Rank: Prince · Legions: 20 · Element: Earth · Direction: North · Enn: Jedan tasa hoet naca Orobas
Orobas is the fifty-fifth spirit of the Ars Goetia, a great and mighty Prince who governs twenty legions of spirits. He appears at first in the form of a horse, but at the command of the one who calls him he puts on the image of a man. His offices are several — he discovers all things past, present, and to come; he gives dignities and prelacies and the favour of friends and of foes; and he gives true answers of divinity and of the creation of the world — but he is beloved and remembered above all for one thing, which sets him apart from nearly every other spirit in the book. Orobas is very faithful to the one who calls him, and will not suffer him to be tempted or deceived by any spirit. In a grimoire crowded with deceivers — with spirits who lie unless they are bound, who speak mystically or slantwise, who must be tested at every word — Orobas is the rare and precious one who is honest and loyal by his very nature. He tells the truth, he keeps faith, and he stands guard against the lies of others. He is the faithful one, the trustworthy ally, the loyal guardian of the whole Goetia, and everything else about him — his true answers, his honest theology, his noble horse-shape — flows from that single steadfast quality. Where so many of his fellows must be watched, Orobas can be trusted, and that trust is his gift.
He is Orobas in all the books, one of the more stable names in the tradition. He appears in Johann Weyer's Pseudomonarchia Daemonum of 1577, passed into the Ars Goetia as it was gathered into the Lemegeton in the seventeenth century, and was set into modern English by Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers and Aleister Crowley in their 1904 edition. The name has been connected, uncertainly, to the Latin orobias, a fine grade of frankincense — a pleasing association for a spirit of such good repute, though far from certain. The texts agree closely on his account: the horse and the man, the true answers of things past and to come and of divinity and the creation, the dignities and the favour, and above all the faithfulness — the great and mighty Prince of twenty legions who will not let his conjurer be deceived.
Orobas comes first as a horse, and of all the animal forms in the Goetia few are so perfectly matched to the spirit's nature. The horse is the very emblem of faithfulness — the noble, steadfast companion who carries its rider loyally across every distance, who serves without treachery, who is bound to its master by a trust older than almost any between human and beast. To come first as a horse is to announce, before a word is spoken, exactly what Orobas is: the faithful one, the loyal servant and companion, the steadfast mount who will bear you truly. And there is nobility in it as well as loyalty, for the horse is a proud and dignified animal, fitting for a Prince who gives dignities. The horse-shape is not incidental; it is the whole of his character standing before you on four legs — faithfulness made visible.
Here is the heart of Orobas, and the thing for which every practitioner who knows him loves him: he is faithful, and he will not suffer the one who calls him to be tempted or deceived by any spirit. It is difficult to overstate how rare and how valuable this is in the world of the Goetia. So many of the seventy-two are deceivers by nature — Furfur and Shax who lie unless compelled into a triangle, Berith the plausible liar, the many who speak slantwise or half-truly and must be tested at every turn. The whole discipline of Goetic work is, in large part, the discipline of not being deceived. And into that world of watchfulness comes Orobas, who simply does not lie, who keeps faith, and who moreover actively protects the one who works with him from the deceptions of the others. He is the honest friend among difficult company, the loyal guardian who watches your back, the one spirit you need not test at every word. For this reason he is, and has always been, among the most trusted of all the spirits, and is often recommended as a good and safe spirit for those newer to this work — for he will not trick them, and will guard them while they learn.
Orobas's faithfulness is not merely passive honesty but an active guardianship, and it is worth taking seriously as a protective office in its own right. He will not suffer his conjurer to be tempted or deceived by any spirit — which is to say he stands between the seeker and the lies that would mislead them, a warder against deception. Turned to its fullest use, this makes him a spirit of protection and of discernment: one to call upon precisely when one fears being deceived, whether by other spirits, by the false and flattering voices of a working, or — and this is the deepest turn — by oneself. For the subtlest deceptions are self-deceptions, the flattering stories we tell ourselves, the comfortable lies we would rather believe; and Orobas, the guardian against being deceived by any spirit, may be asked to guard also against the deceiving spirit within. To work with him is to have at one's side a steadfast keeper of the truth, who will not let a lie — another's or one's own — pass unchallenged.
