A syncretic examination of the difference between Gods and Demons

[Dumuzzi]

 

As a polytheist, I often get irked by the tendency of monotheists (Christians in particular) to treat all pagan gods as demons and to fail to acknowledge the difference between a god and a demon. This comes from ignorance and medieval superstition, but is super common even today. So, I’ll attempt to establish a syncretic perspective based on my own experiences, that of others and the extensive literature from polytheistic religions that are now available to us.

The oldest religion of which we have written records is Sumerian Polytheism, which is most likely a major influence on other world religions in ways we are only beginning to discover. In Sumer, both gods and demons were feared to a certain degree, from which we get the modern concept of “fear of God”. Fear of the gods was born from the acknowledgement of the immense power they wielded over mortal affairs, as they were believed to be responsible for major disasters, floods, famines, pestilence, etc… It was believed that gods would punish mortals both collectively and individually if they were found to deviate from the righteous and moral code of conduct that was prescribed to them in scripture. This belief endures today, with many preachers from various religions blaming natural disasters and pandemics on the supposed immoral conduct of the population.

Gods were also often representative of forces of nature and in particular the planets and stars that resided in Heaven. The movement of heavenly bodies was seen as a precursor to natural disasters, which the ancients surmised through a careful observation of the sky over thousands of years, making astrology and astronomy a crucial aspect of religion and society in general. It remains so in India in particular, where nary a major decision is made without consulting the stars first. Even in the modern West many people continue to study the stars to try and decipher their fates and the will of the gods. In Sumer, gods, in particular, the seven chief Anunna gods, were believed to be responsible for weaving the fate of humans, like a strand in a lattice or web of intertwined fates. Whilst fate was largely fixed, the gods could be petitioned to change the fates of mortals if the right libations, sacrifices, offerings, etc… were made. This was common across all polytheistic religions, remains widespread in Hinduism and has seen a revival in Western neo-paganism and occultism. A magic spell is basically just a ritual to petition a god to change some aspect of fate that the mortal might be unhappy with, or a plea for a more favourable outcome.

A common characteristic across most ancient religions is the way the gods were seen, generally with a propensity to shine. They were seen as beings of light, which is also why they were associated with the stars and planets. Some gods were literally depicted as shining stars, such as Inanna-Ishtar, whose symbol was a shining eight-pointed star. His brother Utu-Shamash, representing the Sun, had a very similar symbol associated with him. In proto-Indo-European the gods were called Deyvos, which means shining ones. From this we get Sanskrit Deva, Latin Deus and Greek Dios. Consequently, we still use derivatives of this word such as the-ist, de-ist, pan-the-ist, a-the-ist, etc… to denote a particular type of religious belief or lack thereof in a person. We still refer to godly characteristics as div-ine. Divine beings / deities in other traditions often have similar etymologies or else they are given astrological characteristics as children of the sky, just like the stars and planets, such as in Sumerian Anunna or Canaanite / Judaistic Elohim. Divine beings, even saints are frequently depicted in art as pure beings of light, or at least being surrounded with an aura of pure white light.

 

This distinguishing characteristic sets them apart from other supernatural beings, who are too numerous to mention. However, for the purposes of making my point I will talk about demons as they are called in Christianity and most other religions, specifically known as Asuras or Rakshasas in Eastern thought.

 

Gods vs Demons

 

Going back to the beginnings of our current civilisation, in ancient Sumer, a sharp distinction was made between demons and gods. Gods were seen as the representations of cosmic forces and could sometimes be callous, but they were seen as the founders of human civilisation and the creators of humanity. Everything the Sumerians knew was taught to them by their gods, according to their own accounts, though the initial seed was given by a seafaring civilisation that sailed in from elsewhere and in stories were often believed to be half-fish, half-human, perhaps indicating their maritime way of life. Sumerian priests wore fish costumes to honour the memory of these ancient sages. The pope still wears a fish-head hat which is similar to this, probably unaware of the true origins of this custom.

But, the gods were seen as the shining ones, beings of light distinguished by their Melammu or Melam, a shining countenance that inspired awe and fear in those that saw it. Whilst they were cosmic beings, representing forces of nature, they could also take human form in order to interact with their devotees, often appearing to them in dreams and visions. Sumerians had a personal deity, often passed down within the family, that they worshipped, which was sometimes different from the chief deity of each city-state. Since each god was responsible for a different area of life (love, finances, health, agriculture, weather, etc…) the appropriate gods were prayed to depending on the particular need of the devotee. Personal gods guided their deities throughout their lives and would provide protection and comfort in times of trouble. The idea of guardian angels probably has its roots in this ancient practice.

