Editing Demonology

{{Short description|Study of demons or beliefs about demons}}
{{About||the dissertation by King James|Daemonologie|other uses|Demonology (disambiguation)}}
[[File:Nachtmahr (Abildgaard).jpg|thumb|''Nightmare'' (1800) by [[Nicolai Abraham Abildgaard]]]]{{Paranormal}}
'''Demonology''' is the study of [[demon]]s within [[Religion|religious]] [[belief]] and [[myth]]. Depending on context, it can refer to studies within [[theology]], religious [[doctrine]], or [[occultism]]. In many faiths, it concerns the study of a [[Classification of demons|hierarchy of demons]]. Demons may be nonhuman separable [[soul]]s, or discarnate spirits which have never inhabited a body. A sharp distinction is often drawn between these two classes, notably by the [[Melanesians]], several African groups, and others. The [[Islam]]ic [[jinn]], for example, are not reducible to modified human souls. At the same time these classes are frequently conceived as producing identical results, e.g. diseases.<ref name="E1911" /><ref name="hist">[http://www.history.com/encyclopedia.do?articleId=207375 "Demon"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016201216/http://www.history.com/encyclopedia.do?articleId=207375 |date=2007-10-16 }} from Funk & Wagnalls ''New Encyclopedia'', © 2006 World Almanac Education Group, retrieved from [http://www.history.com/ history.com]</ref><ref name="DDD">van der Toorn, Becking, van der Horst (1999), ''Dictionary of Deities and Demons in The Bible'', Second Extensively Revised Edition, Entry: '''Demon''', pp. 235-240, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, {{ISBN|0-8028-2491-9}}</ref>

== Prevalence of demons ==
According to some religions, all the affairs of the universe are supposed to be under the control of spirits, each ruling a certain "[[Classical element|element]]" or even object, and themselves in subjection to a greater spirit.<ref>Ludwig, Theodore M., ''The Sacred Paths: Understanding the Religions of the World'', Second Edition, pp. 48-51, © 1989 Prentice-Hall, Inc., {{ISBN|0-02-372175-8}}</ref> For example, the [[Inuit]] are said to believe in spirits of the sea, earth and sky, the winds, the clouds, and everything in nature. Every cove of the seashore, every point, every island and prominent rock has its guardian spirit.<ref name="E1911" /> Some are potentially of the malignant type, to be propitiated by an appeal to knowledge of the supernatural.<ref>Rink, Henry (1875), [http://www.sacred-texts.com/nam/inu/tte/tte1-4.htm "Chapter IV: Religion"] of ''Tales and Traditions of the Eskimo'', London, 1875, at [http://www.sacred-texts.com/index.htm sacred-texts.com]</ref> Traditional [[Korea]]n belief posits that countless demons inhabit the natural world; they fill household objects and are present in all locations. By the thousands, they accompany travellers, seeking them out from their places in the elements.<ref name="E1911">{{EB1911 |wstitle=Demonology n |volume=8 |pages=5–8 |first=Northcote W. |last=Thomas |author-link=Northcote W. Thomas |inline=1}}</ref>

Greek philosophers such as [[Porphyry (philosopher)|Porphyry of Tyre]] (who claimed influence from [[Platonic realism|Platonism]]<ref>Cumont, Franz (1911), ''The Oriental Religions in Roman Paganism'', Chapter VI: "[http://www.sacred-texts.com/cla/orrp/orrp19.htm Persia]", p. 267 at Internet Sacred Text Archive.</ref>), as well as the [[Church Fathers|fathers of the Christian Church]], held that the world was pervaded with spirits,<ref name="E1911" /> the latter of whom advanced the belief that demons received the worship directed at pagan gods.<ref>Augustine, [http://ccel.org/fathers/NPNF1-02/c1.8.htm ''The City of God''], Book 8, Chapters 24-25, at the Christian Classics Ethereal Library. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061004074728/http://ccel.org/fathers/NPNF1-02/c1.8.htm |date=2006-10-04 }}.</ref>

