Scary pictures. History of Evil
Satan is the master of hell and the main opponent of God. He represents all dark forces. He controls a huge number of demons and other various evil spirits. His followers turn to him for help. Many are interested in what Satan really is like and whether it is possible to see him during his lifetime. Some sources agree that the Devil can change his images, reincarnating as different people, animals and creatures.
What does Satan look like?
Descriptions of the Devil can be found in the Bible. It says that Satan was originally an angel, distinguished by his beauty, wisdom and perfection. When he decided that he was worthy to be equal to God, he was expelled from heaven. Satan was first mentioned in the first pages of the Bible, when he, in the form of a serpent, tempted Eve. He also meets in the form of Leviathan - a huge sea creature capable of flying like a dragon. Numerous images and incarnations do not make it possible to determine and understand what kind of Satan is. The Devil appears in a new guise in the Apocalypse and there he appears as a red dragon with seven heads and ten horns.
It is impossible to say with certainty what color Satan is, since there are completely contradictory opinions, some say that he is black, while others point to red. There is even an opinion proposed by Satanists that the color of demons is not in humans. Thanks to modern technologies It is possible to determine the expected color. To do this, you should use hexadecimal codes. Scientists have long assigned each color a certain number, used, for example, in web design. If using a program, for example, Photoshop, you enter the devil's number - 666666, then you can get a specific color.
What does the sign of Satan look like?
People who know the power of various symbols claim that some satanic signs have enormous power and, if used incorrectly, can cause negative consequences. To prevent this from happening, it is important to understand what this or that sign means:
Devil man in the photo in all his glory, he certainly looks hellish, if you see such an unusual citizen somewhere on the street in a gateway, you’ll shit yourself. In reality, people simply shy away and run away when he appears.
This man is known as Caim Divell or Colombian devil(because he comes from Colombia, where he was nicknamed El diablo Colombiano). It started seemingly spontaneously, I was the same as everyone else, no different, and then the desire to change myself appeared (to modify everything that was possible).
First of all, the Colombian gets tattoos, then piercings, and then microdermals and implants are used (there are many of them, on the hands and head). His passion for the series ended plastic surgery. One of the pictures clearly shows how his nostrils have been changed; they have an unnatural, devilish appearance.
Looking at serious modifications, you are horrified, the view is shocking, it’s as if you looked at it and forgot, but he has to live with it. On the other hand, he chose it himself, did it as he wanted, and apparently he is comfortable in this image.
As I delved deeper into the topic of body modification, I learned that implants, like piercings, are made of medical steel, that is, they should not rust. Experts say that such implants must be replaced after a few years so that everything is in order with health.
Modern medicine on high level, thanks to surgeons, all sorts of drugs and medical equipment, anyone who wants to pay money can turn themselves into an elf, a lizard or someone else.
I wonder what will happen to the devil man in the photographs in old age, whether he will become even more terrible. Time will tell, surely the Colombian Devil will come up with something new.
Having scoured the Internet, I found out that this character with a devilish appearance does not scare everyone away; some admire him. At this time myself Caim Divell hangs out with colleagues and friends, they are often invited to parties and events together.
Often, when depicting and using any symbols, many do not think about where they came from or what meaning they carry. Below is a decoding of some symbols and signs related to the sphere of Satanism. We advise you to familiarize yourself with this, since wearing and depicting such things can be very dangerous...
An inverted pictogram forming a goat's head. This emblem can be found on the cover of The Satanic Bible. Present in the symbols of such metal bands as Slayer, Venom, etc. This is a very serious sign, which almost always indicates involvement in Satanism.
The word "Pentagram" comes from two Greek words - "five" and "line". And in fact, it is a regular pentagon, on each side of which there are built isosceles triangles, equal in height. The pentagram is one of the oldest religious symbols known to mankind. The first images were found on objects belonging to the Sumerian civilization. It was used by the ancient Egyptians, Persians, Greeks, Babylonians, Chinese and Celts. For all nations, the image of the pentagram was associated with magic. According to basic theories, the pentagram is a graphic image or a formula for the correct interaction of the magician and the elements.
The pentagram as a graphic figure has a rather large set of properties - it has five-ray symmetry and is constructed according to the rules of the golden section. And, of course, what the pentagram is simplest form a star that can be drawn without ever lifting the pen from the paper and without ever drawing a line twice. There are 10 in various ways draw a pentagram. In the practice of magic, the way the pentagram is drawn is very important and affects the type magical influence. If the lines began to be drawn clockwise, then this is creative magic, if against it, then this is destructive.
Along with the direction of the lines, the direction of the ray, symbolizing the “spirit,” is also important. If the beam is directed upward, then this implies the subordination of the spirit to the elements and participation in the life of the surrounding world. Directing the beam down is an attempt to direct all the elements towards the “spirit”, as if to gather them into a fist in order to change the current world.
