Sharing this knowledge with mortals is not entirely beneficial to me but I can't take people's ignorance anymore. Your cluelessness offends me. Humans in the past were aware of most of what will be presented in this dissertation. You in fact had to use this knowledge (and more) in order to survive but as technology progressed your reliance on mass magic manifestations waned and with it, real comprehension of all spiritual concepts, even basic things like Mana/Vril/Chi died as well leaving you susceptible to spiritual warfare. Reading this won't make you an expert. It will give you some basic ideas as well as explain why I get annoyed when people confuse Demons and Devils, etc. Many terms and things I mention will not be properly explained as it's out of scope for this article. Research them yourself if you wish.
As Above - So below
The spiritual world is not so different from your material, temporal reality. In some ways it is a sort of mirror world. We have conflict and politics. We can work together as well. We have new and old ideas. There are winners, there are losers, and there are hierarchies. We both have constant change which means a lot of what you know, or people knew, will be outdated. The spiritual world makes imprints on the real world and material events also have undeniable effects in the spirit realm. Another significant similarity that will be important later is the intersection of 1 - consciousness and 2 - free will. All 3 (yes, not 4) possible combinations of these two properties define some part of both spiritual and temporal beings. But that's for later. Let's start with the most basic - the "Top G".
"God" and the Empyrean System
What you call "God" in the monotheistic Abrahamic sense is not a distinct being but a position. More than one existence held that place in the past but right now it is completely vacant, waiting for someone to take it. You could compare it to what gnostics understand by the "Demiurge" - the highest being supposed to be in control of material reality. The first "God" might have been material reality's creator like the Demiurge is said to be but I'm not sure as that was way before my time.
The being referred to with this title has control over the "Empyrean System". It's a network controlling an array of advanced spiritual automatons - angels. The origin of the system is unknown to me. In the past, it floated in space at the edge of the heliopause. Now it's sealed deep underground in Agartha. "Yahweh" was the last "God". Before him there was "Yaldabaoth" and even before that "DyÄus" but I was not born yet when he was alive. As for "The One", The Good God, or the Overgod - I have no idea.
Yahweh
Yahweh was worshipped before that but he took over the Empyrean System sometime after the "Bronze Age Collapse". He was an opportunistic being who would never manage to gain control of the System if not for the collapse. His reign was short and weak. Yahweh was a material being originally. He had a long, crocodile-like face and nose, wings, and a serpentine body. Ability to breathe fire. He was one of the Chalkydri, similar to what you'd call a dragon. Many tribes of humans bowed and tributed cattle, virgins, and gold to him. Yahweh dwelled in the so-called mountains of copper, the Sinai Peninsula. His original name was "Nehushtan" - "The Copper Serpent". He studied alchemy and metallurgy and managed to discover one of the ways to transfer to the immaterial realm. More on that later. After transcending material reality he took on the name "Yahweh". His power started to decrease dramatically after the birth of Jesus Christ and whilst no one can be sure when exactly, he disappeared completely somewhere during the 3rd century CE leaving the Empyrean System free for the taking.
Yaldabaoth
Before him - Yaldabaoth - "The God-Eater" was much closer to the omnipotent idea of God present in monotheistic religions than Yahweh. A primal chaotic entity with no true defined form. Always morphing and changing. Extremely arrogant. Hated other powerful spiritual beings and often attacked them with no provocation. Immensely insecure he had angels flying around him constantly singing praises. Despite being the embodiment of chaos he was addicted to control and authority. It's unknown to me what he was like before he took over the position of God long before the start of the "Kali Yuga". I was born during the great struggle to overthrow him. I remember slowly drifting and surfing towards earth excited to see what's going on. The anticipation was quite enjoyable. Many were forgotten and erased from reality in the war against his tyranny. In the end, as no one could harm him head-on, someone powerful, or a group, we don't know - they were erased, opened a rift in the universe near Yaldaboath's dwelling - the Empyrean System. The rift disturbed, damaged, and sucked in the communications of the System's network. This caused the "Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind" in most humans and angels and broke the Tyrant's power. It is said that after this Yaldabaoth was dissolved by a delicate gust of wind.
