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There are those who believe in
this grimoire, in its existence and in its potency, and there are
those who do not. Those who believe say that this grimoire,
originally named Al Azif, and written by Abdul Alhazred around 700
AD, contains the rituals that, if performed correctly, will open
the gates between this world and another, more sinister world,
allowing the demons that once ruled this world to return and
re-establish their rule.
Accordingly, the rituals were given to Abdul Alhazred by a demon
wishing that the rituals should be performed so that it might gain
entry to this world. However, Abdul refused to perform the rituals
and in Damascus, around 738 AD, he was set upon and eaten by this
demon, causing the Al Azif to be lost from his guard. Let loose
upon the world, the Al Azif was translated into Greek by Theodorus
Philetas of Constantinople, who named it the Necronomicon. The
Necronomicon was then translated into Latin by Olaus Wormius in
1228 and in 1232, Pope Gregory IX banned both the Greek and the
Latin versions of the volume. The original version, according to
Wormius, was lost. Years later, an English translation was made by
Dr. John Dee, and it was this version that captured the intrigue
of H.P. Lovecraft.
However, at the time that H.P. Lovecraft was writing at the
beginning of the 20th century, the book did not really exist. It
was a complex fantasy, concocted by an author of a certain genius,
who referred to the book in such a way as to make it seem as a
genuine volume. All that can be said to exist of the Necronomicon
is the few 'quotes' that appeared in Lovecraft's writings.
Lovecraft was a member of the W.T. group of authors who made
references to each other's fictitious tomes to create a background
of illusion. In his letter to Miss Margaret Sylvester on 13th
January 1934, Lovecraft confesses that "This pooling of resources
tends to build up quite a pseudo-convincing background of dark
mythology, legendry, and bibliography."
Around the middle of the 20th century copies of the Necronomicon
began to surface. These texts were hugely sought after, although
they were often only a few pages, translated and copied from
surviving fragments of the original volumes. The most famous of
these, which was an almost complete copy, is what we now call the
Simonomicon. Like the authors of all the other copies, the text
was based on the 'quotes' by Lovecraft, and then added to using
the authors imagination, but uniquely in this case, also using
Sumerian legend which added credibility and substance to the text.
However, just like all the other copies of the Necronomicon, the
Simonomicon is a mere fabrication, a continuation of the mythos
invented by Lovecraft years ago, and a tribute to his genius.
Related:
The Grimoires |
