Belphegor

In Christian demonology, Belphegor (or Beelphegor, Hebrew: בַּעַל-פְּעוֹר‎ Báʿal-pəʿór - Lord of the Gap) is a demon, and one of the seven princes of Hell, who helps people make discoveries. He seduces people by suggesting to them ingenious inventions that will make them rich.

This article is about the demon. For the Austrian band, see Belphegor (band). For other uses, see Belphegor (disambiguation).
Belphegor
Sloth
Belphegor illustration from the Dictionnaire Infernal.
Belphegor by Jean Jacques Flipart

Bishop and witch-hunter Peter Binsfeld believed that Belphegor tempts by means of laziness.[1] Also, according to Peter Binsfeld's Binsfeld's Classification of Demons, Belphegor is the chief demon of the deadly sin known as Sloth in Christian tradition.[2]

History

According to Collin de Plancy's Dictionnaire Infernal, Belphegor was Hell's ambassador to France.

Belphegor also figures in John Milton's Paradise Lost and in Victor Hugo's Toilers of the Sea. Belfagor arcidiavolo by the Italian diplomat Niccolò Machiavelli was first published in 1549 and regales how the demon comes to earth to find a mate. This story became the initial source material for Ottorino Respighi's opera Belfagor which premiered at La Scala in Milan in 1923.

In Samuel Mathers Key of Solomon Grimoire Published in 1888 Belphegor is Listed near the End of the Book as an Assyrian Idol, An Idol Now destroyed.

  • The PZL M-15 Belphegor, a 1970s Polish utility airplane, was named after the demon, due to its strange look and the noise of its jet engine
  • Belphegor appears as a young human male in the final season of the TV show Supernatural played by Alexander Calvert.
  • Belphegor is a recurring demon/persona in the Megami Tensei and video game series
  • Belphegor is the youngest demon brother in the otome game Obey Me. He appears as the avatar of sloth and the twin brother of Beelzebub.
  • Belphegor is a blackened death metal band.
  • Belphegor is the Storm Officer of the Varia in the Anime and Manga series, Hatekyo Hitman Reborn. He is also known as 'Prince the Ripper'.[3]
  • Belphegor is the name one of the heretical gods, more specifically that of yellow luxin and sloth, in the Lightbringer saga by Brent Weeks.

References
  1. Wendy Doniger (1999). Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of World Religions. Merriam-Webster. p. 287. ISBN 0-87779-044-2. Belphegor Demon.
  2. Rosemary Guiley (2009). Encyclopedia of Demons and Demonology. Facts on File. pp. 28–29.
  3. List of Reborn! antagonists#The Varia
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