True Answers of Divinity and the Creation of the World
Among his offices is one of the most remarkable in the whole book: Orobas gives true answers of divinity and of the creation of the world. He speaks truly of God and the divine, and of how the world was made — the deepest questions of theology and of cosmogony, the ultimate matters. That a fallen spirit should give true answers of divinity is a striking thing, and it is bound up with his faithfulness, for it is precisely because Orobas does not deceive that he can be trusted with the ultimate questions. Where another spirit's answers about God and the creation might be a snare or a lie, Orobas's are true. There is something poignant in it, too — the fallen one who yet speaks truly and even reverently of the divine and the making of the world, as one who remembers. He is the spirit to whom the deepest metaphysical questions may be brought, and from whom, uniquely, a true answer may be expected; and in this he stands beside Murmur, who brings the answers of the dead, as the one who gives the answers of the divine.
Orobas also discovers all things past, present, and to come — the full office of divination — and here again his faithfulness is the point. His answers about what was, what is, and what shall be are true, given by a spirit who will not deceive, and so they may be trusted as few oracles can. Among the many seers of the Goetia, Orobas is distinguished not by the manner of his sight but by the reliability of it: the true answer from the honest spirit, given plainly and without the veils and traps of the deceivers.
Orobas gives, besides, dignities and prelacies — high offices and honours, in the world and in the church alike — and the favour of friends and of foes. He elevates: he lends his aid to the winning of position, standing, and honour, and to the gaining of goodwill even from those who were set against you. And because he is the faithful one, this favour is read in this Vault as genuine rather than manipulated — not the false and hollow standing seized by trickery, but true honour and real goodwill, worthily gained and soundly kept. The faithful spirit gives faithful favour: dignities that hold, and the friendship even of former foes made real.
Orobas is placed in the element of Earth and the quarter of the North — Earth for the grounded, stable, faithful nature of him, the steadfastness that is his whole character. For the planetary correspondence this Vault reads him under Jupiter, and few spirits fit the great benefic so completely. Jupiter is the planet of faith and honour and truth, of justice and good faith kept — the very virtues of the faithful one. Jupiter is the giver of dignities and of high office, and rules especially the prelacies, the offices of the church, that Orobas bestows. Jupiter is the planet of religion and of the divine, under which his true answers of divinity belong. And Jupiter is the Greater Benefic, the bringer of goodwill, favour, patronage, and good fortune — the reconciler who wins the favour of friends and foes, the benevolent guardian. Faith, honour, dignity, divinity, benevolence, protection: every one of Orobas's qualities is Jupiter's own, and where Haagenti wore Jupiter as the abundant alchemist, Orobas wears it as the faithful and honourable Prince. Set his metal as tin, his day as Thursday, and his colours the royal blue of his honour and the chestnut of his faithful horse. These correspondences are read as symbolic rather than handed down as documented tradition; the grimoires give only his element, his form, and his offices, and the Jovian reading follows plainly from the faith, the honour, and the dignities at the heart of them.
In the old demonology Orobas is a spirit of unusually good reputation, noted everywhere for his faithfulness and his unwillingness to deceive, and treated with a trust extended to few of his fellows. Weyer and the Ars Goetia give the same account — the horse and the man, the true answers of things to come and of divinity and the creation, the dignities and prelacies and favour, and above all the faithfulness that will not let the conjurer be deceived. Commentators from the beginning have singled him out as one of the most trustworthy and benevolent of the seventy-two, a spirit whose word may be relied upon in a book where most words must be tested. He is a Prince held in genuine regard.
Carried into the modern revival through the 1904 Mathers and Crowley edition, Orobas is worked today chiefly as a spirit of truth, protection, and trust. Modern practitioners prize his faithfulness above all, calling on him for honest counsel, for protection against deception, and as a steadfast guardian and ally; he is very often recommended as a good spirit for those beginning this work, precisely because he will not trick them and will guard them while they learn. His true answers of divinity and the creation draw those with the deepest questions, and his dignities and favour those seeking honest advancement. He remains a faithful, benevolent, and well-loved Prince, sought for the rarest thing the Goetia offers — a spirit who can simply be trusted.
Orobas is faithful, honest, and benevolent — the loyal horse and the trustworthy Prince, the one spirit in the whole book who need not be watched. He tells the truth, keeps faith, guards his conjurer against the lies of others and of themselves, gives true answer of the deepest things, and lends real honour and real goodwill to those he favours. He is the guardian of truth in a world of deceivers, the steadfast ally, the faithful friend among difficult company. Met with the respect due a great Prince and the trust his nature has earned, he is among the most valued and most beloved of all the spirits of the Goetia, for he gives what is rarest and most needed there — faithfulness, and the truth.
