The Dictionary of Demons, page 13
Asmiel: A demon connected with the hours of the day, Asmiel serves the infernal king Symiel. Reputed to possess a good and obedient nature, Asmiel holds the position of duke and rules over sixty lesser spirits. His name and seal appear in the Ars Theurgia, where he is identified with the direction north. Asmiel also appears as one of a number of demons listed in Mathers’s translation of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage. Here Asmiel is said to be a servant of the four demonic princes of the cardinal directions: Oriens, Paimon, Ariton, and Amaimon. As such, he can be summoned and controlled in the name of his superiors. See also AMAIMON, ARITON, ARS THEURGIA, MATHERS, ORIENS, PAIMON, SYMIEL.
Asmoday: A variant spelling for the demon Asmodeus that has, in several texts, come to be viewed as a separate and distinct entity. In Dr. Rudd’s early-seventeenth-century work, A Treatise on Angel Magic, Asmoday (spelled Asmodai) is curiously described as a demon who “hath one Idea called Muriel incorporated into two figures Geomantic, called Populus by day and Via by night.”38 Nothing further is offered to help make sense of this enigmatic statement. In addition to this curious declaration, Dr. Rudd’s work describes Asmodai as a spirit connected with the moon.
Asmoday is also identified as one of the seventy-two Goetic demons. According to the Goetia, he is a king with seventy-two legions of spirits beneath him. When he manifests, he comes riding a dragon. His form is monstrous, having three heads, a serpent’s tail, and webbed feet. He has the head of a bull, a ram, and a man, and he vomits fire. He tries to deceive people about his true nature, often giving the name Sidonay instead of Asmoday. Those dealing with him are cautioned to press him until he acknowledges his true name. As a Goetic demon, Asmoday can make people invisible and disclose the whereabouts of hidden treasure. Additionally, he teaches arithmetic, astronomy, geometry, and handicrafts. He also has the power to bestow an enchanted item known as the Ring of Virtues. In Wierus’s Pseudomonarchia Daemonum, Asmoday is mentioned in connection with Solomon’s Brazen Vessel. Here, he is described as the third in rank of the seventy-two infernal kings shut up in that vessel by the biblical Patriarch. According to the Goetia of Dr. Rudd, he is an infernal king serving under Amaimon, the demonic ruler of the east. In this text, his name is spelled Asmodai, and he is said to be constrained in the name of the angel Vasariah.
According to the Book of Oberon, a magickal text from Elizabethan England, Asmoday is one of twelve primary ministers to Amaimon, the reigning king of the south. In this text, Asmoday teaches music, arithmetic, astronomy, and geometry. He also has the power to bestow invisibility and reveal the location of hidden treasure. His appearance is chimerical: he has the tail of a serpent, donkey’s feet, and three heads (that of a donkey, a bull, and a ram). When he speaks, fire erupts from his mouth(s). In the French Livre des esperitz, he can grant those who summon him a full year during which they will have all the things they desire. See also AMAIMON, ASMODEUS, BOOK OF OBERON, LIVRE DES ESPERITZ, RUDD, SIDONAY, SOLOMON, WIERUS.
The Devil’s Mark
Throughout many of the grimoires recorded in Europe, curious sigils appear. In books like the Ars Theurgia and the Goetia, they are called “seals” and sometimes “characters.” These striking and often symmetrical images are a necessary part of demonic invocation. The Goetia of Dr. Rudd specifically states that each seal is to be drawn out and used as a lamen. A lamen is a magickal talisman or amulet worn on the breast over the heart. These amulets could be composed of metal, but they were often nothing more than images and words scribed upon a piece of parchment. According to the Goetia of Dr. Rudd, the seals ascribed to the demons are necessary for control. The spirits will refuse to obey anyone if the seal is not visibly displayed upon the evoker’s chest. But what are these curious characters and where do they come from?
It is difficult to trace the precise origin of the demonic seals presented in the grimoiric tradition. Certainly, they are related to the various seals and talismans constructed by magicians to achieve a variety of effects. Some of these are tied in with magick squares, a system that uses the alpha-numeric correspondences of Hebrew letters to create sigils that represent the names of spirits. However, these enigmatic symbols may have their roots in another tradition as well. In the magickal system of the Hellenic world, karakteres were developed that resembled a written language. These karakteres, together with talismanic symbols, were often scribed upon curse tablets produced throughout the ancient Greek and Roman world. But these mystic characters were not letters in any language that was known. Instead, they represented the very concept of magick itself. The symbols—in part because they did not have a mundane application as letters in a spoken tongue—were seen as possessing power in their own right. Scribing them on a scroll or a curse tablet was a way of tracing that power onto the very surface that carried the spell. The unpronounceability and enigmatic meaning of these characters added to their mystic appeal, while at the same time placing the knowledge and use of such symbols in the hands of an elite class of magician/scribes.
