LogFAQs > #946617200

5. Ars Goetia (Book) (26 points)
Nominated by: Anagram (0/5 remaining)


Importance: 10
Fear: 7
Snake: 9

The Ars Goetia, literally the Art of Conjuring Demons, is the definitive work of ritual occultism. It details a list of 72 demons, their powers and descriptions, their sigils, and of course, how to summon them. Even if you've never heard of the Ars Goetia, you might be familiar with some of the demon names: Paimon, Bael, Valefor, Barbatos, Eligos, Astaroth, Flauros. Yes, the Ars Goetia has had a profound influence on all forms of fiction from horror to fantasy to science-fiction whether you ever realized it or not. One of the biggest recent films to reference this grimoire is Hereditary, which uses the demon Paimon and actually includes the exact steps used in the book to summon him. Final Fantasy X includes Valefor as a literal summon as Yuna creates a sigil around her (unfortunately, it's not the sigil from the book). A surprising reference is in the anime franchise Gundam, which includes 72 Gundam frames all named after demons from the Goetia. Yes, the Goetia runs deep in what it has influenced. Perhaps one time it was used for its intended purpose, but as time has passed, the Goetia has been interpreted more as metaphorical reflections of the human condition. For example, the Duke Zepar can be conjured and made to force women to love men and make women barren, representing intense sexual desires and savagery. It a more positive one, Vual brings enemies and allies together as one, representing the potential of harmony and peace that exists in our world. It's an interesting little book if you're into occult stuff, like I am. It may seem more like the Marvel Handbook of Demonology these days, but I think there's still still a lot to be gleaned psychologically from it, and I also think that's why it holds such a powerful grasp over our fiction to this day.

---

Bare feet on the tile with my head up in the clouds
https://imgur.com/1e1e70S