The grimoires give Orobas two forms. He comes first as a horse -- the noble, steadfast, faithful animal, the loyal companion and servant that is the perfect emblem of his nature -- and then, at command, puts on the image of a man. That he comes first as a horse announces before a word is spoken exactly what he is: faithfulness made visible, the loyal steed who will bear you truly. Those who work with him describe a steady, warm, trustworthy presence, notably gentler and safer-feeling than the fierce or slippery spirits of the book -- a sense of a reliable and benevolent ally rather than a power to be watched. Many remark that his presence carries an unusual quality of honesty and goodwill, the felt reassurance of a spirit who keeps faith and will not deceive; it is this, more than any dramatic aspect, that marks his coming.
Enn: Jedan tasa hoet naca Orobas
Working with Orobas is working with the most faithful and trustworthy spirit in the whole Goetia -- the loyal horse and honest Prince who tells the truth, keeps faith, and guards the one who calls him against deception. His defining quality is faithfulness, and it changes the character of the work: where most of the seventy-two must be watched and tested at every word, Orobas can be trusted, and the relationship with him is warmer and safer than with almost any of his fellows. This Vault comes to him for the truth, for protection against deception, and for a steadfast ally -- and returns his faithfulness with respect and trust. What follows is a guide built around that trust.
Come to Orobas with respect for a great Prince, but without the wariness that so many of the spirits require, for he is faithful and will not trick you. Cleanse yourself and the space, and set his seal at the centre of the working. Where the correspondences are followed, the Jovian suits him: royal blue and chestnut, the metal tin, the hours of Jupiter and of Thursday. Then open the way by reciting his Enn -- Jedan tasa hoet naca Orobas -- steadily, and let a steady, warm, trustworthy presence gather, often felt first as the horse before it takes the shape of a man. Because he is safe and faithful, he is an excellent spirit for those newer to this work, and a good ally to establish early -- one who will not deceive you and will guard you while you learn.
For his central gift, bring Orobas a real question and trust the answer. Ask him plainly of things past, present, or to come, and know that what he tells you is true, given by a spirit who will not deceive -- so that, uncommonly among the seers of the Goetia, you may take his answer as honest and rely upon it. But know also that honesty cuts both ways: the faithful spirit will tell you true things you may not wish to hear, for he keeps faith with the truth and not with your preferences. Come to him, therefore, genuinely wanting the truth rather than reassurance, and receive what he gives as the honest counsel of a loyal friend.
Orobas's guardianship is one of his greatest gifts, and it may be asked directly. Call upon him when you fear being deceived -- by other spirits in a working, by the false and flattering voices that can arise, or by the difficult and subtle currents of the work -- and ask him to stand guard against the lies that would mislead you. Ask him, too, for the deepest protection of all: against your own self-deception, the comfortable lies you tell yourself, the flattering stories you would rather believe. To have the faithful guardian at your side, watching for the falsehood you cannot see, is among the surest protections this book offers. He is a fitting spirit to keep as a steadfast warder over your practice as a whole.
For his rarest office, bring Orobas the ultimate questions -- of divinity, of God and the divine, of how the world was made -- for he gives true answers of these deepest things, and gives them, uniquely, without the snare or the lie that such answers from another spirit might carry. Approach these questions with the reverence they deserve, and receive what he gives as the honest testimony of a spirit who speaks truly, even reverently, of the divine. Held together with his protection, this makes him a profound guide to the deepest matters, safe where others would mislead.
For his gift of elevation, ask Orobas for dignities, honour, high office, or the favour of others, whether friends or those set against you. Because he is faithful, ask in the confidence that what he lends is genuine -- true honour worthily gained, real goodwill soundly kept -- and not the hollow and treacherous standing that trickery buys. Work with him toward honest advancement and real reconciliation, and let the favour he brings be the faithful kind that lasts.
Practitioners describe Orobas's presence as steady, warm, and reassuring, marked by an unusual quality of honesty and goodwill, and often sensed first as the faithful horse. When he has heard, his help tends to arrive as clarity and steadiness -- a true answer landing plainly and reliably, a deception seen through, a false path avoided, a sense of being guarded and accompanied. His protection is often felt as a quiet immunity to the flattering or misleading voices that might otherwise take hold. Keep a written record of his counsel, for the answers of the faithful spirit reward being trusted and returned to.
Orobas asks fewer cautions than almost any spirit in the book, for he is the safe and faithful one -- but a few hold. Return his faithfulness with your own: treat him with the respect and good faith due a loyal ally, and do not take his reliability for a licence to be careless or ungrateful. Remember that his honesty is complete, and be ready to hear true things you may not want to hear. Do not mistake his gentleness for weakness; he is a great and mighty Prince. And let his gift of guarding against deception include the humility to be guarded against your own. He is the faithful one, the guardian of truth in a world of deceivers, and to the seeker who meets him with trust and good faith, he gives the rarest and most needful thing the Goetia offers -- a spirit who will not lie, and who will not let you be deceived.