It is possible that the demonic sigils presented in books like the Goetia and Ars Theurgia had their beginnings in these karakteres. Over time, certain symbols became standardized, until the sigil for each demon became a matter of tradition, copied over and over again by the individuals steeped in the culture of the grimoires.
Asmodeus: Described as “the king of the demons,” Asmodeus appears in the Book of Tobit (sometimes also known as the Book of Tobias). According to this story, the demon Asmodeus fell in love with the beautiful Sarah, daughter of Raguel. Asmodeus wanted Sarah for himself, and he refused to allow her to be married to any human man. Subsequently, each time that Sarah was married, the demon came to the marriage bed and took the life of her new husband. Seven men fell to the predations of this jealous demon, until Tobias, the eponymous author of the book, received a visit from the angel Raphael, who instructed him on how to handle the demonic paramour. Tobias married Sarah and drove the demon away. Asmodeus reportedly fled to the furthest reaches of Egypt, where he was then bound by the angel Raphael. In the Testament of Solomon, Asmodeus also plays a significant role. Here, the demon is called up by King Solomon, who demands to know its names and functions. This version of Asmodeus claims to have been put in charge of the destruction of fidelity, either by separating man and wife through calamities or by causing husbands to be led astray. He is also said to attack the beauty of virgins, causing them to waste away. In a passage that echoes the Book of Tobit, Asmodeus admits that the angel Raphael holds power over him. He could also be put to flight by burning the gall of a certain fish.
Further in the Testament of Solomon, Asmodeus claims to have been “born an angel’s seed by a daughter of man,”39 a statement that connects him firmly with the tradition of the Watcher Angels. The statement is also reflected in the portion of the Jewish Haggadah concerned with the life of Noah. Here, Asmodeus is said to have been born of the union of the fallen angel Shamdon and the lustful maiden Naamah. He was reputedly bound by King Solomon with iron, a metal that was often presented as an anathema to demons. Curiously, in the faerie lore of the British Isles, iron is also a metal that can harm or drive away the fey.
The Grimoire of Armadel mentions Asmodeus in conjunction with Leviathan, claiming that these two demons can teach about the malice of other devils. However, that text cautions against summoning these two beings, citing the fact that they lie. Francis Barrett’s The Magus depicts an image of Asmodeus, associating him with the sin of wrath. Asmodeus is mentioned in Arthur Edward Waite’s 1910 Book of Black Magic and Pacts, where he is listed as the superintendent of Hell’s casinos. This demonic hierarchy stems from the writings of the nineteenth-century demonologist Charles Berbiguier.
Rendered Asmodée in the Mathers translation of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage, this demon is identified as one of eight sub-princes ruling over all the other demons. According to this text, Asmodeus has the power to produce food, typically in the form of vast, impressive banquets. He can learn the secrets of any person. He also has the power to transmute metals and transmogrify people and animals, changing their shapes at will. He also appears as the thirty-second demon of the Goetia under the name Asmoday. In the grimoire known as the Janua Magica Reserata, or Keys to the Gateway of Magic, Asmodeus appears in a nine-tiered hierarchy of evil spirits intended to echo the nine orders of angels. According to this text, Asmodeus presides over the Ultores Scelorum, or “Revengers of Evil.” This is the fourth order of demons in the hierarchy, over which he reigns as prince. Variations of this demon’s name include Asmoday, Ashmedai, Asmodée, and Asmodai. See also ASMODAY, BERBIGUIER, GOETIA, JANUA MAGICA RESERATA, LEVIATHAN, MATHERS, SOLOMON, WAITE.
Asmoo: A demon named in the Elizabethan grimoire known as the Book of Oberon. His name is also spelled Asmo in the same text. He appears in a list of seven infernal senators who are called upon to control other, lesser spirits. Asmoo, whose name is likely a variation on the more familiar Asmoday, is said to serve Tantavalerion, a being identified as the supreme ruler of all spirits. See also ASMODAY, BOELL, BOOK OF OBERON, DANALL, ORYMELL, PASCARY, SALARICA, TANTAVALERION, TYGRA.
