Astarte/Astaroth

See also Astaroth, the 29nd spirit of the Goetia.

Astaroth/Astarot is derived from Ashtoreth of 1 Kings 11:5 "the goddess of the Sidonians." The name is derived from the goddess Astarte with the ending distorted to closely resemble the Hebrew boshet, meaning "shame." Her original name "Astoreth" meant "womb" and she was associated with fertility. It is thought that she and the goddess Anath were the same deity in Biblical times.

In Egypt, Anath and Astarte were two separate deities. They were known, along with the goddess Qadesh, as the "Lady of Heaven." Of the three, Astarte seemed to be most popular. She was thought to have some relation to Seth and may hav ebeen the daughter of the sun god Ra or Ptah. She also seems to be the consort of Moab's national god, Chemosh.

She is also associated with the Hebrew "Asherah"/"Ashura", the consort of Yahweh. Other interpretations translate "Astoreth" as "lady", similar to that of Baal, which means "lord." A Babylonian title of hers is Qadesh, similar to Qadishtu, meaning harlot.

Astarte is depicted in a number of ways, sometimes with the head of a lioness, cow, or bull. Sometimes she carries a shield and club as she rides into battle naked on her horse or driving her chariot.

Astarte corresponds to the Arabian male deity, Athtar, is identified with Aphrodite, Mylitta, and sometimes Tyche, as well as the Assyrian Istaru.

Astaroth appears later in Mather's translation of the Goetia: the Lesser Key of Solomon as the 29th spirit.

According to some authors on demonology Demonology is the systematic study of demons. To the extent that it refers to theology elaborating the meaning of sacred texts, demonology is an orthodox branch of theology. The most extensive statement of western Christian demonology is the Malleus Maleficarum of Jacob Sprenger and Heinrich Kramer, which attempted to prove that the existence and power of witchcraft were an integral part of the Roman Catholic faith. In another sense, demonology refers to catalogues that attempt to name and set a hierarchy to evil spirits. In this sense, demonology is the mirror image of angelology, which attempts to compile the same information for good spirits.
..... Astaroth is a king of Hell For alternative meanings see Hell (disambiguation).

Hell is, according to many religious beliefs about the afterlife, a place of torment, of great weeping and gnashing of teeth. The English word 'hell' comes from the Norse 'Hel', which originally referred to the goddess of the Norse underworld.

In most religions' conception of hell, evildoers will suffer eternally in hell after their death or they will pay for their bad deeds in hell before reincarnations. In monotheistic religions, hell is simply ruled by demons. In polytheistic religions, the politics of hell could be as complicated as human politics.
.....Lucifer This article is about Lucifer in reference to Christian theology; for other meanings, see Lucifer (disambiguation).

Lucifer is a Latin word derived from two words, lux (light; genitive lucis) and ferre (to bear, to bring), meaning light-bearer. Lucifer does not appear in Greek or Roman mythology; it is used by poets to represent the Morning Star at moments when "Venus" would intrude distracting imagery of the goddess. "Lucifer" is Jerome's direct translation in his
.....the Emperor and Satan .

Satan (שטן Standard Hebrew Satan, Tiberian Hebrew Śātān; Aramaic שטנא Śitnâ: both words mean "Adversary; accuser") is an angel, demon, or minor god in many religions. Satan plays various roles in the Hebrew Bible, the Apocrypha and the New Testament. In the Hebrew Bible Satan is presented as an angel (messenger) sent by God to test mankind; in the Apocrypha and New Testament Satan is portrayed as an evil rebellious demon who is the enemy of God and mankind.
..... a seducer of women; his main assistants are three demons Aamon Pruslas

.....Barbatos In demonology Barbatos was a demon of little importance, one of Astaroth's assistants.

But according to most sources he is Earl and Duke of Hell. Barbatos rules thirty legions of demons and has four kings as his companions to command his legions. He gives the understanding of the voices of the animals, says past and future, conciliates friends and rulers, and he can led men to hidden treasures that have been hid by the enchantment of magicians.
..... In art, in the Dictionnaire Infernal, Astaroth is depicted as a nude man with dragon-like wings, hands and feet, a second pair of feathered wings after the main, wearing a crown, holding a serpent in one hand, and riding a wolf or dog. According to Sebastian Michaelis he is a demon A demon is a supernatural evil or malicious spirit, capable of possessing a human being. The Greek word daemon, δαίμονες or δαιμόνια was used in the Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Bible and in the Greek originals of the New Testament. The medieval and neo-medieval conception of "demon" has derived without a break from the ambient popular culture of Late Antiquity.
.....First Hierarchy, who seduces by means of laziness and vanity, and his adversary is St. Bartholomew Bartholomew was one of the 12 Apostles of Jesus Christ. Bartholomew means son of Tolmai, see Bar (Aramaic). Tolmai is a Hebrew name, said to mean "abounding in furrows".