Initially, the inverted pentagram was not a symbol of evil. In the ancient works of Kabbalah, the inverted pentagram is the so-called “Small Face” of the Lord. And the Roman Emperor Constantine has an inverted pentagram on his seal.
But over time, this powerful occult symbol began to acquire a negative connotation and was more often used in the practice of black magic. From the Pythagorean tradition came the image of the head of a goat or ram inscribed in a pentagram. This was a reference to the Goat of Mendes, the symbol of the Egyptian god Neter Amun (Set). Set was described as a hidden force that permeates all nature and the essence of its phenomena.
The famous occultist Eliphas Levi assigned the meaning of the symbol of Satan to the inverted pentagram. In his book The Doctrine and Ritual of High Magic he wrote: “The pentagram with two ascending ends represents Satan as a goat at the Sabbath.”
And it was possible to finally formulate the image of the symbol of Satanism relatively recently. In 1966, Anton LaVey registered the Church of Satan. And the Sigil of Baphomet was chosen as the main symbol. Currently, this symbol is already a registered trademark denoting Satanism. It is used in black magic rituals in order to enhance the ritual and/or obtain benefits from higher demons. Strong black magic is impossible without the use of the inverted pentagram symbol in its original form,
INVERTED CROSS
It denotes mockery and hatred of the cross of Jesus Christ. Many Satanists wear this symbol. Featured on the covers of Danzid Ozzy and Osborne albums. It is also a serious symbol denoting belief in Satan.
The cross of St. Peter (also known as the inverted cross) is a regular Latin cross (depicted in accordance with Roman Catholic tradition) inverted 180 degrees. Since the 4th century, the cross of St. Peter has been one of the symbols of St. Peter, who, according to church tradition, was crucified head down in 67 AD. during the reign of Emperor Nero in Rome. The origin of this symbol is associated with the church tradition that the Apostle Peter was crucified on the cross upside down at his own request, because he considered himself unworthy to die the same death as Jesus Christ died. Due to the fact that Peter is considered the founder of the Catholic Church, this symbol is depicted on the throne of the Pope. For example, during his visit to Israel, Pope John Paul II sat on a throne with a cross carved into the back
An upside-down Christian cross can be understood as an anti-Christian symbol. Because of this, the inverted cross has become widespread in modern popular culture as a symbol of Satanism. In popular culture, including films such as The Exorcism of Emily Rose, The Omen, and Supernatural, the inverted cross is often shown as a symbol of Satan. Along with the inverted pentagram, the inverted cross is sometimes used by black metal musicians.
In any case, in Roman Catholicism, the cross of St. Peter is not considered a satanic symbol. However, the inverted crucifix carries the meaning of extreme disrespect for Christian religion and can be used to represent the powers of Satan. The differences between St. Peter's cross and an inverted crucifix are sometimes obscured, leading to confusion about the acceptability of each symbol. Similar confusion arose after the aforementioned papal visit to Israel. A photo of the pope sitting on his throne with the cross of St. Peter has been circulating on the Internet and has been used in attempts to "prove" that the Catholic Church is associated with Satanism
The number of the beast is a special number mentioned in the Bible, under which the name of the apocalyptic beast is hidden; the numerological embodiment of Satan's protege. The number of the beast is 666. The number 666 is a very often used element of satanic paraphernalia, along with an inverted cross and an inverted pentagram.
It was often believed that the Antichrist was depicted in the Bible under the guise of an apocalyptic beast. Since the Revelation of St. John says: “He who has understanding, let him count the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man,” therefore, in the name or appearance of every person in whom the Antichrist was seen, they tried to find the number 666. This search actively continues to this day.
When researching the “number of the beast”, a mistake is often made: the number is decomposed into decimal places and presented in the form of three numbers 6, with which it is identified. However, at the time the Apocalypse was written, there was no decimal positional number system, which arose in India only in the 6th century AD. e. The original Greek notation consists of three words "six hundred", "sixty" and "six" and does not allow for the decomposition described. Another common consequence of mistakenly identifying a number with its decimal positional notation is the association of the digits “666” with infinity. decimal 0.6666..., equal to two thirds. In the Bible, the number “666” is used four times. Of these, one is mentioned in the New Testament as a number under which the name of the apocalyptic beast is hidden:
Here is wisdom. He who has intelligence, count the number of the beast, for it is a human number; its number is six hundred and sixty-six.
Original text (ancient Greek) [show]
John the Evangelist, Rev. 13:18, 15:2
In addition to the fact that the numbers: 666 and 13 - fall into the 13th chapter of the Revelation of the Bible (John the Theologian), where the number 666 (= 18) is described in verse 18, which will surprise the uninitiated, these numbers have a letter relationship. We always pronounce numbers in sounds, symbolized by the letters that form the Word.
So in Numerology the number of Words is: THIRTEEN = 144 and SIX HUNDRED (156) + SIXTY (184) + SIX (101) = 441.
These are the numbers: 18 and 45, i.e. 9.
Words: LADDER 108 TRUTH 45. TRUTHFUL 45 PERSON 81.