==Characterization of spirits==
Not all spirits across all cultures are considered malevolent. In [[Central Africa]], the [[Mpongwe people|Mpongwe]] believe in local spirits, just as the Inuit do; but they are regarded as inoffensive in the main. Passers-by must make some nominal offering as they near the spirits' residence. The occasional mischievous act, such as the throwing down of a tree on a passer-by, is believed by the natives to be perpetuated by the class of spirits known as ''Ombuiri''.<ref name="E1911" /><ref>{{cite book |last1=Hamill Nassau |first1=Robert |date=1904 |chapter-url=http://www.sacred-texts.com/afr/fiwa/fiwa07.htm |title=Fetichism in West Africa |chapter=Chapter V: Spiritual Beings in Africa - Their Classes and Functions |publisher=[[Charles Scribner's Sons]] |via=Internet Sacred Text Archive }}</ref>

Many spirits, especially those regarding natural processes, are often considered neutral or benevolent; ancient European peasant fears of the [[Vegetation deity|corn-spirit]] would crop up during irritation, as a result of the farmer infringing on the domain of said spirit, and taking his property by cutting the corn;<ref>{{cite book |last1=Frazer |first1=Sir James George |date=1922 |chapter-url=http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/f/frazer/james/golden/chapter46.html |chapter=The Golden Bough: A Study of Magic and Religion |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070303101920/http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/f/frazer/james/golden/chapter46.html |archive-date=2007-03-03 |title=The Corn-Mother in Many Lands |publisher=The University of Adelaide Library}}</ref> similarly, there is no reason why the less significant [[pantheon (gods)|pantheon]] should be regarded as malevolent, and historical evidence has shown that the Petara of the [[Dayak people|Dyaks]] are viewed as invisible guardians of mankind rather than hostile malefactors.<ref>Greem, Eda (c. 1909), [http://anglicanhistory.org/asia/sarawak/green/04.html ''Borneo: The Land of River and Palm''] at the [http://anglicanhistory.org/ Project Canterbury] website</ref>

==Types==
{{See also|Classification of demons}}
Demons are generally classified as spirits which are believed to enter into relations with the human race. As such the term includes:
# [[angel]]s in the [[Christianity|Christian]] tradition that [[fallen angel|fell from grace]],<ref name="DDD" />
# malevolent [[Genie|genii]] or [[Familiar spirit|familiars]],<ref>[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/demon Demon], entry in the  ''Online Etymology Dictionary'', © 2001 Douglas Harper, hosted at [http://dictionary.reference.com dictionary.com]</ref>
# such as receive a [[Cult (religious practice)|cult]] (e.g., [[ancestor worship]]),<ref name="DDD" />
# [[ghost]]s or other malevolent [[revenant (folklore)|revenants]].<ref>[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/ghost Ghost], entry in ''The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language'', Fourth Edition, Copyright © 2000, Houghton Mifflin Company, hosted at [http://dictionary.reference.com dictionary.com]</ref>

Excluded are souls conceived as inhabiting another world. Yet just as gods are not necessarily spiritual, demons may also be regarded as corporeal; [[vampire]]s for example are sometimes described as human heads with appended entrails, which issue from the tomb to attack the living during the night watches. The [[incubus (demon)|incubi]] and [[succubus|succubi]] of the [[Middle Ages]] are sometimes regarded as spiritual beings; but they were held to give proof of their bodily existence,<ref name="E1911" /> such as offspring (though often deformed).<ref>Masello, Robert, ''Fallen Angels and Spirits of The Dark'', pp. 64-68, 2004, The Berkley Publishing Group, 200 Madison Ave. New York, NY 10016, {{ISBN|0-399-51889-4}}</ref> Belief in demons goes back many millennia. The [[Zoroastrianism|Zoroastrian]] faith teaches that there are 3,333 Demons, some with specific dark responsibilities such as war, starvation, sickness, etc.

