DEM 



60; 



D E M 



DcjiwcK- a magician. So ardently was his mind engaged in the 

 pursuit of knowledge, that he is said to have declared 

 he would prefer the discovery of one cause in the works 

 of nature to the possession of the Persian monarchy. 

 His opinions in regard to the origin and formation of 

 the world, were nearly the same with those which had 

 been previously held by his predecessor, Leucippus. 

 Matter, which he considered as self-existent, he sup- 

 posed to have been originally divided into an infinite 

 multitude of primary or elementary particles, of which 

 some were eternally intelligent, while others were eter- 

 nally senseless and incogitative ; the latter being in- 

 capable of resisting the action of the former, by whose 

 union with them, and controul over them, the visible 

 world was produced. This theory, in the hands of 

 Epicuru3, afterwards assumed a more rational and scien- 

 tific form. See Atomical Philosophy. In astrono- 

 mical science, Democritus made some important obser- 

 vations and discoveries. He was the first who taught, 

 that the whiteness of the milky way was occasioned by 

 the confused light of an infinity of stars ; an explana- 

 tion of that phenomenon whicli was adopted, in later 

 times, by Dr Herschel. And he maintained, though 

 upon erroneous principles, that more planets existed 

 than had been hitherto discovered; a conjecture which 

 has been verified by the observations of astronomers, 

 after an interval of many centuries. In chemistry, 

 Democritus appears to have made successful experi- 

 ments and researches ; several inventions being ascribed 

 to him, which argue no inconsiderable progress in che- 

 mical science. 



Democritus lived to a very advanced age ; and the 

 circumstances attending his death are thus recorded by 

 the ancient writers. Some time prior to his decease, 

 his friends seeing him suddenly reduced to a state of 

 extreme debility, became apprehensive that his end was 

 at hand. His sister, who-was at that period engaged in 

 celebrating the festivals of Ceres, declared, that if he 

 then died, she should not be able to perform her vows ; 

 upon which the philosopher requested her to supply 

 him with cordials of a particular description, which 

 prolonged his life until her religious rites, which occu- 

 pied three days, were completed ; and when that time 

 had expired, Democritus, exhausted by the pains he 

 endured, hastened, by his own act, the slow approach 

 of death,— 



Sponte sva leto caput obvius obtulil ipse ; 



thus, by his example, giving sanction to a practice, 

 which, although reprobated by the more enlightened 

 doctrines of Christianity, was neither unusual nor ac- 

 counted criminal among the sage6 of antiquity. See 

 Meiners, Geschichte d. V/issevsch. in Griechcnl, u. Rom. ; 

 Brucker ; Bayle ; and Mason Good's Lucretius, (r) 



DEMON. This word is of Greek origin, and is sup- 

 posed to come from the verb o~xw, the primary meaning 

 of which appears to have been, that of separating into 

 parts, by cutting instruments or other violent means. 

 Hence the verb just mentioned signifies to divide, to 

 distribute, to reduce by fire, and following out the idea of 

 separation into parts, to examine in detail, to search, to 

 learn. In conformity with these statements, the word 

 demon will signify a being, who assigns to man his por- 

 tion of enjoyment or of suffering, (irxau. to cixijvxi ?k «■«»- 

 Ix, Jf ytet'Cptv re\ kyuict, j£ xxkx re>7<; xvfyuTroie, Proclus in 

 Hesiod,) or it will signify an agent superior to human 

 beings in respect of intelligence, and that species of 

 efficiency which is connected with the possession of 

 knowledge. In some of the Greek writers, the phrase 



c oa.iy.a-i, and the corresponding plnase f» iaiftiinty, are 

 used to signify the divinity in general " to QiToi, deus su- 

 p remits, it divinilas mundi moderalrix." i o*xiy.*i ap- 

 pears occasionally to be used in this sense by Xenophon, 

 in the Memorabilia of Socrates, nyo. to dxiy.oviof is ft 

 well known precept of the ancient moralists; and Plu- 

 tarch in Gall, says, that thunder and lightning proceed 

 " xko t» ISxtyovix" from the divinity. The word demon 

 appears next to have signified any one out of the num- 

 ber of the gods. It is applied in this sense to Venus, 

 Iliad, iii. and in Iliad, xvii. line 98, 99, compared with 

 104, we find an instance where 'haiy.uv and hoe are u:-?H 

 by the poet as equivalent expressions : 



