Larvae/Lemures-the malicious spirits of the Underworld, more often than not they are the abused restless or forgotten dead
Lares/Manes-the benevolent spirits of the ancestors and Underworld, the subclass of Lares are the Parentes who are the spirits of immediate relatives
Penates/Panes-earth spirits that also made sure that the family was fed, there are also Penates that watch over certain features of the earth and certain acts in cities/daily life
Genius-this spirits is the guardian angel of the Religio Romana, the Genius of the Pater Familias (patriarch) was worshiped as a god and believed to watch over the entire family, the Genius of the emperor was also worshiped as a god
In Hellenism there were two basic classifications of daemons. The first was the Agathos Daimon which watched over individuals and families. It was worshiped in the home. The second classification is very general and encompasses all spirits of the earth and life.
In both faiths the daemons were worshiped and viewed as almost intermediaries between us and the Gods. Since daemons are closer to humans than the Gods it was common place to pray to them first. Another important role they played was as guardians. They protected the wild places of the world in addition to humanity. As I mentioned above they do have a darker side. Some daemons are spirits of war, death, greed, and negativity in general. There are also, as I said, daemons that are the spirits of the angry dead. Naturally these spirits didn't merit worship like the benevolent ones. To help combat the more negative daemons several rituals were developed. One involves the Pater Familias and the family driving away the negative daemons by making loud noises and spitting black beans on the floors.
The origins of the non human daemons is still up for debate. My holds that they are the spirits of the race of Golden Men left here by the Gods. The Romans tended to believe something along the lines of daemons are byproducts of life/creation. Once again this reflects the very animistic roots of the RR.
This is the first of a series of posts on daemons. This topic is very deep and requires a bit more time to explain.
Gods Bless
In both faiths the daemons were worshiped and viewed as almost intermediaries between us and the Gods. Since daemons are closer to humans than the Gods it was common place to pray to them first. Another important role they played was as guardians. They protected the wild places of the world in addition to humanity. As I mentioned above they do have a darker side. Some daemons are spirits of war, death, greed, and negativity in general. There are also, as I said, daemons that are the spirits of the angry dead. Naturally these spirits didn't merit worship like the benevolent ones. To help combat the more negative daemons several rituals were developed. One involves the Pater Familias and the family driving away the negative daemons by making loud noises and spitting black beans on the floors.
The origins of the non human daemons is still up for debate. My holds that they are the spirits of the race of Golden Men left here by the Gods. The Romans tended to believe something along the lines of daemons are byproducts of life/creation. Once again this reflects the very animistic roots of the RR.
This is the first of a series of posts on daemons. This topic is very deep and requires a bit more time to explain.
Gods Bless
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