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94-604: An oni ( 鬼 （ おに ） ) ( / oʊ n i / OH -nee ) is a kind of yōkai , demon , orc , ogre , or troll in Japanese folklore . They are believed to live in caves or deep in the mountains. Oni are known for their superhuman strength and have been associated with powers like thunder and lightning, along with their evil nature manifesting in their propensity for murder and cannibalism . They are typically portrayed as hulking figures with one or more horns growing out of their heads, massive teeth, and occasionally

188-671: A grimoire , which gives the names and abilities of demons as well as detailed instructions for conjuring and controlling them. Grimoires are not limited to demons – some give instructions for the invocation of deity, a process called theurgy . The use of ceremonial magic to call demons is also known as goetia , a word derived from the Greek word " goes ", which originally denoted diviners , magicians , healers, and seers . The Age of Enlightenment conceptualizes humans as autonomous individuals , mostly independent from outer invisible forces, such as demons or gods ruling over human fate. While in

282-540: A 'ghost' or the 'soul of the dead'. On the other hand, the Japanese dictionary Wamyō Ruijushō ( 和名類聚抄 ) written in Japan in the 10th century explained the origin of the word oni as a corruption of on/onu ( 隠 ) , meaning 'to hide'. The dictionary explained that oni is hidden and does not want to reveal itself. When the character for 鬼 was first introduced to Japan, it was pronounced as ki ( キ ) in

376-825: A bad smell in the air or sudden change in temperature would announce their presence. Similar to the Quranic prophet Solomon enslaving the jinn and devils, the Persian hero Jamshid is attributed with subjugating the Dīv . However, a general negative association remains during the Islamic period. Due to their reluctant nature, even enslaved, they do always the opposite of what has been commanded. In some tales, supernatural powers are attributed to them, such as causing sickness, mental illnesses, or even turn humans to stone. Demons are believed to be vanquished by sacred symbols. The content of

470-424: A character as an oni, such as horns or a distinctive skin colour, although the character may otherwise appear human, lacking the oni's traditionally fearsome or grotesque features. The context of oni in popular culture is similarly varied, with instances such as appearances in animated cartoons, video games and use as commercial mascots. Demon Demons may or may not also be considered to be devils: minions of

564-571: A charm made of holly leaves and dried sardine heads are used as a guard against oni. There is also a well-known game in Japan called oni gokko ( 鬼ごっこ ) , which is the same as the game of tag that children in the Western world play. The player who is "it" is instead called the "oni". Oni are featured in Japanese children's stories such as Momotarō ( Peach Boy ), Issun-bōshi , and Kobutori Jīsan . In more recent times, oni have lost some of their original wickedness and sometimes take on

658-403: A cluster of supernatural beings, such as daimons, spirits, and devils, affecting the mind. While some people fear demons, or attempt to exorcise them, others willfully attempt to summon them for knowledge, assistance, or power. William of Conches ( c.  1090/1091  – c.  1155/1170s ) understands 'demon' closer to the Greek 'daimon', reserving the concept of the "devil" only for

752-601: A consequence of the rise of influence of the Babylonian Talmud over that of the Jerusalem Talmud, late rabbis, in general, took as fact the existence of shedim , nor did most of the medieval thinkers question their reality. However, rationalists like Maimonides and Saadia Gaon and others explicitly denied their existence, and completely rejected concepts of demons, evil spirits, negative spiritual influences, attaching and possessing spirits. They thought

846-460: A demon is believed to be a spiritual entity that may be conjured and controlled. Belief in demons remains an important part of many modern religions and occult traditions. Demons are still feared largely due to their alleged power to possess living creatures. In contemporary Western esoteric traditions, demons may be used as metaphors for inner psychological processes ("inner demons"). The Ancient Greek word δαίμων ( daimōn ) denotes

940-503: A metaphorical symbol for life-threatening animals, such as hyenas , ostrichs , and jackals . The shedim , however, are not pagan demigods, but the foreign gods themselves. They are evil insofar that they are not affiliated with the Jewish deity. These entities appear in a scriptural context of animal or child sacrifice to non-existent false gods . Various diseases and ailments were ascribed to demons, particularly those affecting

1034-488: A more protective function. Men in oni costumes often lead Japanese parades to dispel any bad luck, for example. Japanese buildings sometimes include oni-faced roof tiles called onigawara ( 鬼瓦 ) , which are thought to ward away bad luck, much like gargoyles in Western tradition. Many Japanese idioms and proverbs also make reference to oni. For example, the expression "Oya ni ninu ko wa oni no ko" ( 親に似ぬ子は鬼の子 ) (Translation: "A child that does not resemble its parents

