Main Page

Featured article

King Solomon was, according to the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament, a fabulously wealthy and wise king of the United Kingdom of Israel who succeeded his father, David. The conventional dates of Solomon's reign are about 970–931 BCE, normally given in alignment with the dates of David's reign.

He is the subject of many other later references and legends, most notably in the 1st-century apocryphal work known as the Testament of Solomon. In the New Testament, he is portrayed as a teacher of wisdom excelled by Jesus Christ, and as arrayed in glory, but excelled by "the lilies of the field." In later years, in mostly non-biblical circles, Solomon also came to be known as a magician and an exorcist, with numerous amulets and medallion seals dating from the Hellenistic period invoking his name.

(Full Article...)

Did you know...

Archangel Metatron

• ... that the Goetic demon Barbatos appears when the sun is in Sagittarius?
• ... that the Archdemons of the Zodiac are of Persian and not Hebrew origin?
• ... that Bad Lord Soules is said to have defeated a Northumbrian giant, The Cout o' Keilder?
• ... that Archangel Metatron is referenced in the Islamic Quran?
• ... that the archangels Camael and Samael are sometimes conflated together?
• ... that Jainism teaches that although God may not exist, angels and demons are real?
• ... that Archangel Zaphkiel appears on Saturdays, but does not rule over that day?
• ... that De la démonomanie des sorciers contains the earliest definition of the word "witch?"

This month in history Edward Kelley in a cemetery December - The Rider-Waite Tarot is published for the first time. (1909) 1 December - Occultist and author Aleister Crowley dies of chronic bronchitis. (1947) 5 December - Pope Innocent VIII issues the Summis desiderantes affectibus, a papal bull that deputizes Heinrich Kramer and Jacob Sprenger as inquisitors to root out alleged witchcraft in Germany. (1484) 6 December - Transit of Venus, second and last of the 19th century. (1882) 6 December - Birth of Dion Fortune, a Welsh occultist, psychologist, and author. (1890) 9 December - The Virgin of Guadalupe first appears to Juan Diego at Tepeyac, Mexico City. (1531) 9 December - Birth of Hélène Smith, a French psychic and occultist. (1861) 11 December - Author and occultist Damien Echols is born. (1974) 13 December - Occultist Johannes Trithemius is born. (1516) 17 December - The first Saturnalia festival was celebrated in ancient Rome. (497 BC) 17 December - The tomb of Marie Laveau in St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 is vandalized by an unknown person. (2013) 19 December - Edward Kelley performs his first alchemical transmutation. (1586) 21 December - A great conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn occurs, with the two planets separated in the sky by 0.1 degrees. This is the closest conjunction between the two planets since 1623. (2020) 21/22 December - winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere. 25 December - A temple to Sol Invictus is dedicated in Rome by Emperor Aurelian. (274) 30 December - Russian mystic Grigori Rasputin is murdered by a group of nobles led by Prince Felix Yusupov. (1916) 31 December - Birth of Simon Forman, an English occultist and astrologer. (1552)

Featured image An individual Lilith, along with Bagdana "king of the lilits", is one of the demons to feature prominently in protective spells in the eighty surviving Jewish occult incantation bowls from Sassanid Empire Babylon (4th–6th century AD) with influence from Iranian culture. These bowls were buried upside down below the structure of the house or on the land of the house, in order to trap the demon. Almost every house was found to have such protective bowls against demons. The center of the inside of the bowl depicts Lilith, or the male form, Lilit. Surrounding the image is writing in spiral form; the writing often begins at the center and works its way to the edge. The writing is most commonly scripture or references to the Talmud. The incantation bowls which have been analysed, are inscribed in the following languages, Jewish Babylonian Aramaic, Syriac, Mandaic, Middle Persian, and Arabic. Some bowls are written in a false script which has no meaning. Photo Credit: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology (More Images)

Featured Quote "The Atheist complains about the wind. The Christian prays for it to change. The Satanist adjusts his sails." - Anton Szandor LaVey

More info

• About the Occult Encyclopedia
• General disclaimer
• Copyright issues