The term "inferno" refers to religion because it means hell. But they use this word in literature, in games, in music, and even in technology. True, in different contexts.
The word "inferno" comes from the Latin infernalis - "underground", but it's not just about underground. In ancient Rome, the word "dead" was taboo, and the inhabitants of the afterlife were called inferi, "lower." When Christianity spread, the word infernum began to be called hell, and later in the Italian language inferno no longer had any other meanings.
Now the direct interpretation of the term has remained only in religion. In literature and games, it also has to do with demons and the afterlife, but the contexts are still shifting. And in the field of technology, "inferno" is not at all associated with mysticism.
In religion
For believers, "inferno" means two different concepts: hell and an energetic process. Hell, according to the biblical concept, is a static place. He does not develop, does not change, the punishments for sins are always the same and eternal. The energy process is a hellish flame that can set goals for itself and do something to achieve them.
In an esoteric sense, an inferno - energetic essence that people create when they succumb to sins. Such an entity separates from the person, acts on its own, forcing other people to behave aggressively and directing them on the road to hell.
As an esoteric entity, inferno is a vortex, an energy vortex that can draw in a person and make him succumb to base passions so that his soul would lose the divine spark.
Inferno is also the name of a demon in some theosophical interpretations. This is a fiery demon that foreshadows the end of the world, prepares the Earth for the coming of Satan with a fiery rain and destroys everything.
Among esotericists, "left hand path" inferno is the name of an additional set of tarot cards to the deck. This set is also called "The Archetypes of Hell", and it consists of 78 cards.
In books
In the literature, the term "inferno" is most widely disclosed:
- in the socio-fantastic novel by Ivan Efremov "The Hour of the Bull";
- Dan Brown's novel Inferno and the film of the same name based on this book;
- in the fantasy novels of Iar Elterrus.
The book "Hour of the Bull" describes the distant future: people from the communist Earth fly to the planet Tormans, which has an infernal device. Inferno here is nature, which manifests itself as pure evil for all who can feel and think. The meaning is close to religious.
Dan Brown's novel is closely related to Dante Alighieri's concept of Hell and the plot of his Divine Comedy. Inferno here is a direct designation of the underworld, into which the life of the protagonist turns.
A film of the same name was filmed based on the book in 2016. Its main character, Professor Langdon, must save humanity by solving the riddle connected with Hell - the first part of the Divine Comedy "Alighieri."
In Elterrus's novels, inferno is a dark energy that arises when people die, suffer and suffer. It is the embodiment of the pain of violence. Elterrus's Inferno personifies the principle of “violence breeds violence,” and therefore dark energy returns to reward the offenders according to their merits.
There is a book on Battlefront II called Inferno Squad. Its plot is connected not only with the game, but also with the Star Wars universe. In the center of events is the elite squad "Inferno", which destroys the partisans, secretly infiltrating them. In this case, the word "inferno" is used both as close in meaning to the destruction that hellfire repairs (the members of the squad are professional killers), and as something mysterious, since the squad operates incognito.
In games
The term "inferno" is used in computer and text role-playing games. In the first case, a vivid example is the game "Heroes of Might and Magic V". Here inferno is a faction of demons. They live in blazing prisons full of thorns, chains and bars. The prisons are located on a lake of fire, from which poisonous fumes float, and all this is very close to the traditional concept of Hell.
Another good example is Dante's Inferno game. Its plot is based on Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy, although the interpretation is free. The player leads the character Dante, who must go through all nine circles of Hell, find Beatrice and save her from the captivity of Lucifer. And the deeper he descends into the Underworld, the more often he meets demons, faces his own sins and crimes.
Among text-based RPGs, the term "inferno" is widely used by the Misterium portal. They have inferno - this is a kind of magic, dark and dangerous, which, however, participated in the creation of the world. This is a complex magic, and it is difficult for the characters of the game to control it, and those who succeed, either very strong sorcerers, or became demons, because the energy "inferno" changed them. This interpretation is closer to "intelligent hellfire."
In the world of "Mysterium" there are also spells that are based on the magic of "Inferno":
- "Scale of Chimera" - a protective spell that uses infernal magic to save the sorcerer from physical damage;
- "Negative splash" is an offensive spell that can change the enemy's energy to negative, which makes it possible to disrupt diplomatic negotiations or quarrel with friends.
Of course, the materiel of the textual role-playing game has nothing to do with real practices of esotericism or religious rituals. This is just a guide for players, but it reveals the term "inferno" quite fully in close accordance with its canon, etymological meaning.
Among board games, the term "inferno" is also in use. There is a game with this name, the plot of which is based on the story of assassins - they take revenge on each other, kill each other and make hell on earth.
In music
The term "inferno" is very common among rock musicians:
- quite a few metal bands use the word "inferno" as their name;
- the most famous of these bands are in Norway (thrash metal), the Czech Republic (black metal) and Ukraine (gothic metal);
- in the Polish band Behemoth drummer Prominski has the nickname "Inferno";
- the bands Motorhead and Lacrimosa released albums with the name "Inferno" in different years.
The direction of music, its mood, disposes to use just such a term with its "hellish", religiously gloomy context.
In technology
But in the world of technology, the direct meaning of "inferno" is ignored. So the Japanese company Kyosho has released a series of radio-controlled models of electric buggies that can accelerate to high speeds and withstand extreme heat. There is no connection with Hell.
It is also absent in the case of Vita Nuova's Inferno operating system. This operating system is designed to build distributed and networked systems on a wide range of platforms and devices. It can also be used as a complete development environment to build, debug, and test applications.
The term "inferno" was used by Autodesk, the manufacturer of the well-known AutoCAD software. Autodesk Inferno is a scalable system that is useful for working with graphics in TV programs and movies. Such a system creates visual 3D effects and is used in the final processing of design and graphics.
Thus, the meaning of the word "inferno" was divided into two completely different ones - one is associated with etymology, and one way or another reminds of Hell, demons and dark energies, and the other has to do with the innovations of the world of information technology.