Satan

Satan (Hebrew for "adversary" or "accuser"), or The Devil, is an entity in the Abrahamic religions that seduces humans into sin or falsehood. In Christianity, he is seen as a fallen angel named Lucifer, while in Islam, he is seen as a free-willed jinn made out of fire who used to possess great piety and beauty, but rebelled against God, who nevertheless allows him temporary power over the world and a host of demons.
In the Book of Job, Satan is a member of the courts of Heaven, offering his opinions to God regarding which humans are and are not sincere in their piety; in one trial he tries to force the human Job to curse God. In the Synoptic Gospels, Satan tempts Jesus in the desert and is identified as the cause of illness and temptation. In the Book of Revelation, Satan appears as a Great Red Dragon, who is defeated by Michael the Archangel and cast down from Heaven.
In Christianity, Satan is commonly stated to be a title used by the fallen angel Lucifer. Although the Book of Genesis does not mention him, he is often identified as the serpent in the Garden of Eden. During the early modern period, Satan's significance greatly increased as beliefs such as demonic possession and witchcraft became more prevalent.
In Islam, Satan is also known as Iblis/Eblis, who when God created Adam, refused to bow down in obedience to the latter claiming he was a nobler being since he was created out of fire.
In Theistic Satanism, Satan is considered a deity who is either worshipped or revered. In LaVeyan Satanism, Satan is a symbol of virtuous characteristics and liberty.
Satan's appearance is never described in the Bible, but, since the ninth century, he has often been shown in Christian art with horns, cloven hooves, unusually hairy legs, and a tail, often naked and holding a pitchfork. These are an amalgam of traits derived from various pagan deities, including Pan, Poseidon and Bes.
Satan frequently appears in Christian literature, most notably in Dante Alighieri's Inferno, variants of the Faust legend, and John Milton's Paradise Lost.
==Satan in the Castlevania series==
The original Japanese instruction booklet for Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse (Akumajō Densetsu) states that Dracula, apart from selling his soul to the Devil, also forced his son, Alucard, into the contract in order to obtain even more power.Akumajō Densetsu instruction booklet: ドラキュラ公は自らの力を絶大なものにするため、その身を悪魔に売り渡すまでになっていたが、それだけでは満足せず、自分の息子にまで悪魔との契約を行うよう強要したのである。"Dracula sold his own soul to the Devil in order to increase his power, but he was not satisfied by that alone and forced his son into the contract." However, this part of the series' lore was removed in Symphony of the Night with the inclusion of Lisa into the storyline, making Alucard a dhampir from birth and removing his initial status as a purebred vampire.
In 1792, cultists call upon the power of Satan, the Devil, in order to resurrect Dracula again.Castlevania: Rondo of Blood/ScriptCastlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles/Script
In 1844, Cornell, and in 1852, Reinhardt Schneider and Carrie Fernandez, agree to a contract with Satan not to spend over 30,000 gold. If they spend more than this, Renon will appear before them and reveal the fine print in his contract, revealing his true identity, and coming to enforce the contract with them to make their souls his, at which point he transforms into his true demonic form to fight the characters.
Satan is also occasionally mentioned in items in other games of the series, such as Satan's Ring, which is said Satan himself once wore (note this only appears in English localizations; the 'Dark Lord' mentioned is generally believed to actually be Dracula himself).
Lucifer's Sword is an artifact found in Castlevania: Lament of Innocence in 1094.
==Continuity==
There is some discrepancy regarding the existence of Satan/The Devil in the Castlevania series. While some games do mention his existence along their lore and documentations, other games completely ignore this fact and/or present alternate versions to already established concepts, such as the Devil and/or Hell.
As the series progressed, the concept of a superior being that controls all evil in the world has seemingly befallen solely on what's come to be known as the "Dark Lord" (or the "Prince of Darkness"), with the centuries-old vampire, Count Dracula, generally bearing this title; whereas in most folkloric traditions and media outside the series, Dracula is just an emissary of evil, although a very powerful one, probably only second to the Devil himself.
Likewise, the concept of Hell in the series has had its own particular interpretations and in more palpable forms. Alternate realms, such as the Chaotic Realm and The Abyss, are commonly conceived as interpretations of Hell. Not only that, but the force of "Evil" itself has had its own interpretation in the series as well, such as is the case of Chaos, which, as its name implies, is the origin of all chaotic things and from where Dracula draws his powers as he waits for the next time he is resurrected. These powers, in the more traditional perception, are generally alleged to the Devil instead; however, mentions of him have notably diminished as the series progressed, with more recent titles barely acknowledging him, or if they do, at least not with the same level of relevance.
It's also worth mentioning the role Satan plays in the Lords of Shadow subseries, a reboot of the Castlevania series that attempts to present a deeper background to previously established concepts, as well as richer development to its characters. In this series, Satan plays a much more faithful role to traditional religious chronicles, where he is indeed a former angel that once rebelled against God, and who for this reason was exiled from Heaven and now plans to defeat Him and usurp His throne as its ruler. For this goal, he sets in play a very intricate plan that involves a series of events where characters are played upon as if they were pawns in a game of chess, with the ultimate goal of getting his hands on a relic (relics, in fact) of (apparent) ultimate power, known as the God Mask. Near the end of this conflict, and after the Brotherhood hero, Gabriel Belmont, defeated his deceitful former mentor and "friend", Zobek, Satan himself materialized to him in apparent flesh and bone and revealed all the truth and his intentions - offering Gabriel to become his paladin in the war that was about to come. However, Gabriel, disappointed, refused Satan's offer and bested him in combat, thwarting his plans and sending him back to the Underworld.
This was not the last that would be seen of Satan, though, as his three Acolytes would still try to help him achieve his plans of absolute domination; although, in the end, all three failed and met their demise, with one even being slaughtered in the most horrible way by Satan himself.
==Trivia==
*"Sons of Satan" is a musical theme that plays in Castlevania II: Belmont's Revenge during the final battle against Dracula.
*Some of the titles of music themes from the other translated games include the name "Satan" (although it is sometimes translated as 'Devil' as well) (see Konami Game Music: Classic Castlevania).
*The gamebook The Legend of Satanic Castle: The Vampire Hunters contains a reference to Satan in its title, and appears translated as such in English on the .
*The word "Castlevania" was created by Emil Heidkamp, Konami of America's senior vice president at the time, who believed the game's Japanese name was translated as "Dracula's Satanic Castle", and therefore he chose to change it out of potential religious sensibilities."Console Wars: Sega, Nintendo and a Battle that Defined a Generation" by Blake Harris.
==See also==
*Arc Demon
*Chaos
*Dark Lord
*Devil
*Evil God
*Fallen Angel
*God
*Hell
*Satan (Lords of Shadow)
==References==
==External links==
*Satan and Devil at Wikipedia
es:Satán
Category:Demons
Category:Male Characters
Category:Mentioned Characters