Bifrons
Bifrons is the 46th of the 72 spirits catalogued in the Ars Goetia, the first section of the Lemegeton. He is described with the title of Earl according to the text.
Last reviewed: 2026-07-20
Historical fact
In Mathers' edition (1904), Bifrons is described as initially appearing in a monstrous form, taking human shape at the text operator's request. The manuscript attributes to him the teaching of astrology, geometry, and other mathematical arts, as well as knowledge of the properties of precious stones and woods. The text also narrates that he moves bodies from one place to another and lights what appear to be candles upon graves — a documentary description of the traits narrated for the spirit, not an indication of use.
Interpretation — Solomonic Tradition (Mathers/Crowley, 1904)
In Mathers' edition, published with commentary by Aleister Crowley, Bifrons holds the catalog's 46th position and is described as an Earl, commanding a number of legions of spirits according to the text. He is listed with the attributes of teaching astrology, geometry, and other mathematical arts, knowing the properties of stones and woods, and moving bodies between graves as narrated in the manuscript.
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 Bifrons, 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 Bifrons 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), read the catalog's 72 spirits not as external entities commanded under a higher divine authority — the Solomonic model — but as archetypal masks for aspects of the practitioner's own consciousness, to be recognized and integrated in service of self-deification. In this reading, Bifrons's shift from an initial monstrous form to human shape is interpreted as a symbol of refining the instinctual self toward a more individuated consciousness, while his mastery of astrology, geometry, and the hidden properties of stones and woods represents access to inner esoteric knowledge; the image of moving bodies between graves and lighting candles over tombs is read symbolically as the practitioner's necessary confrontation with their own mortality and with what remains buried within them.
This section presents one tradition's interpretation, not a verifiable fact.
Frequently asked questions
- What knowledge does the text attribute to Bifrons?
- According to Mathers' edition, Bifrons teaches astrology, geometry, and other mathematical arts, as well as knowing the properties of precious stones and woods.
- What form does the text attribute to Bifrons?
- The manuscript describes his initial form as monstrous, taking on human appearance at the text operator's request.
- Is the Luciferian reading of Bifrons 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).