Is Baphomet evil to ya?

For me...I'm still confused about Baphomet. I know atleast one person (well, not personally) that likes Baphomet and would never do anything he thought was Satanic (and is very well studied in both magick and theology). And I know that the Knights Templar liked Baphomet and the Pope (I believe the one that was Pope at the time) although, he still conteded that they had become corrupt and I think even that they were perverse, said he didn't believe they were heretics. But after I kept seeing the Baphomet in my head for a while, and decided to try to connect with it, I got a really evil feeling vibe. I'm not really sure why, but I did. I suppose it's possible that I could have been accidentally connecting with something else or it could have been from my own thoughts on Baphomet's appearance. I'm not sure. He's nothing I've ever really studied myself before, so I can't really say. But I figured I wouldn't try to connect again until I did some study on him and learned more about him so I will know what I am dealing with.

Well, from what the wiki says, Baphomet was imagined entity in christian folklore in the 11th and 12th century as a term for a pagan idol. I guess it was imagined to make paganism look evil.




http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baphomet

The most common depiction of baphamet held today was drawn by Eliphas Levi. I don't mind this image. Notice that the star is upright (this is important). It is a very strange depiction of what a deity would be if they were what they create. It has female, male, and animal parts and has quite a lot of other symbolism surrounding it. But this image has such a bad history that I feel it has tainted this archetype. Alester Crowley's way of twisting beliefs into whatever satisfied his own psychological problems didn't help to make this symbol remain pure. Images, symbols, deities etc gain energy from those who believe in them and use them. This energy than becomes attached through time and the masses. Thoughts take shape and manifest. This is why we use ancient symbols and deities. We could make up our own names and ideas of what we feel to be our "divinity" but it wouldn't hold the same power. Why? Because it is new and has yet to be given that sustainable hold on the material world through the belief and use of many many physical people. So when famous occultists like Alester Crowley and spiritual leaders like the Catholic Church twist the minds of men into believing twisted truths...they taint the image. Use in ritual, practice and worship out weigh common thought correct?

Well what makes matters worse is that E.A. Waites later made the baphamet symbol an icon of "The Devil" card of his tarot and the pentagram is reversed this time. Countless people through generations learn that this card and it's meaning is everything but good. How many magick practioners pick up this card with baphomet during their use in divination!

Even Eliphas Levi himself wrote in his book on Transcendental Magic "A reversed pentagram, with two points projecting upwards, is a symbol of evil and attracts sinister forces because it overturns the proper order of things and demonstrates the triumph of matter over spirit."

I think that this deity has two sides, that of the upward pentacle (spirit over matter) and that of the downward pentacle (matter over spirit). The downward one gives me chills and I have had very nasty dealings with it.

Now in witchcraft the downward pentagram is sometimes used for widdershins magick, which gives it a different meaning. It is a simple symbol used for a task charged with the intent of the caster.

But when someone applies such an image to a being, an icon, it is impressing a specific aspect that is not an all around good thing. And when used in a negative light by the masses, it adds to the negativity surrounding it.

That is my opinion. If you use Baphomet, use Eliphas Levi's depiction with the upright star. Symbolism matters. Now I'm going to bed.

The upside down pentagram has been used as an evil image but really look at it. It is pointing down towards the earth. All the energy used is resent into the Earth. The upside pentagram is sending energy up into the universe instead of the earth to replenish it. Also the goat head is to represent the Goetic Demons or Gods of Durat. The eh wee wee (only thing i could think to please uptight sexual folks) is the two snakes rising. This is the Caduceus symbol of the koundalini serpent rising from the 7 chakra. I already mentioned the male and female parts. It only feels evil because thats what has been drummed into peoples heads. That its evil you should stay away. When you open your mind and look at the symbolism you see that its a symbol of internal power of ones self and the soul.

Satanism uses the downward pentagram because most commonly Satanists are their own god (mostly figuratively speaking), even Aleister Crowley followed this self empowering path. Therefore their existence (which is material) is seen in a higher regard than the spirit which is generally associated with the Divinity they deny. Since they have accepted this through and through, it works for them. They are not going against their nature.

