Bael

Variations: Haddad, Adad, Haddu, Ammon, Baal, Baal-Hammon, Baal-Tzephon, Baal-Shamim, Baal-Zevuv, Beelzebub(?), Baell, Bal, Bayal, Bel

Key of Solomon

Pseudomonarchia Daemonum

Liber Officiorum Spirituum

Dictionnaire Infernal

The Book of Oberon

Ba'al - "Lord"

Website Author's Note

Please note that this section below will be touching a sensitive topic relating to Canaanite beliefs. It would behoove me to explain - despite my reservations to step in beyond merely giving resources - to provide some context, as to not give a poor perception of the Canaanite faith (to which I subscribe to, personally).

Below I will be describing the God(s) that have used the title "Ba'al" in the Canaanite, Phoenician/Punic, and/or Philistine faiths. The history of the title and term "Ba'al" is vast throughout Semitic groups in the Bronze/Iron-Age Levant and subsequent territories, though we lack a lot of context to gain the full breadth of information to understand the way these people have venerated this/these spirit(s).

Ba'al is a title meaning "Lord", but it also referred to a whole plethora of Gods. Examples being Ba'al Haddad, Ba'al Shamim, and Ba'al Hammon. We do not know if this is actually the same God - which can be suggested given the similar themes and representations between these "emanations" of the same God (ex. Ba'al Shamim was believed to have come from Ba'al Haddad), though it can also be argued that in conjunction with the title of "Ba'al" and the differing places in which this/these "Lord(s)" presided, we cannot make a sure claim.

So if I am to give a reference that may suggest, say, Beelzebub is perhaps an emanation/confluence/continuation/iconographic implementation of Ba'al Haddad (despite Beelzebub being in reference to a God of the Philistines), there is a lot of references historically that will flip-flop on the matter and may give information stating otherwise.

That being said, do not allow my beliefs/conclusions to get in the way of yours. While I am of the mindset that it doesn't truly matter, as everyone has their own relationship with divinity, others will have their reservations (of which I try to take account of).

Stellas Daemonum

"The first and principal king under Oriens is Baall, who is also called Baël, Baal, Bellferit, Bellfarto, and Beal. He comes in the likeness of a king and also takes the form of a toad, a man, and a cat, or all three at once, and he speaks with a hoarse voice. He teaches all manners of science and grants wisdom, grace, invisibility, and the love of men and women. With this spirit bearing a name that most clearly represents that of the central Canaanite deity, the majority of the analysis relating to this similarity has already been covered in the entry for Belzebuth, of whom Baall, like various other derived spirits such as Berith, Belial, and Bason, can be understood as a lower vibration. A similar derivation also occurs with spirits such as Beleth, Astaroth, and the Cardinal Kings who appear in female form, Paymon and Oriens, as lower vibrations of Ba'al's divine consort Ashtoreth. In a manner that reflects a more unequilibrated version of the relationship between these two ancient deities, the entry for Baall in the Livre des Esperitz cites him as being under her as her subject, while that of the Book of Offices cites him as a king who is under her power. The Book of Offices description also states that it is first necessary to call upon the Messenger of the East, an intermediary spirit named Femell, before summoning Baall by his alternative names Bellfarto and Bellferit."

Interestingly, an alternative spelling of the name Bellferit is Belferth, who appears as the messenger of Paymon in the Book of Offices, while Femell derives from the same Hebrew root, (pml), as Paymon's alias Pamelon. This suggests that Baall's manifestation may be preceded by an emanation of Paymon, and Paymon's manifestation is preceded by an emanation of Baall. This interconnection of positions between the major spirits of the East and West may be a further reflection of the intrinsic relationship between the Eastern and Western Cardinal Kings as emanatory aspects of Ashtoreth.

"With Oriens representing the Eastern quadrant of the Solar and Zodiacal Cycles and Baall representing Belzebuth's Solar energy made manifest in those quarters, clear astrological and elemental aspects are evident in his person. His physical form, which alternates between that of a human, a toad, and a cat, reveals his kingship when in its human shape, while the other creatures he appears as resonate with the common beliefs of the Middle Ages that such beasts represented two of the most often used forms that daemons took when they came to a witch as a familiar. As the East's first and principal king, Baall is primarily a daemonic representative of the sign of Cardinal Fire, Aries, which is alluded to in the ram's head apparent in his seal in the Goetia of Solomon. The appearance of this glyph beneath a Vesica Piscis, which here symbolizes the female sexual organs as the vessel for the rebirth of the Sun at the vernal equinox, is notable, as is the passing physical similarity of the band that loops around it to the Double Loop of the Zodiac featured in Crowley's Book of Thoth.

