Engraving from an Abraxas stone.

The word Abraxas (or Abrasax or Abracax) was engraved on certain antique stones, called on that account Abraxas stones, which were used as amulets or charms. The name is found in the Greek Magical Papyrii, and the word may be related to the word abracadabra, although other explanations exist. The name is also found in Gnostic texts such as the Gospel of the Egyptians. Abraxas has also been variously claimed throughout the centuries to be an Egyptian god, and a demon.^{[citation needed]} Abraxas represents also God and Satan in one entity and the dual nature of its essence. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (581x1038, 35 KB) Source:Nordisk familjebok (1904) vol. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (581x1038, 35 KB) Source:Nordisk familjebok (1904) vol. ... “Ancient” redirects here. ... An amulet from the Black Pullet grimoire An amulet (from Latin amuletum, meaning A means of protection) consists of any object intended to bring good luck and/or protection to its owner. ... Abracadabra (sometimes spelled Abrakadabra) is a word used as an incantation. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Two versions of the suppressed Coptic Gospel of the Egyptians (which is quite distinct from the Greek Gospel of the Egyptians), were among the codices in the Nag Hammadi library, discovered in 1945. ... “Fiend” redirects here. ...

With Thomas More in his novel of the island Utopia the island had besides "Utopia" also an older name: "Abraxas". For the numerous educational institutions, see Thomas More College. ... See Utopia (disambiguation) for other meanings of this word Utopia, in its most common and general meaning, refers to a hypothetical perfect society. ...

Meaning

"The bird fights its way out of the egg. The egg is the world. Whoever wants to be born must destroy a world. The bird flies to God. That God's name is Abraxas" - Hermann Hesse, Demian

Medieval Seal representing Abraxas

The letters of Abraxas, in the Greek system of alphabetic numerology, sum to the number 365, and the Basilideans gave the name to the 365 orders of spirits which, as they conceived, emanated in succession from the Supreme Being. These orders were supposed to occupy 365 heavens, each fashioned like, but inferior to that above it; and the lowest of the heavens was thought to be the abode of the spirits who formed Earth and its inhabitants, and to whom was committed the administration of its affairs. Hermann Hesse (pronounced ) (2 July 1877 – 9 August 1962) was a Swiss-German poet, novelist, and painter. ... Demian: The Story of Emil Sinclairs Youth is a Bildungsroman by Hermann Hesse, first published in 1919, but a prologue was added in 1960. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Isopsephy (iso meaning equal and psephos meaning pebble) is the Greek language word for the practice of adding up the number values of the letters in a word to form a single number. ... Previous number: 364 Next number: 366 365 is a semiprime centered square number. ... The Basilideans were a Gnostic sect founded by Basilides of Alexandria in the 2nd century. ...

In addition to the word Abraxas and other mystical characters, they have often symbolic mystical figures engraved on them. The most common of these have the head of a fowl, and the arms and bust of a man, and terminate in the body and tail of a serpent.

On the Abraxas gems, the figure had a Chimera-like appearance (somewhat resembling a basilisk): he had the head of a rooster (or sometimes a king), the body of a man, and legs fashioned like snakes and sometimes depicted with a whip in his hand - a form referred to as the Anguipede. Chimera on a red-figure Apulian plate, ca 350-340 BCE (Musée du Louvre) In Greek mythology, the Chimera (Greek Χίμαιρα (Chímaira); Latin Chimaera) is a monstrous creature of Lycia in Asia Minor, which was made of the parts of multiple animals. ... Woodblock print of a basilisk from Ulisse Aldrovandi, Monstrorum historia, 1642 Cityseal of Zwolle from 1295 with Saint-Michael killing a basilisk In European bestiaries and legends, a basilisk (from the Greek βασιλίσκος basiliskos, a little king, in Latin Regulus) is a legendary reptile reputed to be king of serpents and... Rooster crowing during daylight A Rhode Island Red. ... blue: sea snakes, black: land snakes Superfamilies and Families Henophidia Aniliidae Anomochilidae Boidae Bolyeriidae Cylindrophiidae Loxocemidae Pythonidae Tropidophiidae Uropeltidae Xenopeltidae Typhlopoidea Anomalepididae Leptotyphlopidae Typhlopidae Xenophidia Acrochordidae Atractaspididae Colubridae Elapidae Hydrophiidae Viperidae A snake is a scaly, limbless, elongate reptile from the order Squamata. ... A jasper amulet depicting an Anguipede. ...

