What are inhuman spirits or demons?
Origin Of Satan and the Demons
Before creation, there a group of beings God created to serve him in Heaven known as Angels. This is where any story of the demonic has to begin. In reality, we know very very little about the origins of the devil and his minions, but we do know they were once Angels. The Bible speaks of this only briefly and only in a few locations, but it does seem to be fairly clear on what happened. Revelation Chapter 12 provides what seems to be the most clear account:
"And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down--that ancient serpant called the devil or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. (Revelation 12:7-9, New International Version).
WHat caused the war? That the bible does not make clear. However, other sources believe that Satan (known as Lucifer before being cast out of heaven) was the most powerful angel. In fact, he was second only to God himself. However, Lucifer became jealous of God's son (later born into this world as Jesus Christ). Thus, Lucifer conspired to overthrow Christ (and also God the Father). He convinced one third of the angels to follow him. (Revelation also mentions this in the form of a metaphor--Chapters 8 and 9 talk repeatedly of "thirds." I.E. a third of the stars fell from the sky). The rest, as they say, is history. Cast out with no hope of forgiveness or return, Satan became more and more bitter, hateful, and evil. His one goal, since creation, has been to thawrt God's plan for humanity. Satan knows he cannot overthrow God and that war with Him is futile. Thus, Satan makes war on humanity, making it his single goal to take as many human souls along with him to hell as possible.
Other soucres beyond the bible speak of Satan and his fall. Several books of the apocrypha (non-cannonical books of the Bible) speak of it. John Milton's epic Paradise Lost focuses on the topic. Milton may be the best source in some regards. If nothing else, he delves into the psycology of the devil, examining his possible emotions and motives. Many believe Satan is a sort of epic hero in Paradise Lost, however, as the poem progresses, one sees satan to be more of a pathetic (in the literal sense of the word) character and, of course, the root of all evil. Still, this is a work of fiction. Or, is it? Milton was blind when he composed this poem. Each morning he would awake and quickly call his daughters into the room. He recited poetry to them, they wrote it out for him. Milton claimed that the story and the words came to him at night.
Book 4 of Paradise Lost contains many of Satan's speeches that are very revealing as to his character. Here are a few exerpts:
Which way I fly is hell; myself am hell
And in the lowest deep, a lower deep
Still threatening to devour me opens wide,
To which the Hell I suffer seems a heaven.
Oh then at last relent! Is there no place
Left for repentence, none for pardon left?
None left but by submission...
All good to me is lost;
Evil, be thou my good; by thee at least
Divided empire with Heanen's king I hold,
By thee, and more than half perhaps will reign:
As man ere long, and this new world shall know. (P.L. 4:75-110)
Demons in This World
Thus, simply stated, Demons (and the Devil himself) are fallen angels. They are bitter, consumed with hatred, rage, and a monomoniacal desire to destory God's creation--Man. We call them Inhuman for obvious reasons: Demonic spirits were never human, whereas ghosts were. Angels are also inhuman spirits, but they pose no threat to man. On the contrary, they are man's protectors and God's servants.
There are various sorts of demonic spirits. Apparently, they have a sort of heirarchy. Demons, which are the most common demonic spirits enountered by people are, are evil and debased creatures. They are satans footsoldires on earth, and are most often the culprits in demonic infestations, opressions, and possessions. Devils are more powerful creatures. They do not usually become directly involved with man (i.e. opressions / possessions) but have been known to be behind such things by directing numerous demons. They can be described as a sort of cold, calculating, terrible intelligence. They are the most dangerous creatures man can encounter.
Demonic Appearance
What do these creatures look like? The short answer is that I do not know the true form (preternatural form) of the demonic. However, I have been unfortunate enough to see several demons manifest themselves. By manifest, I mean show themselves. What I saw is what most people who see a demonic manifestation see: A cloudlike mass (taking the vauge shape of a man or sometimes a hooded man) that can only be described as blacker than black. I say blacker than black because I have seen these creatures manifest at night in a near pitch black room, and still you could clearly see the black mass. What I saw had a vauge human shape (body, neck/head) and chilling green or red dots for eyes. At the time I saw it I did not know what it was, but have since learned. I can tell you that being in the presence of the demonic puts fear into you that cannot be described in words. You just know you are in the presence of something very evil and very dangerous.
Photos
(I found this photo on Ghostweb. I do not know whether or not the black figure on the left is a demonic manifestation, but this is generally what they look like. This picture was taken outside of a home that was the site of a recent murder. Those in the picture were not aware of the figure when the picture was taken. I will say this: The chance that this is a demonic apparition is quite slim since this was taken during the day.)
(The dark, cloud like patch on top could very well be a demonic manifestation, but, again, I do not know for sure. This picture is also from Ghostweb, and was reportedly taken in a home during poltergiest activity, which is often the result of demonic infestation or oppression.)
(This is probably the best representation. This is also from Ghostweb and was taken inside a theatre at night. I cannot confirm that this is a demonic manifestation, but it certainly resembles one and gives the reader an idea of what one looks like, whether it is a legitimate manifestation or not).
(This is the most disturbing picture I've seen. I have no idea what this is to tell you the truth, and I have never encountered anything like it. It is also from Ghostweb, and was taken late at night at a New Jersey crossroads. It could be any number of things, but Ghostweb and the photograpther seem to think it was a demonic manifestation).
Ed Warren, the world's most famous demonologist, describes these creatures in the same way that I do. Mr. Warren, however, is also one of the few people in the world who may know the true form of demonic creatures. In The Demonologist Mr. Warren writes that"
"The 'black mass' is the most common way the demonic intorduces itself into the physical real. I don't know if this represents the mechanics of its manifestation or if its particular to certain kinds of demonic entities. But a demonic spirit can ultimately manifest as Jesus Christ himeslf! It may come as a ghost, it may come as a hooded specter; even in the form of an animal...In effect, the inhuman demonic spirit can take any form it wants to....the watchword of the demonic is anonymity. The spirit comes across as a large, undifferentiated black mass that is easily visible on the rare occasions when it is seen during the day, though it will more likely be witnessed in the psychic hours of the night....as a physical phenomenon, though, the black mass is the spirit, and as such it is perfectly dangerous."
Mr. Warren does, however briefly discuss a demon's preternatural form (its true form). He writes that "Although the spirit can project itself in any form it chooses its appearance is an abomination, a monstrosity. To see what's really behind the phenomenon is not something to be desired. To actually see the demonic is to feel ruin. What shows is something disticntly preternatural in appearance: something real enough as you se it, but yet something not of this world....Ultimately, it is not human. It is inhuman. It has scales. it looks....like a reptile. That's it. I won't complete the rest of the image."
Mr. Warren is obviously not comfortable discussing the topic and simply refuses to say more on the subject. He strongly believs that some things are not meant to be known. Beleive me, it is hard enough to deal with seeing the demonic in the "black mass" form much less in its true form.
For more information about specific demons or demonic heirarchy and organization visit A Gallery of Demons web site.
Something that must be stresses again and again. Inhuman demonic spirits are not onl y dangerous, but they are deadly. They exist on this earth to torment humans. This is the subject of our next section.
