Angels
ANGELS
ANGELS . An introductory overview of the term "angel" in a historical and religious context necessitates a preliminary discussion of the limits and context of this word, which has become deeply entrenched in Western culture. If it is correct that the word "angel" applies to ranks of spiritual or heavenly beings which serve as intermediaries between the earthly and divine worlds, it would be appropriate to restrict the scope of an investigation to cultural situations that are most generally associated with monotheistic theological ideas—Judaism, Christianity, Islam—or else to religions with strongly monotheistic leanings, albeit with a mythological framework and large number of gods in a secondary role, such as Zoroastrianism. Religious movements such as Gnosticism, Manichaeism, and Mandaeism, which have common cultural links with both the monotheistic Judeo-Christian spirituality, and the diverse world of Greek, Hellenistic, and late antiquity culture, should also be examined. Soteriological and eschatological ideas expressed in Neoplatonic and hermetic circles should also be considered in any discussion, as should influences produced from links with alchemy, astrology, divination, and magic. Of the latter group, in which angelology centered on a belief in the need for salvation in this world or the next, a whole range of exorcistic, prophylactic, and therapeutic attitudes arose which in some cases led to misunderstanding of the original function of angels and its being reduced to superstitious observance.
From here proceeds a geographical summary which ranges from the classical world to the eastern Mediterranean, its environs, the Middle East, and India. Even Central Asia, when some Manichaeistic angelological ideas are taken into account, is also relevant to the summary. The attempt by Ananda Kentish Coomaraswamy to interpret Vedic and Hindu gods in terms of opposition between "Angels" and "Titans" seems misleading, and is the product of outstanding scholarship which has applied the Western category of "angel" to the Hindu mythological heritage, identifying angels with gods (deva ) as opposed to asura (demons, titans), with interesting if somewhat speculative and intellectually over-elaborate results. The etymological parallels between the Greek word aggelos and the Sanskrit aṅgiras, are rather different, however, since the word denotes a group of priest-singers who occupy an intermediary position in the Vedic cult, as their name shows, but are not to be identified with angels in the metaphysical or theological sense with which we are concerned.
Classical World
The Greek aggelos and the Latin angelus form a lexical and conceptual basis which has passed into the vocabulary of the majority of European languages. The "god-angels" of funerary inscriptions should be seen as divine epithets, personifications of the divine which humankind can gain access to and perceive: for example, angels of the underworld, representing the qualities of gods such as Hermes, Hekate, Pluto, and Persephone; or the angels of Neoplatonic thinking, which are invoked by magicians as divine emanations and representations. These appear to humans as "visible gods" with specific characteristics (creative angels, generative angels, savior angels), which humankind can propitiate with sympathetic magic, even if their presence is not always benign when they are invoked. Both Porphyry and Iamblichus discuss the problem of how someone unskilled can conjure up malignant, demoniac spirits. The link with Hermes shows their position as intermediaries between the world of the living and the dead. Etymologically speaking, they are "messengers" or heralds involved with communications between different worlds and in particular with a psychopompic role in beliefs concerning the afterlife. One example is the angelus bonus in the mysteries of Sabazios, who wears the crown of immortality and introduces the dead person into the assembly of the Blest. Their intermediary role involves accompanying the soul at the moment it comes into existence, when the soul descends and crosses the planetary spheres, taking in a varying degree of heavenly influences which will determine the character of the person as yet unborn. Thus they are the soul's guardian angels throughout its earthly life and its custodians (phulakes ) until it returns to heaven, when the angels are responsible for its purification, breaking the links of the soul with the world of matter at the moment of its death.
The close connection between angels and souls in beliefs concerning immortality demonstrates a commonality between these two ideas, since the best souls become angels: hence the explanation, in terms of conduct, that a person who has been trained in spiritual perfection becomes in essence similar to the angels. This explains the addition of the word "angel" to the name of the deceased in funeral inscriptions, setting down the good fortune of immortality which may be the fate of the deceased. In hermetic Gnostic belief, the final outcome involved the ascent to heaven of the soul of the mystic after death, and transformation into one of the most important angels of the Ogdoad and of the fixed stars, which stand before God and contemplate him, rejoicing in the arrival of the soul and singing hymns of praise to the Father.
