Belphegor's History
He is said to be the biblical enemy of the 6th Sephiroth, the patron angel of beauty. As the Patron demon of dispute, perhaps their adversarial relationship exists because beauty should never be disputed, as it is in the eye of the beholder and some can find the beauty in everything. If Belphegor were to become too influential in the world, then the beauty of it all would become tainted, causing ruination.
Inventions created by followers of Belphegor will invariably promote the further decadence of the human species. Sometimes possessing alien geometries and illogical structures, these machines on occasion will be capable of incredible technological feats; but despite their functionality, any who succeed in creating these devices will progressively grow slothful and immoral through the usage of these inventions. As the mental and physical state of the inventor deteriorates, so too will the invention, until both are destroyed.
History
Time in Heaven
Belphegor, then known as Belfagel, was once part of the choir of Principalities. During his time in Heaven, Belphegor was a friend of Asmodel and Mammon, though he did not exactly enjoy his angelic duties and prefer to laze around in the luxury of heaven, foreshadowing his slothful tendencies. Moreover, Belphegor enjoyed crafting strange and intricate objects from all manner of material he could find which, according to him, was his outside hobby.
Fall from Grace
Unlike the majority of rebel angels, Belphegor did not initially join Lucifer's side after he declared war against Heaven, nor was he fighting against the rebellion at God's side either. Despite not being part of Lucifer's rebellion, the fact that he refused to join God's side and instead stood idly earned him his Father's punishment, and he was cast down to Hell alongside all the other rebel-angels, transforming him into the Archdemon of Sloth.
Belphegor, along with Asmodeus and Mammon, were soon awakened by the sound of Lucifer's voice calling out to them from the newly create chasm that was created from the impact of their fall. This new realm would come to be known as Hell.
Rally in Pandemonium
“ It is indeed true that an idle mind is the devil's workshop... „
~ Lucifer defending Belphegor's nomination
Despite not being part of the original rebellion to overtake heaven, Belphegor quickly rose through the demonic hierarchy due to his great contributions to the construction of Pandemonium, the newly founded capital of Hell. Given his talent and interest in machinery, he participated in the crafting of the many evil mechanical inner workings of the capital, whilst Mulciber and Mammon worked on both the exterior and interior.
During the event known as Lucifer's Rally, Belphegor became anointed as one of the Seven Princes of Hell along with Beelzebub, Mammon, Asmodeus, Leviathan, Satan and Lucifer. This rise in rank for Belphegor resulted in much confusion and disruption amongst the crowd of demons, who largely viewed Belphegor as the laziest and least threatening among them. However, Lucifer recognized the tremendous potential within Belphegor, and defended his nomination.
Belphegor was known to not migrate from one place to another as often as other demonic monarchs, preferring to remain in the same location within Hell. He will only put in the effort to turn away from his work if something actually catches his interest. One such occurrence was when he had been dispatched to Earth on a mission by Satan. While on Earth, the demon king has found a particular affinity for Paris, France, where he now resides hidden deep within the catacombs of the city. According to De Plancy's Dictionnaire Infernal, he now serves as Hell's ambassador to France. Consequently, he is also the adversary of Mary Magdalene, one of the patron saints of France.
Time on Earth
After achieving this new status in the demonic hierarchy, Belphegor was sent on a reconnaissance mission by Pluto and Satan to find out if there really was such a thing as married happiness on the planet Earth. Rumor of such a thing had reached the demons, but they knew that people were not designed to live in harmony. Belphegor is known for giving people wild ideas that ultimately result in their destruction. He seduces people by inspiring them with ideas for ingenious inventions that will make them rich and famous, but in the process he will corrupt them, causing them to grow selfish and paranoid of someone stealing their invention and success.
Despite his desire to remain in Hell and avoid hard work, Belphegor would eventually manage to accomplish several exploits during his time on Earth, with the most notable being his time spent posing as a pagan deity and leading the Moabites astray from the path of God. During this time, Belphegor went by the name Baal Peor. He was treated as a phallic deity, associated with sex, orgies, and all forms of debauchery in general. While acting as a False God, Belphegor's experiences would soon convinced him that the rumor of married happiness was groundless.
During Exodus, as Baal Peor, some factions of Israelites started making sacrifices to Belphegor. The reason for this is because they began having relations with the women of Moab, who seduced them to their local god. Regardless of the reason, these sacrifices enraged Moses so much that he began to condemn those who were worshiping Belphegor to death. By the time the sacrifices to Belphegor were eliminated, 24,000 people had been killed. The only thing disputed in this was whether they were actually slain, or whether Moses called down a plague upon them that caused their deaths.
Power and Abilities
Belphegor is invoked by mortals who wish to find fame and wealth through invention, often with as little effort as possible. These wishes, as with almost any demonic invocation, are doomed to fail, because Belphegor’s true mission is to draw the lazy into the sin of Sloth. Through the failure of whatever Belphegor provided to the invoker, he draws them into procrastination and idle dreaming rather than producing, thus damning them.
He is a shapeshifter, delighting in using this ability to deceive mortals. His most common forms are polarized in their appearances. He will take the form of a beautiful woman, naked in all her glory, to seduce those who would fall for his wiles. He also appears as a monstrous demon, with leathery flesh, huge horns, long sharp teeth and fingernails, and a gaping mouth.
Myth and Legends
“ Demonic governor of the deadly sin of sloth. He also excels at invention and discovery. May derive from Ba'al Pe'or, Syrian god of abundant crops. „
~ The Demonic Compendium.
Belphegor originated as Baal-Peor, the Moabite the father of god to whom the Israelites became attached in Shittim, which was associated with licentiousness and orgies. It was worshipped in the form of a phallus. His name is a corruption of Baal-Peor, the name for the god of the Moabites which he disguised himself as in order to rule over humanity as a False God in antiquity.
As a demon, he is described in Kabbalistic writings as the "disputer", an enemy of the sixth Sephiroth "beauty". When summoned, he can grant riches, the power of discovery and ingenious invention. His role as a demon was to sow discord among men and seduce them to evil through the apportionment of wealth.
According to some 16th century demonologists, his power is stronger in April. Bishop and Witch-hunter Peter Binsfeld believed that Belphegor tempts by means of laziness. Also, according to Peter Binsfeld's Binsfeld's Classification of Demons, Belphegor is the chief demon of one of the Seven Deadly Sins known as Sloth in Christian tradition.
Some rabbis claim that he must be worshipped on a toilet, with offerings being the residue of ones' digestion. This has led some to conclude that Belphegor is the god Pet (Fart) or "Crepitus," while others believe that he is Praipus. Selden is cited by Bainier as reporting that human victims are to be offered to him, and that his priests partake of the flesh. Wierus wrote that he always has an open mouth, attributing it to the name Phegor, which according to Leloyer means "crevice" or "split," and refers to when he was worshipped in caves and people threw him offerings through an air hole.
Quotes
“ My name is Belphegor... the seeker of harmony on Earth, and Duke of Hell presiding over indolence... The harmony that I want is unity through surveillance. Keep an eye on the population while I simply push buttons and flip levers. „
~ Belphegor.
“ Well hello there. You know, I was originally brought here because some idiot sacrificed some other idiot in my name. Don't ask me how human sacrifices bring demons to the mortal realm. I don't know, and I bet not even Lucifer knows. Since you're looking to write a story, allow me to give you an idea. A demon brought to the mortal world finds love. It doesn't have to be about a specific demon. Just a demon. And if I find out when you write the book that the demon in the book is me, I'll come back up here and kick you in the shins. „
~ Belphegor to Niccolò Machiavelli.
