The paragraph states that "The devil is the personal ego..." This can be expanded quite a bit. The devil is a biblical symbol. It is not the name of a creature that has an existence of its own. It is a part of human nature. He stands for more than just one thing; he stands for a combination of things, but generally we can say that the devil stands for the tendency toward negativity in human nature. Jesus also classifies him as the tendency to lie. ("He is a liar, and the father of lies.") He stands for selfishness and for all the offspring of selfishness. Still, his meaning is not entirely negative. He also stands for the adversary and the tempter. As tempter, he symbolizes opportunity for choice. We are always being "tempted," which simply means constantly being given opportunities for choice. So we see that the devil has both positive and negative meaning in metaphysical symbolism. Ed Rabel, Metaphysics 1, Personality and Individuality, The "Devil""
The paragraph states that "The devil is the personal ego..." This can be expanded quite a bit. The devil is a biblical symbol. It is not the name of a creature that has an existence of its own. It is a part of human nature. He stands for more than just one thing; he stands for a combination of things, but generally we can say that the devil stands for the tendency toward negativity in human nature. Jesus also classifies him as the tendency to lie. ("He is a liar, and the father of lies.") He stands for selfishness and for all the offspring of selfishness. Still, his meaning is not entirely negative. He also stands for the adversary and the tempter. As tempter, he symbolizes opportunity for choice. We are always being "tempted," which simply means constantly being given opportunities for choice. So we see that the devil has both positive and negative meaning in metaphysical symbolism. Ed Rabel, Metaphysics 1, Personality and Individuality, The "Devil""