Baal (demon)
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- This is a page on demonology; for the god Baal or information on the name see Baal.
Bael.jpg
Baal is a Christian demon. The name Baal can also refer to various gods and goddesses who are not demons. This is a potential source of confusion. In this article the name Baal is used only to refer to the demon Baal, unless stated otherwise.
Other spellings: Bael, Baël (French), Baell.
The idea of Baal as a demon was created when Christianity turned ancient gods into demons and demonology divided the demonic population of Hell in several hierarchies. Baal, the Semitic god, did not escape, becoming a separate entity from Beelzebub.
According to demonology, Baal was ranked as the first and principal king in Hell, ruling over the East. According to some authors Baal is a Duke, with sixty-six legions of demons under his command. During the English Puritan period Baal was either compared to Satan or considered his main assistant. According to Francis Barrett he has the power to make those who invoke him invisible, and to some other demonologists his power is stronger in October. He can also, according to some sources, make people wise, and speaks hoarsely.
Unlike his Semitic predecessor who is depicted as a human or a bull, the demon Baal is usually depicted with three heads, the first of a man wearing a ducal crown, the second of a toad and the third of a cat. His chest is human, and the rest of the body is as a spider. Other demonologists depict him as an otherwise normal man with three heads (cat, toad and man), or as a man with the head of a cat, a man with the head of a toad, or, rarely, as a normal man. Other depictions say he can also appear in the shape of a cat or a toad.
Baal in popular culture
Baal is an end boss in the video game Diablo 2: Lord of Destruction. He is also a demon in the game Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne.