| MYTHOLOGY
OF THE Lesser Key of Solomon
|
It first appeared in the 17th century, but much
was taken from texts of the 16th century, including
the Pseudomonarchia Daemonum, by Johann Weyer, and
late-medieval grimoires. It is likely that books
by Jewish kabbalists and Muslim mystics were also
inspirations. Some of the material in the first
section, concerning the summoning of demons, dates
to the 14th century or earlier.
The book claims that it was originally written
by King Solomon, although this is certainly incorrect.
The titles of nobility assigned to the demons were
unknown in his time,[citation needed] as were the
prayers to Jesus and the Christian Trinity included
in the text.
The Lesser Key of Solomon contains detailed descriptions
of spirits and the conjurations needed to invoke
and oblige them to do the will of the conjurer (referred
to as the "exorcist"). It details the
protective signs and rituals to be performed, the
actions necessary to prevent the spirits from gaining
control, the preparations prior to the invocations,
and instructions on how to make the necessary instruments
for the execution of these rituals.
Amdusias
In demonology, Amdusias (also Amduscias,
Amdukias or Ambduscias) has thirty legions of demons
under his command (29 according to other authors)
and has the rank of Great Duke. He is depicted as
a human with claws instead of hands and feet, the
head of a unicorn, and a trumpet to symbolise his
powerful voice. According to other sources, this
demon is depicted as a unicorn, and changes into
a man under the request of the conjurer.
Amdusias is associated with thunder and it has
been said that his voice is heard during storms.
In other sources, he is accompanied by the sound
of trumpets when he comes and will give concerts
if commanded , but while all types of musical instruments
can be heard they can't be seen. He can make trees
bend at will.
He is mentioned as a Duke in Johann Weyer's Pseudomonarchia
Daemonum (1583).
THE CONJURATION TO CALL FORTH ANY
OF THE AFORESAID SPIRITS
I DO invocate and conjure thee, O Spirit, N.; and
being with power armed from the SUPREME MAJESTY,
I do strongly command thee, by BERALANENSIS, BALDACHIENSIS,
PAUMACHIA, and APOLOGIAE SEDES; by the most Powerful
Princes, Genii, Liachidæ, and Ministers of
the Tartarean Abode; and by the Chief Prince of
the Seat of Apologia in the Ninth Legion, I do invoke
thee, and by invocating conjure thee. And being
armed with power from the SUPREME MAJESTY, I do
strongly command thee, by Him Who spake and it was
done, and unto whom all creatures be obedient. Also
I, being made after the image of GOD, endued with
power from GOD and created according unto His will,
do exorcise thee by that most mighty and powerful
name of GOD, EL, strong and wonderful; O thou Spirit
N. And I command thee and Him who spake the Word
and His FIAT was accomplished, and by all the names
of God. Also by the names ADONAI, EL, ELOHIM, ELOHI,
EHYEH, ASHER EHYEH, ZABAOTH, ELION, IAH, TETRAGRAMMATON,
SHADDAI, LORD GOD MOST HIGH, I do exorcise thee
and do powerfully command thee, O thou Spirit N.,
that thou dost forthwith appear unto me here before
this Circle in a fair human shape, without any deformity
or tortuosity. And by this ineffable name, TETRAGRAMMATON
IEHOVAH, do I command thee, at the which being heard
the elements are overthrown, the air is shaken,
the sea runneth back, the fire is quenched, the
earth trembleth, and all the hosts of the celestials,
terrestrials, and infernals, do tremble together,
and are troubled and confounded. Wherefore come
thou, O Spirit N., forthwith, and without delay,
from any or all parts of the world wherever thou
mayest be, and make rational answers unto all things
that I shall demand of thee. Come thou peaceably,
visibly, and affably, now, and without delay, manifesting
that which I shall desire. For thou art conjured
by the name of the LIVING and TRUE GOD, HELIOREN,
wherefore fulfil thou my commands, and persist thou
therein unto the end, and according unto mine interest,
visibly and affably speaking unto me with a voice
clear and intelligible without any ambiguity.
REPEAT this conjuration as often as thou pleasest,
and if the Spirit come not yet, say as followeth:
Astaroth's sealIn demonology Astaroth
(also Ashtaroth, Astarot, and Asteroth) is a Grand
Duke of Hell; his main assistants are four demons
called Aamon, Pruslas, Barbatos and Rashaverak.
