PURSON (20)

Purson: The Lion-Headed King of Hidden Treasure and Divine Knowledge

The demon Purson, also known as Curson, is a Fallen Angel and the twentieth of the seventy-two Spirits of Solomon. In the infernal hierarchy, he holds the rank of great king and commands twenty-two legions of demons.

Before his fall, Purson is said to have belonged partly to the Angelic Order of Virtues and partly to the Order of Thrones. This double celestial association gives him a particularly powerful and complex character. The Virtues are connected with divine power, miracles and spiritual force, while the Thrones are associated with judgement, cosmic order and the authority of God. In Purson, these former angelic qualities are transformed into the authority of an infernal king.

The Appearance of Purson

Purson appears in a striking and symbolic form: as a lion-headed man, riding upon a bear, and carrying a viper in his hand. He is preceded by many trumpeters, announcing his arrival like a monarch entering a royal court or a commander arriving before battle.

Each part of his image carries meaning. The lion suggests kingship, courage, dominance and solar authority. The bear represents raw strength, instinct, endurance and the wild power of the earth. The viper points to danger, hidden wisdom, poison, transformation and occult knowledge.

Together, these symbols make Purson one of the most visually powerful spirits in the Goetic tradition. He is not a subtle or minor presence. He arrives with sound, force, animal power and royal command.

Purson and Hidden Treasure

One of Purson’s most famous powers is his ability to hide and reveal treasure. In the language of the grimoires, treasure may refer to literal wealth, buried riches or concealed objects. Yet it can also carry a deeper symbolic meaning.

Hidden treasure may represent secret knowledge, ancestral wisdom, forgotten power, lost teachings or truths concealed beneath the surface of ordinary life. Purson’s ability to both conceal and reveal suggests mastery over what is hidden, protected and waiting to be discovered.

He is not merely a finder of treasure. He is a guardian of secrecy itself.

Purson as a Spirit of Divination

Purson is also said to discern the past, present and future. This gives him a strong connection with divination, prophecy and spiritual insight. He can give true answers concerning both human and divine matters, placing him among the Goetic spirits associated with deep knowledge and revelation.

His wisdom is not limited to earthly affairs. Purson’s knowledge extends into spiritual questions, divine mysteries and hidden causes. For this reason, he has long been regarded as a spirit connected with truth, foresight and the uncovering of what lies behind appearances.

Purson and Familiar Spirits

Purson is also said to provide good familiars. In magical tradition, a familiar is a spirit helper or attendant that assists the practitioner in occult work. Such spirits may offer guidance, protection, knowledge or support in magical operations.

The fact that Purson gives good familiars reinforces his role as a king who grants access to hidden forces. He does not only answer questions or reveal treasure; he can also provide spiritual assistance through subordinate beings.

The Significance of Purson

Purson is one of the most fascinating kings of the Goetia because he combines royal authority, animal symbolism, prophetic power and the mystery of hidden treasure. His image is dramatic, but his functions are deeply intellectual and spiritual. He reveals what is concealed, answers questions of great importance and commands a considerable infernal host.

For students of demonology, Purson shows how layered the Solomonic spirits can be. He is not simply a frightening demon, but a figure of knowledge, sovereignty, divination and secrecy. His former angelic connection to the Virtues and Thrones adds further depth, suggesting that his infernal power is rooted in a fallen but still majestic spiritual authority.

To study Purson is to study the meeting point between kingship, hidden knowledge, prophecy, treasure, spirit helpers and the great symbolic animals of the magical imagination.

From “The Goetia: The Lesser Key of Solomon the King” (1904) Written by S.L. MacGregor Mathers

PURSON. – The Twentieth Spirit is Purson, a Great King. His appearance is comely, like a Man with a Lion’s face, carrying a cruel Viper in his hand, and riding upon a Bear. Going before him are many Trumpets sounding. He knoweth all things hidden, and can discover Treasure, and tell all things Past, Present, and to Come. He can take a Body either Human or Aërial, and answereth truly of all Earthly things both Secret and Divine, and of the Creation of the World. He bringeth forth good Familiars, and under his Government there be 22 Legions of Spirits, partly of the Order of Virtues and partly of the Order of Thrones. His Mark, Seal, or Character is this, unto the which he oweth obedience, and which thou shalt wear in time of action, etc.

From the “Pseudomonarchia Daemonum” ( 1583 ) Written by Johann Weyer (Johann Wier)

Purson [Pursan], alias Curson, a great king, he commeth foorth like a man with a lions face, carrieng a most cruell viper, and riding on a beare; and before him go alwaies trumpets, he knoweth all things present, past, and to come: [he discloses hidden things,] he bewraieth treasure, he can take a bodie either humane or aierie; he answereth truelie of all things earthlie and secret, of the divinitie and creation of the world, and bringeth foorth the best familiars; and there obeie him two and twentie legions of divels, partlie of the order of vertues, and partlie of the order of thrones.

Orginal Text:

Pursan, alias Curson, magnus Rex, prodit ut homo facie leonina, viperam portans ferocissimam, ursoque insidens, quem semper præcedunt tubæ. Callet præsentia, præterita and futura: Aperit occulta, thesauros detegit: Corpus humanum suscipit and aëreum. Vere respondet de rebus terrenis and occultis, de divinitate and mundi creatione: Familiares parit optimos: Cui parent vigintiduo legiones, partim de ordine Virtutum, partim ex ordine Throni.

From the “Dictionnaire Infernal” (edition of 1863 ) Written by Jacques Auguste Simon Collin de Plancy

Original Text :

Pursan ou Curson, grand roi de l’enfer. Il apparaît sous la forme humaine”, en costume du temps, avec une tête qui rappelle le lion; il porte une couleuvre; il est quelquefois monté sur un ours et précédé continuellement du son de la trompette. Il connaît à fond le présent, le passé, l’avenir, découvre les choses enfouies,comme les trésors. En prenant la forme d’un homme, il est aérien; il est le père des bonsesprits familiers. Vingt-deux légions reçoivent ses ordres.

Study Purson in the Occult World Skool Community

If Purson fascinates you, the Occult World Skool Community is where you can go deeper.

Inside the community, you can study the Demonology course, explore the Black Magick course, and enter the Ancient Grimoires Course, where the old magical texts, Goetic spirits, Solomonic rituals, seals, spirit hierarchies and occult systems are explored in depth.

This is a place for serious seekers, practising occultists and students of the hidden arts who want more than short demon descriptions. You can meet fellow occultists, ask questions, study the old grimoires and deepen your understanding of spirits such as Purson, Beleth, Barbatos, Buer, Asmodeus and the other powers of the Solomonic tradition.

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