Zoroastrianism
Angels are a fundamental part of Iranian thinking and its perception of the divine in terms of ideas and concepts—morality, thought and life—as personified not in mythological stories but in intermediate figures assisting the supreme god Ahura Mazdā with the order and maintenance of the cosmos. The religious history of Zoroastrian Iran has shown interesting ideas concerning angels since the earliest part of the Avesta, containing songs (Gāthā ) attributed to Zoroaster himself, in which Ahura Mazdā is accompanied by an entourage of spiritual beings called the Amesha Spentas (the Beneficent Immortals) who are similar to angels. They are subordinate to a supreme god and lack a distinct mythology, in contrast to the gods celebrated in the Avestic hymns (Yasht ). The actual names of these angelic beings—Good Thinking (Vohu Manah), Right Mindedness (Ārmaiti), Harmony (Asha), Power (Xshathra), Wholeness (Haurvatat) and Immortality (Ameretat)—illustrate that they represent abstract metaphysical concepts, vaguely personified only by their names. They may intercede in the sacrificial exchange between heaven and earth, to grant the person performing it the favor of the divine world, spiritual energy, and powers such as strength, youth, wealth, vigor, physical well-being and immortality. Within the psychology of Zoroastrian ritual the Amesha Spentas thus symbolize the many different states of the person making the sacrifice. They fulfill important role in angelic mediation, and facilitate a person's communion with the divine via a particular kind of consciousness and visionary experience.
This important intermediary function would remain a constant within Zoroastrianism, and can be found in the Pahlavi texts of the Sassanid period, which refer to a mysticism based upon angelic internalization being achieved in the inmost consciousness. For example, it is advised to join with Good Thinking, in its purely spiritual form, to make it welcome, and hence enjoy spiritual benefits. The angelic strain existing within Zoroastrian from its philosophical beginnings may be clearly seen from the angelizing process to which its mythology was subject, something which continued in the Sassanid period with the recommendation of various philosophers to "make a home for the gods within the body." In this instance the gods (yazdān ) rather than mythological deities appear as spiritual personifications, similar to angelic spiritual beings and subject to the supreme god, which are realized in the heart of the faithful by means of ethical and moral virtue and sacrifice. Further interesting angelic qualities may be seen in elements such as fire, a medium par excellence, since indeed it is actually called "messenger" (dūta ). Fire plays an essential part in worship and is treated with special reverence—to the extent that it is styled the "son" of Ahura Mazdā—and is a living symbol. The heat and light energy which rises upwards conveys offerings on high, in the same way as the Vedic god of fire, Agni, also does. It is not a matter of chance that some scholars link Agni with an.giras, which is etymologically related to the Greek aggelos.
A further kind of angel may be traced in the Fravashi, guardian spirits of society and the individual, from particularly mythological treatises which depict them as angels of the heavenly host and dressed in helmets with armor and iron weapons. They group in battalions, advancing with standards unfurled, coming to the aid of those who call upon them against demons, and descend from heaven like birds with fine wings.