He is generally supposed to have been the same person as Nathanael. In the Synoptic gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Philip and Bartholomew are always mentioned together, while Nathanael is never mentioned; in the gospel of John, on the other hand, Philip and Nathanael are similarly mentioned together, but nothing is said of Bartholomew.
.....who can protect against him for he has resisted Astaroth's temptations. To others, he teaches mathematical sciences and handicrafts, can make men invisible and lead them to hidden treasures, and answers every question formulated to him.

According to Francis Barrett, Astaroth is the prince of accusers and inquisitors. According to some demonologists of the 16th century, August is the month during which this demon's attacks against humans are stronger. His name seems to come from the goddess ‘Ashtart ‘Ashtart (in ASCII spelling `Ashtart and often simplified to Ashtart), Hebrew or Phoenician עשתרת, Ugaritic ‘ttrt (Englished as ‘Attart or ‘Athtart), Akkadian Astartu (from ^dAs-tar-tú), Greek Άστάρτη (Englished as Astártê or Astarte) is a major northwest Semitic goddess cognate in name, origin and functions with the east Semitic goddess Ishtar.
.....Astarte which was rendered in the Latin Vulgate translation of the Bible as Astharthe (singular) and Astharoth (plural), that last form rendered in the King James Version of the Bible

The King James Version (KJV) is an English translation of the Holy Bible, commissioned for the benefit of the Church of England at the behest of King James I of England. First published in 1611, it is perhaps the most influential English version in America. Though often referred to as the Authorised Version (AV), it was never officially sanctioned by the English monarchy or the clerical hierarchy of the Church of England. It is no longer in copyright in most parts of the world but has a special position in the United Kingdom, relating in part to the established religion.
..... of the Bible as Ashtaroth. It seems this plural form was taken either from the Latin or from some translation or other by those who did not know it was a plural form nor knew that it referred to a goddess, seeing it only as a name applied to some god other than God and therefore the name of a devil.

Other names

Ashtaroth
Astarot

Ars Goetia The Ars Goetia (Lat.: The Howling Art), sometimes called The Goetia, is the first section of the 17th-Century grimoire, the Lemegeton Clavicula Salomonis, or The Lesser Key of Solomon. Much of the text appeared earlier, with some material dating to the 14th Century or earlier.
It contains descriptions of the seventy-two demons that King Solomon is said to have evoked and confined in a bronze vessel sealed by magic symbols, and that he obliged to work for him. It gives instructions on constructing a similar bronze vessel, and using the proper magic formulae to safely call up those demons. The operation given is complex, and includes many details. The 'howling' of the title refers to the incantations made by the conjuror. The
.....
The Lesser Key of Solomon The Lesser Key of Solomon or Lemegeton Clavicula Salomonis (the Clavicula Salomonis, or Key of Solomon is an earlier book on the subject), is an anonymous 17th Century grimoire, and one of the most popular books of demonology.
It has also long been widely known as the Lemegeton, although that name is considered incorrect because it depends on faulty Latin.
It appeared in the 17th century, but much was taken from texts of the 16th century, including the Pseudomonarchia Daemonum, by Johann Weyer, and late-medieval grimoires. It is likely that books by Jewish kabbalists and Muslim mystics were also an inspiration. Some of the material in the first section, concerning the summoning of demons, dates to the 14th Century or earlier.

Ashtaroth

(

sh´t

th) (KEY) , Hebrew plural form of Ashtoreth, the name of the Canaanite fertility goddess and consort of Baal. Her name is vocalized in Greek as Astarte. She was worshiped at various local shrines. There are several references to her in the Bible.

Black Mass and sacrifices of Madame de Montespan (King Louis XIV of France)

from "The Geography of Witchcraft" by Montague Summers (London 1927)

