This is a slightly longer article than usual BUT it is also a very interesting one due to so many complexities to his character.
Religion: Assyrian/ Babylonian/ Akkadian/ Sumerian
Deity: Yes
Demi-God: No
Prior Human: No
Represents: Personification of the west wind, King of the Lilu wind Demons
Good/Evil: Yes
Symbols: Thread, bull, serpent
Weapons: Magical greatsword
Offerings: N/A At least none that I could find in my research.
The Mesopotamian region was dominated by ritualized religious worship of an extensive pantheon of gods during the Neo-Assyrian (early-900s to early-600s BCE) and Neo-Babylonian (early-600s to mid-500s BCE) periods. As with many such pantheons, the deities worshiped in this part of the world were often depicted as possessing a duality of motivations and behaviors, ranging from those seen as intrinsically good and others seen as overtly evil. This moral duality is most frequently expressed in the actions of the gods toward humans, though many of the internal battles among the gods are driven by similar conflicts of interest and desire.
In the Akkadian/Babylonian myth of the Atrahasis, human beings have grown too numerous, too loud, and far too fertile. Further, they live so long that more of them are being born at any given time than those who die. They cover the earth and disturb the god Enlil with their noise to such an extent that he decides to destroy them in a great flood. After the flood waters subside, the god of wisdom Enki proposes a plan to re-populate the earth: the gods will create a new kind of human with a shorter life span and greater threats to their lives on a daily basis. Henceforth there will be disease, miscarriages, impotency, sterility, attacks by wild animals, and all other manner of death waiting in a day.
Demons were a part of this divine plan and were sent to punish the wicked, test the righteous, and could even be given leave to torment someone because a certain god felt it was justified even though another disagreed. Demons that interfered with sexual intercourse and fertility were especially troublesome. The demon Samana, with his dragon’s teeth, eagle talons, and scorpion’s tail, was a constant threat and a Sumerian incantation against him lists how he blocks the menstruation of the young girl, the potency of the young man, and the services of the courtesan and prostitute. Samana could also affect crops, livestock and, “had a special appetite for infants and prostitutes”. A demon of such malice and destructive power should have been held firmly in check by the gods and yet Samana was regarded as an agent of Gula, the goddess of health and healing, sent for reasons mortals would have to work out for themselves.
All that was clear was that one could be targeted by a god or demon for some exquisite or mundane torment at any time and for reasons which were not always clear. Sexual life of the individual and of society at large was under a potential threat from the wrath of vengeful gods or the malice of demonic forces. Sexuality was especially targeted, if one follows from the narrative of the Atrahasis, because it had to do with reproduction and population size. In targeting the sexual life of human beings, the gods could keep their communities down to a manageable size.
In ancient Mesopotamian religion the Assyro-Babylonian demonic god Pazuzu, also called Fazuzu or Pazuza, Dark Angel of the Four Winds, Prince of the Lower Aerial Kingdoms, was a personification of the West Wind, and held kingship over the lilu wind demons. He was known to breathe swarms of locusts and could create poisonous clouds of acidic waste with his breath at will. He was also known to have low-light vision as well as blindsight (the ability to perceive surroundings without visual sight). He spoke many languages and was also thought to have some form of telepathic abilities. Pazuzu is also known to have a magical greatsword that granted him impressive agility and speed. He was most popular in the first millennium BCE.
It was said that if one was to invoke the name of Pazuzu three consecutive times, he would be able to read the thoughts of the person trying to summon him. He could then appear next to them when he wished and often granted their wishes to make them feel indebted to his services – though the cost would be great. It was thought that Pazuzu used these tactics to spread his influence to whole communities.
He also had many worshipers among evil flying creatures. Those who were thought to worship Pazuzu including Kenku, harpies, gargoyles, manticores, wyverns, fey, and dragons.
Many question why the Sumerians would risk invoking the spirit of Pazuzu if they knew him to be an evil entity. Why would anyone want an intimate relationship with such a demonic god? To answer this question, we must examine the relationship between supernatural creatures and humans in the ancient Near East.
Although they are often classified as either evil or protective in modern scholarship, supernatural beings in ancient references seem to be presented as largely amoral. Their harmful or beneficial effects could be manipulated: they could be appeased with offerings and incantations, and even directed against each other by a skilled practitioner of magic. Pazuzu, as a powerful demon, was frequently set up as a shield against another supernatural terror: Lamashtu, a female demon with broad and far-ranging destructive powers, especially feared by pregnant women and those with newborns, who were her favored victims.
