The Model For Nast’s
Santa..
The startling fact is, Santa Claus is not the Bishop St. Nicholas – but his Dark Helper!
It is significant that Black Peter, Pelze-Nicol, Knecht
Rupprecht and all of St. Nicholas companions are openly identified as the devil.
This section is almost entirely excerpted from Santa Claus The Great Imposter by Dr. Terry Watkins.)
There is not enough space in this book to adequately document the influence and inspiration of the medieval plays into the making of Santa, but let us examine Santa’s trademark "Ho! Ho! Ho!". Most people have no idea where this came from, and more importantly whom it came from. In The Drama Before Shakespeare - A Sketch, author Frank Ireson, describes the popular Miracle Play. Notice the description of the devil as "shaggy, hairy," etc. (as Santa), and notice the devil’s trademark "exclamation on entering was ho, ho, ho!":
Santa.. The Name
Much has been said about ‘Santa’ being an anagram for ‘Satan’. While I am not sure how much importance to attach to this, the fact that Sanat Kumara is obviously an anagram for Satan gives me pause for thought. According to some of the teachings derived from modern Theosophy, i.e. the teachings of Alice A. Bailey, C. W. Leadbeater, Guy Ballard, Elizabeth Clare Prophet and Geraldine Innocente, Sanat Kumara is the Lord or Regent of Earth and of humanity. It is believed by some that he is the founder of the Great White Brotherhood, and that he lives in a city on the etheric plane called Shamballa located above the Gobi Desert in Mongolia.
Nick or Old Nick is a well-known appellation of the Devil. The name appears to have been derived from the Dutch Nikken, the devil, which again comes from the Anglo-Saxon nac-an, to slay--for as Wachter says the devil was "a murderer from the beginning."
Santa’s Little Helpers?Santa has some “cute” little helpers called elves, however Webster’s Dictionary has an interesting definition for the
friendly elf:
The startling fact is, Santa Claus is not the Bishop St. Nicholas – but his Dark Helper!
In certain German children’s games, the Saint
Nicholas figure itself is the Dark Helper, a devil who wants to punish children,
but is stopped from doing so by Christ. [48]
Black Pete, the ‘grandfather’ of our modern Santa
Claus. Known in Holland as Zwarte Piet, this eighteenth-century German version,
is—like his ancient shamanic ancestor—still horned, fur-clad, scary, and less
than kind to children. Although portrayed as the slave helper of Saint Nicholas,
the two are, in many villages, blended into one character. This figure often has
the name Nikolass or Klaus, but has the swarthy appearance of the Dark Helper.
[49]
Artist Thomas Nast is rightfully credited for
conceiving the image of our modern day Santa, but Nast’s model for Santa was not
the Bishop St. Nicholas but his dark companion, the evil Pelznickle.
[IPS Note: Nast was an immigrant from Bavaria and
was familiar with Pelznickle]
The Christmas demon Knecht Rupprecht first appeared
in a play in 1668 and was condemned by the Roman Catholic as being a devil in
1680. . . To the Pennsylvania Dutch, he is known as Belsnickel. Other names for
the same character are Pelznickle, "Furry Nicholas," and Ru-Klas, "Rough
Nicholas." From these names, it is easy to see that he is looked upon as not
merely a companion to St. Nicholas, but almost another version of him. [50]
In Thomas Nast: His Period and His
Pictures, biographer Albert Bigelow Paine, documents that Nast’s Santa was
Pelznickle.
But on Christmas Eve, to Protestant and Catholic
alike, came the German Santa Claus, Pelze-Nicol, leading a child dressed as the
Christkind, and distributing toys and cakes, or switches, according as the
parents made report. It was this Pelze-Nicol – a fat, fur-clad, bearded old
fellow, at whose hands he doubtless received many benefits – that the boy in
later years was to present to us as his conception of the true Santa Claus – a
pictorial type which shall lone endure. [51]
Santa historian and author, Tony van Renterghem also
documents Nast’s Santa Claus was not Saint Nicholas, but the evil Black Pete–the
devil.
Thomas Nast was assigned to draw this Santa Claus,
but having no idea what he looked like, drew him as the fur-clad, small,
troll-like figure he had known in Bavaria when he was a child. This figure was
quite unlike the tall Dutch Sinterklaas, who was traditionally depicted as a
Catholic bishop. Who he drew was Saint Nicholas’ dark helper, Swarthy, or Black
Pete (a slang name for the devil in medieval Dutch). . . [52]
Santa researcher, Phyllis Siefker, echoes
Renterghem’s conclusion:
It seems obvious, therefore, that Santa Claus can be
neither the alter ego of Saint Nicholas nor the brainchild of Washington Irving.
