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Kabbalists and hermeticists have proposed correspondences between the 72 names of the Shemhamphorasch and a wide variety of other things, such as the Psalms, tarot cards, and so on. It is because of the flexibility (and numerical factorability) of the Shemhamphorasch that many consider it to be the key of creation of all things and all arts. The names have long been associated with 72 angels, as well as 72 demons (found in the Lemegeton or Lesser Key of Solomon), who it is said can create or destroy the organization or disorganization of the elements into the creation of material reality. By understanding how to use the Shemhamphorasch, it is said one can command these powers.

Members who belong to the Church of Satan and other branches of Satanism sign letters and emails and conduct rituals with a Shemhamphorasch, although their version of it is different and contains 72 names of demons, not names of angels. This usage is designed as an inversion of the Shemhamphorasch used by Jews and Christians. It is taken to mean a kind of desecration in closing or closing in the name of possibly the backwards reading of the angels and likely refers to the demons of Goetia in their hierarchies and with their own special titles like Marquis or President. The demons, on the other hand are organized into nine orders and differ from traditional lists of the angelic Shemhamphorasch. The relationship is unclear. A misconception attributed to the founder of the Church of Satan, Anton LaVey, is that “Shemhamphorasch” means “Hail Satan” in Enochian. It is actually just a reference to these beings as one in purpose for assistance of the Satanist.

The word “Shemhamphorasch” is spoken in Church of Satan rituals, often followed by “Hail Satan!”, as outlined in The Satanic Bible by Anton Szandor LaVey. The Totenkopf Grotto (a German branch of the Church of Satan) proposes an ancient Babylonian-Assyrian derivation for the word as “Šem-ham-fo-raš”, a phrase they say implies becoming one with the Powers of Darkness.

Long since removed from contemporary printings of the book, the first edition of The Satanic Bible contained an extensive dedication to the thinkers who influenced LaVey.

The primary dedication of the book was made to Bernadino Nogara (misprinted as “Logara”), Karl Haushofer, Rasputin, Sir Basil Zaharoff, Alessandro Cagliostro, Barnabas Saul (Dr. John Dee’s first Scryer), Ragnar Redbeard, William Mortensen, Hans Brick, Max Reinhardt, the American Sociologist Orrin Klapp, Fritz Lang, Friedrich Nietzsche, W. C. Fields, P. T. Barnum, Hans Poelzig, Reginald Marsh, Wilhelm Reich and Mark Twain.

The secondary dedication included Howard Hughes, Marcello Truzzi, Marilyn Monroe, William Lindsay Gresham, Hugo Zacchini, Jayne Mansfield, Fredrick Goerner, Nathaniel West, Horatio Alger, Robert E. Howard, George Orwell, H. P. Lovecraft, Tuesday Weld, H.G. Wells, Harry Houdini, Togare (LaVey’s pet lion) and The Nine Unknown Men.

The Satanic Bible, after the introductions by other authors, is divided into four books: the Book of Satan, the Book of Lucifer, the Book of Belial, and finally the Book of Leviathan. LaVey seems to have taken this hierarchy from The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage, in which these four demons serve as the chiefs of Hell. Each book approaches a different aspect of Satanism, and serves a unique purpose within the structure of The Satanic Bible.

Development of artifacts and symbols associated with Halloween formed over time encompassing customs of medieval holy days as well as contemporary cultures. The souling practice of commemorating the souls in purgatory with candle lanterns carved from turnips, became adapted into the making of jack-o’-lanterns. In traditional Celtic Halloween festivals, large turnips were hollowed out, carved with faces and placed in windows to ward off evil spirits. The carving of pumpkins is associated with Halloween in North America where pumpkins are both readily available and much larger – making them easier to carve than turnips. Many families that celebrate Halloween carve a pumpkin into a frightening or comical face and place it on their doorstep after dark. The American tradition of carving pumpkins preceded the Great Famine period of Irish immigration and was originally associated with harvest time in general, not becoming specifically associated with Halloween until the mid-to-late 1800s.

The imagery surrounding Halloween is largely a mix of the Halloween season itself, works of Gothic and horror literature, in particular the novels Frankenstein and Dracula, and nearly a century of work from American filmmakers and graphic artists, and British Hammer Horror productions, also a rather commercialized take on the dark and mysterious. Halloween imagery tends to involve death, evil, the occult, magic, or mythical monsters. Traditional characters include the Devil, the Grim Reaper, ghosts, ghouls, demons, witches, goblins, vampires, werewolves, zombies, skeletons, black cats, spiders, bats, and crows.

Particularly in America, symbolism is inspired by classic horror films (which contain fictional figures like Frankenstein’s monster and The Mummy). Elements of the autumn season, such as pumpkins, corn husks, and scarecrows, are also prevalent. Homes are often decorated with these types of symbols around Halloween. Halloween costumes are traditionally those of monsters such as ghosts, skeletons, witches, and devils. They are said to be used to scare off demons. Costumes are also based on themes other than traditional horror, such as those of characters from television shows, movies, and other pop culture icons.

The colours black and orange are associated with the celebrations, perhaps because of the darkness of night and the colour of fire, autumn leaves, or pumpkins.