We have a special relationship with these numbers that we have heard from many people who are tuned in to expect something bad from these numbers.
Can numbers 1 to 9 be good or bad? Can the letters from “A” to “Z” be better than each other? We may just like a certain number or letter, or we may not like it... But this does not mean at all that what we don’t like is bad, and what we like is good. Each symbol simply has its own personal meaning.
Someone didn’t like the number made up of two digits - 13, someone from three - 666. Let’s try to understand these numbers in order to have at least some certainty and our attitude towards them.
The number 13 = 4, and the number 666 (18) = 9. Two “root” numbers are obtained: 4 and 9, which in total is still the number 13, because the number 9 = 0 and does not change any number. Nine can hide in any number. The number 6 (similar to the number 9) taken three times also gives the sum - 9.
The resulting two numbers stand out from all numbers in that when one digit is increased to two, all numbers from 1 to 9, substituting Zero (0), only these two numbers do not remain the same when pronounced: 4, as “Forty” and 9, as “ Ninety".
After pronouncing single-digit numbers, we pronounce: “Ten”, keeping this number at the end of the pronunciation of numbers in sound, like “Ten” (10) and “Twenty” - “Twenty-Twenty” (20), “Three-Twenty” (30 ), "..." (40), "Five-Ten" (50), "Six-Ten" (60), "Seven-Ten" (70), "Eight-Ten" (80) and "..." (90 ).
“...” - the sounds of numbers in the words: “Forty” and “Ninety” fall under the omission. Where did “Twenty” or “Ten” go?
The numerology of the word Ninety in the name itself hides this number - NINETY (DE I ST) - TEN, and the remaining letters (in but o) - “new”, indicate something new.
This means that the Old One is over, to which the End has come, the END - DEADLINE, FORTY.
These numbers mean the end of a period, which means changes are coming. People are afraid of these numbers because... Changes are not always welcome - it’s better to let it be as it is, it’s calmer. What if these people are esotericists...? How do they feel about these numbers if, according to the laws of the Cosmos, they are ready to leave the Cycle of births and deaths, which is why this change is needed. They will be happy with these numbers, they will attract them, and not shun and fear them, like ordinary people.
Number 666 = 9. The nines in the number 666 repeat the number 74 nine times, and this is the word TIME. This means that the FUTURE 88 = 16 = 7 has already taken place and must go into the PAST 112, which is the number 13 = 4. Therefore, very SOON (Forty, Term) we must wait for what will be the END 73 after the lived LIFE 72, when everything has already been measured out – TIME 74. The end is not necessary human life, but also events: either bad or good. And if we want to free ourselves from a boring disease, then the number 666 will be beneficial for us. It leads after TIME 74 to CROSS 75 (the next number after 74) so that one can “disown” some event. Then EXIT 76 appears so that you can find the SOURCE 77 of another, new event (for example, recovery if there was an illness).
So, it turns out: 70 or 79 – BASIS or ROOT.
71 – BEGINNING (of life).
72 – LIFE.
73 – END (of life).
74 – TIME (that’s it, the deadline has been measured).
75 – CROSS.
76 – EXIT.
77 – SOURCE.
78 – DESTINY.
= 666.
7 (sevens) – quantity 9, sum (7 x 9) = 63 = 9.
Numbers from 1 to 8 (9 = 0) total = 36 = 9.
Numbers 63 and 36 –––> 6336 = 666.
Three 3 sixes 6 –––> 666. Words with the number 36: MIND 63, MOVEMENT 63, FACE 63, INSIDE 63, EVOLUTION 162 (LIFE 72) = 36, HISTORY 126, CELEBRATION 126 = 36.
With the numbers: 77 and 78 – the SOURCE of a new FATE begins.
You can read something about the number 666 on the website in article No. 13 “NAME” (catalog of articles).
One story.
Two people got married without their parents (or one of the parties) knowing about it. They carefully hid their passports so that the stamp would not be visible, and lived separately, meeting at one or the other in the apartment (apparently, the parents were against this union). In the summer we spent weekends at his dacha. She was not against revealing everything, but He insisted on this, whose wish She did not violate. So some time passed, and in the third year of their secret marriage, and seven years of communication, the secret was revealed.
Suddenly, He, being with her at the dacha, remembers that he left his passport at home...
Getting ready to go home, they hit the road. Along the way, they were constantly overtaken by cars with different license plates, but three times they came across license plates with three sixes - 666. Having heard about this number, they understood that something was about to happen, especially since they had forgotten their passport. Maybe they would not have encountered this number or not paid attention if they had not been afraid of exposing the secret?!
And, indeed, His mother found a marriage stamp in his passport...
Further developments of events are no longer so important, the main thing is that they received a Sign of the events already taking place. There was an END to the concealment of the secret and a new BEGINNING was “born” - reality.
Anything can end, because... different people live with different concerns and fears. And someone, on the contrary, wants to start something...