The gods were generally of Heaven, but some resided in the underworld, like Ereshkigal, its Queen and ruled over the souls of the dead. In most ancient societies, Heaven was the realm of the gods and mortals could not enter, not even after death. They went to the underworld, where they enjoyed statuses depending on the merit they acquired during their lives. Some parts of the underworld were places of punishment, where Galla demons would torture the wicked for an eternity. No doubt, this is where we get the idea of Hell and demons that torture damned souls from.

Which brings me neatly to what the difference is between gods and demons. It’s not that some reside in the underworld and some in Heaven (though to my knowledge, there are no demons in Heaven, whilst there are gods in the underworld). According to the Sumerians, demons lack Melammu, they do not have the divine radiance of the gods. They also don’t possess Mes, which are various divine powers, divvied up amongst the gods. Demons also lack the capacity for free will, they simply follow their animalistic nature. Due to this reason, they are generally depicted as half-animal half human, with fangs, claws and such. Like gods, they generally have wings too. Keep in mind, these are astral forms, this is the form in which they reside in the underworld, a vast astral realm that’s outside our dimension, but is also under our feet physically, deep in the earth, existing in vast caverns. It’s important to note that according to ancient lore, most of the underworld is not a place of punishment, but contains vast kingdoms of great beauty, where various magical astral beings reside and rule. In India, this was believed to be the realm of the Nagas, wise, ancient serpents that taught humanity in the beginning. The underworld is believed to have its own oceans, rivers, lakes and ecosystem, slightly shifted into another dimension, so it is inaccessible to us in the physical sense. However, the underworld can be visited astrally, for those that have the ability, and many will journey in it in the afterlife or between lives, depending on their perspective and beliefs. Shamanic Journeying also tends to take place in various realms within the underworld, because it is so close to us in terms of vibrational compatibility. Many will visit in their dreams, often unknowingly. A dead giveaway is when during a particularly vivid dream, we find ourselved floating or flying, often over unfamiliar, majestic landscapes.

 

Encountering a Demon

 

Here, I will recount an experience I had astrally projecting into the underworld and encountering a notable demon that is mentioned in Jewish, Christian and Islamic lore, belonging to a class of beings known as watchers.

 

This happened a few months after my Kundalini Awakening, when I experienced deep Samadhi and a visitation from a Sumerian Goddess. The experience had opened me up to extra-sensory perception and I could perceive the approach of astral beings from then on. A particular spirit, with a fiery element in his make-up visited me from time to time, presenting himself as a potential teacher, from whom I could learn much. I hadn’t yet developed the ability to communicate effectively with astral beings and deities, so our interactions were somewhat laboured and slow-moving. One day, I was sitting cross-legged in my London flat, meditating, when he approached me again and after failing to get his point through, probably out of frustration, more than anything, he pulled me out of my body.

 

I found myself travelling astrally to an underground realm, which I presume to be the underworld. I was floating in mid-air, looking at the walls of a dimly-lit cave, though it wasn’t dark, more like illuminated by some unknown light-source, like a camp fire. There might have been cave drawings, like the ones left by ancient humans, but I can’t recall them exactly. As I was floating around, I flailed my arms and legs to try to get a better look of my surroundings. I eventually managed to turn around and to my amazement found myself looking at a giant being, sitting cross-legged on a rock ledge or pulpit of sorts, possibly sitting on animal skin, though that part is hazy. He had the head of a goat, except with intelligent, inquisitive, human eyes. His body was humanoid, though covered in dark brown fur all around. As I looked into his eyes, I saw amazement and surprise. He appeared to be impressed that I managed to project myself astrally into this underground realm and had full control of my faculties. I noticed as I was looking into his eyes, that our blinks were synchronised, he always blinked at the exact same time I did. From this, I surmised, that we were somehow linked energetically and / or telepathically. It may also have been an indication that he was trying to gain control of me, but I cannot say for sure.

 

In any case, the encounter was brief, lasting a couple of minutes. Once it became obvious that he wasn’t in control of me and that I was seeing him in his true astral form, in his underworld abode, the encounter became pointless and I shortly found myself back in my body, sitting cross-legged in meditation, just as before. I later did research on this particular being and found he was often depicted as half-man half-goat, just like I have seen. From what I have seen, he did not appear malevolent, but he did have his own agenda and seemed to want to recruit me to his cause, which he felt passionately about. I should note that he sought power, even revenge over a group of people he felt had wronged him in the past and he encouraged me to use my newly awakened Kundalini and the powers that might have come with it, as a weapon. This did not sit well with me and I politely declined, though he did make a few more subsequent attempts at recruiting me, which I did not agree to. Finally, during his last visit, I grew tired of his presence and used the power of my Kundalini (Shakti) to drive him away. I generated a huge amount of spiritual fire and formed it into a shield around me. I had to keep this up for around 2 hours, before he finally decided to give up. He did not attempt to influence me after this episode.

