Paimon’s Glamour

Creation as the formation of a field to actualize potentials occupies an exceptionally important place in the magical worldview. It is by using supports an assemblage of actualized energies that the mind can develop, expand, and realize.

An attitude toward the manifested world as a favorable opportunity for the mind’s development is expressed by the genius Haziel. The Genius is related to the spheres of Taurus and the Moon, which points to its close connection with rooting and grounding energies that allow the mind to make full use of the possibilities of the physical plane. These energies are said to give people steady footing and confidence in tomorrow, and the name of the Genius, which can be rendered as “Merciful God” or “God of Mercy,” underlines his influence on a “positive” attitude toward the world.

Nevertheless, an infatuation with the manifested plane, absolutizing it, and transferring it from being a means into an end leads to a distortion of the grounding energies and to the creation of a “cult of materialism.” Moreover, the involvement of both “earthly” and “lunar” energies gives this “cult” not only an all-consuming character but also a hint of aestheticism, and the materialism and hedonism of this cult spill over into a fascination with the outward appearance of objects, an obsession with glitter and tinsel — in short, what is now called “glamour.”

This destructive force is embodied in one of the demonic Kings since the distortion of the attitude toward the material is one of the basic destructors, one of the key delusions that leads to a whole slew of problems and inefficiencies.

«Lemegeton» reports:

“Paimon (Paimon)  — the ninth spirit, a great king, wholly subject to Lucifer. He appears in the form of a man with the most magnificent crown on his head, seated upon a dromedary. Before him march a throng of spirits like men, with pipes, cymbals and other musical instruments. He has a loud voice, and he roars at his first appearing, and his speech is such that the magus may not understand him until forced to express himself more plainly. This spirit can teach all arts, sciences and various secret things. He compels and forces any person to serve the magus, if the magus so wishes. He grants good friends, such as can teach all arts. He belongs to the order of Dominions. He rules 200 legions of spirits, some of which belong to the order of angels, and some to the order of Powers.”

Let us unpack what this description says. First, it points to Paimon’s “greatness.” It speaks of the demon’s global reach: his manifestations touch very different areas of mind, especially those subject to Lucifer. The latter means that the path for Paimon’s influences is opened by intelligence, and although this demon comes from the west — therefore ruling over emotions — his power rests on an ideology, on reasoning of the sort “the whole world is shit, all people are scoundrels,” and paradoxically the consequent “take from life everything while you can.” Lucifer’s rule primarily implies a renunciation of love; its internal devaluation leads to the resulting coldness and emptiness, which are compensated by outward glitter and bright colors. The “earthly,” material component of Paimon’s influence amounts to skating over the surface, a refusal to look deeply — deep into oneself, into the depths of the cosmos, into others.

According to J. Weyer (Johann Weyer), the words of the prophet Ezekiel — «your garments were adorned with every precious stone» — apply to Paimon; a host of musicians appears before him on the head of the demon — “the most magnificent crown” — all of which underscores the depth of the demon’s authority over mind. Paimon’s “refinement,” his corrupted aestheticism, is emphasized by another characteristic — his androgyny, his intersexed nature: he appears as a “man with a woman’s face,” and this androgyny signifies not a harmonious synthesis of masculine and feminine principles, not their cooperation and fusion, but an imitation, a counterfeit that contains internal dissonance, once again concealed by outward tinsel and glitter. Paimon is not simply a “feminine man”; he is a man who poses as a woman, imitates a woman — that is, crudeness posing as sensuality. The latter is expressed in the demon’s voice: “His voice is powerful, and at his first appearing he roars.”

Paimon rules realizations through intelligence; a person under his influence is convinced that he knows and understands everything, and often plays the part of the experienced, world-weary type. This is precisely what the Lemegeton refers to when it states that “he may reveal what the earth is and how it rests on the waters, what the abyss is and whence the wind comes….” This Luciferian trait, however, does not extend beyond posturing and does not lead to genuine reflection or understanding.

A person who falls under Paimon’s influence does not merely strive for material acquisitions; they become the focus of their life. He truly believes himself to be happy when he buys an exclusive outfit or a brand-new phone; he truly suffers when he “looks bad” or when people “treat him poorly”; he is dependent on public opinion and social stereotypes, while at the same time considering himself some kind of original, authentic figure. The incredible intellectual primitiveness implanted by the demon is masked by an excessive layer of make-up, glitter, boas and feathers, and the cold heart, incapable of love, hides behind ostentatious “sensitiveness” and “impressionability.”

It is clear that one can oppose Paimon by cultivating the right attitude toward the physical world and its resources as the environment in which the mind develops — an environment important but nonetheless secondary to spirit — an environment that must not be neglected, but to which one should not become infatuated.