most convinced skeptics turn to faith.

There are many varieties of demons in demonology. Each of them occupies his own specific place and is engaged only in the sphere of worldly or otherworldly life entrusted to him. Not everyone responds to the calls of magicians, but low-ranking entities may well help the sorcerer in his black deed.