The Encyclopedia Of Demons And Demonology

222 Sariel
and husband of LILITH and created with her a host of demon
children, including a son, SARIEL. Fearful that Samael
and Lilith would flood the world with their offspring, God
castrated Samael.
When God ordered the patriarch Abraham to kill his
son, Isaac, Samael tried to persuade Abraham not to do
it, in order to disobey God. When Abraham refused, Samael
went to Abraham’s wife, Sarah, and told her Isaac
was sacrificed to God, the news of which killed her
instantly.
In kabbalistic lore, a Spanish kabbalist of the 15th century
tried unsuccessfully to capture and control Samael.
The kabbalist summoned him in the name of God and
bound him by placing a crown upon his head that said
“Thy Master’s Name Is Upon Thee.” But Samael tricked
the kabbalist by convincing him to burn incense—an act
of idolatry—in order to seal his victory. When the incense
was burned, Samael was instantly freed.
Samael is the chief of the 10 evil demons of the sephirot
of the Tree of Life.
See KABBALAH.
FURTHER READING:
Hyatt, Victoria, and Joseph W. Charles. The Book of Demons.
New York: Simon & Schuster, 1974.
Sariel (Sarakiel, Saraqael, Saraqel, Suruquel, Suriel,
Uriel, Zerachiel) Good and FALLEN ANGEL. In the Enochian
writings, Sariel is Saraqel, not the same as Uriel.
Sariel rules Aries and is one of the nine ANGELs who preside
over the summer solstice. As a fallen angel, he
teaches the course of the Moon.
In Hebrew lore, Sariel is the son of LILITH and SAMAEL
(in some accounts, Ashmodai or ASMODEUS), the “Sword
of Samael.” Sariel’s face flames like fire. In the middle of
the night of Yom Kippur, the prayers and acts of sages and
elders can call him forth. Sariel appears reluctantly, flying
through the air with 130 warriors, all of whom have
flaming faces. Sariel gives enlightenment to all who call
him forth. A scribe, Pifiron, carries all the secrets of the
firmament that have been sealed by Sariel. These secrets
are revealed to the elders.
In the War of the Sons of Light and the Sons of Darkness
(also known as the Triumph of God), one of the Qumran
texts, Sariel is one of the four leaders of the forces of
good. The human warriors are given exact instructions
on who is to fight where, with weapons described carefully.
There are four subdivisions (towers), and each is
to have the name of their archangel inscribed on their
shield. Sariel is on the third tower.
Satan The personification of evil and the head of all
DEMONs. He is equated with the DEVIL. Satan is a Hebrew
word meaning “adversary” and originally was not a
proper name. Satan has evolved over the centuries to
become the opposite and the opponent of God, the Prince
of Darkness, and the subverter of souls. His goal is turn
to human beings away from God so that they become
condemned to eternal torment in HELL.
Satan, as the proper name of a being, makes scant appearance
in religious texts prior to the New Testament.
There is no mention of “the” Satan, or even “a” satan in
Genesis. The SERPENT who tempts Eve is not equated with
Satan. The Old Testament features a variety of satan adversaries,
including an angel adversary in the story of
Balaam and the ass in the book of Numbers; lying spirits;
and, in the book of Job, a satan, who is one of the SONS
OF GOD, and who walks the earth looking for people to
test concerning their devotion to God. In the case of the
pious and devout Job, God gives the satan permission to
test him, and he suffers years of setbacks, disasters, and
losses. A satan, as an accuser, is mentioned in the book of
Zechariah. In 1 Chronicles, a satan stands up and challenges
David to take a census of the people. Psalm 109
refers to wicked men as satans, and they should be punished
by Yahweh.
In the New Testament, Satan becomes more personified
as a particular, single entity, and the terms Devil and
Satan are used interchangeably. The Gospels tell of Satan’s
testing JESUS in the wilderness. In Mark, he is named
as Satan; in Matthew and Luke, he is “the tester” or “the
Devil.” In Luke, the Devil promises Jesus earthly glory if
he will pay the proper homage. In Luke 10, Jesus comments
that he has seen Satan “fallen like lightning from
the sky,” a reference similar to the fall of LUCIFER in Isaiah
that is probably a prophecy of a fall to come, not one that
occurred in the past. Luke also states that Satan entered
into Judas to induce him to betray Jesus.
The Gospel of John makes references to the Devil. In
the first, he is the “man-killer from the beginning” who
does not stand for Truth, a reference often taken to refer to
the serpent in the Garden of Eden. Jesus refers to him as
the Ruler of the World. The Devil and Satan are both mentioned
in reference to entering into the heart of Judas.
The Epistles refer to both the Devil and Satan. Paul
refers to Satan by name as obstructing his efforts to spread
the gospel, as a tester of men’s morals and faith, and as
an agent of punishment for the wicked. In 2 Corinthians
2.10–11, Paul indicates that Satan has his own designs on
the world, and that forgiveness will outwit Satan. In the
same letter, Paul urges people to be on guard against Satan,
who can disguise himself as an angel of light. He also
says that an “angel of Satan” has been sent to batter him,
to prevent him from becoming too puffed up with his own
pride. Paul did not see Satan as marshaling an army of
demons; rather, he said that demons were the lifeless idols
of the pagans. In Ephesians, Paul gives advice for spiritual
armaments against Satan and warns that committing sins
will make room for him. In Hebrews, Satan has the power
of death, and it is Christ’s mission to overcome him.
In Revelation, Satan is synonymous with the dragon
and serpent. He tests people, battles angels, and is punished
and bound.