. . If we peek behind the imposing Saint Nicholas, we see, glowering in the
shadows, the saint’s reprobate companion, Black Pete. He, like Santa, has a coat
of hair, a disheveled beard, a bag, and ashes on his face. . . In fact, it is
this creature, rather than Irving’s creation or an Asian saint, who fathered
Santa Claus. [53]
By the way, St. Nicholas did not come down the
chimney. It was his fur-clad, dark companion that came down the chimney. One of
the reasons his sidekick was called the "Dark One" or "Black Peter" was because
he was normally covered in soot and ashes from his chimney travels. The "dark
companion" also carried the bag, distributed the goodies and punished the bad
boys and girls.
Children [in Holland] are told that Black Peter
enters the house through the chimney, which also explained his black face and
hands, and would leave a bundle of sticks or a small bag with salt in the shoe
instead of candy when the child had been bad. [54]
It is significant that Black Peter, Pelze-Nicol, Knecht
Rupprecht and all of St. Nicholas companions are openly identified as the devil.
To the medieval Dutch, Black Peter was another name
for the devil. Somewhere along the way, he was subdued by St. Nicholas and
forced to be his servant. [55]
In Denmark, Sweden, and Norway creatures resembling
both the Schimmelreiter and the Klapperbock are or were to be met
with at Christmas. . . People seem to have had a bad conscience about these
things, for there are stories connecting them with the Devil. A girl, for
instance, who danced at midnight with a straw Julebuk, found that her
partner was no puppet but the Evil One himself. 56]
Thus, in parts of Europe, the Church turned Herne
into Saint Nicholas’ captive, chained Dark Helper, none other than Satan, the
Dark One, symbolic of all evil. [57]
One of the bizarre jobs of St. Nick’s devilish
helper was to "gleefully drag sinners" to hell! 
On the eve of December 6, the myth told that this
bearded, white-haired old ‘saint,’ clad in a wide mantel, rode through the skies
on a white horse, together with his slave, the swarthy Dark Helper. This
reluctant helper had to disperse gifts to good people, but much preferred to
threaten them with his broom-like scourge, and, at a sign of his master, would
gleefully drag sinners away to a place of eternal suffering. [58]
The Miracle Plays
This section is almost entirely excerpted from Santa Claus The Great Imposter by Dr. Terry Watkins.)
Something else that fashioned our modern day Santa
was the popular medieval Christmas plays of the tenth through the sixteenth
century. These miracle, moral, mystery and passion dramas acted
out scenes from the scriptures and the liturgy of the Roman Catholic Church.
Combining humor and religion, they flourished during the fifteenth century. It
is significant that St. Nicholas was a dominant theme among these plays. Much of
the myth and outlandish miracles of St. Nicholas originated from these dramas.
And much of the bizarre characteristics of Santa were planted in these Christmas
plays.
In the classic, Teutonic Mythology, author
Jacob Grimm provides us with some revealing detail into St. Nicholas’
transformation into Santa. Notice in the following excerpt from
Teutonic Mythology where Nicholas converts himself into the
Knecht Ruprecht [the devil], a "man of Clobes" or a "man of Claus." Grimm
states, the characters of Nicholas and Knecht Ruprecht "get mixed, and Clobes
[Claus] himself is the "man."
The Christmas plays sometimes present the Saviour
with His usual attendant Peter or else with Niclas [St. Nicholas]. At other
times however Mary with Gabriel, or with her aged Joseph, who, disguised as a
peasant, acts the part of Knecht Ruprecht. Nicholas again has converted himself
into a "man Clobes" or Rupert; as a rule there is still a Niclas, a saintly
bishop and benevolent being distinct from the "man" who scares children; the
characters get mixed, and Clobes himself acts the "man." [59]
From Grimm’s account, in the early 1100’s, the
transformation of St. Nicholas into Santa Claus from the devil
Knecht Ruprecht was in full throttle.
Ho! Ho! Ho!
There is not enough space in this book to adequately document the influence and inspiration of the medieval plays into the making of Santa, but let us examine Santa’s trademark "Ho! Ho! Ho!". Most people have no idea where this came from, and more importantly whom it came from. In The Drama Before Shakespeare - A Sketch, author Frank Ireson, describes the popular Miracle Play. Notice the description of the devil as "shaggy, hairy," etc. (as Santa), and notice the devil’s trademark "exclamation on entering was ho, ho, ho!":
Besides allegorical personages, there were two
standing characters very prominent in Moral Plays—the Devil and Vice. The Devil
was, no doubt, introduced from the Miracle Plays, where he had figured so
amusingly; he was made as hideous as possible by his mask and dress, the latter
being generally of a shaggy and hairy character, and he was duly provided with a
tail: his ordinary exclamation on entering was, "Ho, ho, ho! what a
felowe [sic] am I." [60]
Siefker also collaborates the devil’s trademark "ho,
ho, ho."