Asorega: A demon connected with the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage. He is a servitor of the four infernal princes of the cardinal directions: Oriens, Paimon, Ariton, and Amaimon. Asorega is named in two of the surviving manuscripts of the Abramelin material: the manuscript kept at the Wolfenbüttel library and the edition published in Cologne by Peter Hammer. In Mathers’s translation, Asorega’s name is given as Astrega. See also AMAIMON, ARITON, MATHERS, ORIENS, PAIMON.
Asoriel: A mighty duke ruled by the demon Cabariel. Asoriel appears with fifty attending spirits. He is one of a number of demons associated with the points of the compass as defined in the Ars Theurgia. Both Asoriel and his immediate superior serve in the hierarchy of the west, underneath the demon-king Amenadiel. See also AMENADIEL, ARS THEURGIA, CABARIEL.
Aspar: In the Ars Theurgia, Aspar is named as a chief duke of the night serving the demon-king Malgaras. He has twenty lesser spirits at his command and he will only appear to mortals during the hours of darkness. He is connected with the west. See also ARS THEURGIA, MALGARAS.
Asperim: According to Mathers, the name of this demon is derived from the Latin word aspera, meaning “perilous” or “dangerous.” The meaning of the name is perhaps a subtle warning regarding the demon’s true nature. Asperim is one of many demons who serve in the hierarchy of the four demonic princes of the cardinal directions. He is summoned as part of the extensive Holy Guardian Angel rite detailed in the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage. See also AMAIMON, ARITON, MATHERS, ORIENS, PAIMON.
Asphiel: A chief president said to serve the prince Aseliel during the hours of the night. Asphiel’s name and seal appear in the Ars Theurgia. According to this text, he rules over thirty principal spirits and twenty ministering servants. He is part of the hierarchy of the east due to his allegiance to Aseliel. See also ARS THEURGIA, ASELIEL.
Asphor: A demon said to hold the rank of chief duke in the court of the infernal prince Dorochiel. He is tied to the hours of the day and will only manifest between noon and dusk. According to the Ars Theurgia, he commands no fewer than four hundred lesser spirits. His direction is west. See also ARS THEURGIA, DOROCHIEL.
Aspiel: A servant of the infernal king Malgaras. Aspiel appears in the Ars Theurgia, where he is said to hold the rank of chief duke. He governs thirty lesser spirits and will only deign to appear during the hours of the night. He is affiliated with the court of the west. Aspiel also appears in this same work in the capacity of a duke serving beneath the demon Asyriel. Here, Aspiel is said to serve during the hours of the night, with ten lesser spirits to minister to his needs. Through Asyriel, this version of Aspiel is allied with the south. See also ARS THEURGIA, ASYRIEL, MALGARAS.
Assaba: One of several infernal dukes in service to the demon-king Gediel. According to the Ars Theurgia, Assaba has a total of twenty lesser spirits under his command. He is affiliated with the hours of the day and the direction of the south. See also ARS THEURGIA, GEDIEL.
Assaibi: A demon who serves beneath the infernal king Maymon, associated with both the planet Saturn and the direction north. Assaibi appears in Peterson’s translation of the Sworn Book of Honorius. As a Saturnine spirit, Assaibi reputedly can inspire the emotions of sadness, anger, and hatred. Assaibi answers to the angels Bohel, Cafziel, Michrathon, and Satquiel. There is a strong likelihood that this demon and the demon Assalbi are one in the same—but for a scribal error somewhere along the way. See also ASSALBI, MAYMON, SWORN BOOK.
Assalbi: A minister of the infernal king Albunalich who rules the element of earth from the direction of the north. As a creature of earth, Assalbi holds sway over all the things buried in it, but especially gold and precious stones. He is said to have the power to wear down and utterly frustrate anyone seeking buried treasure. He greedily guards the treasures of the earth but will bestow them upon those he favors. He is an oracular spirit, imparting knowledge of the future as well as the past. He can incite disagreements between people, causing anger among friends and bringing them to violence. Compare to Assaibi in the Driscoll edition of the Sworn Book. See also ALBUNALICH, ASSAIBI, SWORN BOOK.
The demon Astaroth, from Collin de Plancy’s Dictionnaire Infernal. From the archives of Dark Realms Magazine.
Assuel: A demon with the title of duke in the court of the infernal king Maseriel. Assuel is affiliated with the hours of the day and, through his service to Maseriel, is also connected with the direction of the south. According to the Ars Theurgia, he has thirty lesser spirits under his command. See also ARS THEURGIA, MASERIEL.