Mesopotamia
In Mesopotamia there were a number of angelological ideas which would be transmitted to monotheistic religions, especially their role as intermediaries and personal guardians of human beings. The "messenger" idea, indicated by the term sukkal, refers to a whole group of figures—such as Nuska and Kakka—which are connected with the most important gods and acted as messengers and intermediaries of the heavenly court. Marduk had Nabu as his sukkal, while Anu and Inanna had Papsukkal and Mummu. This role should be seen as a reflection of the Mesopotamian court culture, which would have an enormous influence upon the religious and political ideas of the Near East and the world of Hellenistic and late antiquity. The role of protective spirits is fulfilled by the shedu and lamassu, guardian spirits depicted on house doorposts, who accompany human beings when they leave the dwelling. The karibu (an Akkadian term meaning "one who prays") are spirits of intercession and blessing, represented with hands outstretched in prayer, in both human and animal form (body of a bull or lion, wings of an eagle). The representation in animal form of these spirits and karibu (from which the name "cherubim" is derived), depicted with two or three pairs of wings, influenced the angelic iconography of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Judaism
In Judaism, the similarity between the Mesopotamian karibu and the Hebrew kerub is for the most part only linguistic, since the biblical kerub is not a deity, has no mythology of its own, and is merely a minister of the one, omnipotent God. In the Old Testament malʾāk, from the root lʾk "to send," may refer to someone who carries news or messages and who looks after the interests of the sender, acting as a spy, an observer, or a negotiator. This role as messenger is clearly shown in the Vulgate with a distinction between nuntius (human messenger) and angelus (divine messenger).
In connection with Jhwh, the malʾak Jhwh is the angel of Yahweh with particular duties and the divine representative who conveys God's words or deeds on earth. He intervenes directly in the life of humankind, and is a personal heavenly being at the center of particular events who proclaims salvation (Jgs. 13), rescues from danger and distress (Gn. 19, Exod. 14:19) watches over man on his travels (Ps. 91:11), conveys an instruction to a prophet (Zec. 1:9), and even causes devastation and destruction, as for example when the people are punished for the sins of David (1 Chr. 21:15).
The history of post-exile Judaism contains interesting cultural adaptations from Persian angelology. Similarly there arose a demonology which seems to have been influenced by Iranian and Semitic currents of thought, such as the name of the demon Asmodeus in The Book of Tobit, derived from the name of the Zoroastrian god of anger, Aeshmadaeva. In apocalyptic writing (The Book of Enoch ), an elaborate belief system is set out regarding fallen angels who have become inferior to humans as a punishment for relations with women and for having revealed to humankind the secrets of the world. This hidden knowledge is revealed to Enoch by an angel that accompanies him and interprets his visions (angelus interpres ); the same thing also happens to Levi (Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs ). Angels are positively described in the writings of Qumran, according to a level of participation and communion with them by individual sect members: warrior angels stand alongside the Essene community in the eschatological war, fulfilling an important role as intermediaries revealing heavenly secrets, on the basis of the level of purity required for carrying out priestly worship. Common knowledge about angels in late antiquity aroused the fear of rabbis that it might overshadow the unity and supremacy of the Lord God, since in a number of passages in the Talmud it is advised to call upon God in case of misfortune and not the angels Mikaʾel or Gavriʾel.
In the Jewish mysticism of the Qabbalah, angelology is developed starting from the episode of the struggle between Jacob and the angel (Gn. 32: 27); in addition to other speculation on the first chapter of Genesis, there is commentary on the first chapter of Ezekiel (maʾaseh merkavah, or work of the chariot), the basis for the ideas regarding the vision of God's chariot, the throne of His Glory (Kabod ), in which God is conveyed by Cherubim (Chayyoth ), winged creatures in the form of humans, bulls, lions, and eagles. In Hekhaloth literature, which is based on Old Testament Apocrypha and the Book of Enoch, angels are guardians of the gates of the heavenly palace, beings who sing the praises of God and admit anyone who is worthy, accompanying him into the presence of God; they could also, however, punish humans by inflicting madness and death upon anyone who did not invoke them properly and who had not reached a sufficient degree of purity to attain the vision of the merkavah. Only minimal study of the Torah allowed one to reach the level of rectitude and purity necessary to distinguish true angels from unclean spirits.
In Medieval mysticism and amongst the Hasidim we find the angel Metatron. This figure was connected with the angels known as the "Princes of the Face," who may gaze upon the face of God. Metatron had an important role in esoteric Jewish doctrine—which subsequently passed into popular religious belief—as an angel who defends Israel in the heavenly judgment of Yom Kippur, and carries the prayers of the faithful before the throne of God. According to popular Jewish legend, angels presided over certain natural phenomena:
Yurkemi is the prince of hail,
Ridyah, of rain;
Rahav, of the sea;
and Laylah, of birth and death.