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1128-558: A specific place; their demonic activity is topographically defined and their function can be benevolent towards those who have the secret knowledge to face them. Demons protecting the underworld may prevent human souls from entering paradise. Only by knowing the right charms is the deceased able to enter the Halls of Osiris . Here, the aggressive nature of the guardian demons is motivated by the need to protect their abodes and not by their evil essence. Accordingly, demons guarded sacred places or

1222-495: A spirit or divine power, much like the Latin genius or numen . Daimōn most likely came from the Greek verb daiesthai ("to divide" or "distribute"). The Greek conception of a daimōn notably appears in the philosophical works of Plato , where it describes the divine inspiration of Socrates . The original Greek word daimōn does not carry the negative connotation initially understood by implementation of

1316-615: A spirit or divine power. The Greek conception of a daimōn notably appears in the philosophical works of Plato , where it describes the divine inspiration of Socrates . In Christianity, morally ambivalent daimōn were replaced by demons, forces of evil only striving for corruption. Such demons are not the Greek intermediary spirits, but hostile entities, already known in Iranian beliefs. In Western esotericism and Renaissance magic , which grew out of an amalgamation of Greco-Roman magic , Jewish Aggadah , and Christian demonology,

1410-601: A strong wrestler. This custom began with the aristocratic and samurai classes in the Muromachi period (1336–1573). According to the Ainōshō (壒嚢鈔), a dictionary compiled in the Muromachi period, the origin of this custom is a legend from the 10th century during the reign of Emperor Uda . According to the legend, a monk on Mount Kurama threw roasted beans into the eyes of oni to make them flinch and flee. Another theory

1504-474: A third eye in the center of the forehead. They are typically depicted with red, blue, black, or yellow colored skin, wearing loincloths of tiger pelt , and carrying iron kanabō clubs. They also have three to six digits on each hand and foot tipped with claw-like nails. Oni are able to change their looks to fool their victims into trusting them. Oni can be male or female, but have been predominantly male throughout history. Female oni are sometimes referred to by

1598-455: A torch but could not be seen". Chinese folktale, legend and literature are replete with malevolent supernatural creatures who are often rendered "demons" in English translations. These include categories of beings such as the yao 妖 - shapeshifters with the power to cause insanity, to inflict poison, and to bring about disease, and the mo 魔 - derived from Indian mythology and entering through

1692-414: A wicked soul beyond rehabilitation transforms into an oni after death. Only the very worst people turn into oni while alive, and these are the oni causing troubles among humans as presented in folk tales. Some scholars have even argued that the oni was entirely a concept of Buddhist mythology. Oni bring calamities to the land, bringing about war, plague/illness, earthquakes, and eclipses. They have

1786-446: Is a 938 CE Japanese dictionary of Chinese characters . The Heian period scholar Minamoto no Shitagō (源順, 911–983 CE) began compilation in 934, at the request of Emperor Daigo 's daughter. This Wamyō ruijushō title is abbreviated as Wamyōshō , and has graphic variants of 和名類聚抄 with wa 和 "harmony; Japan" for wa 倭 "dwarf; Japan" and 倭名類聚鈔 with shō 鈔 "copy; summarize" for shō 抄 "copy; annotate". The Wamyō ruijushō

1880-410: Is called " onihitokuchi ". In Nihon Ryōiki , The Tales of Ise and Konjaku Monogatarishū , for example, a woman is shown being eaten in one mouthful by a oni . There is the theory that the reason why stories of onihitokuchi were common is that wars, disasters, and famines where people lose their lives or go missing were interpreted as oni from another world appearing in

1974-525: Is not clear from his work, if he considered these images of se'irim as manifestations of actual spirits or merely delusions. Despite academic consensus, Rabbis disputed that Maimonides denied the existence of demons entirely. He would only dispute the existence of demons in his own life time, but not that demons had existed once. Occasionally an angel is called satan in the Babylon Talmud. But satans do not refer to demons as they remain at

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2068-487: Is that the origin of this custom lies in the word 豆 ( mame ) , which means bean. The explanation is that in Japanese, まめ, マメ ( mame ) can also be written as 魔目 ( mame ) , meaning the devil's eye, or 魔滅 ( mametsu ) , meaning to destroy the devil. During the Edo period (1603–1867), the custom spread to Shinto shrines , Buddhist temples and the general public. Regionally around Tottori Prefecture during this season,

2162-465: Is the Bunyip , which was originally a term applied to malevolent spirits in general. Tasmanian mythology in particular has many beings translated as "devils"; these include malicious spirits like Rageowrapper as well as spirits summoned in magic. Tasmanian Aboriginal people would describe these entities as "devils" and related that these spiritual beings as walking alongside Aboriginal people "carrying

