Demon Facts

Baphomet

Baphomet

AKA Baffumettus, Baffometi, Bafomet(z)

Baphomet

Titles:

The Sabbatic Goat, Lord of Balance, The Goat of Mendes

Culture:

Christian / Islamic / Thelemic

Appearance:

Early illustrations depict Baphomet as an androgynous man with a goat's head, large horns and wings, as well as cloven hooves. He is often shown with large female breasts. His characteristic pose is seated with his right hand raised (with index and middle fingers extended, and ring finger and pinky bent downward) and his left hand either drawn toward his chest or extended down at his side.

Purpose/Role:

  • Originally appearing in trial transcripts for the Inquistion of the Knights Templar in 1307, Baphomet has come to symbolize the equilibrium of opposites (cf. Abraxas)
    • Represents balance and the confluence of opposing forces
  • Since 1856, Baphomet has been largely associated with Éliphas Lévi's "Sabbatic Goat," whose arms bear the Latin SOLVE ("dissolve") and COAGVLA ("coagulate"), presenting him as an equalizer
  • Serves as a major figure in the cosmology of Thelema, the mystical belief system established by Aleister Crowley in the early 1900s
  • Closely tied to the pentagram
  • The origin of his name remains unclear
    • Some sources claim that the name Baphomet is a bastardization of the French Mahomet
    • Others speculate that it is an almagam of the chief Latin phonemes of the sovereign of metallurgical philosophers: basileus philosophorum metaloricum