Christianity
Christianity accepted and redeveloped aspects of Old Testament angelology according to its new requirements. Angels intervene in the central events involving the coming of the Messiah: Gabriel is the angel of the Annunciation, while an angelic star, a celestial symbol of power, acts as a heavenly sign guiding the Wise Men who have come to Palestine from the East in search of the Redeemer. Paul's letter to the Colossians (1:16, 2:10) lists the angelic hierarchy: Thrones, Dominations, Principalities, and Powers. It also sets down a central tenet of Christianity, which would determine later theological disputes (Col. 2:18): namely, that care should be taken to avoid idolatry and the worship of angels.
The Council of Laodicea in 336 (Canon 35) proscribed the invocation and adoration of angels. Patristic efforts concentrated on limiting the mythological and poetic developments of Judaic and Gnostic angelology and emphasized the role of angels as intermediaries in the action of salvation and their role as servants. The very iconography which avoided depicting them with wings in early centuries—these would appear at the end of the fourth century—was driven by the need to avoid confusing them with winged pagan gods, such as statues of Nike (Victory).
In the sixth-century work of Dionysius the Areopagite, Neoplatonic and Christian ideas are put together to create an angelic hierarchy of three sets of three, grouped according to their closeness to God: Seraphim, Cherubim, and Thrones; Dominations, Powers, and Virtues; and Principalities, Archangels, and Angels. These became well-known designations during the Middle Ages.
Islam
According to Islam, anyone who denies the existence of angels denies the word of God and the Prophet and is regarded as an unbeliever. Allah created angels with two, three, or four pairs of wings, the number varying according to the speed with which they carried out divine commands. Angels support God's throne, they are beside him, they praise and adore him, and they will sound the trumpet at the end of the world; they are infinite in number. Some are noted for carrying out particular tasks, such as Munkar and Nakir, who are responsible for judgment after death; Malik is the guardian of hell; Ridwan the guardian of paradise. Among the more important angels, Gabriel occupies the leading place in terms of angelic power, Michael is a messenger and intermediary, Israfil is the angel of the end of the world, and Azrail is the angel of death, not mentioned by name in the Qurʾān. The angels Harut and Marut, on the other hand, reflect Zoroastrian angelological ideas and are regarded as fallen angels who reveal to humankind the secrets of magic; they are punished for falling in love with mortal women.
The angel Gabriel occupies an important position in Islam for the audible revelation of the divine words. These spoken words are the only ones to have divine sanction, and are thus superior to anything visual. Angels can be distinguished from the simple spirits (jinn ) of popular religion; "faithful spirit" (rūḥ ) does mean angel in various passages of the Qurʾān. According to tradition, Muḥammad was visited by the angel Gabriel, who revealed to him his role as Messenger, enjoining him to preach while he was resting in the cave where he had gone for a spiritual retreat. While Muḥammad was sleeping, the angel Gabriel approached him with a silk cloth covered in writing, which he repeatedly commanded him to read; within this he bound Muḥammad so tightly that he was almost suffocated. Muḥammad woke up, left the cave and saw Gabriel as a man with wings. Gabriel also features in a version of the story of Muḥammad's ecstatic ascent to heaven (Miʿrāj ) as the angel who guides him up the stairway which brings him into the presence of Allah.
In the realm of eschatology still, two angels called Munkar and Nakir question the dead person immediately after his death and if he does not answer correctly, they will torture his body in the grave. There is another tradition concerning the childhood of Muḥammad, in which angels also play a part in inaugurating the spiritual career of the future Prophet in circumstances rather similar to certain bloody shamanistic practices. As a four-year-old child, Muḥammad was seized and thrown to the ground by two angels, who opened his chest, drew a drop of blood from his heart, and washed his insides with melted snow that they carried in a golden cup.