2256-421: Is the child of an oni.") may be used by a parent to chastise a misbehaving child. They can be used in stories to frighten children into obeying because of their grotesque appearance, savage demeanor, as well as how they can eat people in a single gulp. The oni remains a very popular motif in Japanese popular culture. Their varied modern depiction sometimes relies on just one or two distinctive features which mark

2350-513: Is the oldest extant Japanese dictionary organized into semantic headings, analogous to a Western language thesaurus . This ancient lexicographical collation system was developed in Chinese dictionaries like the Erya , Xiao Erya , and Shiming . The Wamyōshō categorizes kanji vocabulary, primarily nouns , into main headings ( bu 部 ) divided into subheadings ( rui 類 ). For instance,

2444-592: The on'yomi reading. The character 鬼 has changed over time in Japan to become its own entity, and there are significant differences between the Japanese oni ( 鬼 ) and the Chinese guǐ (鬼). The Chinese guǐ generally refers to the disembodied spirits of the dead and are not necessarily evil. They usually reside in the underworld, but those with a grudge sometimes appear in the human world to haunt, and Taoist priests and others have used their supernatural powers to exterminate them. Japanese oni ( 鬼 ) , on

2538-614: The Shuowen Jiezi ) and Japanese (the Man'yōshū ). The Wamyō ruijushō , survives in both a 10-volume edition (十巻本) and a 20-volume edition (二十巻本). The larger one was published in 1617 with a commentary by Nawa Dōen (那波道円, 1595–1648) and was used in the Edo period until the 1883 publication of the 10-volume edition annotated by Kariya Ekisai (狩谷棭齋, 1775–1835), also known as the Senchū Wamyō ruijushō (箋注倭名類聚抄 "Annotated commentary to

2632-573: The Koine δαιμόνιον ( daimonion ), and later ascribed to any cognate words sharing the root. The Greek terms do not have any connotations of evil or malevolence. By the early centuries of the Roman Empire , cult statues were seen, by Pagans and their Christian neighbors alike, as inhabited by the numinous presence of the Greco-Roman gods : "Like pagans, Christians still sensed and saw

2726-632: The Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek, which drew on the mythology of ancient Semitic religions . This was then inherited by the Koine text of the New Testament . The English use of demon as synonym for devils goes back at least as far as about 825. The German word ( Dämon ), however, is different from devil ( Teufel ) and demons as evil spirits, and akin to

2820-494: The Wamyō ruijushō "). The 10-volume edition has 24 main headings divided into a total of 128 subheadings, while the 20-volume version has 32 and 249, respectively. The table below illustrates how words are semantically categorized in the 10-volume edition. The broadly inclusive Wamyō ruijushō dictionary was an antecedent for Japanese encyclopedias . In the present day, it provides linguists and historians with an invaluable record of

2914-684: The Watchers or Nephilim , who are first mentioned in Genesis 6 and are the focus of 1 Enoch Chapters 1–16, and also in Jubilees 10. The Nephilim were seen as the source of the sin and evil on Earth because they are referenced in Genesis 6:4 before the story of the Flood . In Genesis 6:5, God sees evil in the hearts of men. Ethiopic Enoch refers to Genesis 6:4–5, and provides further description of

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3008-445: The galla dragging the god Dumuzid into the underworld. Like other demons, however, galla could also be benevolent and, in a hymn from King Gudea of Lagash ( c. 2144 – 2124 BCE), a minor god named Ig-alima is described as "the great galla of Girsu ". Lamashtu was a demonic goddess with the "head of a lion, the teeth of a donkey, naked breasts, a hairy body, hands stained (with blood?), long fingers and fingernails, and

3102-402: The kimon was also known as the ushitora (丑寅), or " Ox Tiger " direction. One hypothesis is that the oni ' s bovine horns and tiger-skin loincloth developed as a visual depiction of this term. Temples are often built facing that direction, for example, Enryaku-ji was deliberately built on Mount Hiei which was in the kimon (northeasterly) direction from Kyoto in order to guard

3196-528: The tenchi (天地 "heaven and earth") heading includes eight semantic divisions like seishuku (星宿 "stars and constellations"), un'u (雲雨 "clouds and rain"), and fūsetsu (風雪 "wind and snow"). Each dictionary entry gives the Chinese character, sources cited, Chinese pronunciations (with either a homonym or fanqie spelling), definitions, and corresponding Japanese readings (in the ancient Man'yōgana system using kanji to represent Japanese pronunciation). It cites over 290 sources, both Chinese (for example,

3290-507: The underworld was home to many demonic beings, which are sometimes referred to as "offspring of arali ". These demons could sometimes leave the underworld and terrorize mortals on earth. One class of demons that were believed to reside in the underworld were known as galla ; their primary purpose appears to have been to drag unfortunate mortals back to Kur. They are frequently referenced in magical texts, and some texts describe them as being seven in number. Several extant poems describe