In these plays, the devil’s common entry line,
known as the "devil’s bluster," was "Ho! Ho! Hoh!" [61]
The devil’s trademark "ho, ho, ho" was carried over
from the early medieval Miracle Plays to the popular old English play "Bomelio,"
as the following lines from the play verify:
What, and a' come? I conjure thee, foul spirit, down
to hell! Ho, ho, ho! the devil, the devil! A-comes, a-comes, a-comes upon
me,. . . [62]
[IPS Note: In the above instance it is
probable that the Ho, ho, ho is being used much as it is in the Bible in
Zechariah 2:6,7. The Hebrew word translated Ho is [hôy
] and means oh! ah, alas, O, woe. IN other words the person is saying
‘Alas! The devil comes].
Author Tony Renterghem, concludes his extensive
research into the origin of Santa with the following statement: [Emphasis Added]
I can only conclude that the original ancestor of
our modern Santa Claus is none other than the mythological Dark Helper-a
faint memory of Herne/Pan, the ancient shamanic nature spirit of the Olde
Religion. [63]
Note: Herne or Pan is the horned god. It is common
knowledge that Pan and Herne are popular names for Satan. The Satanic
Bible lists Pan as one of the Infernal Names of Satan. [64]
After researching scores of books and material on
the origin of Santa Claus, by far, the best book on this subject is Santa Claus, Last of the Wild
Men: The Origins and Evolution of Saint Nicholas, authored by the late
University of Kansas associate, Phyllis Siefker. This is no child’s book, but a
scholarly exploration into the origin of Santa Claus. It is published by the
prestigious McFarland Publishers, a leading publisher of reference and academic
books. This book carries no Christian bias, but is simply a secular, non
Christian scholastic study. With that in mind, the following analysis by
Siefkler is even more alarming [Emphasis Added]
The fact is that Santa and Satan are alter egos,
brothers; they have the same origin. . . On the surface, the two figures are
polar opposites, but underneath they share the same parent, and both
retain many of the old symbols associated with their "father" . . . From these
two paths, he arrived at both the warmth of our fireplace and in the flames of
hell. [65]
Santa.. The Name
An
Anagram?
Much has been said about ‘Santa’ being an anagram for ‘Satan’. While I am not sure how much importance to attach to this, the fact that Sanat Kumara is obviously an anagram for Satan gives me pause for thought. According to some of the teachings derived from modern Theosophy, i.e. the teachings of Alice A. Bailey, C. W. Leadbeater, Guy Ballard, Elizabeth Clare Prophet and Geraldine Innocente, Sanat Kumara is the Lord or Regent of Earth and of humanity. It is believed by some that he is the founder of the Great White Brotherhood, and that he lives in a city on the etheric plane called Shamballa located above the Gobi Desert in Mongolia.
[Read More About Alice Bailey and The Reappearance of ‘The Christ’]
[Also Shamballa]
Jolly Old St. Nick
Nick or Old Nick is a well-known appellation of the Devil. The name appears to have been derived from the Dutch Nikken, the devil, which again comes from the Anglo-Saxon nac-an, to slay--for as Wachter says the devil was "a murderer from the beginning."
Old Nick: A well-known British name of the
Devil. It seems probable that this name is derived from the Dutch Nikken,
the devil... [66]
Nick, the devil. [67]
Devil: Besides the name Satan, he is also
called Beelzebub, Lucifer . . . and in popular or rustic speech by many familiar
terms as Old Nick . . . [68]
Kriss Kringle?
One of the most perturbing
aspects of this whole story is the seemingly innocent, friendly, jingle-jangle 
name of Kriss Kringle
which is German for "little Christ Child".
name of Kriss Kringle
which is German for "little Christ Child".
Kriss Kringle A US name for Santa Claus
derived from the German Christkindl (little Christ child).
[69]
Whatever the truth behind the legend, it is one
further step in the whole sorry saga of ‘Santa’.
According to legend, Martin Luther was distressed
over the growing popularity of Saint Nicholas. Saint Nicholas (who is the patron
saint of sailors, children and unmarried maidens) has long been associated with
giving gifts at Christmas time to children and is still popular in many parts of
Europe, especially The Netherlands. However, Martin Luther thought the belief in
Saint Nicholas took away from the true meaning of Christmas, which was to
celebrate the birth of Jesus. Therefore, he is credited with introducing the
Christkindl to Germany and parts of Switzerland. The Christkindl,
usually portrayed by a young girl with a golden crown and wings, is the main
attraction at Christmas parties, as she passes out presents to the other
children. During the 18th Century, German and Swiss immigrants, settling in
Pennsylvania, brought the tradition of the Christkindl with them. Over
time, as English settlers began to populate the area, the word Christkindl
was simplified to Kriss Kringle, and became another name for Santa Clause.