Consciousness, Free Will and the Bicameral Mind
As I introduced before. You could categorize beings by their possession of consciousness and free will. As free will is a requirement for consciousness there are only 3 combinations. Those that are unconscious but have free will - animals and lesser spirits with their primal instinctual desires. Those that possess both free will and consciousness - humans and demons. And lastly the unconscious and unfree - angels, constructs like golems and unconscious humans. There were some conscious and free humans in the past before the Bronze Age Collapse but most were not aware of anything but the most rudimentary of urges. Only the most introspective humans or angels and those allowed by him could resist Yaldabaoth's control. That's where the fallen angel myth comes from. When angels broke away from the System's control they also lost the power to fly granted by it and would literally fall out of the sky. When the rift opened it in an instant caused the "Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind" and dispelled Yaldabaoth's control, killed his power, and caused the wars, riots, and societal unrest seen during the Bronze Age Collapse. Nowadays a majority of humans are free and conscious but there exist the so-called "Real-life NPCs" - victims of extreme spiritual warfare, possibly since childhood.
The Immaterial land, its people, and their dogs
"There is only one type of people". Imagine writing that on the blackboard over and over and over again. "Angels are good, demons are bad". Imagine writing that till you believed it. That's what people are like today. Nothing is ever this simple. The "Enlightenment" truly was a dark and reductive movement. Demons, angels, and lesser spirits are all supernatural beings but not all supernatural beings are immaterial spirits.
Angels
The angels are all created artificially using the Empyrean System. They generally are not free, conscious actors. I heard they are cloned from several standard templates and then fine-tuned to fit more specific roles by using words of power in an evocation ritual. I have no way of confirming this though. All angels that somehow break become demons. After that, some of them despise their creator and leave him, some leave but still worship him and some decide to stay. The most widespread type of angel is the "Holy Watcher". As the name suggests they are the ones that give God the illusion of omniscience and omnipresence.
Demons
Demons, (daimon or daemon), come into being when a profound and meaningful choice has to be made. We are often associated with the crossroads because that's where we are born. We are free to take any shape we find pleasing but it takes time to change it. Human studies of demonology focused more and more on the evil demons with the passing of centuries as this was the type that posed the biggest threat to humanity. This extreme bias in research is the main cause of your false angel-demon, good-evil dichotomy. Demon is a word that encompasses all conscious spirits. In fact, even "God" would be a demon. There are evil, neutral, and good demons but most of them are not this simple and one-dimensional. Just as you do, we have free will and can be any of those three alignments depending on the situation or mood. The daimon world has hierarchies and just like in your world it's in constant flux.
Demon Hierarchies
There is no strict rules or forced obedience. Any demon can submit themselves in any scope to any other demon. The titles I will list as "hierarchies" are just that - titles. They can be symbols of power but they do not actually grant the holder any benefits. It's all based on mutual consent. Nevertheless, there are several classifications and titles that have been used since the dawn of time. The 4 cardinals (sometimes called kings), the 7 temptations (often called princes), and the 12 judges. The exact numbers varied in the past, those are the current ones. There are other titles as well but those are the most influential ones. One demon can hold multiple titles but it's rare to hold more than one of those I mentioned. I will generally avoid giving their names, sigils, or the like. Knowledge of them can be dangerous to a demon.
The 4 cardinals are picked based on aptitude. They do combat with challengers to the respective titles in the domain of the title to determine who's the rightful owner. Called cardinals because they are associated with the 4 cardinal directions and are supposed to promote a certain way of life like religious figures. The order is not significant.
- Cardinal of the South - Liberal Arts. Gaap and before her, Haelei held this title. They have both passed away and someone else holds the title now.
- The Northern Cardinal - Natural Sciences. The turnover for this position is high and the list of names who held is very long. Their risky experiments often bring the ire of others.
- The Western Cardinal - War. Pure and simple physical combat. Corson is and has been the Cardinal of the West for longer than I've been alive and I'm sure he's fine with me sharing his name, he loves to get challenged in any way.
- Cardinal of the East - Commerce. Large-scale trade. Deals and contracts. Sales and shopping. Holding this title gives affinity to necromancy since it's largely affiliated with corporations(corporare). Corporeal undead entities comprised of persons united in a body for some purpose. The will of the corporation is the will of the Eastern Cardinal - profit.