Quotes

Tertullian

'Afterwards broke out the heretic Basilides. He affirms that there is a supreme Deity, by name Abraxas, by whom was created Mind, which in Greek he calls Nous; that thence sprang the Word; that of Him issued Providence, Virtue, and Wisdom; that out of these subsequently were made Principalities, powers, and Angels; that there ensued infinite issues and processions of angels; that by these angels 365 heavens were formed, and the world, in honor of Abraxas, whose name, if computed, has in itself this number. Now, among the last of the angels, those who made this world, he places the God of the Jews latest, that is, the God of the Law and of the Prophets, whom he denies to be a God, but affirms to be an angel. To him, he says, was allotted the seed of Abraham, and accordingly he it was who transferred the sons of Israel from the land of Egypt into the land of Canaan; affirming him to be turbulent above the other angels, and accordingly given to the frequent arousing of seditions and wars, yes, and the shedding of human blood. Christ, moreover, he affirms to have been sent, not by this maker of the world, but by the above-named Abraxas; and to have come in a phantasm, and been destitute of the substance of flesh: that it was not He who suffered among the Jews, but that Simon was crucified in His stead: whence, again, there must be no believing on him who was crucified, lest one confess to having believed on Simon. Martyrdoms, he says, are not to be endured. The resurrection of the flesh he strenuously impugns, affirming that salvation has not been promised to bodies.' Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1065x1630, 489 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Abraxas ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1065x1630, 489 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Abraxas ...

Carl Jung (The Seven Sermons to the Dead)

"Abraxas speaketh that hallowed and accursed word which is life and death at the same time. Abraxas begetteth truth and lying, good and evil, light and darkness in the same word and in the same act. Wherefore is Abraxas terrible."

E. A. Wallis Budge

Gemstone carved with Abraxas, obverse and reverse.

"Abraxas represented the 365 Aeons or emanations from the First Cause, and as a Pantheus, i.e. All-God, he appears on the amulets with the head of a cock (Phoebus) or of a lion (Ra or Mithras), the body of a man, and his legs are serpents which terminate in scorpions, types of the Agathodaimon. In his right hand he grasps a club, or a flail, and in his left is a round or oval shield” Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...

Trivia

• Abraxas Foundation
• Abraxas was described as the demon of "lies and deceit" in the Showtime television series The L Word. In the 2004 episode "Lies, Lies, Lies," Abraxas was portrayed by the actor Julian Sands as a well-mannered Englishman, tempting one of the characters.
• Abraxas is mentioned in the 1919 novel Demian by Herman Hesse.
• Abraxas is also an album by Santana.
• Abraxas plays a demon on Charmed who lives on an astral plane. He is vanquished by the sisters in episode 2x01 Witch Trial.
• "Abraxas Annihilation" is a song by Cleveland hardcore band Integrity (band). The cover of the album on which it appears, "Humanity Is the Devil," features a depiction of an Abraxas figure by the artist Pushead.
• In the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, Abraxas is the name of Lucius Malfoy's father.
• Abraxas is the title of a 60-minute ballet by the German composer Werner Egk. Premiered in Munich in 1948, its first production gained notoriety through its banning by the Bavarian Ministry of Culture on the grounds that the ballet's focal point was a black mass that might endanger public morality. The ban was not lifted, but the work became even more popular, establishing itself as part of the standard German ballet repertoire in the 1950s.
• "Abraxas 79713" was the password used by Captain John Sheridan in Babylon 5: Thirdspace to gain access to a nuclear device kept on the station.
• Abraxas is the title of a Disco Biscuits song.
• In the popular role playing game Final Fantasy X by Square Enix, Abraxas is the name of one of Yuna's rods.
• Swedish metal band Therion has a song called Abraxas.
• In the game Xenosaga, the planet Michtam was known as Abraxas, where the People of Zohar used to live. The planet has a big plot in the game.
• In the Japanese TV series Revolutionary Girl Utena, the student council's motto is an adaption of Hermann Hesse quote about the chick and the egg. The title of the theme music from this scene is "Legend: The God's Name is Abraxas.", a direct quotation of Demian, which has the same theme as the anime.
• Abraxas is a white wine made by Robert Sinskey Vineyards
• In a skit on Saturday Night Live of a mock advertisement for a remake of the Happy Birthday song done in the style of a black/medieval metal ballad, Jack Black cries out "Abraxas! I give myself to thee!"
• Abraxas is mentioned in the song 'Demian' by the Anglo-German group, Seelenlicht (http://www.myspace.com/seelenlichtmusic).
• Abraxas is the name of a coffee shop in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
• Abraxas, Guardian of the Universe is the name of a 1998 sci-fi movie starring Jesse Ventura and Sven-Ole Thorsen.
• Abraxas (or Xabaras) is the father of Dylan Dog in the Italian comic series "Dylan Dog"

