Dæmon
From His Dark Materials
Dæmons are the physical manifestations of the souls of humans in Lyra's world. Although dæmons are a separate identity to their humans, together, both are considered to be one entity. Therefore, both the human and dæmon will die simultaneously, if one is killed.
Dæmons assume the forms of animals. During the childhood of a human, the dæmon can shapeshift into any kind of animal depending on whim or circumstances; after the child has attained maturity, their dæmon will settle into a permanent form, often reflecting the nature of their human. A person's dæmon is usually the opposite sex, although it is possible for both to have the same sex. It is a taboo for a person to touch another's dæmon; similarly, a dæmon cannot touch another person.
The separation between a human and their dæmon is very painful and emotionally afflicting. Excluding the dæmon belonging to witches, who could travel great distances away from each other, death would usually follow the separation due to the severe trauma. In the series, a device known as the Silver Guillotine was able to separate dæmon from their humans without resulting in death. Nevertheless, this resulted in the human becoming a zombi.
Ostensibly, dæmon can only be readily seen and acknowledged in Lyra's world. In other worlds and universes, including Will Parry's world, the dæmons are invisible and lack physical forms. Additionally, humans are the only species who possess dæmon, as other species, such as the Panserbjørne lack dæmon.
[edit] Meaning
Symbolism of some of the names of Dæmon are briefly presented below:
| Character | Dæmon | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Lyra Belacqua: | Pantalaimon | Ermine: purity (Renaissance Symbology), "favourite" form Pine Marten: grace and empathy (Celtic Myth.) , settled form |
| Will Parry: | Kirjava | Cat: guardian and protector, especially in confrontational circumstances (Celtic Myth.), settled form |
| Lord Asriel: | Stelmaria | Snow Leopard: understanding one’s shadow side (Pagan Myth.), associated with the devil (Christian Symbolism), settled form |
| Marisa Coulter: | Ozymandias (from BBC Radio) | Golden monkey (species never named): cleverness and curiosity (Chinese Astrology), settled form |
| Roger Parslow: | Salcilia | Terrier: fidelity (Celtic Myth.), common form, also explained to be a form suited for servants in the series |
| Mary Malone: | never named | Alpine Chough: settled form. A bird of the mountains.' |
| John Faa: | never named | Crow: the soul of magic and link to the spirit world (alchemical symbol), settled form |
| Farder Coram: | Sophonax | Cat: (see above) settled form |
| Serafina Pekkala: | Kaisa | Snow Goose: vigilance and protection (Celtic Myth.), settled form. The name Kaisa is a female name in Finland, although Kaisa the snow goose is male in the books. |
| Lee Scoresby: | Hester | Artic Hare: The Moon and Resurrection (Pagan), settled form |
| The Master: (of Jordan College) | Leonor (from BBC Radio) | Raven: Bird used by Odin to collect knowledge, settled form |
| John "Jopari-Stanislaus Grumman" Parry: (aliases in likely order of origin) | Sayan Kötör | Osprey: often linked to those of otherworldly vision; its also common a symbol of abundance, settled form |
| Carlo Boreal / Charles Latrom, CBE : | never named | Serpent: settled form. |