===Ancient Mesopotamian religion===
{{main|Ancient Mesopotamian underworld}}

{{Further|Asag| Pazuzu}}
[[File:Dumuzi aux enfers.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Ancient Sumerian [[cylinder seal]] impression showing the god [[Dumuzid]] being tortured in the [[Ancient Mesopotamian underworld|underworld]] by ''[[gallu|galla]]'' demons]]
The [[ancient Mesopotamians]] believed that the underworld (Kur) was home to many [[Ancient Mesopotamian underworld#Demons|demons]],{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=180}} which are sometimes referred to as "offspring of ''arali''".{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=180}} These demons could sometimes leave [[Ancient Mesopotamian underworld|the underworld]] and terrorize mortals on earth.{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=180}} One class of demons that were believed to reside in the underworld were known as ''[[Gallu|galla]]'';{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=85}} their primary purpose appears to have been to drag unfortunate mortals back to Kur.{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=85}} They are frequently referenced in magical texts,{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|pages=85–86}} and some texts describe them as being seven in number.{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|pages=85–86}} Several extant poems describe the ''galla'' dragging the god [[Dumuzid]] into the underworld.{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=86}} Like other demons, however, ''galla'' could also be benevolent{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=86}} and, in a hymn from King [[Gudea]] of [[Lagash]] ({{circa}} 2144 – 2124 BC), a minor god named Ig-alima is described as "the great ''galla'' of [[Girsu]]".{{sfn|Black|Green|1992|page=86}} Demons had no [[Cult (religious practice)|cult]] in [[Mesopotamian religious]] practice since demons "know no food, know no drink, eat no flour offering and drink no [[libation]]."<ref>cf. [http://etcsl.orinst.ox.ac.uk/cgi-bin/etcsl.cgi?text=t.1.4.1# line 295 in "Inanna's descent into the nether world"]</ref>

===Abrahamic religions===

====Judaism====
{{See also|Jewish mythology}}

[[Judaism]] does not have a demonology or any set of doctrines about demons.<ref name="MM_1998" />
Use of the name "Lucifer" stems from {{bibleverse||Isaiah|14:3–20|NIV}}, a passage which does speak of the defeat of a particular [[Babylon]]ian King, to whom it gives a title which refers to what in English is called the Day Star or Morning Star (in Latin, ''lucifer'', meaning "light-bearer", from the words ''lucem ferre'').<ref name="books.google.com" />

There is more than one instance in Jewish medieval myth and lore where demons are said to have come to be, as seen by the Grigori angels, of [[Lilith]] leaving Adam, of demons such as [[vampire]]s, unrest spirits in [[Jewish mythology|Jewish folklore]] such as the [[dybbuk]].<ref>[http://jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=245&letter=D&search=demonology Demonology] at [http://jewishencyclopedia.com/ jewishencyclopedia.com]</ref><ref name="wars">Josephus, Flavius, [http://www.earlyjewishwritings.com/josephus.html ''Wars of The Jews''], Book VII, Chapter VI.</ref>

====Christianity====
{{Main|Christian demonology}}[[File:Man_with_7_Devils_from_book_of_7_Deadly_Sins_(582x800).jpg|thumb|Man being attacked by the 7 deadly devils]]
Christian demonology is the study of [[demon]]s from a [[Christianity|Christian]] point of view. It is primarily based on the [[Bible]] ([[Old Testament]] and [[New Testament]]), the [[exegesis]] of scriptures, the writings of early Christian [[philosopher]]s and [[hermit]]s, [[tradition]], and [[legend]]s incorporated from other beliefs.

Some scholars{{who|date=March 2016}} suggest that the origins of early [[Greek Old Testament]] demonology can be traced to two distinctive and often competing mythologies of evil— Adamic and Enochic.

The first tradition — the Adamic tradition — ties demons to the [[fall of man]] caused by [[Snake|the serpent]] who beguiled [[Adam and Eve]] in the [[Garden of Eden]].  Thus, the Adamic story traces the source of evil to Satan's transgression and the fall of man, a trend reflected in the Books of Adam and Eve which explains the reason for Satan's demotion by his refusal to worship and submit to God.<ref name="Orlov11"/>

