Greetings,

                Right. Isn't the satanic star the outline of the five
pointed star? The
        pentagram?  That's the difference, I think.


    The Pentagram an ancient symbol - is not a sign of evil - it is a five
pointed star - one point up  - it can be in a circle but does not need to be
- the Satanic symbols are both the Christian Cross and the Pagan Pentagram
upside down. I am amused that the Texas Ranger badge is a Pentagram. The
Pentagrams 5 points stand for Earth, Air, Fire, Water and Spirit - the 5
elements of life. The Satanic version - two points up and one point down
makes the outline of a goats head - The information below is taken from the
website http://www.angelfire.com/id/robpurvis/pentagram.html  additional
info at http://www.fabrisia.com/pentagram.htm

The Star of David is a Hexagram - has 6 sides.

                                Brightest Blessings - Trisha


Symbolic meaning of the pentagram
The Pentagram is a symbol of a star encased in a circle. Always with 5
points (one pointing upward), each has its own meaning. The upward point of
the star is representative of the spirit. The other four points all
represent an element; earth, air, fire, and water. All these things
contibutite to life and are a part of each of us.
To wear a pentagram necklace or other form of jewelry, is to say you feel
the connection with the elements and respect the earth.
The number 5
The number 5 has always been regarded as mystical and magical, yet
essentially 'human'. We have five fingers/toes on each limb extremity.We
commonly note five senses - sight, hearing, smell, touch and taste. We
perceive five stages or initiations in our lives - eg. birth, adolescence,
coitus, parenthood and death. (There are other numbers / initiations /
stages / attributions).
The number 5 is associated with Mars. It signifies severity, conflict and
harmony through conflict. In Christianity, five were the wounds of Christ on
the cross. There are five pillars of the Muslim faith and five daily times
of prayer.
Five were the virtues of the medieval knight - generosity, courtesy,
chastity, chivalry and piety as symbolised in the pentagram device of Sir
Gawain. The Wiccan Kiss is Fivefold - feet, knees, womb, breasts, lips -
Blessed be.
The number 5 is prime. The simplest star - the pentagram - requires five
lines to draw and it is unicursal; it is a continuous loop.

Human stars
Expressing the saying Every man and every woman is a star, we can juxtapose
Man on a pentagram with head and four limbs at the points and the genitalia
exactly central. This is Man in microcosm, symbolising our place in the
Macrocosm or universe and the Hermetic / Tantric philosophy of associativity
as above, so below.
The Golden Proportion
The geometric proportions of the regular pentagram are those of the Golden
Section. The Golden Proportion is one beloved of artists since Renaissance
times and also to be found in post-Hellenic art and in the geomantic
planning of Templar sites, being those proportions of a rectangle considered
most pleasing to the eye. Here, the ratio of the lengths of the two sides is
equal to the ratio of the longer side to the sum of the two sides. Or :
a/b = b/a+b = a+b/a+2b = a+2b/2a+3b = 2a+3b/3a+5b ....etc.

If a square is added to the long side of a golden rectangle, a larger golden
rectangle is formed. Continuing this progression forms the basis for a
nautilus spiral. The ratio of the distance between two points of a pentagram
to its total width is in the golden proportion, as is the ratio of the
height above the horizontal bar to that below, as is the ratio of a central
part of a line to the outer part.
This ratio forms the foundation of the Fibonacci series of numbers 1, 1, 2,
3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, etc. where each number is formed by adding
the previous two numbers. The Fibonacci series is much found in nature in
the pattern arrangement of flower heads and leaves and many flower heads and
fruits themselves exhibit a fivefold symmetry.

Protection against evil
The pentagram has long been believed to be a potent protection against evil,
a symbol of conflict that shields the wearer and the home. The pentagram has
five spiked wards and a womb shaped defensive, protective pentagon at the
centre.

Five elements
Here are five elements, four of matter (earth, air, fire and water) and THE
quintessential - spirit. These may be arrayed around the pentagrams points.
The word quintessential derives from this fifth element - the spirit.
Tracing a path around the pentagram, the elements are placed in order of
density - spirit (or aether). fire, air, water, earth. Earth and fire are
basal, fixed; air and water are free, flowing.
The single point upwards signifies the spirit ruling matter (mind ruling
limbs); is a symbol of rightness. With two points up and one (spirit)
downwards, subservient, the emphasis is on the carnal nature of Man.

Drawing a Pentagram
These point attributions are used in ritually inscribing, as a flourish of
the hands or the athame, different forms of pentagram for invoking or
banishing (grounding) each of the elementals according to the nature of the
ritual. The line traces as illustrated for earth (the last stroke is
optional).
Another way of seeing this path is as Man's spiritual journey through
evolution. The spark of Life descending from God, the divine source of life
to the simplest embryonic form (earth), rising to flow (water - air) on our
plane of existence (compare with the intonation of the AUM mantra), then
again descending to the fire of purification before again rising as a divine
spark to find again his spiritual source.
The pentagram may be shown as an interlaced line symbolic of the web-weaving
power of magick. The descending spirit-earth line may pass under (male) or
over (female) the water-air line to give two slightly differing forms.

Open Pentagram
A pentagram may be open, without a surrounding circle.This is the active
form symbolising an outgoing of oneself, prepared for conflict, aware,
active. (One wearing an open pentagram must be physically aware of the
danger of sharp points sticking in their skin from time to time). As a pagan
religious symbol, the open pentagram represents an open, active approach.

Circled Pentagram
A circle around a pentagram contains and protects. The circle symbolises
eternity and infinity, the cycles of life and nature. The circle touching
all 5 points indicates that the spirit, earth, air, water and fire are alll
connected.
The circled pentagram is the passive form implying spiritual containment of
the magic circle, in keeping with the traditional secrecy of witchcraft, and
the personal, individual nature of the pagan religious path, of its
non-proselytising character.

Inverted Pentagram
The pentagram may be inverted with one point down. The implication is of
spirit subservient to matter, of man subservient to his carnal desires. The
inverted pentagram has come to be seen by many pagans as representing the
dark side and it is abhored as an evil symbol. Fundamental christians,
indeed, see any form of pentagram as such. However, these are recent
developments and the inverted pentagram is the symbol of Gardnerian second
degree initiation, representing the need of the witch to learn to face the
darkness within so that it may not later rise up to take control. The centre
of a pentagram implies a sixth formative element - love/will which controls
from within, ruling matter and spirit by Will and the controlled magickal
direction of sexual energies. This is another lesson of initiation.

The Pentagram As A Christian Symbol
Up until medieval times, the five points of the pentagram represented the
five wounds of Christ on the Cross. It was a symbol of Christ the Saviour.
This is in stark contrast to today where the pentagram is criticized by
modern Fundamentalist Christians, as being a symbol of evil.
The church eventually chose the cross as a more significant symbol for
Christianity, and the use of the pentagram as a Christian symbol gradually
ceased.