PAZUZU WAS REGARDED AS AN EVIL DEMON. Even so, although he was never considered the most benevolent of supernatural beings in ancient Mesopotamia – and was certainly regarded as an evil demon – he was not evil incarnate and was frequently invoked for protection from evil.
The term “demon” in the modern day always carries with it the connotation of evil but this was not so in the ancient world. The English word “demon” is a translation of the Greek word daimon which simply meant “spirit”. A daimon could be good or evil, depending on its intentions and the results of a visitation. it is more accurate to think of Pazuzu as a spirit or a minor god within the pantheon, rather than a tormenting, evil personality.
In ancient Mesopotamia, as in other cultures of the ancient world, demons were often sent by the gods as punishment for sin or to remind one of one’s duty to the gods and others in one’s community. Demons were not always evil and even those who were, like Pazuzu, were still capable of good deeds.
As an Apotropaic magic entity, he was considered as both a destructive and dangerous wind, but also as a repellant to other demons, one who would safeguard the home from their influence. In particular he was protective of pregnant women and mothers, whom he could defend from the machinations of the demoness Lamashtu, his rival. He is invoked in ritual and representations of him are used as defense charms.
Those who worshiped Pazuzu or prayed on his behalf often believed that as long as they offered the demon sacrifices and were careful in their practices, Pazuzu would use his wrath against their enemies instead of themselves.
the Pazuzu figure suddenly appeared in the Early Iron Age. His first visual depictions are not attested until the 8th century BC with the first finds being in the tombs of Nimrud, and his first appearances in texts trace to the 7th century BC. The majority of his representations were found in the Seventh and Sixth Centuries BCE, with the most recent finds dating back to the time of the Seleucid Empire. Pazuzu has two chief aspects. Firstly as a demon of the home, as a domestic spirit, and secondly as the wandering wind demon, traversing the mountains, where he presents a more wild character.
There is a well-documented use of Pazuzu in Mesopotamian white magic. His inhuman and grotesque form could have been used as a method of keeping away unwanted guests, as well as quell his wind-demon subjects from entering the home and wreaking havoc. His role in ritual and magic is documented on inscriptions on the backs of his statues, or in ritual texts. Spells, Incantations, and special artifacts were used to gain the favor and protection of the demon. These artifacts were placed in and around the home, or worn on the person to achieve the desired effect.
Large amounts of Pazuzu Heads have been discovered, made from a variety of materials, chiefly Terra-Cotta, but also bronze, iron, gold, glass, and bone. These heads often had holes or loops on top, so they could be worn on necklaces by pregnant women to protect the baby from evil forces. Occasionally the heads would be attached to cylinder seals or worn as brooches as well. Some of these heads have been found in graves.
He was believed to be from the modern-day Zagros Mountains between Iraq and Iran. His connection to the mountainous region contributed to the belief that he controlled the forces of plague, drought, and famine. He was the demon of the underworld (where all demons were thought to reside) in control of the west and south-west winds (which were thought to originate from the land of the dead) which brought famine during the dry season and, in the rainy season, tearing storms and locusts. As he was the force behind the destructive winds and their threat, he was also considered the best defense against them. Similar in this way to the Egyptian god Set, prayers to Pazuzu were intended to divert his natural inclination toward destruction to the more benevolent ends of protection. Since it was clear he had great power to harm it was thought he was equally potent in protecting one from the very danger he presented.
Carved apotropaic Amulets are also common, which combat the powers of his rival, the malicious goddess Lamashtu, who was believed to cause harm to mother and child during childbirth. She is often depicted as ushering the ill to the underworld, gnawing on the bones of her victims, and visiting terror on the defenseless. According to legend, Lamashtu was once the lover of Pazuzu. This ended when Lamashtu betrayed Pazuzu.
Once she felt she had become close enough to Pazuzu for him to be blinded by their connection, she asked Pazuzu to reveal his true name to her. She claimed that if he was as powerful as he claimed to be, revealing his true name would not threaten his power.
Pazuzu was arrogant and thought little of Lamashtu’s challenge. He told her his true name and Lamashtu turned against him immediately. She attempted to use the magic of his true name to take over his realm and render him powerless. She was not successful, but forced him to flee and go into hiding.
Pazuzu became enraged with Lamashtu and devised a plan to extract his revenge. He lured Lamashtu into the Terremor (the 503rd layer of the Abyss). He tricked Lamashtu into venturing into the tight crevices of the Terremor where her large form was a disadvantage. He allowed her to think she was in control of the outcome of the fight by simply evading her attacks instead of retaliating in defense and then dove inside her mouth as if he had been defeated.