[70]
Santa’s Little Helpers?Santa has some “cute” little helpers called elves, however Webster’s Dictionary has an interesting definition for the
friendly elf:
ELF1. A wandering spirit; a fairy; a
hobgoblin; an imaginary being which our rude ancestors supposed to inhabit
unfrequented places, and in various ways to affect mankind. . .
2. An evil spirit; a devil. (Webster's
Dictionary “elf”)
The Encyclopedia of Witches & Witchcraft
is a 417 page paperback by Rosemary Ellen Guiley who is known as a thorough
researcher. The following descriptions of elves are as quoted in Santa Claus
The Great Imposter by Dr. Terry Watkins.
A host of supernatural beings and spirits who exist
between earth and heaven. . . Fairies [Elves] are fallen angels. When God
cast Lucifer from heaven, the angels who were loyal to Lucifer plunged down
toward hell with him. [71]
Some fairies [elves] were said to suck human blood
like vampires. [72]
elves, "love to visit new born babies of mortals. .
." [72]
"Many contemporary Witches believe in fairies
[elves] and some see them clairvoyantly." [73]
Read more at - http://www.inplainsite.org/html/santa_claus.html#Popularity
Notes:
[48] Renterghem, Tony van. When Santa Was a Shaman.
St. Paul: Llewellyn Publications, 1995, p. 105
[49] Ibid p. 98
[50] Del Re, Gerard and Patricia. The Christmas
Almanack. New York: Random House, 2004, pp. 93,94
[51] Paine, Albert Bigelow. Thomas Nast: His Period
and His Pictures. New York: Chelsea House, 1980, p. 6
[52] Renterghem, Tony van. When Santa Was a Shaman.
St. Paul: Llewellyn Publications, 1995, pp. 95-96
[53] Siefker, Phyllis. Santa Claus, Last of the Wild
Men: The Origins and Evolution of Saint Nicholas. Jefferson: McFarland &
Company, Inc., 1997, p. 15
[54] "Saint Nicholas," Wikipedia Encyclopedia.
<en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Nicholas>
[55] Del Re, Gerard and Patricia. The Christmas
Almanack. New York: Random House, 2004, p. 44
[56] Miles, Clement A. Christmas in Ritual and
Tradition Christian and Pagan. New York: Frederick A. Stokes Company, 1912, p.
202
[57] Renterghem, Tony van. When Santa Was a Shaman.
St. Paul: Llewellyn Publications, 1995, p. 97
[58] Renterghem, Tony van. When Santa Was a Shaman.
St. Paul: Llewellyn Publications, 1995, p. 111
[59] qtd. in Siefker, Phyllis. Santa Claus, Last of
the Wild Men: The Origins and Evolution of Saint Nicholas. Jefferson: McFarland
& Company, Inc., 1997, p. 69
[60] Ireson, Frank. "The Drama Before Shakespeare -
A Sketch." 1920. Also http://www.oldandsold.com/articles11/culture-44.shtml
[61] Siefker, Phyllis. Santa Claus, Last of the Wild
Men: The Origins and Evolution of Saint Nicholas. Jefferson: McFarland &
Company, Inc., 1997, p. 69
[62] Dodsley, Robert. A Select Collection of Old
English Plays, Vol. VI. The Project Gutenberg Ebook.
www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext06/7oep610.txt>) [Also http://www.fullbooks.com/A-Select-Collection-of-Old-English-Plays-Volx54484.html
www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext06/7oep610.txt>) [Also http://www.fullbooks.com/A-Select-Collection-of-Old-English-Plays-Volx54484.html
[63] Renterghem, Tony van. When Santa Was a Shaman.
St. Paul: Llewellyn Publications, 1995, p. 93)
[64] LaVey, Anton Szandor. The Satanic Bible. New
York: Avon Books, Inc., 1969 p. 144
[65] Siefker, Phyllis. Santa Claus, Last of the Wild
Men: The Origins and Evolution of Saint Nicholas. Jefferson: McFarland &
Company, Inc., 1997, p. 6
[66] Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology,
p.650. As Quoted in Santa Claus The Great Imposter by Dr. Terry Watkins
[67] Walter W. Sleay, Concise Dictionary of English
Etymology, p. 304. As Quoted in Santa Claus The Great Imposter by Dr. Terry
Watkins
[68] Oxford English Dictionary Vol III D-E. As
Quoted in Santa Claus The Great Imposter by Dr. Terry Watkins
[69] Brewer's Dictionary of Twentieth-Century Phrase
and Fable, p. 334
[70] Lori Mealey. Martin Luther and Christmas.
http://german-history.suite101.com/article.cfm/martin_luther_and_christmas
[71] Rosemary Ellen Guiley, The Encyclopedia of
Witches and Witchcraft, p. 115
[72] Ibid p. 116
[73] Ibid p. 117
