Agares
Agares is the second of the 72 spirits catalogued in the Ars Goetia, the first section of the Lemegeton. He is described with the title of Duke, serving under the power of the East according to the text.
Last reviewed: 2026-07-20
Historical fact
In Mathers' edition (1904), Agares is described as appearing in the form of an old man riding upon a crocodile, carrying a goshawk upon his fist, and mild in temperament. The text attributes to him the teaching of all languages, the power to make those who have fled return, to cause enemies to flee, and to cause earthquakes.
Interpretation — Solomonic Tradition (Mathers/Crowley, 1904)
In Mathers' edition, published with commentary by Aleister Crowley, Agares holds the catalog's second position and is described as a Duke serving under the power of the East, commanding 31 legions of spirits according to the text. He is listed with the attributes of teaching languages, making fugitives return, and casting down dignities.
Interpretation — Dr. Rudd's Tradition (manuscript, c. 1650)
The manuscript attributed to Thomas Rudd, predating Mathers' edition by roughly two and a half centuries, documents a related but distinct version of the catalog — in it, each of the 72 spirits, including Agares, is paired with a corresponding angel drawn from the Kabbalistic Shem HaMephorash system (72 divine names), a restraining/governing structural element absent from Mathers' edition. No reliable record of the specific angel name Rudd's manuscript assigns to Agares was found among the sources consulted for this entry; the general pairing practice is documented by researchers such as Joseph Peterson.
Interpretation — Luciferian Tradition (modern interpretation)
Modern Luciferian authors, chiefly Michael W. Ford (in works such as The Luciferian Goetia), propose a reading distinct from the Solomonic model: rather than external spirits commanded by a higher divine authority, the catalog's 72 names are read as archetypes of latent psychological faculties within the practitioner, to be recognized and cultivated. In this key, Agares' mastery of all languages is reinterpreted as the archetype of fluent expression and the self's capacity to adapt across different contexts, while his power to make fugitives return and to cause earthquakes symbolizes the process of reintegrating parts of oneself that had been repressed or scattered, shaking loose fixed internal structures.
This section presents one tradition's interpretation, not a verifiable fact.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the relationship between Agares and Bael in the Ars Goetia catalog?
- Agares holds the catalog's second position, immediately after Bael. Both are listed among the higher-ranking spirits (King and Duke, respectively), but the text does not describe a direct hierarchical relationship between them beyond the listing order.
- What knowledge or power does Mathers' edition attribute to Agares?
- According to the text, Agares teaches all languages, makes those who have fled return, causes enemies to flee, and can cause earthquakes.
- Is the Luciferian reading of Agares as old as the Mathers and Rudd traditions?
- No. It's a modern interpretation, developed mainly from the 2000s onward by Luciferian authors such as Michael W. Ford, who reframe the Ars Goetia's spirits as psychological archetypes for self-development — a contemporary symbolic reading, not a historical manuscript like Mathers' or Rudd's.
Sources
- S. L. MacGregor Mathers (trans.), Aleister Crowley (ed.). The Goetia: The Lesser Key of Solomon the King (1904).
- Joseph H. Peterson (ed.). The Lesser Key of Solomon (2001).
- Thomas Rudd (manuscript), ed. Adam McLean. Dr. Rudd's Treatise on Angel Magic (c. 1650 (2007 ed.)).
- Michael W. Ford. The Luciferian Goetia (2007).