3384-404: The "Male-who-invites") and Izanami (イザナミ, meaning "She-who-invites" or the "Female-who-invites"). These two were brother and sister. They also are married and had many children, one of them being Kagutsuchi (カグツチ, Fire). Upon birth, Kagutsuchi mortally wounded Izanami, who went to Yomi (黄泉, 黄泉の国, World of Darkness) on her death and was transformed into a Kami of death. Izanami, who gave life in

3478-437: The "demons of the lower regions": You think, as I infer from your words, that a demon is the same as a devil, which is not the case. For a demon is said to be any invisible being using reason, as if knowing. Of these the two high orders are called calodemons, that is, 'good knowing ones', the lower order is called cacodemon, that is, 'evil knowing one', for calos means 'good', cacos 'bad'. The ceremonial magician usually consults

3572-428: The "demons that bring famine" and "such as cause storm and earthquake". According to some aggadic stories, demons were under the dominion of a king or chief, usually Asmodai . In Kabbalah , demons are regarded as a necessary part of the divine emanation in the material world and a byproduct of human sin ( Qlippoth ). After they are created, they assume an existence on their own. Demons would attach themselves to

3666-569: The 14th century in various arts, traditional performing arts and literature such as emakimono , jōruri , noh , kabuki , bunraku , and ukiyo-e . The tachi (Japanese long sword) " Dōjigiri " with which Minamoto no Yorimitsu decapitated Shuten-dōji' in the legend is now designated as a National Treasure and one of the Tenka-Goken (Five Greatest Swords Under Heaven). They are popular characters in Japanese art , literature , and theater and appear as stock villains in

3760-674: The Devil . In many traditions, demons are independent operators, with different demons causing different types of evils (destructive natural phenomena, specific diseases, etc.). In religions featuring a principal Devil (e.g. Satan) locked in an eternal struggle with God, demons are often also thought to be subordinates of the principal Devil. As lesser spirits doing the Devil's work, they have additional duties— causing humans to have sinful thoughts and tempting humans to commit sinful actions. The original Ancient Greek word daimōn ( δαίμων ) did not carry negative connotations, as it denotes

3854-564: The Heian period. In Konjaku Monogatarishū ( 今昔物語集 ) , the character for 鬼 is read as mono . It was not until the end of the Heian period that the reading of oni for the character 鬼 became almost universal. Particularly powerful oni may be described as kishin or kijin (literally "oni god"; the "ki" is an alternate character reading of "oni"), a term used in Japanese Buddhism to refer to Wrathful Deities . The oni

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3948-461: The Muling 木灵 lit. "tree spirit" (also muzhong 木肿 lit. "tree swelling") - demons forming over time in trees of immense age, capable of inflicting disease and killing human passers-by and birds flying overhead. Examples include the penghou 彭侯 (lit. "drumbeat marquis"), a demon associated with camphor trees in mountain forests, and which takes the form of a human-headed dog, and in the southern provinces,

4042-536: The United States. The rejection of demons as the cause of natural events also contributed to the association of demons with delusions and merely mental phenomena. For example, the notion that demons could possess an individual, stripped the individual away from their personhood and was at odds with modern Western philosophy. The most prominent ones, such as the American Dream and capitalism , imply

4136-592: The banana-leaf spirits. From the Tang dynasty onwards, belief in shapeshifting foxes, tigers and wolves, amongst other creatures, also featured in Chinese folk belief, partly due to the existence of outlawed fox-spirit cults. Fox Demons (狐妖) are described as cunning and lustful, capable of clairvoyance, and of inflicting disease and poisoning at will. They are sometimes seen as beings requiring worship to be appeased or placated. Tiger Demons (虎妖) and Wolf Demons (狼妖) are ravening beings roaming large territories for prey, taking

4230-507: The belief that everyone is responsible for their own fate and not at the mercy of external forces, thus has no room left for demons or demonic possessions. The concept of demons has nevertheless not disappeared from the public, permeating media, arts, and psychology. Others assert that the Age of Enlightenment did not compete with beliefs in subjugation of demons, but derived from them. In the 16th - early 17th century, conjuration of demonic forces

4324-415: The brain and those of internal nature. Examples include catalepsy , headache, epilepsy and nightmares. There also existed a demon of blindness, "Shabriri" (lit. "dazzling glare") who rested on uncovered water at night and blinded those who drank from it. Demons supposedly entered the body and caused the disease while overwhelming or "seizing" the victim. To cure such diseases, it was necessary to draw out

4418-492: The capital, and similarly Kan'ei-ji was built towards that direction from Edo Castle . However, skeptics doubt this could have been the initial design of Enryaku-ji temple, since the temple was founded in 788, six years before Kyoto even existed as a capital, and if the ruling class were so feng shui -minded, the subsequent northeasterly move of the capital from Nagaoka-kyō to Kyoto would have certainly been taboo. Japanese buildings may sometimes have L-shaped indentations at

