By Vehemence

In many faiths, Lucifer is an evil being who brought about the fall of humankind and has no redeeming qualities. In paganism, however, Lucifer can take on different roles depending on the religion or tradition you’re practicing. In some cases, he’s not even considered the bad guy; he’s seen as another deity in the pantheon that has gotten a bad rap over time, or simply isn’t regarded as evil at all but rather serves a positive role in your spirituality. 

An introduction to “Satan” aka Lucifer

According to historians, the name Lucifer predates Christianity. The word comes from the Latin for light bringer and means truth. It was applied to the morning star, Venus, as a reference to its brightness in the sky. This is what probably started all these associations with Satan.  In Christian folklore, Lucifer was an angel who fell from heaven after rebelling against God. He became known as Satan and was condemned to hell where he would rule over demons for eternity.  There are many pagans that have different stories about Lucifer or Satan. For example, some believe that Lucifer was cast out because he wanted more power than god allowed him. Others say that there were two gods; one good and one evil. They both created humans so they could see which one they liked better. My personal view is that capital G “God” has a big ego (as is obvious from naming himself the one true god) and when Lucifer wanted to “bring light” (truth) out, God cast him down to earth to taint his credibility. Whatever you believe, there is long documented history and mythology associated with the name Lucifer, both good and bad.

Etymology of Lucifer

The name Lucifer comes from a Latin word meaning light-bearer. The root for all these terms is based on a specific interpretation of Isaiah 14:12, which states, How art thou fallen from heaven, O day star, son of the morning! As mentioned above, it’s thought that Venus was seen as a bringer of light in ancient times and so was associated with early forms of worship. As such, it’s possible that Lucifer may have been an earlier form of Venus that was later demonized and transformed into Satan.

History and Myths of Lucifer

Lucifer, AKA Satan and other aliases, has been a popular figure in history for many centuries. According to some scholars and myths, it was one of God’s greatest Angels who represented light and goodness before his fall from grace. Later in Christian mythology it came to represent rebellion and evil. In truth, he was an Angel created by God whose sole purpose was to protect humanity. He became disillusioned with what he perceived as unfair treatment by humans and rebelled against God. Another myth comes from Jewish lore where Lilith, also known as Adam’s first wife, left him because she refused to be subservient to him. One thing that Christians do not understand about Lucifer is that when he fell from heaven he did not become an evil entity. Some believe Lucifer chose to leave heaven, to be with Lilith.  Some will say Lucifer tempted Cain into killing Able while others say that Cain killed Abel out of jealousy over their father’s favoritism. Still others say that Eve ate fruit from a tree while they were both in Eden and offered some to her husband; but he declined, knowing full well its consequences. The figure of the demon Lucifer is also found within Islam, though he is not thought of as synonymous with the figure of Satan. In Islam Lucifer is associated with the sin of wrath and was thought to have been formerly called Azazil or Uzayzil prior to his downfall.

In any faith, or mythology, stories evolve with time, and it can be hard to find “truth” or consistency. I find it best to reflect inward on what resonates!

Usage in Pop Culture and Politics

As pop culture gains popularity, so does public knowledge about all things Pagan. This has spurred many positive changes, like full inclusion in society for Pagans, but it’s also led to some misconceptions. Lucifer is a very important deity within Paganism and modern worshipers have been doing their best to clear up misconceptions about him and his role in popular media.

How People View Lucifer Today

Religious and non-religious folks alike tend to view Lucifer as Satan—the embodiment of evil, a diabolical and cruel character who does everything he can to ruin mankind. Lucifer’s evil status is derived from his fall in Christian theology, when he defied God by refusing to bow down to Adam, who was created after him. In some branches of Satanism, believers pay homage to both Jesus Christ and Lucifer at their ceremonies.

Megan Killion, aka Vehemence, is an entrepreneurial baby witch, who’s spent the last 15 years kicking ass and taking names in the B2B tech world. Megan has felt the calling of magick since she was a small child and found comfort and healing in energy work. The deeper she explored the more she felt she had “finally found a spiritual home”. Navigating the complex world of witchcraft wasn’t easy and eventually, she felt driven to create a safe place for spiritual nomads. She is committed to making Coven Cloud a place where spiritualists of all backgrounds can feel safe, included, and supported.

