A brief history of the devil - Brian A. Pavlac

Prevoditelj: Iva Vukalović Recezent: Petra Lauš

Satan, the beast crunching sinners’ bones in his subterranean lair.

Sotona, zvijer koja gricka kosti grešnika u svojoj podzemnoj jazbini.

Lucifer, the fallen angel raging against the established order.

Lucifer, pali anđeo koji bijesni protiv uspostavljenog poretka.

Mephistopheles, the trickster striking deals with unsuspecting humans.

Mefisto, varalica koja sklapa ugovore s bezazlenim ljudima.

These three divergent devils are all based on Satan of the Old Testament,

Svaki od ova tri različita vraga proizlazi iz Sotone Starog zavjeta,

an angelic member of God’s court who torments Job in the Book of Job.

anđeoskog člana Božjih dveri koji muči Joba u Knjizi o Jobu.

But unlike any of these literary devils,

No za razliku od ovih književnih vragova,

the Satan of the Bible was a relatively minor character,

Sotona je u Bibliji relativno nevažan lik,

with scant information about his deeds or appearance.

s tek nekolicinom podataka o njegovima djelima i izgledu.

So how did he become the ultimate antagonist, with so many different forms?

Pa kako je postao najveći protivnik s toliko različitih oblika?

In the New Testament, Satan saw a little more action:

U Novom je zavjetu Sotona doživio malo više akcije,

tempting Jesus, using demons to possess people,

iskušavajući Isusa, koristeći demone da opsjeda ljude,

and finally appearing as a giant dragon who is cast into hell.

i na kraju, pojavljujući se kao ogroman zmaj bačen u pakao.

This last image particularly inspired medieval artists and writers,

Ova posljednja slika poprilično je nadahnula srednjovjekovne slikare i pisce,

who depicted a scaled, shaggy-furred creature with overgrown toenails.

koji su prikazivali ljuskavo, dlakavo biće s velikim noktima na nogama.

In Michael Pacher’s painting of St. Augustine and the Devil,

Na slici Michaela Pachera Svetog Augustina i đavla,

the devil appears as an upright lizard—

vrag se pojavljuje kao uspravan gušter -

with a second miniature face glinting on his rear and.

s drugim minijaturnim licem koje se sjaji s njegove stražnje strane.

The epitome of these monster Satans

Utjelovljenje ovih zvjerskih Sotona

appeared in Italian poet Dante Alighieri’s “Inferno.”

pojavilo se u “Paklu” talijanskog pjesnika Dantea Alighierija.

Encased in the ninth circle of hell,

Zatvoren u devetom krugu pakla,

Dante’s Satan is a three-headed, bat-winged behemoth who feasts on sinners.

Danteov je Sotona troglavi monstrum šišmišjih krila koji se gozbi grešnicima.

But he’s also an object of pity:

No on je također predmet sažaljenja:

powerless as the panicked beating of his wings

nemoćan dok ga njegovo panično mahanje krilima

only encases him further in ice.

zakopava dublje u led.

The poem’s protagonist escapes from hell by clambering over Satan’s body,

Glavni lik poeme bježi iz pakla penjući se preko Sotonina tijela,

and feels both disgust and sympathy for the trapped beast—

te istovremeno osjeća gađenje i sažaljenje za zarobljenu zvijer -

prompting the reader to consider the pain of doing evil.

potičući čitatelja da razmotri bol u činjenju zla.

By the Renaissance, the devil started to assume a more human form.

Do renesanse, vrag je počeo poprimati ljudski oblik.

Artists painted him as a man with cloven hooves and curling horns

Umjetnici su ga slikali kao čovjeka razdijeljenih kopita i uvijenih rogova,

inspired by Pan, the Greek god of the wild.

inspirirani Panom, grčkim bogom divljine.

In his 1667 masterpiece “Paradise Lost,”

U svojem remek djelu “Izgubljeni raj” iz 1667.,

English poet John Milton depicted the devil as Lucifer,

engleski pjesnik John Milton prikazao je vraga kao Lucifera,

an angel who started a rebellion on the grounds that God is too powerful.

anđela koji je započeo pobunu na temelju toga da je Bog premoćan.

Kicked out of heaven, this charismatic rebel becomes Satan,

Izbačen iz raja, ovaj karizmatični buntovnik postaje Sotona

and declares that he’d rather rule in hell than serve in heaven.

te izjavljuje da bi radije vladao paklom, nego služio u raju.

Milton’s take inspired numerous depictions of Lucifer as an ambiguous figure,

Miltonova je predodžba inspirirala mnoge prikaze Lucifera kao dvosmislenog lika

rather than a purely evil one.

umjesto nekog u potpunosti zlog.

Milton’s Lucifer later became an iconic character for the Romantics of the 1800s,

Miltonov je Lucifer kasnije postao ikoničan lik za romantičare 1800-tih

who saw him as a hero who defied higher power in pursuit of essential truths,

koji su ga tumačili kao heroja koji prkosi višoj moći u potrazi za istinom,

with tragic consequences.

s tragičnim posljedicama.

Meanwhile, in the German legend of Doctor Faust,

U međuvremenu, u njemačkoj legendi o doktoru Faustu,

which dates to the 16th century,

koja datira iz 16. stoljeća,

we get a look at what happens when the devil comes to Earth.

dobivamo uvid u to što se događa kada vrag dođe na Zemlju.

Faust, a dissatisfied scholar,

Faust, nezadovoljni učenjak,

pledges his soul to the devil in exchange for bottomless pleasure.

založi svoji dušu vragu u zamjenu za neizmjeran užitak.

With the help of the devil’s messenger Mephistopheles,

Uz pomoć vražjeg glasnika Mefista,

Faust quickly seizes women, power, and money—

Faust ubrzo osvaja žene, moć i novac -

only to fall into the eternal fires of hell.

samo da bi pao u vječne vatre pakla.

Later versions of the story show Mephistopheles in different lights.

Kasnije inačice priče prikazuju Mefista u drugačijem svjetlu.

In Christopher Marlowe's account,

U prikazu Christophera Marlowea

a cynical Doctor Faustus is happy to strike a deal with Mephistopheles.

cinični je doktor Faust sretan što sklapa dogovor s Mefistom.

In Johann Wolfgang van Goethe’s version,

U inačici Johanna Wolfganga van Goethea

Mephistopheles tricks Faust into a grisly deal.

Mefisto prevari Fausta da sklopi grozan ugovor.

Today, a Faustian bargain refers to a trade that sacrifices integrity

Danas fraza “Faustova pogodba” opisuje razmjenu koja žrtvuje čast

for short-term gains.

u svrhu kratkoročnih dobitaka.

In stagings of Goethe’s play,

U uprizorenjima Goetheove drame

Mephistopheles appeared in red tights and cape.

Mefisto se pojavljuje u crvenim tajicama i plaštu.

This version of the devil was often played as a charming trickster—

Ova verzija vraga često se glumila kao šarmatni prevarant -

one that eventually paraded through comic books,

te je napokon našla svoje mjesto u stripovima,

advertising, and film in his red suit.

reklamama i filmovima s prikazom crvenog odijela.

These three takes on the devil are just the tip of the iceberg:

Ova tri tumačenja đavla samo su vrh ledenjaka:

the devil continues to stalk the public imagination to this day,

vrag nastavlja vrebati maštu javnosti sve do danas,

tempting artists of all kinds to render him

mameći umjetnike svih vrsta da ga prikažu

according to new and fantastical visions.

prema novim i fantastičnim vizijama.