The other tradition — the early Enochic tradition — ties demons to the fall of angels in the [[antediluvian]] period.<ref name="Orlov11">A. Orlov, Dark Mirrors: Azazel and Satanael in Early Jewish Demonology (Albany, SUNY, 2011) 6.</ref> This tradition bases its understanding of the origin of demons on the story of the fallen [[Watcher (angel)|Watchers]] led by [[Azazel]].<ref name="Orlov11"/> Scholars{{who|date=March 2016}} believe these two enigmatic figures—Azazel and [[Satan]]—exercised formative influence on early Jewish demonology. While in the beginning of their conceptual journeys Azazel and Satan are posited as representatives of two distinctive and often rival trends tied to the distinctive etiologies of corruption, in later Jewish and Christian demonological lore both antagonists are able to enter each other's respective stories in new conceptual capacities. In these later traditions Satanael is often depicted as the leader of the fallen angels while his conceptual rival Azazel is portrayed as a seducer of Adam and Eve.<ref name="Orlov11"/> While historical [[Judaism]] never recognized any set of doctrines about demons,<ref name="MM_1998">Mack, Carol K., Mack, Dinah (1998), ''A Field Guide to Demons, Fairies, Fallen Angels and Other Subversive Spirits'', p. XXXIII, New York: Henry Holt and Co., {{ISBN|0-8050-6270-X}}</ref> scholars{{who|date=March 2016}} believe its [[Babylonian captivity|post-exilic]] concepts of [[eschatology]], angelology, and demonology were influenced by [[Zoroastrianism]].<ref>[http://classic.net.bible.org/dictionary.php?word=Zoroastrianism '''Zoroastrianism'''], NET Bible Study Dictionary</ref><ref>Jahanian, Daryoush, M.D., [http://www.meta-religion.com/World_Religions/Zoroastrim/zoroastrian-biblical_connections.htm "The Zoroastrian-Biblical Connections"], at Meta Religion.</ref> Some, however, believe these concepts were received as part of the [[Kabbalah|Kabbalistic]] tradition.<ref>Franck, Adolphe (1843), translated by Sossnitz, I. (1926), ''The Kabbalah'', or, ''The Religious Philosophy of the Hebrews'', Part Two, Chapter IV, "[http://www.sacred-texts.com/jud/rph/rph16.htm Continuation of The Analysis of The Zohar: The Kabbalists' View of The World]", p. 184 at Internet Sacred Text Archive.</ref> While many people believe today [[Lucifer]] and Satan are different names for the same being, not all scholars subscribe to this view.<ref name="books.google.com">Davidson, Gustav (1967), ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=Ed7yHWuTEewC A Dictionary of Angels, Including The Fallen Angels]'', Free Press, p. 176, Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 66-19757, {{ISBN|9780029070505}}</ref>

A number of authors throughout Christian history have written about demons for a variety of purposes.  Theologians like [[Thomas Aquinas]] wrote concerning the behaviors of which Christians should be aware,<ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/summa/1114.htm Thomas Aquinas's Summa Theologica], Question 114, hosted on [[New Advent]]</ref> while witch hunters like [[Heinrich Kramer]] wrote about how to find and what to do with [[Witch trials in Early Modern Europe|people they believed were involved with demons]].<ref>[http://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/mm/index.htm Malleus Maleficarum], hosted on the Internet Sacred Text Archive</ref>  Some texts such as the [[Lesser Key of Solomon]]<ref>[http://www.sacred-texts.com/grim/lks/lks17.htm Lesser Key of Solomon, The Conjuration To Call Forth Any of the Aforesaid Spirits], hosted on [[Internet Sacred Text Archive]]</ref> or [[The Grimoire of Pope Honorius]] (although these, the earliest manuscripts, were from well after these individuals had died) are written with [[grimoire|instructions on how to summon demons]] in the name of God and often were claimed to have been written by individuals respected within the Church.<ref>[http://www.sacred-texts.com/grim/bcm/bcm14.htm Arthur Edward Waite, Book of Ceremonial Magic, page 64] [http://www.sacred-texts.com/grim/bcm/bcm23.htm#page_106 and page 106]</ref>  These latter texts were usually more detailed, giving names, ranks, and descriptions of demons individually and categorically.<ref name=sacred>{{cite web|url=http://www.sacred-texts.com/grim/bcm/bcm14.htm |title=Waite, page 64 |publisher=Sacred-texts.com |access-date=2010-05-13}}</ref>  Most Christians commonly reject these texts as either diabolical or fictitious.<ref name=sacred/> Catholics accused Lutherans of believing in diabolatry or that the devil had unlimited powers.<ref name="Davis 1983 p. 153">{{cite book | last=Davis | first=J.C. | title=Utopia and the Ideal Society: A Study of English Utopian Writing 1516-1700 | publisher=Cambridge University Press | year=1983 | isbn=978-0-521-27551-4 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P5T-LVB-6tIC&pg=PA153 | access-date=2023-02-17 | page=153}}</ref><ref name="Butler Butler 1993 p. 136">{{cite book | last=Butler | first=E.M. | title=The Myth of the Magus | publisher=Cambridge University Press | series=Cambridge paperbacks | year=1993 | isbn=978-0-521-43777-6 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nJSXnBd78FYC&pg=PA136 | access-date=2023-02-17 | page=136}}</ref><ref name="Eire 2016 p. 650">{{cite book | last=Eire | first=C.M.N. | title=Reformations: The Early Modern World, 1450-1650 | publisher=Yale University Press | year=2016 | isbn=978-0-300-11192-7 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s3lJDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA650 | access-date=2023-02-17 | page=650}}</ref>