The origins of Lilith, the demonic mother of all evil spirits, can be traced back to ancient Mesopotamia – the land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in modern-day Iraq. This time period predates the biblical figures we are more familiar with such as Adam and Eve, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad by thousands of years. These ancient Mesopotamians believed in an unseen force behind all of creation that was both masculine and feminine at once, Lilith.

Lilith in Ancient Hebrew

According to ancient Hebrew mythology, Lilith was a young woman who became Adam’s first wife after he helped her to slay her would-be rapist. However, when she decided she wanted to have children, Adam refused, explaining that God had told him not to have any. Enraged by his defiance and incensed by his willingness to bow down to authority, Lilith ran away in despair. She then became Satan’s consort and gave birth to countless demons—including Samael and numerous Lilin; both are associated with vampires today. As punishment for her actions, God sent three angels—Senoy, Sansenoy, and Semangelof—to chase down Lilith; they succeeded in capturing her but only managed to render her sterile before freeing her once again.

Lilith in Ancient Mesopotamia

One could argue that even as early as Babylonian demonology (circa 6th century B.C.), traces of Lilith can be found in Mesopotamian depictions of Inanna’s demonic alter ego, known as Lilith or Lilitu. Inanna was an important goddess with a multitude of responsibilities and duties within the ancient Sumerian culture. As patron of both sexual activity and fertility, she controlled women’s sexuality—but her husband Dumuzi was meant to take control after marriage. The demons Lilith, Ardat-Lili, and Irdu-kug were all considered by scholars to be evil counterparts to these roles of Inanna; it is from these texts that we get our modern image of Lilith as being a dangerous succubus. Interestingly enough, however, much like how depictions of zombies over time are quite different from their original concepts (primarily because zombies didn’t exist), there is not necessarily a direct connection between what we call demons today and those mentioned in ancient Mesopotamia. For example, although Michael Jordan’s Air Jordan sneaker brand may be called a demon shoe in casual conversation today, as some people believe that he has supernatural powers when wearing them on his feet, demonology refers instead to Biblical demons (disembodied spirits). This alone illustrates just how intertwined religion and philosophy have been throughout history. Religion isn’t necessarily science but does have scientific roots. Demonology hasn’t necessarily changed much either: very few practices have become more commonplace than speaking ill of another behind their back—and somehow somebody always finds out about it! Of course, we think you know better than to use your negative remarks towards others negatively. Right?

Lilith in Talmudic Literature

The Talmud, a central text in Jewish studies, includes not one but two stories about Lilith—the first female human, made from dust like Adam; and a demonic succubus who was responsible for death in childbirth (among other things). It’s perhaps no surprise that Babylonian demonology—and Mesopotamian culture at large—would be steeped in misogyny. But it is interesting that so many ancient civilizations had their own form of Lilith myths. Maybe it makes sense, though—after all, sometimes even moms can make your life a living hell. What better way to explain misfortune than by blaming it on an evil woman?
Lilith as a SuccubusSuccubi are often said to have sexual intercourse with sleeping men, thus producing demon children. Succubi are a standard feature of medieval European demonology. It was once believed that women could become succubi by performing evil acts in life; modern myths state that they are born as succubi, or can be turned into them by demons or devils. The incubi and succubi were thought to be servants of Satan, and may appear during a demonic ritual or in a place where an act of heresy has been committed.

Lilith as an Incubus

Lilith’s earliest depictions come from Mesopotamia, where she was believed to be a demon who would steal babies from their cribs. Ancient Near Eastern cultures thought that if a woman were to become pregnant, but did not want to raise a child, then she would employ a daimon—which is what scholars believe incubi and succubi are—to father her child.

The Origins of the Name Lilith

Where does a demoness get her name? Though little is actually known about Lilith, she’s considered to be one of two things. First, there’s a Judaic origin tale from before 1000 BCE in which a female entity named Lilitu fell from heaven and slept with men while they were sleeping, causing them to have unwanted pregnancies. She also was said to have caused other evils in society such as disease and death.