The Encyclopedia Of Demons And Demonology

Ouija 189
Orobas FALLEN ANGEL and 55th of the 72 SPIRITS OF
SOLOMON. Orobas is a prince in HELL, where he governs
20 LEGIONs of DEMONs. He makes his first appearance as
a horse but then changes to a man upon command. He
discovers all things past and present and bestows great
favors. He gives true answers to questions about the past,
present, and future; divinity, and the creation of the
world. Orobas is faithful to magicians and does not like
them to be tempted by any other demon. Prior to his fall,
he was in the angelic order of thrones.
Ose FALLEN ANGEL and 57th of the 72 SPIRITS OF SOLO-
MON. Ose is a president in HELL, who appears first as a
leopard and then as a human. He teaches all liberal sciences
and gives true answers to questions about divine
and secret things. He can change people into any shape
desired by the magician; the victims will not know they
have been changed. He commands three LEGIONs of
DEMONs. According to JOHANN WEYER, Ose also will
make people insane and delusional, so that they will
believe they are kings and such. The delusions only last
for an hour.
Ouija A patented game consisting of a board printed
with letters and numbers, and the words yes, no, goodbye,
over which players slide a three-legged triangular
pointer, used by many people for divination and attempts
to contact the dead and spirits. The users place fi ngertips
on the pointer and ask questions, and the pointer spells
out the answers. Ouija is a trademarked name owned by
Parker Brothers. A generic term for devices similar to the
Ouija is “talking board.”
As an interface between worlds, the Ouija is neutral,
neither good nor evil. It is said to be dangerous by authorities
in the Christian Church, who claim it provides a
doorway for evil DEMONs to possess the users. Advocates
of the Ouija say the device reveals the subconscious of the
user or is an interface to genuine spirit communication.
History
Precursors to the Ouija date to Greece around 540 B.C.E.
Pythagoras was said to have a divination tool that was a
table that rolled on wheels. Pythagoras or a pupil placed his
hands on the table, and it rolled toward signs and symbols.
Ouija-like instruments were used through the Middle
Ages. The forerunner of the modern Ouija was the planchette
(French for little board), a triangular or heart-shaped
pointer on three legs, which appeared in Europe in 1853.
Its invention is usually attributed to a French spiritualist
named M. Planchette. One leg was a pencil, which wrote
out words and drew pictures. The planchette was popular
with spiritualists and was used in séances for automatic
writing.
A type of talking board used by Native Americans was
called a squdilatc.
The Ouija board itself has had a turbulent history. The
origin of the board is murky: No one knows exactly where
the inspiration originated and even who was the first to
produce it. The Ouija seems to blend the characteristics
of the planchette, minus the pencil, and dial plates, which
were circular boards with letters painted along the bottom
rim. Two persons concentrated on a rocking T-bar
that spelled out messages by pointing to letters.
The Ouija may have been the idea of a coffin maker,
E. C. Reiche, who lived in Maryland in the 19th century.
According to lore, Reiche had an interest in table tilting,
in which a group of people sit around a table with hands
lightly touching its surface and ask questions of spirits.
The answers are given in the manner in which the table
moves, shakes, and rocks. Reiche desired to create a device
for communicating with the dead, and he was impressed
that heavy tables seemed to be easily manipulated
by spirits. He teamed up with two friends, Elijah Bond
and Charles Kennard. At some point, Reiche dropped out
of the picture.
The Kennard Novelty Company began manufacturing
the Ouija in 1890. It is not clear whether Kennard or Bond
founded the company or if they worked together. But later,
each claimed to have been the founder. The patent for the
Ouija was registered in Bond’s name in 1891.
Also unclear is the origin of the name Ouija. According
to one story, Kennard was given the name by a spirit
while he was using the board himself. The spirit claimed
it meant “good luck” in ancient Egyptian. Another story
says that Reiche thought of the name.
The Ouija was sold initially as a device for talking to
spirits, which angered mediums, who feared they would
lose business. The early success of the company was shortlived,
however, for in 1892 it was lost in a hostile takeover
by two of Kennard’s own financial supporters, the brothers
Isaac and William Fuld. The patent for the Ouija was
reregistered the same year in the name of William Fuld,
and the company’s name was changed to the Ouija Novelty
Company. William Fuld also reinvented some of the
board’s history, claiming credit himself for its invention.
He said the name Ouija really was from the French and
German words for “yes,” oui and ja, respectively.
The new company had a difficult time. Competitors
jumped into the market. Isaac manipulated the financial
books and was fired by William, who then changed the
company name again, to the Baltimore Talking Board
Company. Isaac set up a rival company called Oriole and
began marketing a near-duplicate board. In 1910, William
added a clear plastic window to his planchette.
The brothers engaged in a legal battle for control of
the patent; William won. “Ouija, the Mystifying Oracle”
soared in popularity during and after World War I, as
thousands of bereaved persons attempted to contact the
spirits of soldiers killed in the war. Fuld publicly claimed
not to use the board himself, but many people believed
that he did.
The company ran into federal tax trouble. Fuld had
tried to avoid paying taxes on the grounds that the Ouija