In modern times, some demonological texts have been written by Christians, usually in a similar vein of Thomas Aquinas, explaining their effects in the world and how faith may lessen or eliminate damage by them.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=SFmrx7s7OtIC&q=Jessie+Penn-Lewis+war+on+the+saints Jessie Penn-Lewis, War on the Saints on Google Books], introductory chapter</ref>  A few Christian authors, such as [[Jack Chick]] and [[John Todd (occultist)|John Todd]], write with intentions similar to Kramer, proclaiming that demons and their human agents are active in the world.<ref name="broken">{{cite web|url=http://www.chick.com/catalog/comics/0102.asp |title=The Broken Cross - by Jack T. Chick |publisher=Chick.com |access-date=2009-10-08}}</ref>  These claims can stray from mainstream ideology, and may include such beliefs as that [[Christian rock]] is a means through which demons influence people.

Not all Christians believe that demons exist in the literal sense.  Some believe that the New Testament's exorcism language was originally part of curing ceremonies for what are now recognized as epilepsy, mental illness, etc.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.realdevil.info/4-1.htm |title=The Devil, Satan And Demons |publisher=Realdevil.info |access-date=2010-05-13}}</ref>

====Islam====
[[File:Shah Namah, the Persian Epic of the Kings Wellcome L0035191.jpg|thumb|Jinns gather to do battle with the hero [[Faramarz]]. Illustration in an [[illuminated manuscript]] of the Iranian [[Epic poetry|epic]] ''[[Shahnameh]]'']]
Many demonic or demon-like entities are not purely spiritual, but physical in nature and related to animals. [[Julius Wellhausen]] states, that Islamic ''demonology'' is always [[zoology]] as well.<ref>Tobias Nünlist ''Dämonenglaube im Islam'' Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG, 2015 {{ISBN|978-3-110-33168-4}} page 114 (German)</ref> One prominent classification is given by [[al-Jahiz]],<ref>Tobias Nünlist ''Dämonenglaube im Islam'' Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG, 2015 {{ISBN|978-3-110-33168-4}} page 63 (German)</ref> who classifies [[jinn]] as:<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last1=Fahd |first1=T. |last2=Rippin |first2=A.|orig-date=1960-2007 (print ed.) |year=2012 |title=S̲h̲ayṭān |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia of Islam |edition=2nd / online |editor1-first=P. |editor1-last=Bearman |editor2-first=Th. |editor2-last=Bianquis |editor3-first=C.E. |editor3-last=Bosworth |editor4-first=E. |editor4-last=van Donzel |editor5-first=W.P. |editor5-last=Heinrichs |ISBN=9789004161214|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_1054 |access-date=6 October 2019  }}</ref>
* ''[[wikt:Amir#English|Amir]]'', jinn who live among humans.
*[[Angels]], benevolent and good jinn''.''
* [[demons|Devils]], malicious and evil jinn.
* ''[[Marid]]'', strong jinn who steal information from Heaven.
*''[[Ifrit]]'', the most powerful jinn.