4512-504: The dead. The Izumo no Kuni Fudoki , whose compilation began in 713, tells the story of a one-eyed oni who ate a man. Nihon Shoki , completed in 720, tells of a hat ( kasa ) -wearing oni watching the funeral of Emperor Saimei from the top of Mount Asakura. The character for 鬼 is believed to have been read as oni when the Nihon Shoki was completed, and was also read as kami , mono , and shiko in

4606-682: The deceased giants, cursed by God to wander the Earth. Dale Martin disagrees with this interpretation, arguing that the ghosts of the Nephilim are distinct. The evil spirits would make the people sacrifice to the demons, but they were not demons themselves. The spirits are stated in Enoch to "corrupt, fall, be excited, and fall upon the earth, and cause sorrow". Wamy%C5%8D Ruijush%C5%8D The Wamyō ruijushō or Wamyō ruijūshō ( 和名類聚抄 , "Japanese names [for things], classified and annotated")

4700-535: The demonic powers of impurity have become correspondingly weak, too. The Hebrew Bible mentions two classes of demonic spirits, the se'irim and the shedim . The word shedim (sing shed or sheyd ) appears in two places in the Hebrew Bible. The se'irim (sing. sa'ir , "male goat") are mentioned once in Leviticus 17 :7, probably a recollection of Assyrian demons in the shape of goats. They might be

4794-591: The demons of mountains and forests (the seductive Chimei 魑魅), demons of trees and rocks (a necrophagous fever-demon, the Wangliang 魍魎), subterranean demons of the earth and of decay (the goat-like and necrophagous Fenyang 墳羊 (lit. "grave-goat"), who caused disease and miscarriage) and fever demons born from water ( Wangxiang 罔象 , a child-like being with red eyes). These demons were said to be born of aberrant qi (breath or energy), known to accost and kill travellers, and held responsible for sickness. People also feared

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4888-538: The destructive power of lightning and thunder, which terrifies people through their auditory and visual effects. Most Japanese folklore come from the Kojiki (古事記, "Records of Ancient Matters" or "An Account of Ancient Matters") and Nihongi (日本紀, "Japanese Chronicles"). These stories are the history and development of Japan in ancient times. At the beginning of time and space, Takamagahara (高天原, "Plane of High Heaven" or "High Plane of Heaven") came into being, along with

4982-403: The divine will. The existence of demons can be related to the realm of chaos, beyond the created world. But even this negative connotation cannot be denied in light of the magical texts. The role of demons in relation to the human world remains ambivalent and largely depends on context. Ancient Egyptian demons can be divided into two classes: "guardians" and "wanderers". "Guardians" are tied to

5076-417: The essential teaching about shedim and similar spirits is, that they should not be an object of worship, not a reality to be acknowledged or feared. Their point of view eventually became mainstream Jewish understanding. The opinion of some authors is not clear. Abraham ibn Ezra states that insane people can see the image of se'irim , when they go astray and ascribe to them powers independent from God. It

5170-602: The evil demons by certain incantations and talismanic performances, at which the Essenes excelled. Josephus , who spoke of demons as "spirits of the wicked which enter into men that are alive and kill them", but which could be driven out by a certain root , witnessed such a performance in the presence of the Emperor Vespasian and ascribed its origin to King Solomon . In mythology, there were few defences against Babylonian demons . The mythical mace Sharur had

5264-511: The fantasy genre, and especially in entertainment aimed at children and young adults. Belief in wilderness demons haunted China from the very earliest periods and persisted throughout the late imperial era. In the Xia dynasty, nine bronze cauldrons with their forms were cast to help the common people to identify and to avoid them. Classical texts in the Zhou and Warring-States period distinguish between

5358-453: The feet of Anzû ". She was believed to feed on the blood of human infants and was widely blamed as the cause of miscarriages and cot deaths . Although Lamashtu has traditionally been identified as a demoness, the fact that she could cause evil on her own without the permission of other deities strongly indicates that she was seen as a goddess in her own right. Mesopotamian peoples protected against her using amulets and talismans . She

5452-512: The form of humans to conveniently insert themselves into communities and settlements. Tiger demons are described as being enslave the souls of humans they have killed, turning them into minions. In the superstitious climate of the previous centuries, people mistaken as tigers and wolves in human disguise were often put to death or starved in their cells by magistrates. Fish (鱼妖) and snake demons (蛇妖) are said to have attempted to assault Confucius. Even insects are capable of being demonic. In one tale,

