The Fourth Book of Occult Philosophy (1559) - Page 16

Characters of Evil Spirits. original: Caracteres malorum Spirituum. In Renaissance magic, "characters" were not just letters, but symbolic signatures believed to capture the essence and power of a specific spirit. Those of "evil" spirits were often jagged, inverted, or representational of base materials.


Straight line,	Curved,	Bent back original: Reflexa; a line that turns back on itself, like a hook or U-shape.
[Symbol: Horizontal straight line]	[Symbol: Wavy line]	[Symbol: Semi-circular/U-shaped curve]
Simple Figure,	Penetrating: original: Penetrans; a geometric shape where one line pierces through the center of another.	Broken
[Symbol: Circle]	[Symbol: Hexagram intersected by a vertical line]	[Symbol: Broken/interrupted hexagram]
Upright Letter,	Backward, original: Retrograda; a letter written in reverse or mirrored.	Inverted
[Symbol: Capital letter R]	[Symbol: Mirrored capital letter R]	[Symbol: Inverted/upside-down capital letter R]
Flame,	Wind:	River
[Symbol: Stylized flames]	[Symbol: Cloud blowing a gust of wind]	[Symbol: Stacked wavy horizontal lines representing water]
Mass, original: Maſſa; representing a heavy, unformed lump of matter or earth.	Rain.	Mud. original: Lutum; often used in occultism to represent the lowest, most material, or "unclean" elemental state.
[Symbol: Spiky, crystalline mass]	[Symbol: Cloud with falling rain]	[Symbol: Ovoid mass with internal swirling/concentric lines]
Flying creature, original: Volatile; referring to birds or spirits associated with the air.	Creeping creature, original: Reptile; any creature that crawls on its belly, associated with the earth or lower realms.	Snake.
[Symbol: Bird in flight]	[Symbol: Four-legged lizard or reptile]	[Symbol: Coiled snake]