In art, in the Dictionnaire Infernal, Astaroth is
depicted as a nude man with dragon-like wings, hands
and feet, a second pair of feathered wings after
the main, wearing a crown, holding a serpent in
one hand, and riding a wolf or dog. According to
Sebastian Michaelis he is a demon of the First Hierarchy,
who seduces by means of laziness and vanity, and
his adversary is St. Bartholomew, who can protect
against him for he has resisted Astaroth's temptations.
To others, he teaches mathematical sciences and
handicrafts, can make men invisible and lead them
to hidden treasures, and answers every question
formulated to him.
The several original copies extant vary considerably
in detail and in the spellings of the spirits' names.
Contemporary editions are widely available in print
and on the Internet.
The Goetia: The Lesser Key of Solomon the King
(Clavicula Salomonis Regis) is a 1904 translation
of the text by Samuel Mathers and Aleister Crowley.
It is essentially a manual that purports to give
instructions for summoning 72 different spirits.
THE SECOND CONJURATION
I DO invocate, conjure, and command thee, O thou
Spirit N., to appear and to show thyself visibly
unto me before this Circle in fair and comely shape,
without any deformity or tortuosity; by the name
and in the name IAH and VAU, which Adam heard and
spake; and by the name Of GOD, AGLA, which Lot heard
and was saved with his family; and by the name IOTH,
which Jacob heard from the angel wrestling with
him, and was delivered from the hand of Esau his
brother; and by the name ANAPHAXETON which Aaron
heard and spake and was made wise; and by the name
ZABAOTH, which Moses named and all the rivers were
turned into blood; and by the name ASHER EHYEH ORISTON,
which Moses named, and all the rivers brought forth
frogs, and they ascended into the houses, destroying
all things; and by the name ELION, which Moses named,
and there was great hail such as had not been since
the beginning of the world; and by the name ADONAI,
which Moses named, and there came up locusts, which
appeared upon the whole land, and devoured all which
the hail had left; and by the name SCHEMA AMATHIA
which Ioshua called upon, and the sun stayed his
course; and by the name ALPHA and OMEGA, which Daniel
named, and destroyed Bel, and slew the Dragon; and
in the name EMMANUEL, which the three children,
Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, sang in the midst
of the fiery furnace, and were delivered; and by
the name HAGIOS; and by the SEAL 1 OF ADONI; and
by ISCHYROS, ATHANATOS, PARACLETOS; and by O THEOS,
ICTROS, ATHANATOS; and by these three secret names,
AGLA, ON, TETRAGRAMMATON, do I adjure and constrain
thee. And by these names, and by all the other names
of the LIVING and TRUE GOD, the LORD ALMIGHTY, I
do exorcise and command thee, O Spirit N., even
by Him Who spake the Word and it was done, and to
Whom all creatures are obedient; and by the dreadful
judgments of GOD; and by the uncertain Sea of Glass,
which is before the DIVINE MAJESTY, mighty and powerful;
by the four beasts before the throne, having eyes
before and behind; by the fire round about the throne;
by the holy angels of Heaven; and by the mighty
wisdom of GOD; I do potently exorcise thee, that
thou appearest here before this Circle, to fulfil
my will in all things which shall seem good unto
me; by the Seal of BASDATHEA BALDACHIA; and by this
name PRIMEUMATON, which Moses named, and the earth
opened, and did swallow up Kora, Dathan, and Abiram.
Wherefore thou shalt make faithful answers unto
all my demands, O Spirit N., and shalt perform all
my desires so far as in thine office thou art capable
hereof. Wherefore, come thou, visibly, peaceably,
and affably, now without delay, to manifest that
which I desire, speaking with a clear and perfect
voice, intelligibly, and to mine understanding.
IF HE come not yet at the rehearsal of these two
first conjurations (but without doubt he will),
say on as followeth; it being a constraint:
The word demon is apparently derived
from daio "to divide" or "apportion",
originally meant a divine being; it was occasionally
applied to the higher gods and goddesses, but was
more generally used to denote spiritual beings of
a lower order coming between gods and men. It is
now practically restricted to the evil spirits.
A similar change and deterioration of meaning has
taken place in the Iranian languages in the case
of the word daeva. Etymologically this is identical
with the Sanskrit deva, by which it is rendered
in Neriosengh's version of the Avesta.
Demon is often confused with devil
as both qualify the evil spirits or fallen angels.