Astael: A demon tied to the hours of the day whose name and sigil appear in the Ars Theurgia. Astael appears in connection with the demon Raysiel, an infernal king of the north. Astael himself holds the rank of duke and has fifty lesser spirits at his command. See also ARS THEURGIA, RAYSIEL.
Astaroth: One of the seventy-two demons named in the Goetia. His name appears in Wierus’s Pseudomonarchia Daemonum, where he is said to hold the rank of duke with command over forty legions of lesser spirits. When he appears, he takes the shape of an obscene and loathsome angel. He rides an infernal dragon and carries a viper in his right hand. In de Plancy’s 1863 edition of the Dictionnaire Infernal, he is depicted as a naked man with angel’s wings riding a dragon. In Francis Barrett’s The Magus, Astaroth is listed as the prince of the demonic order of accusers and inquisitors. The only major difference between Astaroth’s descriptions in de Plancy’s work and those in The Magus is that the demon rides a wolf or a dog, not a dragon. Astaroth is said to teach the liberal sciences and, like many of the Goetic spirits, he will also discourse on matters of the past, present, and future, as well as the secrets of occult knowledge. Astaroth can confer heavenly knowledge as well: he is said to speak freely about the creator of spirits, the fall of the spirits, and the various sins they committed that inspired their fall. Wierus’s Pseudomonarchia also says that Astaroth has horribly fetid breath. For this reason, the magician is warned to keep his distance from the demon and to hold a magickal ring of silver against his face to protect himself from any injury.
Astaroth appears in the Book of Oberon, an Elizabethan manual of ceremonial magick. Here, Astaroth is one of a dozen principal spirits serving beneath Amaimon, king of the south. When he manifests, he arrives riding an infernal dragon. In one hand he carries a serpent with a venomous sting. The Book of Oberon describes him as a horrible spirit who should not be allowed near those who summon him. For those who dare to work with him, he is said to give true answers when asked about any events from the past, present, or future. He also teaches the seven liberal arts.
Astaroth’s name is given as Elestor in the Lansdowne text known as the True Keys of Solomon. Here, he is said to govern all the spirits in the Americas. In the Goetia of Dr. Rudd, he is said to be constrained with the name of the angel Reiajel. In the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage, Astaroth is one of eight sub-princes who rule over all other demons. He has the power to discover mines and transmute metals. He can reveal the location of treasure—so long as it is not magickally guarded. He has impressive powers of destruction, causing tempests and demolishing buildings. He can also transform men and animals.
This demon has his origins in the Bible, where, in the Book of Judges and in the first Book of Samuel, he is referred to as “the Ashtaroth” and is mentioned in connection with “the Baals,” other foreign gods forbidden to the Israelites. Many later readers took both of these words to be proper names. However, in the time of the ancient Israelites, the Baals and the Ashtaroths were general terms for deities. Baals were the male deities, while the Ashtaroths denoted the female deities. As this would imply, in the process of becoming a demon, Astaroth underwent a gender switch somewhere along the way.
The term Astaroth is derived from the name of the Semitic goddess Astarte, a goddess who appears in Ugaritic, Phoenician, and Akkadian sources. She is a cognate of the Babylonian goddess Ishtar. Because she is connected with forbidden things in the Bible, namely with religions that were viewed as false and heretical by the ancient Israelites, Astarte cum Astaroth was demonized along with a host of other foreign deities. She, now a he, has remained a demon ever since—at least as far as most of Western civilization is concerned.
Perhaps because Astarte was such a widely revered goddess in her day, the demon Astaroth is typically depicted as holding significant rank among the hordes of Hell. In a dubious document produced as evidence against the parish priest Urbain Grandier, who was accused of practicing witchcraft and diabolism in seventeenth-century France, Astaroth was one of several well-known demons whose name appears as a signature witnessing Grandier’s pact with Satan. In the Grand Grimoire, Astaroth is listed as the Grand Duke of Hell. In Berbiguier’s infernal hierarchy, Astaroth is one of the Ministers of Hell and is listed as the Grand Treasurer. According to the spurious Grimoire of Pope Honorius, Astaroth is the demon of Wednesday. Variations on this demon’s name include Ashtaroth, Ashteroth, Ashtoreth, Astareth, and Astarot. As prince of the Criminatores, he presides over the eighth order of evil spirits in an infernal hierarchy described in the Janua Magica Reserata. According to this text, his Greek name is Diabolos. See also AMAIMON, BARRETT, BERBIGUIER, BOOK OF OBERON, DE PLANCY, GOETIA, GRAND GRIMOIRE, JANUA MAGICA RESERATA, RUDD, SCOT, WIERUS.