 

Some other major differences between gods and demons

 

In contract, my interaction with gods was very different. I have recounted my visitation by the Goddess Inanna many times on reddit and youtube, so I would like to point out the differences here as compared to interacting with a Demon, Jinn or Asura, as the Christians, Muslims and Hindus call them respectively. As mentioned Demons / Asuras are self-serving, usually with an agenda and are slaves of their own passions, desires, hatred, etc… They do not serve a greater cause or higher power. They do not shine like the gods do, but are in contrast elemental beings, made up of one element, like fire, in the case of Jinn. They are limited locally and their knowledge is limited to their own realm of experience. They do not have access to higher forms of power, such as Shakti, which comes from surrender to the divine and serving the greater good, instead of one’s own ego.

 

In Hindu lore, Asuras are immensely powerful beings, usually half-man, half-beast, that gain favours from the gods through spiritual austerities. This might give them things like invulnerability and special powers, which they use to make themselves ever more powerful. Whenever the gods grow tired of their exploits, they manifest an avatar, specifically designed to slay a powerful demon, overcoming their special powers and invulnerability through loopholes and trickery. In Monotheistic traditions, it is angels that play this role and engage in spiritual warfare against them.

 

Another characteristic difference between Devas and Asuras in Hinduism, is that the former drink Soma, the nectar of immortality, whereas the latter are denied this. This idea isn’t unique to Hinduism and can be found in other traditions all around the ancient world. It is in fact the drinking of Soma, which gives gods their shining countenance, their special powers, their immortality, divine wisdom, clairvoyance, ability to see the future, teleport at will, etc… These are in fact the supposed characteristics of higher-dimensional entities as described in detail by famous physicist Michio Kaku in his books. Soma or Nectar is a higher-dimensional substance, which is generally the drink of the gods, but mortals also have access to it through various austerities and spiritual disciplines. Such individuals are often depicted with a halo around their head and can often spontaneously manifest special powers, called siddhis.

 

Visitation by gods

 

The below account is highly personal and whilst I’m generally uncomfortable sharing it, I’m doing so in the hope that it may guide and inspire others. When the Goddess Inanna first visited me in person, she took the form of a being of light, a mini-star or sun if you like. That is in fact the form in which she is often depicted, a shining eight-pointed star. It wasn’t just that she radiated light, her entire being was just that, a radiant star. Her light-body extended outwards, like the spokes of a star, becoming sort of like tendrils or appendages. She could touch me with her “hands” in a physical sense and when she did, her hands felt entirely real and physical. When she touched me, she transferred an immense amount of energy to me. Sumerians referred to this process as anointment, when the shining / melammu of a god was passed on to a mortal, in those times, the special privilege of kings and high priests. Hindus call this process Mahashaktipat, when a god or goddess passes on their power or Shakti to a mortal. Within the Hindu context, enlightened beings, gurus, yogis, etc… also have this ability. Christians refer to this as passing on the Holy Spirit to someone. Baptism is in many ways a remnant of this custom or belief.

 

During subsequent visits, the Goddess did not take such a concrete form and was mostly present energetically. Still, her Melammu or Shining is always unmistakable and she radiates love and benevolence. Her brother, Utu-Shamash has a similar presence, though, since he is the sun god, his light or radiance has a slightly different flavour or even colour. Inanna’s radiance was always pure white light, her brother’s is perhaps more yellowish, like the sun. The two of them enjoy each other’s company and have sometimes visited as a pair. As is common with such visitations, on a handful of occasions, boons were granted to me. Nothing miraculous, but certainly significant in terms of my personal life, health, career and so on. Inanna provided healing and in one case the gift of a romantic relationship. Utu, the sun-god granted me a job I’m still in, which was exactly to my specifications and manifested within 24 hours of me asking for it, after months of fruitless search. Enki helped heal my father from a stroke, to the extent he fully recovered from a partial paralysis on one side of his body. Inanna also visited others on my behalf on a handful of occasions, many years ago. When she did, she either performed healing on those that were visited, or she provided an opportunity for divine communion, which is essentially like a merging of beings and an exchange of energies. Some have described their encounters with her in similar terms to how I experienced them, but there were usually some differences as well. These were people I never met in person, became friend with over the internet and had in fact lived thousands of miles away.