Although not much has been written authentically concerning the pentagram and how it is turned, the Roman Emperor Constantine used it much like Satanists reverse the cross, and reversed the pentagram on his seal when he converted to Christianity. It was a slap in the face to paganism! This alone should cause one to not like the downward pentagram used in fashion and artistry. It was a symbol of the beginning of the destruction of our ancient ways.

But to show honor to an archetype with this symbolism characterizing it's nature (material over spirit) when you highly regard other Divinity or spirit, it is hypocritical. And being a hypocrite is not being true to oneself which attracts negative spiritual attention and energy. You will gain the worst attention from both sides.

If you focus on the The Goat of Mendes connected to the pre-Christian Satan deities of Babylon, Mesopotamia, Sumeria, and Egypt, then I believe one should use those deities and not Baphomet. That is like using the Virgin Mary icons to reach Isis.

But if you are going to include true Baphomet symbolism into your practice, than you should use it the way it was intended, and it never originally had a downward facing pentagram. In fact Levi was the first to give it a star and made it upright. Why people had to flip it around, I don't understand. However, the entire figure itself is misunderstood. It never had a connection with the Goat of Mendes, Levi mistook the name Baphamet for another god, Banedjet...forgive my destroyed spelling of that name. So for those who connect it to the Goat of Mendes (a connection Levi mistakenly began) I don't see how they can dismis his symbology and interpretation of the downward pentagram! It's a very confusing situation! Believe one false interpretation, yet deny the very same author's translation of the reversed pentagram that has historical standing.

Satanists and those who think similarly to this path added this reversed pentagram and many other words and symbols to represent their ideal deity and ways. And to each their own, but if you do not believe in what satanists believe, do your research on it's origins and work from the old scripts, and scholar/historian research, not modern interpretations and twists designed to suit the needs of modern men of a specific path.

Again, purely my opinion and observations.
Of course it is very difficult not to step on Satanist toes when discussing this topic because their is such diversity, every Satanist I've ever spoken to has a slightly different belief.

So to answer your question, is it evil, no. Has it been twisted into something entirely different than it was intended and possibly even a fabrication of the Catholic Church during the Inquisition? Quite possibly. But none the less, it is growing more and more popular. Would I ever use it? Never.

We use this symbol not as another God but for purely the symbolism. Most of the symbolism is what we believe in. We flipped the Pentagram because for what i said. That a upside down pentagram restores energy to the earth.

That's interesting. What's your source(s) for that? I never heard of that and try to be as well read as possible concerning world religions and symbolism, but it is impossible to know everything. Consider it a hobby. Some people collect stamps, I collect information. I've always found religion and beliefs in general fascinating.

If you look at Baphomet it holds much of Spiritual Satanism symbolism. The rising snakes for the koudalini serpent. The goat head for the Goteia Demons. The female and male parts for the two parts of the mind. The upside down pentagram also represents Bahpomet's Head. The way the hands are positioned. The horns represnt the Witchforce which is of Mercury. The wings represent the wings of the soul to reach Spiritual Freedom. The white and black moon clearly represents both good and evil. However the good and evil is outside and pointed to this shows that good and evil is in the eyes of the beholder.

I know the symbolism surrounding Baphoment. I think you describing it though was a great addition to the thread. But I was referring more so to a source that defines the symbol of the downward pointing pentagram the way you described it "restoring energy to the earth". I have never seen that and if there is a something I missed about one of my most favorite symbols, I would like to read it.

So far it's only a Spiritual Satanist view but if you look at it makes sense. It's downward and pointing to the earth so any energy used with it would go back to the earth. Common sense really. Also the upside down pentagram represents Baphomet itself. Its a outline of the Goat head. The horns are the to two side pointing up and the the two to the side are the ears and the single point, pointing to the bottom is the chin. The middle is the face and eyes.