It can be assumed that the mother, before discovering the passport, could have had a sign in the number 13, because this is a sign of CHANGE (DEATH is the 13th Major Arcana in Tarot cards). She might not have noticed him due to her lack of observation. The Secret was revealed to her, becoming Reality.
CHURCH OF SATAN
This is a symbol of the Satanic Church in San Francisco. It is also found in The Satanic Bible in The Ninth Satanic Commandment. This sign has been found on several rock and metal albums, such as Duran Duran's "Seven and the Ragged Tigen". This emblem always speaks of being considered one of Satan.
The Church of Satan is a countercultural group founded in the USA by Anton LaVey and which “proclaims itself a conscious bearer of evil and the antipode of Christianity.” The first officially registered organization to declare Satanism as its ideology. Great encyclopedia Terra notes that the Church of Satan is "chronologically the first of the Satanic sects." At the same time, the current leader of the organization, Peter Gilmore, says that “atheism is primary, and Satanism is secondary”
The official symbol of the Church of Satan is the seal of Baphomet.
The Church of Satan was founded on Walpurgis Night (April 30), 1966, in San Francisco by Anton Szandor LaVey, later author of " satanic bible"(1969). He called 1966 the first year of the Satanic era. LaVey was the high priest of the Church of Satan until his death (1966-1997).
Anton Sandor LaVey, founder of the Church of Satan.
From the background: in the 1950s, Anton LaVey organized the Order of Trapezoid community, which later became the governing body of the Church of Satan. Among those who participated in LaVey's activities were "Baroness" Karin de Plessen, who grew up in a royal palace in Denmark, Dr. Cecil Nixon, an eccentric magician and inventor, Kenneth Anger, an underground film maker, Russell Walden, the city's legal adviser, Donald Werby, one of San Francisco's most influential private property owners, anthropologist Michael Harner, writer Shana Alexander and others. LaVey's fellow sci-fi and horror writers during this period included Anthony Butcher, August Derleth, Robert Barbour Johnson, Reginald Bretnor, Emile Petaia, Stuart Palmer, Clark Ashton Smith, Forrest J. Ackerman, and Fritz Leiber.
On February 1, 1967, Anton LaVey performed an open Satanic wedding ceremony between radical journalist John Raymond and Judith Case, which attracted significant media attention to the Church of Satan mass media. The ceremony was photographed by San Francisco Chronicle's Joe Rosenthal, who took the now iconic flag-raising photograph. American troops on Mount Suribachi during World War II. Photos of the satanic wedding were published in several reputable publications.
In May of the same year, a “satanic baptism” ceremony took place for LaVey’s three-year-old daughter Zina Galatea. Journalists who arrived long before the ceremony began were fascinated by the angelic smile of the girl who was to be dedicated to the devil. Satan's Baptism was designed to please a child.
Another important event (December 1967) was the holding of an open Satanic funeral for a member of the Church of Satan, naval officer Edward Olson, at the request of his wife, and Satanism was soon included in the register of officially recognized religions in the United States.
In June 1967, Jayne Mansfield, who, according to LaVey, had a close relationship with LaVey and was a priestess of the Church of Satan, died in a car accident. Although these allegations were false, the tabloid press declared the actress's death a collateral consequence of a curse that LaVey allegedly cast on Mansfield's partner Sam Brody.
The Church of Satan was mentioned in many books, magazines and newspapers in the 1960s and 1970s. Also in 1970, the full-length documentary film “Satanis” was released. Anton LaVey starred in Kenneth Anger's Invocation of my Demon Brother and was technical consultant for The Devil's Rain, which starred Ernest Borgnine, William Shatner and (for the first time) John Travolta. It was also claimed that LaVey unofficially played the role of the Devil in the film Rosemary's Baby, but this claim was later refuted. The Church of Satan was also featured in Luigi Scatini's film Angeli Blanca, Angeli Negra (known in American release as Witchcraft '70).
In 1975, LaVey began to modify the Church of Satan's grotto system, getting rid of people who he believed were seeking to succeed in the organization only to compensate for their failures in the outside world. Subsequently, real success in life became one of the criteria for advancement within the Church of Satan. During the same period, Anton LaVey became more selective when giving interviews. This transition to “closed” activities gave rise to rumors about the collapse of the organization and even the death of LaVey.
The 1980s saw a new wave of mass hysteria, conspiracy theories, and fear of Satanism, sparked by Protestant fundamentalists, some medical professionals, and the media. During this period, members of the Church of Satan such as Peter Gilmore, Peggy Nadramia, Boyd Rice, Adam Parfrey, Diabolos Rex and rock musician King Diamond actively appeared in the media to rebut false accusations of criminal activity by the Church of Satan made by Christian evangelists. The FBI subsequently published an official report refuting all conspiracy theories from that period. This social phenomenon is called the “Satanic Panic”.