5546-520: The gates to the netherworld. During the Ptolemaic and Roman period , the guardians shifted towards the role of genius loci and they were the focus of local and private cults. The "wanderers" are associated with possession, mental illness, death and plagues. Many of them serve as executioners for the major deities, such as Ra or Osiris , when ordered to punish humans on earth or in the netherworld. Wanderers can also be agents of chaos, arising from

5640-479: The gods and their power, and as something, they had to assume, lay behind it, by an easy traditional shift of opinion they turned these pagan daimones into malevolent 'demons', the troupe of Satan . Far into the Byzantine period , Christians eyed their cities' old pagan statuary as a seat of the demons' presence. It was no longer beautiful, it was infested." The term had first acquired its negative connotations in

5734-521: The imperial era, they also appear as antagonists, and sometimes protagonists, in multiple genres of Chinese literature. These include mythic literature ( Shen Mo Xiaoshuo (lit. "Gods and demons novels") ), in records about paranormal or occult activity ( Zhi Guai ("lit. Records of the Strange") ), and in tales about cultivators of supernatural power and immortality ( Xian Xia (lit. "Immortal Hero") ) fiction. These demons are often examples or close variants of

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5828-739: The indigenous Yao (妖) and the Indian-influenced Mo (魔) feature prominently in Chinese legends and folktales about the supernatural and the uncanny, and these days are staples of popular culture and fantasy fiction in games, movies and books. There are differing opinions in Judaism about the existence or non-existence of demons ( shedim or se'irim ). Some Rabbinic scholars assert that demons have existed in Talmudic times, but do not exist regularly in present. When prophecy, divine presence , and divine inspiration gradually decreased,

5922-524: The influence of Buddhism. In folk belief, these beings are responsible for misfortune, insanity, and illness, and any number of strange phenomena that could not easily be accounted for. Epilepsy and stroke, which led to either temporary or permanent contortions, were generally seen as the results of demonic possession and attacks (中邪). In the imperial era, anxiety over unexplained serial murders, missing persons, accidents or diseases sometimes led to instances of mass panic requiring imperial intervention. Exorcism

6016-461: The modern English "demon". Both deities and demons can act as intermediaries to deliver messages to humans. By that, they share some resemblance to the Greek daimon. However, magical writings indicate that ancient Egyptians acknowledged the existence of malevolent demons by highlighting the demon names with red ink. Demons in this culture appeared to be subordinative and related to a specific deity, yet they may have occasionally acted independently of

6110-488: The name Yamauba . When in disguise, oni are capable of appearing as a man or woman, regardless of their gender. As monstrous as oni are, they have been linked to bringing good fortune and wealth. During the Heian period (794–1185), oni were often depicted in Japanese literature , such as setsuwa , as terrifying monsters that ate people. A prominent depiction of oni is that they eat people in one mouthful, which

6204-562: The northeast to ward against oni. For example, the walls surrounding the Kyoto Imperial Palace have notched corners in that direction. The traditional bean-throwing custom to drive out oni is practiced during Setsubun festival in February. It involves people casting roasted soybeans indoors or out of their homes and shouting " Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi! " ( "鬼は外！福は内！" , "Oni go out! Blessings come in!") , preferably by

6298-517: The original meaning of daimon . The Western Modern era conception of a demon , as in the Ars Goetia , derives seamlessly from the ambient popular culture of Late Antiquity . The exact definition of "demon" in Egyptology posed a major problem for modern scholarship, since the borders between a deity and a demon are sometimes blurred and the ancient Egyptian language lacks a term for

6392-428: The other hand, are evil beings that have substance, live in certain places in the human world, such as mountains, have red or blue bodies with horns and fangs, are armed with kanabō (metal clubs) , and can be physically killed by cutting with Japanese swords . The Izumo no Kuni Fudoki ( 出雲国風土記 ) and Nihon Shoki ( 日本書紀 ) are the earliest written examples of oni as entities rather than soul of

6486-406: The physical world, continued to do so in the underworld, ultimately creating the very first oni. According to Chinese Taoism and esoteric Onmyōdō , the ways of yin and yang , the northeasterly direction is termed the kimon ( 鬼門 , "demon gate") and considered an unlucky direction through which evil spirits passed. Based on the assignment of the twelve zodiac animals to the cardinal directions,

6580-620: The power to slay demons such as Asag , a legendary gallu or edimmu of hideous strength. In the Jerusalem Talmud , notions of shedim ("demons" or "spirits") are almost unknown or occur only very rarely, whereas in the Babylonian Talmud there are many references to shedim and magical incantations. The existence of shedim in general was not questioned by most of the Babylonian Talmudists . As