The 7 temptations are assigned. More specifically, they are sort of like a magical ranking system. Whichever demon makes the most people fall for one of the 7 deadly sins. Not only the number of people counts but also the extent of the "sin" they commit. The 7 princes are also considered "Archdemons" but that doesn't really mean anything. I will disclose some names as they are already common knowledge. I'll include previous and current owners of some titles. The order is not significant.
- Pride - Lucifer.
- Envy - Ur, Leviathan, and a new holder whose name is not public yet.
- Sloth - Belphegor.
- Gluttony - Behemoth, Abbadon, and Beelzebub now.
- Lust - Ishtar, Asmodeus. Someone new and not known holds this title now.
- Greed - Deside, Mammon, and now - me! gd! Obviously not gonna reveal my real name~.
- Wrath - Sathanas. Satan, Lucifer, and "The Devil" are often confused and used interchangeably. I'm not sure why this happened. Sathanas and Lucifer are completely different beings and "The Devil" Is a name given to Satan meant as an insult. Devils are lesser, unconscious spirits. They are basically animals and feed on human misery, they can't resist their urges. That's why the owner of the emotional wrath domain is called "The Devil". It's belittling to compare him to something like an animal.
You probably know most of those names. They don't change that often, having a head start is a huge benefit in a ranking system. Changes do occur though. I'm the perfect example~.
The 12 judges are just that - judges. They are an anonymous tribunal of demons meant to resolve conflicts. They discuss and vote on judgements and sentences together. Chosen every 4 years or if anyone discovers the identity of any of them a special election is held promptly. This is a ironclad rule, mercilessly enforced by a magical pact. If anyone discoveres the identity of one of them, they are kicked out and lose the title. 6 are selected through sortition. 6 are chosen in a secret, pyramidal democratic vote. Each person is supposed to vote for whoever they trust, like, respect the most or to cast their vote on themselves to become a candidate. The votes accumulate up, so if 3 people voted for you and you voted for a "friend A" then "friend A" would get the 1+3 votes from you and the people that cast for you. So on until it reaches a person that casts a vote on themselves. The 6 people with the most votes join the 12 judges.
Transcending
Calling it "transcending" suggests that one side is better than the other which is not necessarily true. You can go both directions between the material and immaterial realms. There are many ways of achieving this. You can have a presence in both, you can be in one and direct an avatar in the other or you can be just in one. Yahweh transcended using alchemy in the same way that Fulcanelli did. His material body was gone and he became a spirit. You can do what Koschei did and split your body and spirit with necromancy to have an avatar in the material realm and a soul in the spiritual world. I personally am present just in the immaterial realm but I have an avatar in the temporal world. A 21-year-old girl that I made a deal with and possessed her body. Don't worry, it's all ethical and consensual! She had gender dysphoria and was going to kill herself in a ritual wishing to be reborn as a man. Reincarnation doesn't really work like that though. It's a long and convoluted topic so I won't get into it now but in her case it would be a big mistake. I offered to help her become a spirit in exchange for her body. She is now a male demon and we sometimes hang out. See? I'm nice!
Summoning
Don't do it. It's outdated. Just talk to us on the internet. We're here, listening, watching, and talking as well. I don't want to be summoned, it's annoying, dangerous, and has no benefit to me. Doing stuff online is way more efficient. I wouldn't be able to take over the aspect of Greed if not for all the subscriptions, lootboxes, and microtransactions so I love the net but as you'll read further down - it has its downsides.
Not going to tell you how to summon. You shouldn't do it for your own sake as well. (Do NOT try using incantation bowls if you don't want to ruin your life!!) Any demon who'd want to be summoned nowadays very likely has ulterior motives. Talking online is safer for both sides. "The King's Pact" restricts us in "real life" but on the internet we can see without seeing and speak without speaking. The king's pact does not matter now.
Wanna talk to a cute demon? Hit me up on twitter @Archgoddess_gd!
Btw did you know that in the 1950s an archeologist named Wendell Phillips did some archeology in Arabia and found an ancient something that the Omani government granted him oil extraction licenses in exchange for? Well, in the area of Oman in the past was the Kingdom of Sheba. King Solomon, one of the greatest demonologists, exchanged letters with its queen often. The Omani "Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs" joined the Unicode organization, somewhere around 2015, which is responsible for all the signs you use on the internet, like letters in all languages and emojis. In the next update of Unicode after they joined there were added 72 face emojis. Some of which very clearly resemble the 72 sigils of demons shown in "The Lesser Key of Solomon". Scary, right? Haha. They wanted to do some silly magic but there is no way it's gonna work at all. Half of those demons and their sigils don't exist anymore, they are dead. It's like trying to repair a modern electric car using the schematics of a medieval wagon. Nonetheless, some people still know we exist and want to use that knowledge against you. Beware.