During the 1980s and 1990s, the Church of Satan and its members were very active in producing films, music and magazines dedicated to Satanism. The most significant ones include the publishing house of Adam Parfrey “Feral House”, the music of Boyd Rice, the films of Nick Bugas (including the documentary “Speak of the Devil: The Canon of Anton LaVey”). The Church of Satan and Anton LaVey were featured in many magazines and news articles of the time.
In 1997, after the death of Anton Sandor LaVey, Blanche Barton, his common-law wife, became the head of the Church of Satan. Although Barton is still involved in the Church of Satan to this day, in 2001 she lost her position to Peter Gilmore and Peggy Nadramia, who today serve as the organization's high priest and priestess and publish " The Black Flame" is the official magazine of the Church of Satan. The Church of Satan's headquarters also moved from San Francisco to New York City, where they reside.
In the autumn of 2004 the British armed forces the first Satanist is officially registered - technical sergeant Chris Cranmer, serving on the frigate Cumberland. Admiral John "Sandy" Woodward said on this occasion that
My first words when I heard about this incident were: “God, what the hell is going on here? When I served in the navy, some of my colleagues were Anglicans, others were Catholics, and I had never heard of any Satanists. I think this is in highest degree Weird"
Horror, how I love all sorts of scary fairy tale pictures! Since childhood. In children's books, first of all, I eagerly looked at images of witches, women yagas, devils and other evil spirits. Naturally, when my grandmother secretly brought me to church as a child, I always looked with curiosity at the scenes of the Last Judgment on the frescoes and icons. Is it something wrong with me or is it like this for you all?
The ancient Greek philosophers Pythagoras and Porphyry summoned the devil through hydromancy.
France 1490s.
The official church condemned the fascination with the works of ancient philosophers that had become fashionable.
Now I'm fascinated by medieval book miniatures - fortunately, now this digitized goodness is a dime a dozen on the Internet - and I discovered that among the miniatures there are a lot of my favorite scary pictures. While studying them, I noticed that the authors followed several standard plots in which monsters, devils and other representatives were present dark forces. And the set of these subjects is not so large, although the imagination of some medieval artists was not limited to the usual set - demons in their miniatures sometimes appeared in the most unexpected places, which is quite natural - the devil is omnipresent, he does not sleep! However, I tried to arrange miniatures from the manuscripts according to different principles, and below I’ll show you what happened.
A group of Jews inspired by the devil.
France, 14th century.
Back in the Middle Ages, it was customary to “demonize” the image of the enemy. And who is not the first enemy, if not the Jews?!
It turned out that selecting pictures according to chronology and their origin is not at all interesting. We are, of course, interested in art history, but not in such detail. We'll follow the stories, of course!
There are a lot of pictures showing Hell and the Last Judgment. The horror is terrible, but quite the same type. There are pictures dedicated to demons and their leader - Satan, there are fewer of them, but they are still more often found in some context. Another favorite theme is original sin and the tempting Serpent. And, of course, the Apocalypse and the fall of the rebel angels. Well, a couple more stories.
Lilith tempts Eve.
Netherlands, 14th century.
I started reading a few books and watching popular science films, and it became interesting. Delving deeper into the topic, I was surprised to realize that the facts I already knew about dark side the afterlife give a very superficial idea of it, and the facts themselves are not always as interesting as their origin.
It seems that Satan was so hated and so dangerous that he was mentioned in passing and infrequently in the sacred texts (I can see how the scribe, on each such occasion, cautiously spits three times over his left shoulder). But almost all miniaturists undertook to paint his “bestial image” and, judging by the results, did it with great inspiration.
The Fall
Netherlands. 15th century
And one more thought came to my mind: the topic of evil in the Bible is covered in such a contradictory and sometimes confusing way, as if the answers to some questions were carefully mixed up: how was it allowed to happen? Where does such evil come from, since God created everything? Savage hellish punishments, although deserved, are they good or not? How can disembodied souls burn in hell? Not souls, but bodies? Why then is it infinite, but it must burn out quite quickly? Is the devil corporeal? Appears in some guise? So, corporeal? And a stronger mortal can overcome him? Or what?
There are very, very many questions that, I suspect, not a single generation of Christian theologians has wrestled with. And these questions themselves are so tricky, provocative, as if they were being asked by you know who (ugh, ugh, ugh). And one more thing - only in Christianity does Satan have such power, and he is such a powerful and sworn enemy of God, not in other religions. And even then, it seems that such a concept did not appear immediately. Maybe we need someone more than anyone on whom we can blame our weakness and uncleanness?
Fall (?)
And still interesting! I even had to read some passages from Ezekiel, Isaiah, and Job - after all, Satan, or Lucifer, was mentioned for the first time in these Old Testament sources. Even if we take a name, which is correct: Satan or Lucifer? It turns out that “Lucifer” is the name of an angel who rebelled against God the Father and was cast down to earth; it means “son of the dawn,” and not even “prince of darkness.”
