Why Animal Goat is So Associated with Demon

Delirium
2 min readSep 6, 2023

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We always witness that the goat, goat skull or goat head are used as demonic signs. But have we ever wonder why it is the case? There are many rumors about this question but I will be focusing on one.

Back in the days goat figure or half goat half human figures was persisting image for a pastoral god for polytheist pagan communities. This god is for agricultural life and fertility. So here is the question how did it become an demonistical god after all these positive affection. So here is the rumor goes. Back in the Ancient Rome a deity imagined as half man, half goat which symbolises as I said earlier agricultural life and fertility. But during the Catholic conversion of europe Saint Augustine of Hippo appears as the central role of the shattering the reputation of the current religious perception as turning goat-like deity ( I will use this word deity because there is more than one omnipresence) into a embodiment of evil. Augustine was in a pivotical role on defining the good or evil regarding the legacy of the Jesus Christ. They wanted the catholic conversion to be a success. They did this by turning the pre-christian communities’ innocent deity to a horrific figure. Thus, the targeted population was mostly illiterate so a picture was needed to doctrinate the rural people. Therefore, they’ve been created the pictures and doctrinate people with this way.

2 versicle from the Leviticus in the Bible

Leviticus 17.7

“So they shall no more sacrifice their sacrifices to goat demons, after whom they whore.” — ESV, Lev 17:7’

Leviticus 16:6-10

“Aaron is to offer the bull for his own sin offering to make atonement for himself and his household. Then he is to take the two goats and present them before the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting. He is to cast lots for the two goats — one lot for the Lord and the other for the scapegoat. Aaron shall bring the goat whose lot falls to the Lord and sacrifice it for a sin offering. But the goat chosen by lot as the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the Lord to be used for making atonement by sending it into the wilderness as a scapegoat.”

Thanks for reading…

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