Demon

In folklore, mythology, and religion, a demon or demoness is a supernatural being that has generally been described as a malevolent spirit but outside Christian circles was viewed as a sort of elemental spirit: compare Daemon and djinn. A demon is frequently depicted as a force that may be conjured and insecurely controlled. The "good" demon in recent use is largely a literary device (eg: Maxwell's demon). In common language, "demonizing" one's opponent is an aspersion.

Related Topics:
Folklore - Mythology - Religion - Supernatural - Spirit - Daemon - Djinn - Conjured - Control - Maxwell's demon

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As the Indo-Iranian Avestan and Vedic traditions and also other branches of Indo-European mythologies show, the notion of demon has existed for many centuries.

Related Topics:
Indo-Iranian - Avestan - Vedic - Indo-European

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The Greek conception of a daemon, δαίμων, appears in the works of Plato and many other ancient authors, but without the evil connotations which are apparent in the Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Bible and in the Greek originals of the New Testament. The medieval and neo-medieval conception of a "demon" in Western civilization (see the Medieval grimoire, the Ars Goetia) derives from the ambient popular culture of Late (Roman) Antiquity. The Hellenistic "Demon" eventually came to include many Semitic and Near Eastern gods as evaluated by Christianity.

Related Topics:
Greek - Daemon - Plato - Septuagint - Hebrew Bible - New Testament - Medieval - Grimoire - Ars Goetia

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Greco-Roman concepts of daemons that passed into Christian culture are discussed in the entry daemon.

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In some present-day cultures, demons are still feared in popular superstition, largely due to their power to 'possess' humans, and they are an important concept in many modern religions and occultist traditions.

Related Topics:
Superstition - Possess

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In the contemporary Western mystical tradition (perhaps epitomized by the work of Aleister Crowley) a demon, such as Choronzon, the "Demon of the Abyss", is a useful metaphor for certain inner psychological processes, though some may also regard it as an objectively real phenomenon.

Related Topics:
Aleister Crowley - Choronzon

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