In “Ezekiel” it is said that he was in the “rank” of a cherub, was beautiful in appearance and wore luxurious clothes, “until iniquity was found in you.” Moreover, as they say so vaguely, researchers only assume that we are talking about Lucifer. The beautiful angel was driven by pride; he wanted to become equal to God and rebelled against his Creator, raising an army. True, he lost, and at that moment, apparently, he immediately became scary and ugly (anger does not make anyone look good) and was cast down to earth to tempt the human race and do all sorts of dirty tricks. The theologians also did not immediately agree on this. The first interpretations and explanations on this matter appear in the works of Origen, a theologian of the 3rd century. The essence of his works interpreting Scripture: “If you do not understand, I will explain clearly” (I also went diagonally through the translations).
Original sin
Germany. 15th century
Men, take note: Eve began to “do bullshit” when Adam was busy with himself and his own affairs! There is no point in leaving us unattended!
However, it turns out that Lucifer is not the first being to rebel against God. The first was Lilith - the predecessor of Eve, the first wife of Adam (as you can see, in biblical times, early marriages for men were often something like a “preparatory stage” before real great love for life. Lilith, seeing her supposed husband Adam for the first time, said, that he is equal to him, like God’s creation, and is not going to obey anyone (“And no dinner at all, the next episode of “Fizruk” is now starting!”).
That is, Lilith opposed the will of God and refused to be a full-fledged wife of Adam, and in general, any of his wife. Her further fate is described vaguely in Jewish sources, but in the Bible she is briefly mentioned only once - as a night ghost living in ruins in the desert (all in the same “Isaiah”). In general, it seems that the girl got away with everything: she became a demoness-seductress, fooling men and killing children (abortion?). What is not the banner of modern feminism?!
The Fall
Netherlands. Hugo van der Goes. 1470s. Diptych panel.
This is not a manuscript, but a painting. But how good it is, I couldn’t help but put it here!
It is interesting that in medieval manuscripts the tempting serpent is depicted in a female form - with breasts, everything as it should be. It is assumed that the serpent was originally identified with Lilith - after all, in the Old Testament it is not said anywhere that the serpent is the devil, Satan. It is written simply - a snake, the most cunning and sneaky of animals. It was only later, by default, that they accepted the version that our simple-minded ancestor was tempted by the Unclean One - and who else?!
But perhaps it was just Lilith, there was such a version. You know how it happens: the first wife suddenly begins to “wipe the snot” of the second, “acting” wife who was offended by something against her husband - after all, then, as you see, as now, for one full-fledged man there were two healthy women, it was necessary to somehow then unite. They’ll “crush” a bottle of Baileys for two and let their common “half” wash the bones. The more experienced one, the former one, just ask: what kind of borscht, what kind of football?! Why does he keep telling you all about his work and work! What do you want from a man? Oh, and I say! I put on a transparent peignoir, candles there, a little vino, put some lipstick on, otherwise you see how pale she is, she’s completely twitched in this kitchen. And go ahead: fill his mouth with apples - and run to bed!
Adam and Eve repent in Jordan after being expelled from Eden, Satan tempts them again.
France 15th century.
This was not in the Bible, as far as I remember, but the artist probably guessed correctly further development events: Adam is like: “Come on, what’s going on... Do you remember how under the apple tree?... They kicked me out anyway, let’s do it one more time!”
Well, you know the rest of the story. This was the first lesson for girls that they should not turn to their lovers’ “ex” for advice. Unfortunately, some still haven't gotten around to it.
Let's move on. Such charismatic female characters never appeared on the devilish stage again. Subsequently, the ladies either acted as victims of seduction and temptation, or appeared in the opposite capacity - saints who conquered demons.
An angel with a sword stops Balaam and a donkey (?)
Let's move on. If we consider the Jewish religious tradition, largely transferred to Old Testament, there we will not find any mention of Satan at all, as the King, the Prince of Darkness, the antipode of God; he is just a servant of the Creator, a kind of dark personality who does not disdain to take on dirty work, and appears extremely rarely. Some researchers suggest that such a dark angel could even be the one who appeared to Balaam’s donkey (“Book of Numbers”), and then to Balaam himself.
God Gives Satan Permission to Test Job's Piety
France, 14th century
God and Satan discuss Job
England. 16th century. Oxford Book of Hours
But the “slave” essence of Satan is illuminated more clearly in the “book of Job”: “And there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord; Satan also came among them. And the Lord said to Satan: Where did you come from? And Satan answered the Lord and said, “I walked on the earth and walked around it.” This is a report from the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Next we talk about the pious Job. The Lord asks if he is as pious as usual.
Job and Satan
Nuremberg Chronicle, 1493. Woodcut, hand-colored.
Satan replies that his piety is understandable - it’s not for nothing, you yourself, they say, gave him everything, why shouldn’t Job be a good guy. Then the Creator makes something like a bet with Satan - to torture Job a little in order to test his piety (in my opinion, this is a rather controversial idea), but not to cause physical harm. And then the Evil One begins to abuse poor Job as best he can - his enemies take away all his property, his house is destroyed, all his sheep and camels disappear, and then all his children die under the ruins of his tent! But Job is stubborn: “This is God’s will, God gave - God took!”
