The Encyclopedia Of Demons And Demonology

curse 49
not leave breath in them. I conjure you by him who has
delivered you, at the time, the god of the sea and the air:
Iao, Iasdo . . . aeia.
Iao and Iasdo are variants of Yahweh, a Jewish name for
God.
Curses in various forms are mentioned 230 times in
the Bible. JESUS cursed a fig tree because it had no fruit and
he was hungry; the next day the tree was found withered
to its roots (Mark 11:12–14). However, Jesus condemned
cursing and so did Paul, who urged people to bless those
who cursed them.
Curses can affect generations. Families can be cursed
by outsiders or become cursed through involvement in
sinful activities. Participation in witchcraft or occult activities
can curse a person or family, according to Christian
tradition. Occult activities can include seeking communication
with and knowledge from spirits instead of
God and using magic or sorcery to control and manipulate
others, including with objects that are cursed.
Curses also can be made against others through ill
wishing, negative judgments of others, negative thoughts
about one’s self, and unhealthy relationships and sexual
activities.
DELIVERANCE ministers and EXORCISTs who have the
gift of discernment can determine whether or not a person
has been cursed and is afflicted by a demon. There
are likely to be signs of mental or emotional breakdown,
repeated and chronic illness, infertility and miscarriages,
financial problems, a tendency to have accidents, and a
family history of unnatural and untimely deaths, such as
by violence or suicide.
In cases of possession and EXORCISM performed by the
Catholic Church, cursed objects are dangerous and must
be destroyed. If a victim vomits up a cursed object, the
exorcist should not touch it directly; an exorcist who does
so should pray and wash his or her hands with holy water.
The object should be burned.
In less extreme cases, the effects of a curse can be
removed by prayer, attendance at church, reading the
Bible, repentance, renunciation, placing crucifi xes and
religious objects in the home, and attending to a virtuous
life.
Cursing Demons in Magic
In ceremonial magic, spirits or demons who refuse to appear
when evoked in ritual may be cursed to burn in fire
by the magician. This threat is said to terrify the spirits
into obedience. The grimoire Key of Solomon gives this
curse:
We deprive ye of all office and dignity which ye may
have enjoyed up till now; and by their virtue and power
we relegate you unto a lake of sulphur and of flame, and
unto the deepest depths of the Abyss, that ye may burn
therein eternally for ever.
Another curse, called “Curse of the Chains” or “The
General Curse” (also called “The Spirits Chains”), involves
ritual cursing and a sealing of the disobedient demon
inside a box bound by IRON chains:
O spirit N., who art wicked and disobedient, because
thou hast not obeyed my commands and the glorious
and incomprehensible Names of the true God, the Creator
of all things, now by the irresistible power of these
Names I curse thee into the depths of the Bottomless Pit,
there to remain in unquenchable fire and brimstone until
the Day of Wrath unless thou shalt forthwith appear
in this triangle before this circle to do my will. Come
quickly and in peace by the Names Adonai, Zebaoth,
Adonai, Amioram. Come, come, Adonai King of Kings
commands thee.
The magician then writes the demon’s name and SEAL
on parchment which he places in a black wooden box
that contains sulfur and other foul-smelling ingredients.
He binds the box with iron chains, which imprison the
demon. The magician hangs the box on the point of his
sword and holds it over a fire, saying:
I conjure thee, Fire, by Him who made thee and all other
creatures of this world to burn, torture and consume this
spirit N. now and for evermore.
The magician warns the demon that his name and seal
will be burned in the box and then buried. If the spirit
still does not appear, the magician works himself up into
a greater fury of cursing, calling down the wrath of all the
company of heaven, the Sun, the Moon, the stars, and the
light of the hosts of heaven. As a final measure, he drops
the box into the fire. The demon will find this unbearable
and will appear.
Cursed Objects
Any object can be ritually cursed to affect whoever owns
it with misfortune, and even death. Sometimes objects
are cursed by circumstances. For example, the “screaming
skulls” of England are said to be haunted by restless
ghosts of the dead. Some of the skulls belong to victims
of religious persecution during the 16th-century Reformation
initiated by King Henry VIII. Others are those of
Oliver Cromwell’s supporters, called Roundheads, during
the English Civil War in the mid-17th century. Still other
skulls are from people who lost their heads in various
violent episodes, such as murders. Other cursed objects
may house demons that unleash trouble upon the owners
of the objects. (See POSSESSION.)
Protection against Curses
Numerous remedies against cursing exist. AMULETs protect
against or deflect curses, whether a person has specific
knowledge about them or not. Semiprecious stones
and jewels have been used since ancient times as amulets
against curses and other forms of dark magic, illness, and
misfortune. For example, the ancient Egyptians inscribed
spells on lapis lazuli. The early Greeks and Romans wore
certain carved semiprecious and precious gems as rings
and necklaces to ward off curses.