[[Zakariya al-Qazwini]]'s ''[[Aja'ib al-Makhluqat]]'' mentions seven types of animals. The ''jinn'' are classified as an animal composed of fire and can appear in many forms. Among them, the angels are created from the light of fire, the jinn from a blaze of fire, and the devils from the smoke of fire. Satan is counted among these animals. They inhabited the earth before mankind.<ref>{{cite book |last=Nasr |first=Seyyed Hossein |title=Islamic Life and Thought |publisher=Routledge |year=2013 |page=135 }}</ref>

The German [[Orientalist scholars of Islam|orientalist]] [[Almut Wieland-Karimi]] classified the Jinn in the ten most common categories mentioned in folklore literature:<ref>{{cite book |first=Tobias |last=Nünlist |title=Dämonenglaube im Islam |lang=de |trans-title=Demonology in Islam |publisher=Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG |year=2015 |ISBN=978-3-110-33168-4 |page=67 }}</ref>

* [[Jinn]] or [[Jann (legendary creature)|Jann]]: ordinary jinn, a class apart from other jinn types, but also used as a collective to refer to invisible beings in general
* [[Shaitan]]: Malevolent jinni, who causes illness and madness
* [[Ifrit]]: delimitation to ordinary jinn remains unclear. Can be either a powerful cunning Jinn or a strong Shaitan. Ifrits are generally bad.
* [[Marid]]: a haughty and powerful Shaitan or very malevolent Ifrit.
* [[bogeyman|Bu'bu]]: a jinn that frightens children.
* [[Sila (mythology)|Si'lah]]: a female demon who seduces men.
* [[wikt:Amir#English|Amir]]: spirits dwelling in houses.
* [[Ghul]]: generally evil, lives in the desert.
* [[Qarînah]]: name for a specific demon or [[doppelgänger]], a type of spirit that follows every human.
* [[Hatif]]: a mysterious phenomenon, which can only be heard but never seen.

===Buddhism===
Traditionally, [[Buddhism]] affirms the existence of [[Hell#Buddhism|hells]]<ref>Boeree, Dr. C. George (2000), [http://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/buddhacosmo.html Chapter: "Buddhist Cosmology"], ''An Introduction to Buddhism'', Shippensburg University</ref> populated by demons who torment sinners and tempt mortals to sin, or who seek to thwart their [[Bodhi|enlightenment]], with a demon named [[Mara (demon)|Mara]] as chief tempter, "prince of darkness", or "Evil One" in Sanskrit sources.<ref>[http://kadampa.org/en/reference/glossary-of-buddhist-terms-a-e#Demon "Demon"] and [http://kadampa.org/en/reference/glossary-of-buddhist-terms-k-o#Mara "Mara"] in the ''Glossary of Buddhist Terms'' at [http://www.kadampa.org/ kadampa.org]</ref><ref name="strickman">Strickmann, Michel. ''Chinese Magical Medicine'',(2002) Stanford: Stanford University Press. {{ISBN|0-8047-3449-6}}</ref>

The followers of Mara were also called ''mara'', the devils, and are frequently cited as a cause of disease or representations of mental obstructions.<ref name="strickman"/>
The ''mara'' became fully assimilated into the Chinese worldview, and were called ''mo''.

The idea of the imminent decline and collapse of the Buddhist religion amid a "great cacophony of demonic influences" was already a significant component of Buddhism when it reached China in the first century A.D., according to Michel Strickmann.<ref name="strickman"/> Demonic forces had attained enormous power in the world. For some writers of the time, this state of affairs had been ordained to serve the higher purpose of effecting a "preliminary cleansing" that would purge and purify humanity in preparation for an ultimate, messianic renewal.<ref name="strickman"/>

Medieval Chinese Buddhist demonology was heavily influenced by Indian Buddhism. Indian demonology is also fully and systematically described in written sources, though during Buddhism's centuries of direct influence in China, "Chinese demonology was whipped into respectable shape," with a number of Indian demons finding permanent niches even in [[Taoist]] ritual texts.<ref name="strickman"/>  In the [[Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva Pūrvapraṇidhāna Sūtra|Kṣitigarbha Sūtra]] it states that heaven and hell change as the world changes and that many new hells with different demons can be created to fit the different ways that the human realm changes.

Chinese Buddhism also influenced Taoism with [[Diyu|beliefs of hell]] and the Taoists eventually came up with their own demonology lore which in turn created [[Chinese folk religion|folk beliefs]] about spirits in hell which was a combination of beliefs from the two religions. However, the demons in hell are viewed differently than [[Abrahamic religions|Abrahamic faiths]] who instead of being pure evil are more of guards of hell although they are still viewed as malicious beings. They are ruled over by Yama which came from Buddhism's Hindu influences but certain scriptures and beliefs also state that there are 18 different Yamas in hell which have an army of demons and undead at their side.