Job and Satan.
12th century
Then the Creator allows Satan to physically torture him slightly - and Satan sends leprosy to the unfortunate man. He sits naked, covered with purulent buboes, scraping off scabs. clay shard, in the roadside dust and ashes, and even Job’s wife is already saying to Job: “Well, say something nasty to God, maybe he’ll kill you, you won’t suffer anymore,” and he cries, laments, feels sorry for himself, but keeps repeating the same thing : “God is great, such is his will!”
Then everything ended well, and Job was happy, but the lousy devilish essence in this story in Satan manifested itself clearly: to distort the goodness good man, to question his piety, to look for self-interest in his actions, and then with pleasure and special care to torture and poison the poor fellow - what devilry! “When he speaks a lie, he speaks his own way, for he is a liar and the father of lies” (“John”).
Job, his wife and Satan
15th century, Netherlands
Notice that with all the misfortunes that befell poor Job, his wife looks completely “in chocolate”!
Job, his wife and Satan
France, 16th century.
My wife already has completely different clothes. Please note that the devil is depicted with two faces - where it should be and on his stomach. This is a frequent appointment. Here and there a face was sometimes depicted.
Now let's return to Origen and the revolt of the angels. As already mentioned, Lucifer was in great honor with God as long as he behaved well - all so luxurious, and inexpressibly good-looking, the first assistant of the Lord, literally right hand. His name was “Son of the Dawn” (Lucifer), and also - Dennitsa, this name is mentioned less often. From such recognition the angel became proud and wanted to become equal with God. In general, the topic of pride arises in Scripture very often. This is the first of the main sins, and perhaps the most common.
France, 1420s
France, 15th century
Note that the main sins are not actions, but character traits: pride, greed, envy, anger, lust, gluttony, laziness or despondency. Even if you don’t steal anything or kill anyone, but you have some of the above or all at once (I, for example, think about this with horror!) - you are a sinner with very sad prospects! And yes, of course, only Satan is to blame for this!
Overthrow of the rebel angels
France, Vincent Beauvais, 1463
But we digress a little. The catalyst for the rebellion was God's creation of man. The Lord was busy with his creation, was proud of it and, apparently, Dennitsa was jealous. Naturally, here the role of human enemy falls on him very congruently. And a later interpretation of the essence of the Edenic serpent - after all, in the first biblical texts it was just a serpent (the curse of the serpent by God sounded something like this: be damned forever with all your descendants, and crawl in the dust on your belly, and squabble with your wife all the time). Now is the time to crawl, incite and then joyfully watch from the bushes as defenseless naked people are expelled from Eden.
Overthrow of the rebel angels
1480
Overthrow of the rebel angels
France, 16th century
Naturally, such an act could provoke the wrath of the Lord. A real war broke out. Lucifer raised an army, leading about a third of the angels, and they were defeated and cast down to earth. They lost their shiny clothes and attractive appearance, became shriveled, overgrown with tails, horns and fur - you know, this plot was depicted by miniaturists with great pleasure - after all, the apotheosis of justice! Although, what is there to be happy about?! They were thrown to us, to the ground.
Satan and King David
Breviary of John the Bold and Margaret of Bavaria, 1420
This is an illustration of the biblical story about how King David decided to take a population census without God’s blessing, which caused the wrath of the Creator. It would seem - what’s wrong?! And the king became proud - he wanted to count how many people he had under his command. The Bible does not talk about the presence of Satan, this is an artist’s fantasy, for who else if not Him?!
True, there is also a problem with this: more often the option comes up that not to earth, but immediately underground, to hell. And there is another version - they will be thrown into hell during the Apocalypse and there they themselves will begin to fry in frying pans, and Saint Andrew in the guise of an angel will ban them all there forever. In any case, you can admire how this happened (will happen) by looking at medieval miniatures.
Temptations of Christ.
England, 1250.
The ascension to the rock and the temptation of hunger are depicted (a handful of stones in the hands of the devil, which was offered to be turned into bread).
Notice how the visual tradition of that time is still similar to the Orthodox one.
Much more often the name of Satan begins to appear in the New Testament. If the devil is the enemy of man, then Christ, the Savior of mankind, could not help but arouse real rage in him.
Temptation of Christ (by hunger and pride)
Netherlands (France?) 15th century
Temptation of Christ
France, 12th century (looks like ours again!)
Temptation of Christ
France, Fouquet's Missal, 1470s
The artist quite literally depicted the ascension of Christ by Satan to the rock.
Temptation of Christ
France. Psalter. Initial letter. 12th century
Quite a sketchy drawing early artist. Temptation is indicated by the finger of Satan aimed at a pile of stones.