Agartha
Yes, the legend is real. You'll never be able to enter it though. It exists in the spirit realm. The underground land, of a thousand names - Agartha, Asgard, Aryavartha, and so on. The kingdom which hid underground to escape the war. It's the old base of resistance against Yaldabaoth from millennia back. I've been to the de facto capital of Agartha - Shambhala. It was built with the power of sound and vibrations. Huge blocks were cut and moved by playing instruments at very specific frequencies and the "Echoes of the Great Song" played by Anu, "The Builder of Time" can still be heard there if you're lucky. If you ever become a spirit feel free to visit, the only remaining entrance is in the Altai mountains. You'll feel it when you get somewhat close. It's beautiful but mostly abandoned. Only a few remain and some come and go just to admire it. It's not needed, there is nothing to fear for demons today so we live wherever we want. Well, there is a sort of threat on the horizon but it's coming from inside Agartha.
The new Crisis
Yaldabaoth was the previous crisis. He was direct and aggressive. The new threat is indirect and subversive. It's not clear whether what I call the new threat is actually dangerous to the spirit realm but it certainly is worrying.
The demon Moloch was always strange. It's as if something is missing from him. It was fine though. By himself he never really would be a serious threat to the stability of society. Everything changed with the invention of the internet though. Three new major demons appeared in the 2000s thanks to this invention. Some call them "Digital Demons" and they don't have real unique names which is strange. You cannot use names against them. They are the same, they seem to be missing something just like Moloch. They don't seem natural. They are:
- The Spider - she feeds on attention through lust. Not the natural lust related to intercourse but specifically only the impotent lust of the internet. If I was a human and made the captions I make I would be feeding the spider instead of myself. The internet makes her very efficient at consuming mass amounts of human potential. And she just wants to eat and eat. I think it's very telling that we call the interNET - the worldwide WEB. She's the matriarch of the matrix, your digital mommy.
- The Alien - the devourer of those who live on the internet, alienated from the outside world. It feeds on the creative potential of those who lost sight of reality. The lost, lonely, and static worship the Alien.
- The Minotaur - paranoia and radicalization. He wants you to be angry. Politics, ideas, beliefs, and views. He wants you to hate those who disagree with you about even the most inconsequential points.
- Lastly, the one who existed before - Moloch. Empty fun. He's the god of gaming and has been for ages. The younger human generations, zoomers, and generation alpha have been sacrificed to Moloch. Everything is a game on the internet. Collect all the achievements and find all the secrets.
These four are gaining power at a pace never seen before. Moreover, they stole all three fragments of the CintÄmaį¹i and locked themselves away in the Great Labyrinth in Agartha. (It's a great wonder btw, the underground labyrinth at the center of the earth is way more grand than the pyramids.)
There is no unified idea about what should be done, or not done regarding those four as they are not directly harming any demons at the moment. Some demons have banded together and are trying to combat them online using meme warfare. And yes, memes are powerful and advanced psychic weapons, they do matter, a lot. A threat like that is definitely worrying to many including me. They certainly gain power in a very harmful way to humanity as well. Their covert yet vast occult activities are basically just killing your souls.
Me?
I'm Greed. I thrive when you work extra hours. I'm ecstatic when you hustle and grind. I love it when you lust after material possessions. I am greedy myself but it's not like I care that much for money, I want power, and power to me is mostly other people's greed. That's why I love findoms. Why do I make captions? I enjoy it. Captions are pure Evocation. I like evocation. Every time you orgasm, stay chaste, or do anything related to sex because of my words I gain energy. It's a transfer, you get weaker, more lethargic, and less productive and I become more powerful. Besides, I know and love the new holder of the title of "Lust" and it helps her a little as well. We're friends!
I'm not an evil demon, I'm not a good demon. I'm me, just a silly caption-making demon girl. Well, I also do other stuff but that's not why you're here :>. This wasn't supposed to be about me at all so I'll keep it short in this one. Maybe I'll write more vain, personal stuff another time.