Pandemonium and mythologies (spoilers)

[Sefie1999AD]

It seems FF2's final dungeon, the Pandemonium, is taken from some myth, and many other monsters, bosses and items inside the place are also based on various mythologies and legends. As far as I know, Pandemonium is some kind of Fortress of Hell. Does anyone have any further information where all those things in FF2's last dungeon have been taken from, and what kind of background story they originally have?

[Demerwen Owns]

I believe that Pandemonium is one of the levels of hell according to the book Dantes Inferno.

[aeris2001x2]

Yes, though its called the "divine comedy".

well i know Belzebub is another name for satan (and also symbolised "the son" in the unholy trinty of Marlow's Dr Faust)

well we all know that Tiamat is a Hydra from classic mythology.

i,d be interested to know if Astaroth is from classic mythology, as he was just an Amazing boss.

[Demerwen Owns]

Astaroth is one of the seventy two demons in accordance with King Salomons treatise on demonology.

According to some authors on demonology, Astaroth is a king of Hell, being Lucifer the Emperor and Satan a seducer of women; his main assistants are three demons called Aamon, Pruslas and Barbatos. In art, in the Dictionnaire Infernal, Astaroth is depicted as a nude man with dragon-like wings, hands and feet, a second pair of feathered wings after the main, wearing a crown, holding a serpent in one hand, and riding a wolf or dog. According to Sebastian Michaelis he is a demon of the First Hierarchy, who seduces by means of laziness and vanity, and his adversary is St. Bartholomew, who can protect against him for he has resisted Astaroth's temptations. To others, he teaches mathematical sciences and handicrafts, can make men invisible and lead them to hidden treasures, and answers every question formulated to him.

According to Francis Barrett, Astaroth is the prince of accusers and inquisitors. According to some demonologists of the 16th century, August is the month during which this demon's attacks against humans are stronger. His name seems to come from the goddess ‘Ashtart/Astarte which was rendered in the Latin Vulgate translation of the Bible as Astharthe (singular) and Astharoth (plural), that last form rendered in the King James Version of the Bible of the Bible as Ashtaroth. It seems this plural form was taken either from the Latin or from some translation or other by those who did not know it was a plural form nor knew that it referred to a goddess, seeing it only as a name applied to some god other than God and therefore the name of a devil.

[aeris2001x2]

wow, thats really cool. thanks Demerwen Owns. i like Astaroth a lot now.

do you know if he was a fallen angel (a devil) or already resident in hell before the arrivial of Lucifer(a demon)? i suppose being the King of hell he must have ruled till Lucifer's coming.

i want my fav Demonic entity Asmodeus, or even Mephisto, to be in a ff game someday...

[Demerwen Owns]

Asmodeus
Aka : Asmodaï, Chammadaï, Sydonaï; creature of judgement

Element/sin : spirit of lustand unfaithfulness

Shape : a fire-breathing creature with three heads (the first one resembling that of a bull, the second that of a man, and the third that of a ram.), feet like a goose and a serpent tail. He rides a dragon and hold in his hand a Lance with a Banner.

Rank : one of the seven archdemons of Persian mythology; rules 72 Legions of Amaymon’ army

Origin : Persian (Aeshma, evil genie in the Avesta); also a fallen angel

Myths : appears in the apocryphal Book of Tobit as the demon-lover of Sara, who strangled each of her seven husbands. With the head of a charm given by God, Tobias eventually chased him away before Raphaël locked him in Egypt.He also helped build Salomon’s Temple and even took the throne of the King.

Magic : Asmodeus bequeaths his followers with rings engraved with planetary symbols. He teaches men the art of becoming invisible, as well as instructing them in geometry, arithmetic, astrlogy, and the mechanical sciences. He has vast knowledge concerning buried treasures, and can be forced to reveal their site with the help of appropriate spells and incantations. He, amongst the Legions, possessed Jeanne des Anges, the leading nun at Loudun.

Association : Amaymon; Aeshma; Tubal-Cain and Naamah

Source : Goetia; Tobit3:8; Testament of Solomon; Legemeton

Quote :

"The demon, repelled by the odor of the fish, fled into Upper Egypt; Raphael pursued him there and bound him hand and foot." - Tobit 8:3

'Better pleased
Than Asmodeus with the fishy fume
That drove him, though enamoured, from the spouse
Of Tobit's son, and with a vengeance sent
From Media post to Egypt, there fast bound."
Milton: Paradise Lost , iv. 167--71.

'Asmodeus burns with the desire to tempt men with his swine in luxuriousness and is the prince of wantons.'

Mephistopheles
Aka : Mephistopheles, Miphostophiles, Mephisto, Mephostophiles and Mephistophilis

Element/sin : Mercury or Jupiter

Shape : A dragon; a young nobleman in a red doublet trimmed with gold, with a stiff silk cloak, a cock's feather in his hat, wearing at his side a long sword; an elderly Gray Friar.