6674-511: The pre-modern period, spirits and demons were assigned to various natural phenomena, the rationalistic school of thought , increasingly rejected the attribution of demons to unknown causes. Many considered demons to be non-existent and alleged visions of demons and ghosts were explained as results of superstition. By that local religious customs were also oppressed in favor of nationwide (religious) ideas or deities. Wilkinson Duran states that people who believe in demons are often marginalized in

6768-430: The present world who take away humans. It was not until the legend of Shuten-dōji was created that the oni began to be depicted in paintings, and the 14th century Ōeyama ekotoba ( 大江山絵詞 ) is the oldest surviving emakimono (picture scroll) depicting Shuten-dōji . Shuten-dōji has been regarded as the most famous and strongest oni in Japan. The legend of Shuten-dōji has been described since

6862-401: The religious sense are known as Mo (魔) and are generally derived from Indian lore through Buddhism. These include the man-eating, night-flying luocha 罗刹 (raksasha) and the yecha 夜叉 (yaksha). These have also entered Chinese folk religion and Taoism. Another closely related term, highlighting their spiritual deviance and moral corruption, is Xie (邪). Aside from recurring in Chinese superstition of

6956-409: The service of God: "Stand not in the way of an ox when coming from the pasture, for Satan dances between his horns". Aggadic tales from the Persian tradition describe the shedim , the mazziḳim ("harmers"), and the ruḥin ("spirits"). There were also lilin ("night spirits"), ṭelane ("shade", or "evening spirits"), ṭiharire ("midday spirits"), and ẓafrire ("morning spirits"), as well as

7050-463: The seven evil deities were known as shedu , storm-demons, represented in ox-like form." They were represented as winged bulls , derived from the colossal bulls used as protective jinn of royal palaces. Magical rites, charms, and beliefs in spiritual entities were prominent in pre-Christian Europe. While the Church offically declared such beliefs as false , the persistance of such beliefs among

7144-587: The sighting of a Centipede Demon (蜈蚣妖) in the form of an old woman without eyes is said to have led to the sickness and death of an entire household. One notable demon not in the above categories includes the Heisheng or Heiqi 黑气 ("Black Calamity" or "Black Air"), a kind of roving vapour demon that inflicts damage to persons and property wherever it roams, sometimes killing where it goes. Another are undefined Poltergeists, sometimes afflicting monasteries, causing serious nuisances, and unable to be exorcised. Demons in

7238-553: The sinner and start to multiply as an act of self-preservation. Medieval Kabbalists characterize such demons as punishing angels of destruction . They are subject to the divine will, and do not act independently. Other demonic entities, such as the shedim , might be considered benevolent. The Zohar classifies them as those who are like humans and submit to the Torah, and those who have no fear of God and are like animals. The sources of demonic influence were thought to originate from

7332-461: The story connecting the Nephilim to the corruption of humans. According to the Book of Enoch , sin originates when angels descend from heaven and fornicate with women, birthing giants. The Book of Enoch shows that these fallen angels can lead humans to sin through direct interaction or through providing forbidden knowledge. Most scholars understand the text, that demons originate from the evil spirits of

7426-601: The symbol depends on the prevailing religion of the culture. Among Turks, the basmalah ("invocation of the name of Allah") is used to ward off demons, while among Armenians, the symbol of the cross is utilized. Common features of these Middle Eastern demons are their immortality and pernicious nature, they can turn invisible, and can be enslaved when pierced by a silver needle. Due to the Islamic belief-system prevailing in Middle Eastern and Central Asian culture at

7520-699: The three divine beings Amenominakanushi (天之御中主, The Central Master or "Lord of the August Center of Heaven"), Takamimusubi (高御産巣日神, "High Creator"), and Kamimusubi (神産巣日, The Divine Creator). These three divine beings were known as Kami , and the three together are sometimes referred to as Kotoamatsukami (別天神, literally "distinguishing heavenly kami"). They manifested the entire universe. They were later joined by two more Kami, Umashiashikabihikoji (宇摩志阿斯訶備比古遅神, Energy) and Amenotokotachi (天之常立神, Heaven). Finally, two lesser Kami were made to establish earth, Izanagi (イザナギ/伊邪那岐/伊弉諾, meaning "He-who-invites" or

7614-442: The time between the parī and the angels, from the fires of the stars and smoke. Under influence of Islamic Philosophy , Medieval occult traditions and Renaissance magic , demons are often seen as beneficial and useful, lacking an inherent negative connotation. In the fifteenth- and sixteenth-century Renaissance magic, the terms 'demon' and 'devil' have two different, although not exclusive, meanings. The term demons refers to

7708-519: The time, authors emphasized that demons only exist by God's will and not as an independent or even accidental part of the world. The origin of the demons is explained by Abu Ali Bal'ami 's interpretation of Tarikh al-Tabari as the possibly first creation of God ( Allah ). Similarly, the Süleymanname , written during the time of Suleiman the Magnificent , demons were created by God in

