Satan

In Abrahamic mythological traditions, Satan emerges as a primordial figure of divine opposition, initially not as an absolute antagonist but as a heavenly accuser. In the Book of Job from the Hebrew Bible, he appears as 'ha-Satan', the Adversary, a member of the divine council who tests human faith with Yahweh's permission, questioning the disinterested loyalty of the righteous man. This early conception links him to roles of angelic prosecutor, far from incarnate evil. Apocryphal texts like the Book of Enoch expand his myth, associating him with fallen angels known as Watchers, led by figures like Azazel or Semjaza, who descended to Earth to unite with mortal women, begetting nephilim and corrupting creation. The fusion with Babylonian myths of celestial rebellions, like that of Tiamat and Marduk, infuses his image with primordial chaos challenging the cosmic order. In intertestamental Judaism, he evolves into a prince of demons, Belial or Mastema, ruler of impure forces that tempt and accuse.

The iconography of Satan varies drastically according to era and tradition, reflecting cultural and theological fears. In medieval Christian art, he is depicted as a winged dragon with twisted horns, prehensile tail and claws, inspired by apocalyptic visions from the Book of Revelation where he devours souls or lashes with his tail. Pagan influence incorporates traits of Pan or Cernunnos: goat horns, cloven hooves and erect phallus, symbolizing bestial lust and perverted fertility. During the Renaissance, artists like Gustave Doré humanize him in seductive or majestic forms, like the fallen angel with broken wings in Milton's Paradise Lost, with tragic beauty and aura of rebellious pride. In popular folklore, he adopts changing masks: the black crow of the Grimms, the infernal cat of witches or the rampaging bull in sabbatic rituals. In kabbalistic visions, he appears as Samael, the venom of God, an androgynous being of black fire and eyes like embers, mounted on a scarlet dragon.

Satan exerts dominion over infernal legions in demonic hierarchies detailed in grimoires like the Key of Solomon, where he occupies the pinnacle as Luxfer or Lucifer, sovereign of princes like Beelzebub (lord of flies, gluttony), Asmodeus (lust) and Mammon (avarice). His primordial rivalry with Archangel Michael culminates in the heavenly war prophesied in Revelation 12, where he is cast from heaven with his draconian host. In modern esotericism, he is syncretized with Prometheus, bearer of stolen fire, or Egyptian Set, god of desert and necessary chaos. Ambivalent relationships with Lilith, his consort in Jewish folklore, mother of lilim demons, or with fallen angels like Azazel, instructor of forbidden weapons and cosmetics. In LaVey's contemporary Satanism, he transcends to a symbol of rebellious individualism against divine tyranny, not a literal entity but a psychological archetype of self-affirmation.