Lamashtu thought herself victorious and began to rejoice until she felt one of her teeth being ripped from her jaw. Pazuzu reemerged and used the tooth to carve through Lamashtu’s skull and tear out her eyes. He then condemned her to an eternity in Terremor for her betrayal and resigned himself to Pazunia. Once there, he slaughtered all of his minions and changed his tactics. From that day forward, Pazuzu would not be reckless, but would be known for being one of the most cold and calculating demons in the Abyss.
It is thought that Pazuzu was willing to protect pregnant women and young children against Lamashtu because of his anger over her betrayal of his trust. Though the intent behind his benevolent acts is questionable, it may have been comforting to think that even an evil spirit was capable of doing good if it was properly honored.
Although Pazuzu is considered an evil spirit with a penchant for death and destruction, he was called upon to ward off other malicious spirits. He would protect humans against any variety of misfortune or plague. Mesopotamian peoples would cast spells and carry sacred objects to cause Pazuzu to act in their defense. The mythologies state that Pazuzu’s terrifying presence was enough to cause Lamashtu, his former lover, to flee.
Larger amulets made from stone could be hung on the wall to protect the room or an entrance. One of this type of amulet that was found inside a home in the Neo-Assyrian town of Dur-Katlimmu was lying on the floor of the main reception room and was thought to have been hung on the wall facing the entryway.
Given the volume of artifacts uncovered, it is thought that he enjoyed great popularity, and based upon the uniformity of the heads, amulets and statues, it is even speculated that Pazuzu representations were mass-produced.
A ritual text from Assyria prescribes a Pazuzu head as a way to banish sickness. Similarly a ritual incantation against Lamashtu from the Late Babylonian Period instructs making a Pazuzu necklace and hanging it around the afflicted persons neck.
In the bilingual (Sumerian and Akkadian) version of the Compendia, he identifies himself:
“I am Pazuzu, son of Ḫanbu, king of the evil lilû-demons. I was enraged (in violent motion) against the strong mountains and ascended them.”
Another text also narrated by him describes Pazuzu encountering other lilû demons in his travels, and breaking their wings, therefore preventing them from inflicting harm. “I ascended a mighty mountain that shook, and the (evil) winds I encountered there were heading West; One by one I broke their wings.”
In another text he is perceived as more malicious, as the narrator addresses him as “Agony of Mankind”, “Suffering of Mankind”, “Disease of Mankind”, and chants telling the demon to not enter the home.
He is imagined as an especially frightening chimera-like figure capable of scaring off any lesser demon or ghost. The appearance of Pazuzu has remained fairly uniform throughout his history. Pazuzu is depicted as a combination of diverse animal and human parts. His body canine-like but scaled, with birds’ talons for feet, two pairs of wings, a scorpion’s tail and a serpentine penis. He has his right hand up and left hand down. His face is striking, with gazelle horns, human ears, a doglike muzzle, bulging eyes, and wrinkles on the cheeks.
Pazuzu is the most famous Mesopotamian demon in the present day and likely the only one people have ever heard of. Though short on pizzazz, Pazuzu made it to Hollywood: he is the only Mesopotamian demon to have starred in a movie – The Exorcist. In the 1973 horror film (based on the 1971 novel by William Peter Blatty), Pazuzu is the demon who possesses the Linda Blair character, the young girl Regan MacNeil, and is associated with the Christian Satan and the forces of evil.
The movie sets up this back story by opening on an excavation in progress: the screen identifies the setting as simply “Northern Iraq.” It is the site of Hatra, instantly recognizable from the columned facades of its great iwans (barrel-vaulted halls). Hatra, a magnificent city that was home to at least a dozen temples and is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site, certainly makes an impressive backdrop. The camera passes over Corinthian capitals and the carved head of an eagle, which evoke Greco-Roman architecture and sculpture—a more reliable indication of great antiquity for an American viewing audience, perhaps, than the mud-brick stumps of walls at most Mesopotamian sites.
The film was shot on location, with Iraqi extras playing workmen at the dig site—although the dozens of workmen swinging picks and rushing to and fro with wheelbarrows are more reminiscent of nineteenth- or early twentieth-century excavations than they are of modern, much more careful and less kinetic digs. In the opening scenes of The Exorcist he is depicted accurately in the life-sized statue the priest looks upon in the ancient city of Hatra.