"Baall's Solar nature is also evident in the “grace he grants to all things,” which is comparable to the trait of nobility brought by the succedent, Sun- ruled decan of Aries, while the power of invisibility he grants is attributed to the powers of Sol in the Greater Key of Solomon. In Greek myth, the power of invisibility represents a connection between the Sun and the powers of the underworld due to the Helmet of Invisibility being an artifact of the god Pluto that was used by Hermes and Perseus to aid them against monstrous foes too dangerous to face while visible to them. In magical terms, this power is generally associated with the power of stealth required to successfully negotiate the many perils that lurk in the pits of the underworld, which can be understood as an external plane of existence that overlaps with the physical world, the astral world, and their nexus, being the strata of one's personal unconscious. In the Key of Solomon, invisibility is also a power associated with the planetary powers of Jupiter and Venus, which, in combination with the powers of Sol, make it firmly illuminative and benefic in nature. These aspects reinforce its usefulness as a means to blend in with or resist dark, infernal energies without becoming overwhelmed or corrupted by them."

"Baall's associations with Aries and the Solar nature of powers such as invisibility and the imparting of grace make the first and second decans of Aries particularly resonant with his being, with the first bringing 'loftiness' and the second 'nobility.'' The combination of the Solar- Martian powers of the second decan of Aries can also be found in the third decan of the Fiery sign of Leo, due to it being a face governed by Mars in a sign ruled by the Sun. In accordance with Baall's ability to bring the love of men and women, this decan brings one love and fellowship. Another pertinent Eastern decan that bears relevance to this spirit's powers is the first of Gemini, which expresses the mature wisdom of Jupiter mingled with the scholasticism and practical knowledge of Mercury. This decan also shares its locus with the sixth Lunar Mansion, Al Han'ah, which ranges between 4°17′ and 17°08′ Gemini and may be used to create a talisman that brings love, which Baall also has the power to bring."

"Considering these celestial influences, it may prove most beneficial to work with Baall when the Sun or Mars is in the sign of Aries, particularly its first decan in the case of Mars and the second in the case of Sol. Furthermore, the transit of Mars and Sol in the third decan of Leo may also be considered if Baall is to be utilized for works of love, which the Moon's transit through the sixth Lunar Mansion may also assist with. The transit of Mercury or Jupiter through the first decan of Gemini may also prove beneficial, as are the aspects that the Moon forms with those planets when it is transiting the decans and signs related to them. All of the planetary powers mentioned here may also be enhanced if works with Baall are performed when the Sun is in the Eastern Quarter of the heavens, that is, between the Ascendant and Midheaven, especially on the days and hours of Sol, Mars, Mercury, or Jupiter when the signs of Aries, Gemini, or Leo are rising depending on the nature of the results one wishes to gain."

Jake Stratton-Kent

Pandaemonium

"The major King among the spirits; Scot's text below, which has a pleasing period flavour, gives many of the essentials concerning Bael, Beal or Baal, a King of spirits who appears in several catalogues of spirits, invariably in first place."

The Livre des Esperitz specifies his immediate superior to be Oriens, and probably this has been translated as East in other forms of the catalogue. The alternative Four Kings in Weyer and the Goetia is thus directly contradicted by previous texts, including the English Book of Offices. This does not diminish the possible importance of these alternatives; it is undoubtedly easier however to consider the whole family of texts with the primary Oriens group assumed."

To resume, Bael or Baal appears in first place and with similar text in Weyer, Scot, the Livre des Esperitz and the Goetia of Solomon. He is also first listed among the spirits of the East in the Book of Offices more detailed catalogue. He is also first among eighteen subordinate spirits of the Grand Grimoire (following Weyer' s listing, not the Goetia' s), and other confirmatory references abound. There is for example the 18th 'Secret' of Liber De Angelis (Conjuring Spirits, ed. Claire Fanger, p55), for 'Power over Demons'. This is a ritual of image--making for 'dominion over the demons and especially over Baal, who is their lord'.

Incidentally, references to image making in the spirit catalogues, explicit and implicit, are tolerably common. This particular rite has a close match (in ms . B2 0, cited and illustrated by Lecouteux) where the spirit in question is not Bael but Belial. An image of Belial is, perhaps obliquely, mentioned in the Scot and Goetia texts. Baal's precedence, the sources clarify, is not over Eastern spirits alone . Simply put, he is the collective chief of the subordinate spirits . In this, as an Eastern King, he resembles Oriens, his Lord, who is the greatest 82 Pandemonium: A Discordant Concordance of Diverse Spirit Catalogues among the Four Kings. Baal's precedence, after his superiors, is matched by Late Antique conceptions of the solar decans; the first of which was Lord of the rest, and the resemblance is apt. More extended discussion of these topics appears throughout the Encyclopedia Goetica. Baal of course was a name frequently associated with the Syrian or Chaldean sun god in Late Antiquity. His capacity as chief of all subordinates links him with key intermediary figures in several of the grimoires examined here. Whether this linkage is to the point of identity is moot; in any case 'Bael' like 'Oriens' is a title and as such can presumably be transferred. The relations - to the point of identity - that exist between Oriens and Bael are expressed differently but nonetheless mirrored in the Grand Grimoire. Therein he is the first of three spirits under Lucifuge Rofocale (aka Sirachi, and variants), who in turn serves Lucifer. Careful readers will note the priority this gives him is retained in either case.