Baphomet is a Christian demon or pagan deity?

Baphomet - this mysterious creature with the head of a goat, which is found in several sources from the history of the occult. It is considered a satanic idol. Starting from the Templars in the Middle Ages and ending with the Masons of the XIX century, Baphomet always provoked controversy and controversy - up to the present day. Baphomet - what is it? And most importantly, what is the true meaning of this symbolic figure and its appearance in the occult?

Meaning in Occultism

Throughout the history of Western occultism, the name of the mysterious Baphomet is often found and mentioned in many treatises. At its core, Baphomet is, as already noted, a satanic idol. Although the name became widely known in the twentieth century, references to Baphomet can be found in documents dating back to the eleventh century. Today, this symbol is associated with everything that concerns occultism, ritual magic, witchcraft, Satanism and esotericism. His name often pops up to emphasize something occult. So who is he - Baphomet? What it is? The name first appeared in 1098 in the letter of the Crusader Anselm Ribmon. The most famous image of this idol of the Middle Ages is found in Eliphas Levy's book Dogma and Rituals of Higher Magic, and from 1897 the work became a landmark for the modern occult. Many people are interested in the sacramental question: "Is the Baphomet a devil or not?" Why is it so important in the occult? To answer these questions, you first need to find out its origin.

The origin of the name of the satanic idol

There are several theories about the origin of the name Baphomet. The most common explanation claims that this is the old French distortion of the name Mohammed - the prophet of Islam, revered by Muslims. During the Crusades, the Templars remained for long periods of time in Middle Eastern countries, where they became acquainted with the teachings of Arabian mysticism. But its exact origin has not yet been established.

Baphomet and the Templars

Contact with the eastern civilizations allowed to return to Europe what will become the base of Western occultism, including Gnosticism, alchemy, Kabbalah and hermeticism. The connection of the Templars with the Muslims led to the fact that the church accused them of worshiping an idol called Baphomet, so there are several possible links between this name and the Prophet Mohammed. The Catholic Church made the following accusations against the Templars: they allegedly practiced sodomy, desecrated the cross and renounced God. Documents recently discovered in the secret archives of the Vatican suggest that these accusations can be a reality. For many centuries, the Catholic Church claimed that Baphomet was Lucifer, that is, the devil himself.

There is a high probability that the worship of the Templars to Baphomet was fabricated, and the Inquisitors themselves specifically spread this lie to find any excuse to convict them of heresy, and thus solve the problems created by this famous and rebellious order. The Templars, for example, used every opportunity to influence King Philip VI of France and even the leaders of the Catholic Church.

Templar Persecution

The last higher master of the Order, Jacques de Molay, on charges of being a heretic, was burned at the stake. The torture of thousands of members of the order gave the inquisitors the desired confessions in a variety of atrocities and heresies. The most important among them were the denial of Jesus and the worship of the idol, namely, the bearded goat head, called Baphomet. The Templars stated that they were trained to idolize this idol as the only God and Savior, but their descriptions of this Satanic deity were very different. For example, some said that he has four heads and three legs. Others claimed that the figure of the idol consists either of wood, or of metal. Some Templars claimed that Baphomet was made of gold. As evidence, a number of temple items brought from eastern countries were presented to the court, and some of them had the image of an unusual androgenic creature. Subsequently, all the materials submitted were destroyed.

Alternative theories

However, there are other theories regarding the origin of this name. An alternative explanation may be that the name Baphomet is derived from the Greek baphe metous, that is, in the literal translation "baptism of wisdom", which connects it with the Gnostics. There is also a theory about the origin of the name Baphomet from the distorted Arabic expression "Abu Fihamat", which means "the father of wisdom." The symbol itself, like its name, does not have an unambiguous explanation. However, in the ancient world there are dozens of strange, mystical references to it. Horned gods are often found in ancient mythology.

The modern image of Baphomet

However, the modern image of Baphomet appeared only in 1856, in the book "The Dogmas and Rituals of Higher Magic" by Levi Eliphas (mentioned at the beginning of the article), who was an experienced esoteric and occultist native to France. His book tries to answer the question: "Baphomet is who?"

The book does not describe the deity, not even implying an idol for worshiping it. The images of Levi are a metaphor for unity, which was sought after by magic and alchemy. This is not a man, not a woman, not a man, not an animal, not black, not white. It's just a complex image or the semblance of the Chinese beginnings of everything - Yin and Yang. Levi was deeply convinced that the Templars really worshiped this ancient deity, but he could not get any real proof of this. As before, esotericists and mystics ask themselves who Baphomet is.

Description of Baphomet

The description of the Baphomet, which Levi provided, is used in modern esoteric literature. Baphomet - this is quite a frightening creature in the guise of a goathead idol.

The goat bears the pentagram's sign on the forehead, with one dot at the top, which is a symbol of light. One of his hands points upwards on the white crescent of Hesed (good), and the other is pointing down to the black star Gebure (evil).

One of his hands is a woman, the other is a man. The flame of the intellect shining between the horns is the magic light of universal equilibrium, the image of the soul, towering above being, as a fiery essence. But at the same time, it is attached to matter, shining above it.

The head of the beast expresses the horror of the sinner, whose material needs and earthiness, should be punished solely because of the renunciation of the Most High and nature. The soul is not considered sensitive in the non-material world, but it can suffer and feel during the agonizing process of materialization.

Prutik instead of genitals symbolizes eternal life. The body of the beast is covered with scales. Half circle above the god symbolizes the atmosphere of fear, and Baphomet's feathers are necessary for gaining the ability to soar in the air. Idol has a powerful chest, in a womanly developed, and the hand of the Sphinx of the occult sciences. So who is Baphomet? A photo from Levy's treatise on the dogmatics of mysticism perfectly illustrates this, in any case, describes its external appearance.

What does Baphomet represent?

Many people ask themselves: "Idol Baphomet, what does it mean on the spiritual level?" This is not an easy mystery. According to Eliphas Leve and according to his occult theories, the Baphomet is the image of human ignorance, superstition, delusion, sinfulness, which are generated by the blindness of the spirit. In this sense, Baphomet is suitable for defining him as Lucifer, the governing idol. In this case, it is implied that its influence extends to ignorant people, struck by darkness of spirituality and anger.

For this reason, a true follower of occultism and esoteric religion does not create idols for himself, and certainly does not worship them. Baphomet, who has flesh and blood through the human imagination, does not exist for him. It is believed that for real adherents Baphomet is nothing more than a phantom.

Most esotericists agree that in reality Baphomet did not exist and it is nothing more than a fiction of the Catholic Church and the monarch of France with the aim of destroying the Order of the Knights Templar. Often there is evidence that there were no people who described the appearance of the idol in an absolutely identical way during the interrogation. Baphomet had that head of a goat, then a cat. The number of extremities of the creature changed radically. Clothing was also very different - from black monastic robes to human skin. Some said that he had a tail, a hoof, a beard, others - denied it.

Modernity and goatskin idol

The Church of Satan, created by Baphomet worshipers in San Francisco in 1966, adopted another image of Baphomet as a sign of Satanism. It is quite specific.

This symbol represents the head of a horrible goat, inserted into an inverted five-pointed star, which is in turn in a double circle.
On the outer circumference there are Jewish letters that are on the edges of the pentagram and designate the name of Leviathan, a large oceanic monster-like serpent, which, in fact, resembles the devil. When performing rituals and processions in the Church of Satan, the symbol of Baphomet is attached on the wall behind the altar. For the followers of this cult Baphomet is the supreme being.