By Robert Mortem
It is not uncommon to see people completely misunderstand what the pentagram actually is. Not only is this magical symbol contained in the Jemdet Nasr proto-cuneiform (ancient Mesopotamia), predating later usages by thousands of years; but it can also be seen as depicting the anatomical essence of human biology, as its five pointed system coincides with the arms, legs and head of the human body (as taught by Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa).
Moreover, the Greek terms πέντε (five) and γραμμή (line) indeed demonstrate the etymological relevance of this symbol, as it likewise embodies the alchemical elements of air, fire, water, earth and spirit, epitomizing the macrocosm of existence.
Regarding whether or not the pentagram is inverted, it is a matter of correspondence and polarity. As Eliphas Levi notes in Transcendental Magic: Lucifer or Vesper, day or night, etc., the inversion in fact represents Satan himself, as he rightly notes in this same book in chapter V, The Blazing Pentagram. As he notes, the head downwards represents intellectual subversion, which is an alchemical cleansing process similar to shadow work. In other words, the inverted pentagram is the Sabbatic Goat (Solve et coagula). In fact, Levi uses the inverted pentagram in both the context of Lucifer and the Goat on page 59 of his work The Mysteries of the Qabalah. It is quite the Satanic symbol!
Additionally, some fools may assert that the star alone is called a pentagram, but insist that when encircled it must be called a pentacle. This is simply not accurate, as the Lesser Ket of Solomon refers to the encircled star as the pentagram nonetheless. When the one point is ascendant, it is a protection symbol. Finally, upon the forehead of the Sabbatic Goat (the Baphomet), the Pentagram is found in the ascendant position, while the Devil's tarot card (Rider–Waite) contains the inverted Pentagram both above and upon the forehead.