What are Demons?

Demons are evil spirits that are against God's people and God. Demons are spiritual beings without physical form. They are evil spirits that are against God and his work. Demons are fallen angels. Demons are evil spirits that try to harm living people.

Demons are most likely metaphors which represent a focal point as to why there seems to be evil in the world. If you explore evil though it becomes a bit blurry as to whether evil actually exists which then tends to knock the demon idea on the head.

The mind is also very powerful in its belief systems and can filter experiences to fit the beliefs so people who believe in demons will make their experiences fit.

To me, it depends on how you look at things and how your induvitual perceptions are.

Some people tend to belive that demons are literaly a mental representaion of the hate that is inside is all, or in other words our minds playing tricks on us.

Some people think that demons are entities that are spiritual in nature.

Back in the day, they blamed demons for many diseases we see today, that have at least or now a reasonable explination. So these days demons and or possesion is generaly disregarded these days. But once in a while you hear of someone beings healed by an excorsism, or shamanic healings. Even if it is a placebo effect, does this mean that these demons didnt exsist or not?

Originally Posted by Greenslade

We Live in a world of Duality and the Universe seeks balance. We have angels so doesn't it make sense to have the opposite? While we are just spreading the Light, couldn't others be working against that? The story is reflected in the Garden of Eden with Adam, Eve, the snake and the apple. Mind you, God didn't want Adam and Eve to eat from the Tree of Knowledge, does that mean he didn't want them to become enlightened? It makes you wonder who the good and bad guys really are.


Why do they operate in such Darkness? If you do the balance thing, it makes sense. The good guys operate in Light, bad guys in Darkness. Opposites in Duality. Possibly some of them don't want us 'monkeys' (as in the movies :-) to evolve to their level.

Their aim in Life? Undo the good. It's the classic struggle of good versus evil all over again, just taken to new heights. Perhaps all they'#re doing is not that different from us - doing what they believe in.

interesting

Originally Posted by Time

To me, it depends on how you look at things and how your induvitual perceptions are.

Some people tend to belive that demons are literaly a mental representaion of the hate that is inside is all, or in other words our minds playing tricks on us.

Some people think that demons are entities that are spiritual in nature.

Back in the day, they blamed demons for many diseases we see today, that have at least or now a reasonable explination. So these days demons and or possesion is generaly disregarded these days. But once in a while you hear of someone beings healed by an excorsism, or shamanic healings. Even if it is a placebo effect, does this mean that these demons didnt exsist or not?

Actually, they might have had something there after all. Demons and angels are often metaphors for the forces of good and evil. In a word of Duality, if you have good their has to be a balance or an opposite. Turn the clock back a few thousand years and you'll find that what those that believed in demons are doing is trying to understand the world around them - not too different from what we're doing now. Give it another two thousand years and imagine how someone reading these boards might think?

Sometimes our ailments are not always physical in origin. If you take disease as dis-ease things take a different slant. Sometimes if you're feeling down and depressed your system can open up to all sorts of ailments, perhaps the reason we get colds in the winter. In winter we can feel a little down and depressed because it's cold and horrible out there, that brings our system down a little and that nasty little cold bug walks right in. I also remember reading about how pets can help sick people by lifting their Spirits. Visiting someone who's sick might cheer them up a little and help them on the road to recovery. Maybe those shamans of old had something after all?

Demons are a human stereotype to describe a spirit who has either acted violently against them, or who has a nature that is deemed "evil."

Spirits are just as complex as us, and most often are even more complex as well. They have reasons for their actions and all have positive and negative aspects to them, talents and flaws and relationships just like us.

I believe understanding is necessary before labeling a spirit something so damning.

Of all the souls and spirits I have encountered, none of them consider themselves demons, let alone have ever heard of the term before. Demons are a human concept and, just like the concept of time, no spirit will understand it or care to consider it for a second (though I remember one "trickster" spirit admitted to me, very seriously, that "I do use the name, but only when I wish to make a human fearful. In that aspect claiming to be demonic is very useful.")

So, in short. There are no demons anywhere outside of your mind and perceptions.

Personally, I am unsure whether demons are simply symbols of psychological forces, or they're conscious, independent entities.

The human mind is amazing at creating things- and tricking itself. Demons could very well be a primitive way to rationalize unsavory things in the world.
Or... they could be forces, that while embellished upon, have an existence independent of the human psyche.

Of course, we live in a duelistic world and it would be impossible to have angels, whether actual beings or mental constructions, and not have evil spirits to counteract them.

I think that symbolically demons represent the chaos and change in the world. Without resistance of the wind, the tree will be weak and snap after it gets too tall. So I think evil or malevolent creatures help gnaw away at our resolve, and help us, in terms of grow or perish. Symbolically of course lol.

Originally Posted by Animus27

Personally, I am unsure whether demons are simply symbols of psychological forces, or they're conscious, independent entities.

The human mind is amazing at creating things- and tricking itself. Demons could very well be a primitive way to rationalize unsavory things in the world.
Or... they could be forces, that while embellished upon, have an existence independent of the human psyche.

Of course, we live in a duelistic world and it would be impossible to have angels, whether actual beings or mental constructions, and not have evil spirits to counteract them.

I think that symbolically demons represent the chaos and change in the world. Without resistance of the wind, the tree will be weak and snap after it gets too tall. So I think evil or malevolent creatures help gnaw away at our resolve, and help us, in terms of grow or perish. Symbolically of course lol.

Bit of both I would say, Animus. Some demons are internal that have been conceptualised as having 'physical' form - like an addiction. 'Way back when', internal demons would have been considered as entities in order to gain a better understanding - such as fighting the demons that made you want to go out and get horribly drunk every night. A few hundred years ago it would have been more effective and better dealt with to imagine actually fighting a demon rather than an intangible urge.

If you're going down the good vs bad road, then you have the good guys like angels working for the good. Demons would work for the bad - your Dualistic world.

I don't believe in demons in the 'typical' sense of the word, but rather as in the term 'inner demon' - and to me inner demons would be: Guilt, Rage, Shame, Unworthiness, Abnormal Fear/Hysterics (as compared to survival fear that helps to keep one intact if they were in a war for example), another that I think could fit the list would be a sort of Irrational Stubborn Willfulness that tends to be 'blind' and to an extent 'rebellious'. (I mention the last one because that is one of the things I am working on dealing with regarding my body's psyche).

[inspirit]

Demons are not angels exactly. They're spirits that are native to the earth. Beelzebub is one of the more famous ones. They are the followers of Lucifer after he rebelled against God. They are trouble makers.

Demons are dangerous, but they are given too much credit. God protects us from them and we don't even have to ask. The only way a demon can ever be allowed to curse us in any way is if we knowingly invite them to. I don't recommend this.