Hugh J. Schonfield (1901–1988), [42] one of the scholars who worked on the Dead Sea Scrolls, argued in his book The Essene Odyssey that the word "Baphomet" was created with knowledge of the Atbash substitution cipher, which substitutes the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet for the last, the second for the second last, and so on. "Baphomet" rendered in Hebrew is בפומת‎ ( bpwmt); interpreted using Atbash, it becomes שופיא‎ ( šwpy‘, "Shofya'"), which can be interpreted as the Greek word " Sophia", meaning wisdom. This theory is an important part of the plot of the novel The Da Vinci Code. This theory was recently questioned by the French historian Thierry Murcia who challenges the method of calculation used by Schonfield. [43] Joseph Freiherr von Hammer-Purgstall [ edit ] Joseph von Hammer-Purgstall (1774–1856) associated a series of carved or engraved figures found on a number of supposed 13th-century Templar artifacts (such as cups, bowls and coffers) with the Baphometic idol Another name for it is Ramar Chakra, Rama Chakra or Sri Rama Chakra. It is a yantra or mystic diagram given in Tamil Almanacs as an instrument of astrology. And it can help in predicting the future. Also, it consist of a square divided into small equal squares. The pentagram was used in ancient Chinese and Japanese religions to symbolize the five elements of life. In Japanese culture the symbol was also considered magical. Ancient Babylonian culture was also using the pentagram to represent various gods and religious beliefs of their own. It has already been mentioned how Baphomet is, in one sense, the product of the union of Priest and Priestess. This is foreshadowed long before the climactic “HRILIU” in a subtle way. In the first portions of the Mass, the Priest is purified and consecrated by the Priestess in the West. This is always done in a 3-fold manner, as it says in the rubric, “over his forehead, breast, and body.”

The pentagram is commonly accepted as a symbol of protection and exorcism, driving away evil and other unwanted energies and entities.

Eliphas Levi’s Baphomet

The name Baphomet came into popular English usage in the 19th century during debate and speculation on the reasons for the suppression of the Templars. Modern scholars agree that the name of Baphomet was an Old French corruption of the name "Mohammed", [3] with the interpretation being that some of the Templars, through their long military occupation of the Outremer, had begun incorporating Islamic ideas into their belief system, and that this was seen and documented by the Inquisitors as heresy. [29] Alain Demurger, however, rejects the idea that the Templars could have adopted the doctrines of their enemies. [30] Helen Nicholson writes that the charges were essentially "manipulative"—the Templars "were accused of becoming fairy-tale Muslims". [30] Medieval Christians believed that Muslims were idolatrous and worshipped Muhammad as a god, [3] with mahomet becoming mammet in English, meaning an idol or false god [31] (see also Medieval Christian views on Muhammad). This idol-worship is attributed to Muslims in several chansons de geste. For example, one finds the gods Bafum e Travagan in a Provençal poem on the life of St. Honorat, completed in 1300. [32] In the Chanson de Simon Pouille, written before 1235, a Saracen idol is called Bafumetz. [33] Alternative etymologies [ edit ] In 1897 Stanislas de Gauaita adapted the head of Levi’s Sabbatic Goat to fit inside a pentagram. De Gauaita’s version of Baphomet included an upside-down, five-pointed star surrounded by two circles. Between the circles are five Hebrew letters, one on each point of the star, spelling the Hebrew word for “Leviathan.” Around the arms of the star on the top is the name Samael, the angel of death in Talmudic lore; and on the bottom, Lilith, a female demon who was Adam’s first wife according to pagan beliefs. In 1969 Anton LaVey adopted the pentagram goat for his Church of Satan and definitively identified it with Baphomet.

The pentacle is a talisman used in magical evocation and usually made of metal, paper or parchment. It can also be of other materials on which a magical design is drawn. Peter requested to be crucified upside down, as he felt unworthy to die in the same manner as Christ. Games, Alex; Coren, Victoria (2007). Balderdash and Piffle, One Sandwich Short of a Dog's Dinner. ISBN 978-1846072352. The four physical elements are represented here by a cup, wand, sword, and disk. These associations were common in 19th-century occultism both through tarot cards (which use such symbols as suits) and ritual tools. The first historical record of Baphomet comes from a letter written by a crusader in t 1098. In the letter, he explains that the enemies of the Crusaders could often be heard calling upon ‘Baphometh.’ There is also a record that says the mosques were called ‘Bufmarias.’ These connections suggest that the word Baphomet may have been a mispronunciation of the name ‘Mohammed.’ If Baphomet is, indeed, a mispronunciation of Mohammed, it would explain why he is seen as an evil entity by many in modern day. This would imply that by worshiping Baphomet, the Knights of the Templar were actually adopting Islamic practices – a crime that would not be ignored by the Catholic Church. To truly understand the dynamics at work behind the creation of Baphomet, it is important to look at the Knights of the Templar and the Crusades. The Knights of the Templar

Possible Connections to Banebdjedet

Another name for Saturn in ancient times was the sun. On the other hand, ancient people thought the Mars was between the Earth and the sun. So marking the original appearance of this potent concept to Lévi’s description of 1855 C.E., we Satanists now celebrate the 150th anniversary of the coming forth of what we call the Sigil of Baphomet. We know that it shall continue its dark reign in minds and hearts for years to come as the preeminent visual distillation of the iconoclastic philosophy of Satanism. Another name for talismans that protect people against the evil eye is «evil eyes». The significance and its concept vary depending on the concerned culture. Decorations and charms with eye-like symbols are nazars and can be for repelling it. In 1818, the name Baphomet appeared in the essay by the Viennese Orientalist Joseph Freiherr von Hammer-Purgstall, Mysterium Baphometis revelatum, seu Fratres Militiæ Templi, qua Gnostici et quidem Ophiani, Apostasiæ, Idoloduliæ et Impuritatis convicti, per ipsa eorum Monumenta [44] ("Discovery of the Mystery of Baphomet, by which the Knights Templars, like the Gnostics and Ophites, are convicted of Apostasy, of Idolatry and of moral Impurity, by their own Monuments"), which presented an elaborate pseudohistory constructed to discredit Templarist Masonry and, by extension, Freemasonry. [45] Following Nicolai, he argued, using as archaeological evidence "Baphomets" faked by earlier scholars and literary evidence such as the Grail romances, that the Templars were Gnostics and the "Templars' head" was a Gnostic idol called Baphomet: In Christian symbolism, the basic pentagram (without a circle) was originally used to represent the five wounds of Jesus Christ. It was soon supplanted by the symbol of the cross, but the pentagram was still recognizable as a Christian symbol for a few hundred years after Jesus’ resurrection. Some say that the continuous line was also considered symbolic of the Alpha and Omega.