The precise distinction between the two terms in
ecclesiastical usage may be found in the decree
of the Fourth Lateran Council:
"Diabolus enim et alii daemones" (The
devil and the other demons), means that the chief
of the demons is called the devil, also found in
Matthew 25:41, "the Devil and his angels".
This distinction is observed in the Vulgate New
Testament, where diabolus represents the Greek diabolos
and in almost every instance refers to Satan himself,
while his subordinate angels are described, in accordance
with the Greek, as daemones or daemonia. It does
not indicate a difference of nature; for Satan is
clearly included among the daemones in James 2:19
and in Luke 11:15-18.
Asmodeus (Asmodeus, Asmodaeus, pronounced
Ashmed or Ashmedeus in Hebrew, also Chammadai, Sydonai)
is a semi-Biblical demon mostly known thanks to
the deuterocanonical Book of Tobit; he is also mentioned
in some Talmudic legends and in demonology, as he
is a leading figure in the construction efforts
of the Temple of Solomon. Amongst many scholars,
legends about Asmodai are thought to derive from
Zoroastrianism, and incorporated into Judaism (and
hence Christianity) during the Persian Achaemenids'
rule over the Jews. Asmoday is one of the Four Princes
of Hell, specifically the reigning prince over the
Eastern Regions. He rules over 72 Legions of Demons
and is the Demon of Lust in Binsfeld's and Michaelis'
classification of demons.
Spelling variations
Æshma (Old Persian), Æshma-dæva,
Ashmadia, Ashmedai (Hebrew), Asmodaios-(Greek),
Asmoday, Asmodée (French), Asmodee, Asmodei,
Ashmodai, Asmodeios, Asmodeo (Spanish, from a Latin
declination), Asmodeius, Asmodeus (Latin, as he
is known in most translations of the Book of Tobit),
Asmodi, Chammaday, Chashmodai, Sidonay, Sydonai.
Belphegor
For the original meaning of the word
is "shining one", and it comes from a
primitive Aryan root div, which is likewise the
source of the Greek Zeus and the Latin deus. But
whereas the devas of Indian theology are good and
beneficent gods, the daevas of the Avesta are hateful
spirits of evil.
Caym or Camio
Once with the order of angels, and
currently, high president of hell, Caym commands
30 legions. He appears in the form of a blackbird,
a main coifed with a headdress & adorned with
a peacock tail, or human carrying a tapering sword,
& responds from the midst of a burning brazier.
It is said that Caym is the most wise occupant of
hell, and that he could outwit even the most seasoned
logician. It was with him that Luther had his famous
dispute from which he spared us the details. Caym
teaches communication with animals and waves and
knows of the future.
The Fifty-third Spirit is Camio, or
Caim. He is a Great President, and appeareth in
the Form of the Bird called a Thrush at first, but
afterwards he putteth on the Shape of a Man carrying
in his Hand a Sharp Sword. He seemeth to answer
in Burning Ashes, or in Coals of Fire. He is a Good
Disputer. His Office is to give unto Men the Understanding
of all Birds, Lowing of Bullocks, Barking of Dogs,
and other Creatures; and also of the Voice of the
Waters. He giveth True Answers of Things to Come.
He was of the Order of Angels, but now ruleth over
30 Legions of Spirits Infernal. His Seal is this,
which wear thou, etc.
THE LICENSE TO DEPART.
O THOU Spirit N., because thou hast-diligently answered
unto my, demands, and hast been very ready and willing
to come at my call, I do here license thee to depart
unto thy proper place; without causing harm or danger
unto man or beast. Depart, then, I say, and be thou
very ready to come at my call, being duly exorcised
and conjured by the sacred rites of magic. I charge
thee to withdraw peaceably and quietly, and the
peace of GOD be ever continued between thee and
me I AMEN!
AFTER thou hast given the Spirit license to depart,
thou art not to go out of the circle until he or
they be gone, and until thou shalt have made prayers
and rendered thanks unto God for the great blessings
He hath bestowed upon thee in granting thy desires,
and delivering thee from all the malice of the enemy
the devil.
Also note! Thou mayest command these spirits into
the Vessel of Brass in the same manner as thou dost
into the triangle, by saying: "that thou dost
forthwith appear before this Circle, in this Vessel
of Brass, in a fair and comely shape," etc.,
as hath been shown in the foregoing conjurations.