Origin : The great Abbot Trithemius referred to Faust in a letter dated 1507, calling the magician a fraud and a mountebank who should be whipped.

Myths : served as familiar demon to the German wandering scholar and magician Georgius Sabillicus Faustus (1480-1542) as part of Faust's pact with the Devil. Faust was a great scholar who grows tired of the vanity and impotence of ordinary human knowledge. He decides to turn to magic to fulfill his lust for fame, wealth and power.

Source:

Volsbuch vom Doktor Faustus (1587)

Christopher Marlowe The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Dr. Faustus (1589)
Goethe Faust (1775)
Thomas Man Doctor Faustus (1947)

Butler Ritual Magic

Quote :

May the gods of Acheron be propitious to me. Away with the three-fold godhead of Jehovah. Welcome, spirits of fire, air, water, and earth. We ask your favor, O prince of the East, Belzebub, monarch of burning hell, and Demogorgon, that Mephostophilis may appear and rise. What dost thou delay? By Jehovah, Gehenna, and the holy water which I now sprinkle, and the sign of the cross which I now make, and by our vows, may Mephostophilis himself now rise, commanded by us. Marlowe

This hellish Grand-Duke Mephistoph. appeared to me, Faust, first at a cross-road, and in a very cruel guise, like a bear, then mannerly like a lion; but through much persistence in my conjurations I managed to get him to promise to come to my study, and he came in the form of an old grey man. This spirit immediately made a pact with me for twenty-four years, and promised to bring me quick as thought to any place. Also I was to learn from him all the secret arts of nigromancy, and he promised to teach me magic properly. He also said: 'All secret arts of nature lie hidden in me. I govern in the hour of Jupiter; therefore I am very much attached to man, and warn him against making pacts. But if he will not heed my warning, then he will find no mercy from me when his hour strikes; nor would the star of Lucifer my Principal which is called Cerumepihiton and hardens the heart of men, allow it. I am most friendly when I appear as a grey man.' Karl Kohl Doctoris Iohannis Fausti magiae naturalis et innatural


As for Astaroth, he is Lord treasurer of hell, which I take to mean that he's a direct subordinate to Satan himself.

[aeris2001x2]

wow your detail is really impressive. did u get it off a website? if so, please tell me it cause i,d love 2 read more :evilking:

[Sefie1999AD]

According to Francis Barrett, Astaroth is the prince of accusers and inquisitors. According to some demonologists of the 16th century, August is the month during which this demon's attacks against humans are stronger. His name seems to come from the goddess ‘Ashtart/Astarte which was rendered in the Latin Vulgate translation of the Bible as Astharthe (singular) and Astharoth (plural), that last form rendered in the King James Version of the Bible of the Bible as Ashtaroth. It seems this plural form was taken either from the Latin or from some translation or other by those who did not know it was a plural form nor knew that it referred to a goddess, seeing it only as a name applied to some god other than God and therefore the name of a devil.

Wasn't Ashtaroth (sp) a city, a kingdom or something like that in the Bible? I also heard from someone that Beelzebub is in bug form in FF2 because he's supposed to be the Lord of the Flies.

EDIT: I checked the link provided by Demerwen Owns, and there were many interesting bits there. I didn't know Behemoth and Adramalech (from FFT) were also originally demons.

[Demerwen Owns]

The original texts from which this information was taken would be the greater and lesser keys of King Salomon, which date back to before christ. The modern, translated, and most likely bastardized version can be seen at:

http://demons.monstrous.com/demons_i.htm

[aeris2001x2]

well yes, he is (hence the dark meaning of the lord of the flies movie) but he is also an Avatar of Lucifer for sure.

owns sources seem very geniune, so Astaroth must be a devil. maybe a city was named after him?

hey, thanks Demerwen Owns

cool, i know about another fav devil, Amon. and the ffX-2 (SPOILER)super boss Angra Mainyu is the devil Ahriman. i love this website.

wow, Beelzebub was Prince of the Seraphim. i knew he was prince of hell, but he is not lucifer. he was one of lucifer's allies in hell.

Leviathan and Behemoth are also Demons. this is some sweet stuff.

[Lord Chainsaw]

Yeah demonology is pretty cool.

As for pandemonium itself I've heard about it being mentioned in Milton's Paradise Lost. I haven't actually read Paradise Lost as of the moment, but I'm going to get to that soon. The book sounds really interesting from the excerpts I've seen.

As it has already been said, it is a hall of demons in hell. It actually makes sense in you break it down. Pan-daemonium.

Behemoth and Bahamut might actually be related is what some say. Bahamut was a giant fish (I'm talking so giant the universe fits on top of him), so the word Behemoth might actually come to us from Bahamut.

I had no idea there was a demon named Amon, though. I've often heard that name mentioned in games such as Breath of Fire 2 and even the Lufia series.

[Hernandez Vidal]

Yeah, some psychologists believe that demons represent Jungian archetypes.

[aeris2001x2]

ermm what are these Archetypes u r refering 2?