'Ofrwo? «»;)£ UlXit vrpoe. <lstty.oix <pal) y.x%,l<r§xt 

 On v.i ho; riyoe, rxyjx oi yiyx iniy.ee KvhivSti' 

 The word in question seems next to have been appli- 

 ed exclusively to the inferior divinities, or those called 

 the Dii indigeles, sine minoritm gentium. In this sensr 

 6ih is distinguished from dxiy.av, and hence the phrase in 

 common use among the Greek writers, hot tij o~eliy.m;. 

 Of the sense now under consideration, we have a re- 

 markable example in the oration of iEschiues against 

 Ctesiphon, '£ y» (says the orator) id. $un, >£ a'aiumis kj itipa- 

 tt»i, ocai GSteo-3-i ar.Sifi rcthrji)'' In the progress of thought 

 and of language, the idea implied in the term demon ap- 

 pears to have been farther reduced, and the word seems 

 to have been employed to denote a certain class of be- 

 ings not very well defined in their attributes and cha- 

 racter, but considered as holding an intermediate place 

 between gods and men, and corresponding to what in 

 modern times we should denominate genii, (simones, 

 quasi semi homines, minores diis, et majores hominibus> 

 Liv. viii. 20. Adam's Rom. Antiq. p. 287). These of 

 course were «ither benignant or malign, the $xty.mc xx- 

 x.oi, or TTovijgo;, and the dxtyovig xyxtiot. The word appears 

 to have this sense in such phrases, as " the demon of 

 the king," the " demon of Socrates," and perhaps too, 

 it was used in this sense, when Parrhasius was said to 

 have painted allegorically the genius (demon) of the 

 Athenians, representing it according to Pliny, as " va- 

 rius, iracundus, injustus, inconstans," Nat. Hist. xxxv. 

 36. In a still greater reduction of the idea, the word 

 demon is used as equivalent with fortune, viewed in the 

 light of a presiding power ; hence the phrase *«?« hxty.oyse, 

 omine fauslo, prospera. And last of all, we find it em- 

 ployed in the sense of casualty, or chance in life. 



In the books of the New Testament, both the words, 

 which are properly rendered demon, namely dxiym and 

 lixiftoyiov, are to be met with ; and ^w»i« in particular 

 is of very frequent occurrence. Neither of them is well 

 translated by the term devil. This last word is the pro- 

 per version of 2<«£oXo;, when applied to the chief of the 

 apostate angels, but not of "hotiym, or Sxty.ovic-y. In- 

 deed our translators themselves appear in some in- 

 stances to have been sensible of this; for in the account 

 which is given of the effect produced by the preaching 

 of St Paul at Athens, they have rendered the words (<, Oi 

 d- |e»4)v elaiyevia? "hny.it xxlxyyiXiUi \itxt," by " Others said, 

 He seemeth to be a setter forth of strange gods ;" — Jesus 

 and the resurrection (l»i<ra;>£ Aixo-txo-ic.) being taken for 

 new divinities, the one a male and the other a female. 

 The propriety of this version is abundantly evident. 

 Had our translators followed their usual practice, and 

 rendered the words, " He seemeth to be a setter forth 

 of strange devils," they would not only have perverted 

 the meaning of the original text, but would have re- 

 presented these Athenians to the English reader in a 

 light most truly ridiculous. Ingenious men, or men 

 possessing a certain share of natural acuteness, though 



Demon. 