 

When interacting with Inanna personally, the main impression I got was of her compassion and puppy-like eagerness to help others. I was also impressed by her unapologetic femininity, sense of humour, sunny disposition and playfulness, perhaps not something you would expect from a Goddess of War, but then I believe her true core is that of a compassionate Love Goddess in the manner of her original Sumerian form. Her war-like attributes were a later addition, particularly by the Akkadians who attempted to syncretise her with their own warrior Goddess, Ishtar. I often feel that subsequent love Goddesses, like Aphrodite or Venus are much closer to capturing her true character than fierce depictions of her warlike actions by the Semitic peoples that adopted her worship from the conquered Sumerians. She does have a fierce side of course, like all gods and goddesses, but I feel that this was often overemphasised by Ishtar devotees who were extremely warlike. A similar dichotomy exists in India, with various forms of the Goddess, some of whom are fierce and war-like as well (Durga, Kali, Tantric Goddesses in general), whereas others are highly benevolent and loving (Saraswati, Lakshmi, etc…). This duality must of course be understood in its correct philosophical context, which I won’t go into here.

 

The Goddess in dreams

In Sumer, Inanna was well known for appearing in devotees’ dreams. Probably each devotee saw her in a personalised manner depending on their own expectations and cultural programming. Many Sumerian Polytheists as well as followers of other religions report seeing and interacting with gods in their dreams. In my own case, I saw many vivid dreams of the Goddess, which were lucid in nature, in that I was fully present in the dream in my astral form, it wasn’t just a projection of the mind. In my dreams I saw her as a fairly normal-looking blonde and blue-eyed woman. She could have easily passed as a local in any American or European town. This was shortly after she first appeared to me and in my dreams I saw her performing a number of supernatural feats, such as flying all the way into space and incinerating her enemies with her gaze. I then did some research and realised that she was described as having those powers in ancient myth. I saw a number of prophetic dreams regarding humanity’s future with Inanna playing a central role in them. These took place seemingly far into the future involving various sci-fi scenarios. Could have been just my imagination of course, but dreams were so vivid and my astral presence in them so strong, that I doubt it. However, I believe the way I saw the Goddess was a creation of my own mind, she was given an appearance I felt comfortable with. Later, I saw fiercer forms of her, which were similar to how tantric goddesses might be depicted in Buddhist and Hindu art.

 

Conclusion

Taking a wider view, it would appear that gods represent a much higher order of life than demons. They are cosmic beings of immense power, also capable of interacting with mortals on a personal level, even manifesting a human-like form when needed, especially in dreams and visions. Their primary form appears to be higher-dimensional, whereas the highest of the gods, the creators and ultimately destroyers of our reality, the weavers of fate and time-space, are outside of any concept of dimensions, or traditional limitations of any time. Elsewhere I wrote about some of my very intense Samadhi and oneness experiences, which I conclude are the natural state the gods reside in. They only manifest individual consciousness, and with it a form and name we can identify with for our benefit, or when a certain task requires it. Otherwise they exist as one mind, a collective consciousness if you will. This is symbolically depicted as a divine council that decrees the fate of mortals (the Anunna gods, or the Elohim of Abrahamic religions), a chorus of angels singing in perfect harmony, or in the case of Hinduism and Buddhism, the Devas shifting from one shape and form to another without effort and in quick succession. The syncretism inherent in polytheism is also a tacit admission of this idea.

 

Demons, on the other hand, are separated from source consciousness and are self-serving or more often, serve a higher master, which is different in each religious tradition. In Abrahamic religion, Satan, an all-purpose scape-goat, previously a pretty neutral figure, commands their legions, as an ersatz god of the underworld or god of death. A similar role is played by gods of the underworld / death in other religions. Demons are often sent by them to fetch mortals from the surface world and take them to the underworld, which remains a popular idea depicted in many movies, TV-shows and novels. They may also oppress, very rarely possess people, if they are invited in. It should be noted that possession is something that gods are also capable of and this is a stated goal of Tantrikas in Hinduism and Buddhism, where elaborate rituals and austerities are performed to enable possession by a deity, which is seen as the highest honour, a feat very few are capable of, due to the lengthy preparations and austerities that must be performed, to be able to hold the immense power of divine consciousness. Conversely, some spiritualists open themselves up to malevolent possession by lesser spirits, mostly by practicing haphazardly and without guidance, mixing drugs with spiritual practices, experimenting with dangerous occult rituals and other such ill-advised ventures. For instance, I only recently became aware of the fact, that Hindus, or at least Tantriks, draw a protective circle around themselves before each meditation session, precisely to avoid being influenced or even approached by Asuras, Rakshasas, the wandering spirits of the dead and other malevolent entities. I practiced meditation without the proper precautions and guidance for decades, hence the experience of being courted by a demon, which I recounted above.