This article lacks information on the importance of the subject matter. ... Showtime is a subscription television brand used by a number of channels and platforms around the world, but primarily refers to a group of channels in the United States. ... The L Word is a television drama series on Showtime that portrays the lives, loves and learnings of a group of lesbian and bisexual women and their friends, family and lovers in Los Angeles. ... Julian Sands (born January 15, 1958) is a British actor. ... Demian: The Story of Emil Sinclairs Youth is a Bildungsroman by Hermann Hesse, first published in 1919, but a prologue was added in 1960. ... Hermann Hesse Hermann Hesse (July 2, 1877 – August 9, 1962) was a German author, and the winner of the 1946 Nobel Prize in literature. ... Abraxas is the second album by psychedelic rock band Santana, released in September of 1970 (see 1970 in music). ... Santana (originally the Santana Blues Band) is a flexible number of musicians accompanying Carlos Santana since the late 1960s. ... Charmed is an American television series that ran for eight seasons on The WB. It was produced by Aaron Spelling and is about three sisters who are the worlds most powerful good witches, known throughout the supernatural community as The Charmed Ones but known to everyone else as the... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Integrity, formed in 1988, is a Cleveland, Ohio-based band. ... Pushead (a. ... This article is about the Harry Potter series of novels. ... Joanne Rowling OBE (born July 31, 1965 in Chipping Sodbury, South Gloucestershire), commonly known as J.K. Rowling (pronunciation: roll-ing; her former students used to joke with her name calling her the Rolling Stone), is a British fiction writer. ... Lucius Malfoy is a fictional character and antagonist in the Harry Potter book series written by J. K. Rowling. ... John Sheridan was a character in the sci-fi series Babylon 5 John Sheridan is an Irish footballer This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... The Disco Biscuits are a trance fusion jam band from Philadelphia. ... Final Fantasy X ) is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix), and the tenth installment in the Final Fantasy video game series; it was released in 2001, and is the first numbered Final Fantasy game for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console. ... SQUARE ENIX (Japanese: スクウェア・エニックス) is a Japanese producer of popular video games and manga. ... Therion is a Swedish symphonic metal band. ... It has been suggested that List of Xenosaga cast members be merged into this article or section. ... Revolutionary Girl Utena ) is a manga by Chiho Saito and anime directed by Kunihiko Ikuhara. ... Demian: The Story of Emil Sinclairs Youth is a Bildungsroman by Hermann Hesse, first published in 1919, but a prologue was added in 1960. ... Saturday Night Live (SNL) is a weekly late night 91-minute American comedy-variety show based in New York City that has been broadcast live by NBC on Saturday nights since October 11, 1975. ... Jack Black (born Thomas Jack Black, Jr. ... Abraxas, Guardian of the Universe is a 1991 science-fiction/action film written and directed by Damian Lee and starring Jesse The Body Ventura and Sven-Ole Thorsen, with a cameo by James Belushi. ... Jesse Ventura (born James George Janos on July 15, 1951), also known as The Body, The Star, The Mind, and Governor Body, is an American politician, former professional wrestler, Navy UDT veteran, actor, and former radio and television talk show host. ... Sven-Ole Thorsen (born September 24, 1944) is a Danish actor, stuntman, and athlete. ...

External links

• Occultopedia entry
• Jewish encyclopedia entry
• Images of Abraxas
• The complete texts of Carl Jung's "The Seven Sermons To The Dead"