Also, the [[Śūraṅgama Sūtra]], a major Mahayana Buddhist text, describes fifty demonic states: the so-called fifty skandha maras, which are "negative" mirror-like reflections of or deviations from correct samādhi (meditative absorption) states. In this context demons are considered by Buddhists to be beings possessing some supernatural powers, who, in the past, might have practiced [[Dharma]], the Buddha's teaching, but due to practicing it incorrectly failed to develop [[Prajñā (Buddhism)|true wisdom]] and [[Karuṇā|true compassion]], which are inseparable attributes of an enlightened being such as a [[Buddha]] or a [[Bodhisattva]]. In his autobiography, The Blazing Splendor, [[Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche]], a prominent Tibetan Buddhist master of the 20th century describes encounters with such beings. Therefore, depending on the context, in Buddhism demons may refer to both disturbed mind states and actual beings.

===Hinduism===
{{Further|Hindu demon}}
[[Vedas|Vedic scriptures]] include a range of spirits (Vetalas, [[Raksha (Vedic)|Rakshasa]]s, Bhutas, and Pishachas) that might be classified as demons. These spirits are souls of beings that have committed certain specific sins. As a purging punishment, they are condemned to roam without a physical form for a length of time, until a rebirth. Beings that died with unfulfilled desires or anger are also said to "linger" until those issues are resolved. Hindu text [[Atharvaveda]] gives an account of nature and habitats of such spirits including how to persuade / control them. There are [[occult]] traditions in Hinduism that seek to control such spirits to do their bidding. The Hindu text [[Garuda Purana]] details other kinds of punishments and judgments given out in [[Hell]]; it also gives an account of how spirits travel to various nether worlds.

===Zoroastrianism===
In the [[Zoroastrian]] tradition, [[Ahura Mazda]], as the force of good [[Amesha Spenta|Spenta Mainyu]], will eventually be victorious in a cosmic battle with an evil force known as [[Angra Mainyu]] or Ahriman.<ref>[http://tenets.zoroastrianism.com/zor33.html "Who are the Zoroastrians"], at [http://tenets.zoroastrianism.com/ tenets.zoroastrianism.com]</ref>

==See also==
{{Columns-list|colwidth=30em|
* [[Classification of demons]]
* [[Deal with the Devil]]
* [[Demon hunter]]
* [[Demonic possession]]
* [[Discernment of spirits]]
* [[Evocation]]
* [[Exorcism]]
* [[Hierarchy of angels]]
* [[List of theological demons]]
* [[Obsession (Spiritism)|Obsession]]
* [[Pentagram]]
* [[Nicolas Remy]]
* [[Séance]]
* [[Spirit possession]]
* [[Spirit world (Spiritualism)|Spirit world]]
* [[True name]]
}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== Bibliography ==
* {{cite book|last=Bamberger|first=Bernard, Jacob|author-link=Bernard Jacob Bamberger|title=Fallen Angels: Soldiers of Satan's Realm|publisher=Jewish Publication Society of America|year=2006|isbn=0-8276-0797-0}}
* {{citation |last1=Black |first1=Jeremy |first2=Anthony |last2=Green |title=Gods, Demons and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia: An Illustrated Dictionary |location=Austin |publisher=University of Texas Press |year=1992 |isbn=0714117056}}
* {{cite book|last=Langton|first=Edward|title=Essentials of Demonology|publisher=Wipf & Stock|year=2014|edition=1st 1949|isbn=978-1498205061}}
* {{cite book|last=Rémy|first=Nicholas|title=Demonolatry|publisher=University Books|year=1974}}

==External links==
*{{Commons category-inline}}
* {{cite EB9 |wstitle= Demonology |volume= VII |pages=60-64 |short=1}}
*[http://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/kjd/kjd04.htm ''Demonology by James I'':] plain text version of King James' important work on Demonology.

{{Fantasy fiction}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Demonology| ]]
[[Category:History of magic]]
[[Category:Mythopoeia]]