The first plot is the Temptation of Christ. As you know, after baptism, Jesus fasted for 40 days in the desert, and after that Satan approached him and began to tempt him. The first temptation is hunger. The demon offered Christ to turn a handful of stones into bread, since he is the almighty son of God. The second is pride. It was suggested that he throw himself from the roof of the Jerusalem Temple - since he is the son of God, the Lord will not let him die, and everyone will immediately see who he is. The third temptation is faith. Satan raised Christ to the top of a rock so that the entire civilized world could be seen, and offered all the kingdoms, and for this he had to bow before Satan.
Temptation of Christ (stones again, and behind there is a rock and a temple)
Netherlands, 15th century
Temptation of Christ.
France. Master of the Bible Jean de Sy. 14th century
None of the Gospels describes what Satan looked like, but medieval miniaturists are unanimous - terrible, vile, horned. During the Renaissance, already in “great” painting, options appeared - a pleasant young man or an elderly monk.
Temptation of Christ.
Netherlands. Simon Bening. 16th century
In later manuscripts, miniaturists began to move away from the “brutal” way of depicting Satan. Here we see him as an elderly monk, albeit with some orthopedic problems.
Another popular story in which evil spirits were often depicted is Christ's parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man - Jesus tells it in the Gospel of Luke. It talks about the beggar Lazar, who is all dirty, in rags and disgusting linens, lying around with stray dogs at the gates of the luxurious palace of a certain Rich Man, and no one will even throw him a crust of bread. And then one day - they both died! And now the Rich Man is burning in hell, he feels bad, sad, and then he raises his head up and sees the Lord there among the clouds, and next to him is the rosy and prosperous Lazarus.
Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man.
Book of Sermons of Pope Gregory
The soul of Lazarus is depicted as a baby in the hands of the Creator.
The rich man howled and asked that Lazarus be brought down to him so that he could dip his finger in water and at least wet his lips - but no, no! They say, you had too much fun in that life, now suffer in this one. It is in this final scene that the Satanic guard is usually depicted - the ill-fated Rich Man is dragged to hell or roasted with particular cruelty.
Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man.
France, 1372
Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man.
Germany. Munich Golden Psalter. Beginning. 13th century
Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man.
Roman Book of Hours. 16th century.
Here the Rich Man points his finger at his mouth, asking Lazarus to beg for him at least a drop of water.
Demons in the New Testament are also mentioned in the context of those possessed by demons - for example, the description of the miracles of Christ in Hev. From Matthew. It's about about the healing of a demoniac who was possessed by a whole legion of demons. The unfortunate man lived outside the city, slept in a cemetery (“in coffins”) and was tormented hourly by demons. Christ, at the request of the unfortunate man, expelled demons that moved into a herd of pigs that were grazing nearby. The pigs felt an unexpected surge of hostile forces, became excited and jumped into the sea.
Christ drives demons into a herd of pigs (?)
Now let's talk about the topic of contracts with the devil, which is popular even now (in cinema, for example). The first, as it turned out, was not Faust. In the 6th century there lived such a priest Theophilus (Theophilus) from Adana, who somehow very quickly made a spiritual career. This gave rise to suspect him of all sorts of bad things (as usually happens in cases of unprecedented success) and gave rise to the legend of Theophilus’ deal with the devil.
There was even someone who wanted to write down this legend - a certain Eutychius, apparently even a colleague of Theophilus. Allegedly, he sold his soul to Satan in exchange for a career. True, he seemed to repent later. So, if you see in a miniature manuscript a priest whispering with the devil or signing some kind of paper with him, know that this is most likely Theophilus.
Theophilus making a deal with the devil.
Not many manuscripts and pictorial sources from the early Middle Ages, much less from early Christian times, have survived, but even from the few that have come down to us, we can conclude that the theme of Satan, demonism, and Evil is not raised so often in early miniatures. But in the 14th, and especially the 15th and early 16th centuries, real “demonomania” and “demonophobia” began!
Suicide of Judas.
Italy. Giovanni Canavesio. 1493
Quite a rare plot: the devil literally scratches the soul out of a hanged sinner.
This is explained by many reasons - there were a lot of people in Europe, but somehow it got colder over the last 150 years, there was little food, life became difficult, and besides, the End of the World was expected in 1500 (in Rus' - in 1495). The Reformation was brewing, all sorts of new religious movements appeared, which were attributed by the official church to the machinations of Satan. The witch hunt began at the same time.
The devil plays Martin Luther like bagpipes.
16th century. Woodcut.
The satirical image was clearly drawn by a Catholic artist.
This is where the artists turned around - not a single illuminated book of hours or psalter came out of their brushes without several miniatures depicting creepy devils and monsters. And now we can admire them, not without an internal shudder.
Satan and his servants awaiting the Last Judgment.
The manuscripts claimed that the devil was, is and will be - right up to the Apocalypse and the Last Judgment. He sits with his devils in hell, among the frying pans stored in advance and polished to a shine, and waits for the hordes of sinners.
Well, do you continue to quarrel about politics, overeat and gossip? Well, well!
To be continued