The Devil Made Me Do It

The devil was superimposed on the Greek god of nature, Pan. Pan, with his cloven hooves and horns, represents our animal nature. 

And what is natural is judged against.

Neurologist, Sigmund Freud (1856 – 1939) is considered the father of psychoanalysis. He studied with Europe's most renowned neurologist, Jean Martin Charcot, who specialized in the study of hypnosis.

Freud’s use of hypnosis was for the purpose of locating and releasing powerful emotional energy that had been rejected or trapped in the unconscious mind through repression. Repression is defined as ‘subconscious rejection of thoughts and impulses that conflict with conventional standards of conduct.’

Carl Jung, a student of Sigmund Freud, expanded on Freud’s theory of unconsciously-repressed emotions. Jung’s theory was that repressing, suppressing, and disowning parts of ourselves energetically disconnects us from our authentic self.

The subconscious mind is where all our instinctive and primitive drives for self-preservation and procreation exist.  Instinctual energies like the four F’s - fight, flee, feed, and fornicate. As well as passion and rage.

When we repress a part of ourselves it goes underground.

What we resist persists. Whenever we deny, reject, judge, or condemn any part of ourselves it is relegated to the “shadow” where it will wreak havoc by enslaving us with inhibitions or drives to excess.

Until reclaimed, these energies make the mind a living hell.

The Devil is History

The Greeks loved everything Egyptian. 

Alexander the Great brought home many customs and practices to Greece, including sleep temples. Sleep temples gained in popularity and were soon adopted by the Romans and, later, by the early Christians.

Then, around the year 1000 AD, church reform brought these healing practices into disrepute.

As the church gained power it became heretical to seek direct contact with the Divine. During the Inquisition, many of the inquisitors were medical practitioners whose motive was to promote rationalized ‘scientific’ medicine. Popular healers were especially targeted for prosecution.

Any views that were contrary to church doctrine were considered heretical.

Astronomer Copernicus (1473 – 1543) theorized that the sun, and not the earth, is at the center of the universe. Being branded a heretic could have brought his family into disrepute and end in imprisonment or even death. So Copernicus kept his views to himself until he was on his deathbed.

In late 1700’s Mesmer emerged with a new healing phenomenon called ‘animal magnetism.’ Stories of miracles spread rapidly and Mesmer came under the scrutiny of the established medical profession. As patients were required to be treated through ‘scientific method’ – primarily blood-letting - Mesmer was sent packing in disrepute.

Fortunately, mesmerism continued and made its way to America. 

Some time around 1836, a French mesmerist by the name of Charles Poyen was giving a lecture in Belfast, Maine which so impressed Phineas Parkhust Quimby that he left his job and went on to become a mesmerist.

Quimby became the best-known ‘mental healer’ in America.

Meanwhile, Scottish neurosurgeon, James Braid had begun experimenting on his own methods based on mesmerism. Braid attempted to develop a more scientific approach, which he called ‘rational mesmerism,’ and later ‘neuro-hypnotism.’

Braid, like those before him, soon came under personal attack from the clergy for “satanic agency.”

And hypnotism went the way of the devil.

The Devil is in the Details

The early Egyptians, faced with the incomprehensible nature of the Divine, came up with a pantheon of gods. Originally, they were symbolic representations of attributes of the godhead. Set (or Seth, Setan, or Seteh), was the Egyptian equivalent of the devil. Set also had a brother-god. Set was the god of the desert, storms, darkness and chaos.

If you wanted power over the forces of chaos and darkness, you called upon Set.

One of the oldest Egyptian gods was Ra. It was Ra who called forth all forms of life by uttering their secret names. This belief is echoed in the creation myths of both the Kabbalists and Australian Aboriginals.

As the sun god, Ra was the giver of life. When you died, you went into the light, fed on and were nourished by light, and became one with the light. Clearly there’s nothing new about the ‘New Age.’

Over time, Egyptians became more materialist and literal in their thinking. The gods began to be viewed as independent deities that could be bargained with to attain one’s desired ends. The ‘riches in heaven’ one could expect changed from supernatural light to actual stuff. 

And you could take it with you. So preparing for death became a very important part of everyday life.

There were many temples and sanctuaries in Egypt, each one dedicated to a different god. After all, if you wanted the job done right, you needed to contract the appropriate god.

Business was booming for those who served up the gods to the public.

When Amenhotep IV took the throne in 1380 BC, he changed his name to Ahkenaten (in honor of the sun god, Aten, whom he equated with Ra), and promptly set to work on social reforms which included doing away with polytheism.

Historically, anything that opposes the culturally-held view is considered the “work of the devil.” As might be expected, Ahkenaten’s attempts to return Egypt to monotheism met with strong resistance. He soon earned himself the reputation of a heretic king.

Eventually his plans to restructure society were abandoned and Ahkenaten lead his loyal followers out into the desert to worship the one true god in peace. Freud theorized that Ahkenaten and the Bibilical Prince of Egypt, Moses, are one and the same historical character.

After building a city in the desert where the faithful could worship the Aten, Ahkenaten ruled 17 years before his death in 1336 BC or 1334 BC. All evidence of his existence was erased, including his city.

And the culturally accepted shrines and temples of many gods continued to thrive and prosper.

The Devil You Say?

The word ‘devil’ grew out of the same root word for ‘divinity’ (devi/deva). The most ancient teachings tell us that originally there were twin gods. 

One ruled over heaven. And the other ruled over earth.

Managing Creation is a big job. So this division of duties is at least practical. The twins work in partnership. Like Yin and Yang. They’re not really separate. One heads up corporate office. The other works in the field.

Traditionally, the devil is responsible for the material world. All the stuff of our earthly, physical existence is the domain of the devil. 

So if there is a hell, this is it.

The ancients believed that to get what you wanted you needed to petition the correct god. If you wanted the things of heaven – intangibles like peace, love, joy, gratitude - you had to go upstairs. If you wanted material stuff – gold, success on the battlefield, physical healing, a new ass - you went to the devil.

The devil, as we know it, can be found in the monotheistic Hebrew cult of YVHV. Originally, they had a pantheon of gods and goddesses known as ‘elohim.’ There was a god for everything.

Downsizing to a single god certainly simplified things. But the one all-powerful, all-good god idea created a logistical problem. The fact that all life is pain and suffering didn’t escape the early Hebrews. An all-powerful god could surely make life without all the hurt and pain and suffering. If he wouldn’t, then logically he couldn’t be all-good. If he wanted to make a world free of pain and suffering, and could not, then logically he couldn’t be all-powerful.

Solution – put a new spin on the twin gods. Keep the all-powerful, all-good god. And make the other one a little sh*t-disturber on which to hang the blame!

Introducing the devil, a.k.a. ‘Sa-tan.’ The word means “adversary.” Enemy.  That which opposes or resists is, by definition, the devil.

"Pleased to meet you. / Hope you guessed my name. / But what’s puzzling you is the nature of my game." – From ‘Sympathy for the Devil’ by The Rolling Stones

In Biblical lore the devil is not all bad. Take the story of Job.

One day Satan is talking to God. Satan says he thinks Job’s loyalty to God is merely brown-nosing. God disagrees. But He gives Satan permission to go ahead and test Job through adversity.

Apparently God and the devil are not equally matched. God is clearly the C.E.O. while the devil is management. 

And Job? 

A humble servant who ends up raising the bar on patience!