Blog, Occult Tarot
Focalor’s Divination Message
Mar
Focalor: The Murderous Demon
“Focalor (also Forcalor, Furcalor) is a powerful Great Duke of Hell, commanding three or thirty legions of spirits. Focalor is mentioned in The Lesser Key of Solomon as the forty-first of the 72 goetic demons. According to the grimoire: Focalor appears in the form of a man with a griffin’s wings, kills men, drowns them, and overthrows warships; but if commanded by the conjurer he will not harm any man or thing. Focalor has power over wind and sea, and had hoped to return to heaven after one thousand years, but he was deceived in his hope. One of the three archdemons, Lucifuge Rofocale has his second name as an anagram of Focalor, implying an intellectual relationship.”
Source: Wikipedia
In my personal deck of cards, I have allocated the 8 of Swords to the demon Focalor. The office of this demon entails killing men through drowning them. He also functions to overthrow warships. Focalor has power over the elements of sea and wind. There are no mentions of any benevolence by this demon except sparing only the lives of those who the conjuror has pardoned. Given that the majority of his offices involve malevolent actions, path working with this demon nowadays may just to control the elements in situations of urgency.
The 8 of Swords is a tarot card which belongs to the Minor Arcana. When it appears upright, it is associated with negative thoughts, victim mentality, imprisonment, or self-imposed restrictions. When it appears upside down, it is interpreted as being open to new views and escaping negative thoughts. The card depicts a woman who is bound and blindfolded although the bindings and blindfold appear relatively loose – this indicates that she can escape these entrapments. She is surrounded by eight swords perhaps highlighting her restrictions. At her feet, water flows in the foreground perhaps highlighting that her intuition can sense what her eyes cannot perceive.
Griffins are usually symbolic of military primacy or fortitude. With Focalor, there is a desire for strength, military superiority, or power to come to the fore. The 8 of Swords here is indicative of the destructive potential of this demon. He is a warring entity whose control over the sea and the wind can provide a vast advantage in the midst of battle. He is especially suited to marine battles given his offices largely correlate with life at sea. Therefore, when working with this demon it is necessary to consider his potency as a useful tool that can be leveraged into an advantage in the heat of battle.
The Demon
Focalor is the 41st of the 72 demonic spirits that were trapped by King Solomon. He is a fallen angel who initially belonged to the angelic order of thrones. In his demonic state, Focalor is ranked as a Great Duke of Hell with dominion over three or thirty legions of lesser demons. Still, some accounts posit that he has 31 legions of inferior demons serving under his command. In most depictions, this demon appears as a man with the wings of a griffin and does not change his shape from this monstrous state whatsoever.
Focalor: The Weeping Goetia Demon
Significant Symbol – Griffin
There is no way to trace the origins of this demon. This is because he is not mentioned with early Graeco-Roman mythology or ancient Middle-Eastern accounts. However, he appears in several grimories such as the Ars Goetia, the Luciferian Goetia, the Pseudomonarchia Daemonum, and the Dictionnaire Infernal. In all these renowned grimories, he is acknowledged as the 41st of the 72 Goetia demons. His griffin wings are the tell-tale symbol for his potency and underlying strength as a warring demonic entity.
Focalor belonged to the Seventh throne as consistent with his placement in the angelic order of thrones. When captured by King Solomon, the demon stated that he hoped to return to heaven after 1,000 years had passed. However, he was flawed in having such a stream of thought as he remains within the demonic hierarchy to date. As one of the fallen angels however, there is no foreseeable chance for this demon to have his angelic status restored. Given his murderous rage, it is advisable that only experienced conjurors attempt to summon this demon.
Note – There are no conclusive mentions of whether Focalor is benevolent, malevolent, or indifferent towards human mortals.
With Focalor’s ability to control the sea and the wind, he is capable of overturning warships and drowning the seafarers. This ability is largely malicious although he spares any life that the conjuror instructs him not to take. Focalor can prove a useful ally in times of sea warfare or if a water vessel comes under attack from pirates for instance. His association with the element of water also means he is potentially useful in dream magic according to Michael Ford’s Luciferian Goetia published in 2007.
The Message
Am I under threat? Will I benefit from taking protective measures? Am I having restrictive or negative thoughts?
When the 8 of Swords appears in a reading, I am immediately drawn to attention. It highlights the possibility of murderous or injurious intent by someone in close proximity. Alternatively, it could also compel me to examine my dreams more deeply as posited in Michael Ford’s Luciferian Goetia. It could be in one’s dreams that restrictive or negative thoughts manifest. Such negativity amounts to some form of imprisonment that can prevent one from realizing their full potential.
I believe Focalor, despite his murderous intentions, can be useful within dream magic as per the Luciferian Goetia. He helps to discern where negative or restrictive thoughts lie. In so doing, it is possible for the conjuror to erase such patterns of thinking and developing a positive mindset. In a week or two after the reading, it is possible to tell whether someone has ill intentions towards you by noticing changes in their behavior. Alternatively, you can also tell if you are being held back by restrictive thoughts by examining your failures.
Tarot readings and symbolism are relative and open to interpretation. Let us know what you think of Focalor in the comment section below. We’d love to hear from you!
Occult Tarot by Travis McHenry
Drawing on daemons, symbols, and sigils from ancient magickal grimoires including Archidoxis Magica and the Key of Solomon, Occult Tarot presents a fully realized divination tool to finally embrace and behold the mysteries of the night.
The first tarot deck to faithfully adhere to the Solomonic principles of demon conjuration, Occult Tarot allows practitioners to discover the power of ancient demons and learn to tame the beasts that wander between the physical and spiritual worlds.
Should we be sold out, if you are in the USA you can grab this deck from Amazon.