The grand buildings on the screen were built by the Parthians, nomadic peoples originally from Iran who ruled the Near East from the second century B.C. to the second century A.D. The Classical design elements in Parthian architecture reflect a Near Eastern world that had been conquered by the Macedonian armies of Alexander the Great in the fourth century B.C., spreading Greek influences and disrupting the unbroken chain of ruling dynasties connected to the deep cultural history of Mesopotamia. By the time of the Parthians, Pazuzu’s image was already almost out of use; only two representations of the demon can be dated to this period.
An early scene from The Exorcist shows a human-size Pazuzu statue on view at the site, and there is an uneasy expression on the face of the archaeologist-priest as he gazes at it. In the novel, the author shows the priest handling a small statue of Pazuzu, not gazing upon a large figure, and this is also accurate.
Although small statuettes of the demon have been found at Hatra, no full-sized statues have ever been found anywhere and it is unlikely they ever will be. Depictions of demons or deities associated with the underworld are rare because it was thought that, in creating such an image, one attracted the attention of the subject.
It is for this reason that few images exist of Ereshkigal, Queen of the Dead, and why even the famous Burney Relief (popularly known as the Queen of the Night) does not explicitly name its subject even though it most likely depicts Ereshkigal: to create an image of the Queen of the Dead would have been to call her attention to one’s self and no one was especially interested in meeting her face-to-face.
The small statuettes and amuletic charms featuring Pazuzu had exactly the same effect: they drew Pazuzu’s attention to the wearer or the room where the statuette was placed but their diminutive size concentrated their power toward protection. The individual mortal would have had nothing to fear from the demon because they were honoring him by asking for his protection and, when he came, he would turn his demonic powers on those threatening his charges, not on the individual mortal who had invoked him.
These small statuettes were placed primarily in children’s rooms, naturally, but could have sat anywhere in a home near a doorway or window. Images and figures of Pazuzu served a similar function as the Nimrud Dogs, small dog statuettes buried under the threshold of a building (or strategically placed in a room) to guard against evil spirits, demons, or ghosts. The Nimrud Dogs were thought to be imbued with the spirit of actual dogs, associated with Gula, who were primarily seen as protective animals. In this same way, statuettes of Pazuzu drew on the essence of the demon himself and guaranteed one safety in their presence.
When Christians were introduced to the Sumerian myths, they created an alternative storyline. Because their religion only had one benevolent god, it was necessary to display all demon spirits as purely evil entities whose sole purpose was to corrupt those who served God. It was then that Pazuzu became known as Lucifer’s right hand man. It was said that the two conspired together to overthrow God but were unsuccessful and were thrown out of Heaven as punishment. It was through this interpretation that Pazuzu became known to be a fallen angel who had transformed into a demon. The gospels of the New Testament depict Jesus Christ routinely driving demons from various individuals and the Book of Acts, Revelation, and others describe demons in the service of God’s adversary, Satan. In the letter of I John 4:1 in the New Testament the writer admonishes his readers to test every spirit to see if it is of God, and to reject it if it is not.
Demons were thereafter considered only as agents of evil, incapable of good save only inadvertently in serving God’s overall plan. Pazuzu, an ancient Mesopotamian figure of fearsome aspect, was the perfect choice as the antagonist in The Exorcist as the audience had been primed through almost 2,000 years of instruction to accept the ancient demon-god as an instrument of evil. To the people of his day, however, Pazuzu was regarded as security and a shield against misfortunes in an uncertain and often frightening world.
Although modern day perspectives of Pazuzu may be limited through the Christian interpretation of this Sumerian demon, Pazuzu was actually seen as a very powerful and respectable demon of his time.
Pazuzu is a re-occurring figure in the fictional world of the English virtual band, Gorillaz. He often appears in the background of videos, such as graffiti of him in “Humility”, the statue of him outside the band’s Kong Studios and in the “Rhinestone Eyes” storyboard, and pictured frequently on the drummer Russel Hobbs drums.
The game House of Ashes from the Dark Pictures Anthologies by developer Supermassive Games includes many depictions of Pazuzu.
Pazuzu Algarad, born John Lawson, died of a self-inflicted wound to his arm on October 28, 2015, while in police custody. Algarad was being held on suspicion of a double murder among other criminal complaints. For more information on this WILD and very interesting true crime murder case, click here.
Interested in a topic of your own? Just ask here and I will be glad to post it!
Instagram: 3 Cats and Cauldron
TikTok: 3 Cats and a Cauldron
From our altar to yours, with love from the sea,
Click here for an Index to all posts