7802-523: The type and kind that exist in folk belief. They also appear in entertainment designed for children and young adults, especially in comics (manhua), cartoons (anime), and computer games. The terms Yao (妖) , Mo (魔), Gui (鬼), Guai (怪) and Xie (邪) are their various two-character combinations often used to refer to these creatures, but of these terms, only Mo (魔) denotes demons in the religious sense. China has two classes of beings that might be regarded as demons, and which are generally translated as such: Both

7896-494: The well-known fairytales of Momotarō ( Peach Boy ), Issun-bōshi , and Kobutori Jīsan . Although oni have been described as frightening creatures, they have become tamer in modern culture as people tell less frightening stories about them like Oni Mask and Red Oni Who Cried . Oni , written in kanji as 鬼, is read in China as guǐ ( pinyin ) , meaning something invisible, formless, or unworldly, in other words,

7990-415: The wider populations led Christian monks to assimilate Christian with non-Christian rites. In order to do so, non-Christian symbols and as pagan deities have been substituted by Jesus Christ . To sanction the invocation of non-Christian supernatural powers, Christian missionaries, such as John Cassian in the fifth century, declared the pagan gods to be demons, servants of Lucifer , who bring disorder to

8084-436: The world beyond creation to bring about misfortune and suffering without any divine instructions, led only by evil motivations. The influences of the wanderers can be warded off and kept at the borders of the human world by the use of magic, but they can never be destroyed. A sub-category of "wanderers" are nightmare demons, which were believed to cause nightmares by entering a human body. The ancient Mesopotamians believed that

8178-630: The world. Ideas of demons (often called Dīv/Dēw or mārid or šayāṭīn in Arabic ) in Armenia , Turkic countries , and Albania derive from Arabic and Persian imagery . Unlike the original Persian daeva , the at the Islamic period are more anthropomorphized and morally complex, through assimialtion with the Arabic jinn and devils. Like the jinn from Islamic traditions, they can enter sexual relationships with humans and sire offspring. Demons are believed to be mostly active at night and

8272-468: Was syncretized with Hindu - Buddhist creatures such as the man-devouring yaksha and the rakshasa , and became the oni who tormented sinners as wardens of Hell ( Jigoku ), administering sentences passed down by Hell's magistrate, King Yama (Enma Daiō). The hungry ghosts called gaki (餓鬼) have also been sometimes considered a type of oni (the Kanji for "ki" 鬼 is also read "oni"). Accordingly,

8366-438: Was a court function during the Zhou dynasty, led by ritual specialists known as fangshi . In later dynasties, roving Taoist sorcerers, Buddhist monks, as well as eccentric folk magicians, plied their services in warding off, exorcising, countering or defeating these demons through the use of amulets, charms, spells, and chants. In mainland China, belief in demons is very rare. Today, these beings appear primarily as antagonists in

8460-488: Was believed to be the son of the god Hanbi . He was usually regarded as evil, but he could also sometimes be a beneficent entity who protected against winds bearing pestilence and he was thought to be able to force Lamashtu back to the underworld. Amulets bearing his image were positioned in dwellings to protect infants from Lamashtu and pregnant women frequently wore amulets with his head on them as protection from her. Šul-pa-e 's name means "youthful brilliance", but he

8554-476: Was believed to ride in her boat on the river of the underworld and she was associated with donkeys. She was believed to be the daughter of An . Pazuzu is a demonic god who was well known to the Babylonians and Assyrians throughout the first millennium BCE. He is shown with "a rather canine face with abnormally bulging eyes, a scaly body, a snake-headed penis, the talons of a bird and usually wings". He

8648-442: Was more respected than legitimate authority, resulting in amorality and excessive personal independence. The declaration of demons as mere superstition was also welcomed as a "removal" of pagan beliefs. According to Wouter Hanegraaff , what the demons the Age of Enlightenment attempted to remove are pagan beliefs. Aboriginal Australian cultures have various beings translated into English as "demons" or "devils". The most notable

8742-442: Was not envisioned as youthful god. According to one tradition, he was the consort of Ninhursag, a tradition which contradicts the usual portrayal of Enki as Ninhursag's consort. In one Sumerian poem, offerings made to Šhul-pa-e in the underworld and, in later mythology, he was one of the demons of the underworld. According to The Jewish Encyclopedia , originally published in 12 volumes from 1901 to 1906, "In Chaldean mythology

8836-497: Was seen as potential for humans to overcome their social and natural environment. Hermetic and Kabbalist philosophy allowed humans to exercise control over nature. As such, occult practises may have paved the way for the development of modern sciences. Individualism was met with certain ambiguity. Although the Renaissance "freed" humans from superstition and allowed them to control nature, it created an environment in which power

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