![]() There is no qualitative difference between great gods and demons one name for demon is "an evil god." Demons, however, have less power, though occasionally myths depict them as rebelling against the great gods, with some success. ![]() Demonology in the Ancient Near EastÄefense against evil spirits was a concern in Mesopotamia from earliest times, beginning with the Sumerians, to whom much of the terminology and praxis connected with demons may be traced. Whereas the great gods are accorded regular public worship, demons are not they are dealt with in magic rites in individual cases of human suffering, which is their particular sphere. Moreover, in none of the languages of the ancient Near East, including Hebrew, is there any one general term equivalent to English "demon." In general, the notion of a demon in the ancient Near East was of a being less powerful than a god and less endowed with individuality. In monotheistic systems, evil spirits may be accepted as servants of the one God, so that demonology is bound up with angelology and theology proper, or they may be elevated to the rank of opponents of God, in which case their status as diabolic powers differs from that of the demons in polytheism. In polytheistic religions the line between gods and demons is a shifting one: there are both good demons and gods who do evil. This definition is, however, only approximate. A demon is an evil spirit, or devil, in the ordinary English usage of the term. ![]()
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