Pan

Pan is an ancient Greek God, primarily worshiped in Arcadia. Arcadia was a region inhabited by mountain people who the other Greeks mostly disdained as primitive. He is a "god of shepherds and flocks, of mountain wilds, hunting and rustic music." His hindquarters, legs, and horns of a goat give him a similar form to the satyrs or Greek myth and fauns of the Roman ones. Christians are believed to have adopted his appearance for their own Satan, a figure originating in the Bible but receiving no physical description in it.

The genealogy of Pan is inconsistent in the various ancient sources. He is said variously to be a son of Kronos (Cronos, Saturn), Zeus, Hermes and Dionysus. His mother was a nymph but her name is variously given as Dryope or Penelope. An attempt to identify the later with Penelope of Sparta, Odysseus' wife, is inconsistent with other depictions of her. Pindar, a 5th century BC poet, depicts Pan as a guardian of the Great Godddess (Cybele). Hellenistic sources from two or three centuries after that connect him with the cult of Eros. He is said to have gifted Artemis with her first hunting dogs and mentored Apollo in the art of prophecy. Indicating he was older than either of these two Olympians.

Pan's best known power is his ability to manipulate the emotions of others through his music, playing the Syrinx (an ancient form of flute or pipes). He could arouse inspiration, courage or sexual desire in those he favored. Or instill fear to the hearts of his enemies , forcing them to disorderly glee a battlefield. This blind fear was known as Panic, making Pan the origin of the word. Pan was a lusty god who pursued, successfully or not, nymphs, human maidens and shepherds. He is said to have slept with every one of Dionysus' Maenads (female followers) and even with the second-generation Titan Selene (Moon Goddess).

Plutarch (c 46 -120 AD), a priest of Apollo and historical writer, relates a legend of the death of Pan being announced. Making Pan the only deceased Olympian. However the worship of Pan continued following the death of Plutarch himself. This might indicate Plutarch was reporting about a cult which had Pan dying and being reborn annually, like Osiris and Dionysus. Pan was identified with Satan throughout and following the Middle Ages. In the 18th century, a revival of interest in paganism and unconventional sexuality led to a revival of Pan who was used as a symbol of both. Between 1890 and 1926, Pan made numerous appearances in literature, everywhere from occult texts and horror stories to children's books and poetry. "The God of the Witches" (1933) by Margaret Murray depicted Pan as part of the archetype of the Horned God supposedly worshiped by witches since ancient times. Through this influential books, Pan became an important figure in Neopaganism and Wicca.