"The abbe Guibourg, the illegitimate son of Henri de Montmorency, was a man of some sixty years, who is described as tall and heavy-limbed with a malign and sensual face. It was he who celebrated innumerable Satanic masses at the instance of Madame de Montespan in order to secure her supreme power and eternal fidelity on the part of the King Louis XIV of France . A long black velvet pall was spread over the altar, and upon this the royal mistress laid herself in a state of perfect nudity. Six black candles were lit, the celebrant robed himself in a chasuble embroidered with esoteric characters wrought in silver, the gold paten and chalice were placed upon the naked belly of the living altar to whose warm flesh the priest pressed his lips each time the missal directed him to kiss the place of sacrifice, uel extra uel intra corporale. All was silent save for the low monotonous murmur of the blasphemous liturgy. The Host was consecrated, and then the Precious Blood. An assistant crept forward bearing an infant in her arms. The child was held over the altar, a sharp gash across the neck, a stifled cry, and warm drops fell into the chalice and streamed upon the white figure beneath. The corpse was handed to la Voisin, who flung it callously into an oven fashioned for that purpose which glowed white-hot in its fierceness. It was proved that a regular traffic hadbeen carried on for years with beggar- women and the lowest prostitutes, who sold their children for this purpose. At her trial la Voisin confessed that no less than two thousand five hundred babies had been disposed of in this manner, for the black mass was continually being celebrated, not only by Guibourg but by other priests. Many ladies of the court had served as an altar, whilst not in- frequently some bulker from the street was called in to fill that function. Madame de Montespan was generally attended on these occasions by her confidante, Madame de Ia Desoeillets. Guibourg celebrated three masses in this way upon the naked body of Madame de Montespan. At the first the following conjuration was used: "Astaroth, Asmodeus, princes of friendship and love, I invoke you to accept the sacrifice, this child that I offer you, for the things I ask of you. They are that the friendship and love of the King and the Dauphin may be assured to me, that I may be honoured by all the princes and princesses of the Court, that the King deny me nothing I ask whether it be for my relatives or for any of my household."

Historical Development of the Black Mass:

Throughout the Middle Ages, there was sufficient evidence of fairly widespread use of the traditional Latin Mass for magical purposes - for example, saying a Mass for the Dead for someone who was still living, accompanied by burying an image of the person, in order to kill a person; or performing masses which, slightly modified, were intended to obtain the love of a person. There was no shortage of priests who were willing to perform such masses, for a certain fee.

Although the picture of the historical development of the Black Mass is shady and vague, the following personalities stand out as providing highlights over recent centuries, of any details of the Black Mass which may have come down to us:

Catherine de Medici, Queen of France - 1519-1589
Involved with poisonings at the highest levels of the aristocracy. Connected with the spread of professional poisoning from Italy to France. Took part in an Italian version of a Black Mass near the end of the 16th century, which provided influence for a French version, soon to follow. In the Medici Mass as we know it, the use of a naked woman as an altar was not present.

Catherine Deshayes Monvoisin - "La Voisin" - Executed 1680
Took over the professional art of poisoning developed in Italy during the previous century, in addition to providing abortions, fortune telling, and other services. Organized Black Masses at her house in Paris, for the aristocracy, starting in 1666. The most notable of these were those performed by the Abbe Guibourg on the naked body of the mistress of Louis XIV, King of France. The Guibourg Mass clearly followed traditions already developing in France during the previous century. During the Black Mass, offerings were made to two demons - Astaroth and Asmodeus.

Marquis de Sade - 1740-1814
Although not necessarily connected with supernatural practices or the worship of Satan, the writings of de Sade are filled with descriptions of the Host and rituals of the Catholic Church being subjected to sexual settings, such as Mass being performed by a priest upon the naked body of a girl. There is no doubt that such ideas were widespread and commonplace in the France of de Sade's time. Perhaps the most descriptive example is found in de Sade's novel Juliette (1797), parts four and five, which describe a meeting between the heroine, Juliette, and Pope Pius VI in the Vatican.

Joris-Karl Huysmans - 1848-1907
Author of the French novel La Bas (1891), which contains the lengthy description of a Black Mass in Paris. This description of the Black Mass (in chapter 19), was apparently based upon actual events going on in Paris in those years. The description of the Black Mass by Huysmans, differs in many ways from the others mentioned above, especially in that Satan is explicitly worshipped, and hatred is openly expressed against Christian symbols (such as Jesus).

FROM: http://www.angelfire.com/az3/synagogasatanae/

The Abbe Boullan (1824-93), a defrocked Catholic priest who believed that he was a reincarnation of John the Baptist, is reported to have celebrated a Black Mass in vestments on which an inverted
cruifix was embroidered, with a pentagram tattooed at the corner of his left eye (the left being the side of evil). He recommended the ceremonial sacrifice of a child at the high point of the Mass, and the use of consecrated hosts being mixed with faeces as a cure for nuns who complained they were tormented by devils.

The occultist Aleister Crowley devised Satanic rituals, but the intention appears to have been anti-Christian rather than criminal.

The Church of Satan has based its much publicized diabolism upon a rejection of the Christian ethics of self-denial and humility.

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