Why Have So Many Humans Worshiped Bael?
By James Donahue
Ancient historical records indicate that Bael, the first principal spirit listed in the Goetia, has been the subject of human worship for thousands of years.
The Hebrews were admonished in the Old Testament for turning away from Jehova and bowing down to Bael. The Sumerians worshiped several gods, including Marduk, another name for Bael, also spelled Baal. The Canaanites and Amorites also worshiped Bael. Some believe the Egyptian god Osiris was none other than Bael in disguise.
We suspect that this spirit, who seems to have escaped Solomon's bindings even though he is named among the 72 Spirits of the Goetia, may still have bands of secret worshipers bowing to him in clandestine places.
The irony of such behavior is that because he is a spiritual entity and perhaps a creation of the very mind of men, Bael should not be in a position to be worshiped by humans. Yet he appears to have been clever enough through to convince some of his deity and cause them to bow down to him. He thus makes a mockery of human religious zeal.
Bael is incredibly easy to raise, as my wife and I once discovered. Early in her career as a practicing magician Doris decided to experiment in raising a demon. It was a situation in which she felt she needed some powerful energy to deal with some looming dark spiritual forces. Of all the demons she could have chosen, it had to be Bael. After drawing the star on the floor, lighting candles and portraying the sigil, I stood by as she began chanting. Suddenly the candle light in the room dipped dark, there was an intense sense of doom and it was obvious that we were surrounded by a dark energy. I was never sure just what transpired that night but when it was over, we were suck with an unwanted guest. She thought she knew how to capture and send off this particular demon but she was not totally successful in accomplishing this. She had to acquire the help of another sorcerer to send Bael off properly to where he belonged. It seemed that Doris was a poor artist and in drawing Bael's sigil, the picture looked like a grocery shopping cart.
That Bael seems to have a sense of humor may have been what saved us that night. His sigil, almost an image of a dancing stick figure with extended crosses in both hands, portrays a prankster who enjoys misbehaving whenever the opportunity arises. And the joke, for him, seems to be aimed at formal religion and all that practice it. Sad that the humans, who are the victims of his tricks, fail to appreciate the humor behind his antics.
The old image of Bael, portrayed for years after early magicians caught glimpses of three heads and what they thought were spidery legs, has been a close portrayal of the way this spirit really appears. They said Bael has the heads of a man, a cat and a toad.
By James Donahue
Ancient historical records indicate that Bael, the first principal spirit listed in the Goetia, has been the subject of human worship for thousands of years.
The Hebrews were admonished in the Old Testament for turning away from Jehova and bowing down to Bael. The Sumerians worshiped several gods, including Marduk, another name for Bael, also spelled Baal. The Canaanites and Amorites also worshiped Bael. Some believe the Egyptian god Osiris was none other than Bael in disguise.
We suspect that this spirit, who seems to have escaped Solomon's bindings even though he is named among the 72 Spirits of the Goetia, may still have bands of secret worshipers bowing to him in clandestine places.
The irony of such behavior is that because he is a spiritual entity and perhaps a creation of the very mind of men, Bael should not be in a position to be worshiped by humans. Yet he appears to have been clever enough through to convince some of his deity and cause them to bow down to him. He thus makes a mockery of human religious zeal.
Bael is incredibly easy to raise, as my wife and I once discovered. Early in her career as a practicing magician Doris decided to experiment in raising a demon. It was a situation in which she felt she needed some powerful energy to deal with some looming dark spiritual forces. Of all the demons she could have chosen, it had to be Bael. After drawing the star on the floor, lighting candles and portraying the sigil, I stood by as she began chanting. Suddenly the candle light in the room dipped dark, there was an intense sense of doom and it was obvious that we were surrounded by a dark energy. I was never sure just what transpired that night but when it was over, we were suck with an unwanted guest. She thought she knew how to capture and send off this particular demon but she was not totally successful in accomplishing this. She had to acquire the help of another sorcerer to send Bael off properly to where he belonged. It seemed that Doris was a poor artist and in drawing Bael's sigil, the picture looked like a grocery shopping cart.
That Bael seems to have a sense of humor may have been what saved us that night. His sigil, almost an image of a dancing stick figure with extended crosses in both hands, portrays a prankster who enjoys misbehaving whenever the opportunity arises. And the joke, for him, seems to be aimed at formal religion and all that practice it. Sad that the humans, who are the victims of his tricks, fail to appreciate the humor behind his antics.
The old image of Bael, portrayed for years after early magicians caught glimpses of three heads and what they thought were spidery legs, has been a close portrayal of the way this spirit really appears. They said Bael has the heads of a man, a cat and a toad.