 

This is why I am unhappy with some monotheistic exorcists and preachers, who equate pagan gods with demons and draw no distinction between them. This is a serious mistake in my view, as gods are actually the ones that protect mortals from their malign influence. It should also be noted, that demons are not uniformly bad, some can make useful allies. A good example is Pazuzu, anti-hero of The Exorcist movie, who was gravely misrepresented by the creators. He was actually known and invoked for the purposes of protecting children from malevolent spirits like the Lamashtu and Lilitu, the exact opposite of his depiction in the movie. Another thing of note is that exorcists exist in all religions, and if anything they play a bigger role in polytheistic religions. The ancients assigned all manner of ills (sometimes literally) to demonic possession and oppression. In Sumer, there was rudimentary universal healthcare and everyone was taken care of. There were two types of doctors, firstly, a physician, who treated diseases according to scientific principles and an exorcist, who dealt with issues caused by oppressive and malevolent spirits.

 

In any case, the common thread among all exorcists, is that they invoke the power of Heaven, a divine, higher power, in the form of a special prayer and ritual to force the unwanted visitor out. A common bait-and-switch approach employed to drive out Asuras in the Indian tradition, involves invoking a god, who can then persuade the Asura to leave by offering a boon that is far more attractive to them than staying in the body of their unfortunate victim. This way, no force is necessary and the Asura will leave of his own will.

 

What we should take away from this, monotheists, polytheists and whatever other theists as well, is the power of prayer and invocation and the trust we need to place in a higher power to be able to overcome seemingly insurmountable challenges. It is through the power of the divine, sometimes through the direct intervention of divine beings (gods, angels, heavenly beings etc…) that we can have the strength to have agency over our own minds and bodies and to overcome attacks by beings that are often more powerful and intelligent than us. We will all follow the traditions we were brought up in, or adopted as converts, but it is crucial to respect other traditions, to learn from them and to see the commonalities between them all. Only thus can we avoid demonising the beliefs and deities of other religions and ending up with-witch hunts and moral panics that are based on irrational fear and ignorance.

If you’ve read this essay all the way to the end, thank you and may the Great Goddess, Queen of Heaven, cause many blessings to appear in your life.

[Rahra]

You speak Truth. I’ve meet those demons too, possibly one of the mightiests demon in existence. I destroyed Him by the help of a mighty spirit. The second demon who tried me, destroyed too.

Yea, demons and so on have been talked about since the beginning of time, since mankind has encountered and experienced them since forever.

They exists, as confirmed by direct experience and by/in Truth-Consciousness.

But I disagree with the polytheist view. There might be many gods, but there is only One God, Who created them all.

He is Consciousness.

And I have seen Him, several times. God-Visions. God manifestets into Pure Mighty Forms. I got literally blinded by the Light that He is. 

Glorious. Mighty. Great.

There is no god but He.

Edited February 8, 2023 by Rahra

[caspex]

Thanks for this great post. I have recently opened up a little more to astral experiences, which has been my goal for two or so years.
I had two astral projections while trying to sleep, for two days in a row, maybe a week back. I had experienced leaving my body and traveling altered versions of my surroundings and places I often visit. I was also able to wake up whenever I wanted to, as I could just think and I would be pulled back into my body. I haven't managed to reproduce this since.
I have also been visited by two beings once, where they tried talking to me but I was too present and stunned to say anything, therefore they left and I woke up. Not sure what kind of beings they were, but it was a purely auditory experience and when I entered that space, it was as if I had dipped into the ocean. When I came back to my body, it was as if I had resurfaced from underwater.

Can you please elaborate, if not here then in my DMs, how to form this protective circle around you when you meditate? My family is Hindu yet I have never heard of this.

[Dumuzzi]

@Swarnim I heard it from Rajarshi Nandy, a well-known Tantrik. He has some excellent interviews on the BeerBiceps youtube channel. However, I don't know how to actually do this, I don't need to any more. All I know is that Western occultists also draw a protective circle around themselves before any ritual. You might have more luck finding info about that online.

[Dumuzzi]

@Rahra I don't think you can destroy demons, they're spirits after all, but you can certainly drive them away. Monotheists and Polytheists may disagree, but the important thing is to respect each other's point of view. I do recognise Brahman, but that is not the same as the storm god or sky god that leads the Christian pantheon and punishes his followers for following or praying to other gods. He even says he is a jealous god, whilst acknowledging that other gods are perfectly real. Sounds a bit cranky to me.