There are elaborate angelologies to be found in Islamic philosophical and religious writings. In Avicenna, from a first intelligence emerge a large variety of intermediate spiritual beings called the ten cherubic intelligences (Angeli intellectuales ) or celestial Souls (Angeli caelestes ). In the philosophy of Sohrawardi there is a complex and well-developed angelology which contains elements of Neoplatonic and Zoroastrian influence: from a Light of Glory emerges an emanation of beings of light, led by the archangel Bahman, equivalent to the Avestic Vohu Manah. All sensible and material reality is created and controlled by a particular type of archangel. These archangels occupy a mundus imaginalis between the physical and spiritual worlds and can be perceived by the sage by means of imagination.
In the more extreme forms of Shīʿī Islam, such as Ismāʿīlīs, there are enduring Gnostic Hellenistic and Zoroastrian ideas; the divine can be made manifest in the world via angels who can take on a concrete physical form in members of the Ismāʿīlīte hierarchy. According to the beliefs of the Yezidi, incorrectly called "devil-worshippers," God created the world but the task of looking after it was entrusted to seven divine angels; among these the peacock angel (Malak Taʾus ) is the symbol of immortality and the sun, the supreme angel, and active essence of God, who has declined in power but who weeps and cries tears of sorrow, which put out the fires of hell.
Gnosticism and Manichaeism
In classical gnosis we find a variety of angelological ideas, including angels who create the world and rule it badly by fighting each other (Simon Magus), with a role not unlike the Demiurge. In this case the angels are usurpers of power (in the philosophy of Carpocrates, Menander, Saturninus and Basilides), against whom the act of salvation is directed, and therefore ignorant powers that have forgotten their subordinate place in the hierarchy of spiritual beings and are thus in the grip of envy and greed; these beings include the Jewish god who was responsible for creation. The Gnostic elect must therefore despise and free themselves from these powers that control the world, and train their souls to avoid the snares of these ruling powers that block their progress to the celestial planes. In its most positive interpretation, the soul of the elect could directly correspond with the angel that was his transcendental real self, the eternal prototype of which the soul was an earthly reflection, image (eikon ), and part (meros ). The angel could also be a heavenly messenger who reveals mysteries and awakens knowledge in humankind. Objects for personal use such as "Gnostic jewels" reveal aspects of a Hellenistic, Hermetic syncretism, which blend Christian and pagan elements: along with a Iaô (Yahweh) and Abrasax they call upon generic Faustian "powers" (dynameis ). In other cases the jewels have the image of a manifold deity Hermes-Phosphoros-Michael, with inscriptions on the body referring to Yahweh, the archangels, and magic spells; these objects were used as seals so that the soul would pass over the cosmic planes and eventually reach the spiritual realm. Other images depict Olympian gods with the name of an angel inscribed alongside: Hermes (with his caduceus wand) and Michael; Iuppiter (armed with lightning and with the eagle) and Satoviel; and Diana (with bow, arrows and a crown) and Gabriel.
In a Gnostic religion such as Mandaeism, the priest is the earthly representative of messengers and angels (uthrê, literally "riches") who live in the world of light. These spiritual beings surround the supreme god and grant benefits on humankind, such as baptism, a gift of the divine beings of light to Adam and an important ritual which allows the soul to ascend to heaven. One important type of Mandaean exorcistic text inscribed on cups sets out magic spells used to neutralize demons and liliths; not just gods but also angels are invoked who can bless, set free, ward off, and destroy.
In Manichaeism too, there are also important angelological ideas: the angel of Mani is his spiritual twin (syzygos ) who talks to him and provides him with instruction on the Gnostic mysteries. The syzygos thus reveals to him things that have been hidden, raises him up, and takes him to unknown and indescribable places. Protected from childhood in the baptismal community by guardian angels and divine powers, Mani grows up and eventually meets his "Twin" (Narjamig in Iranian texts, in Arabic al-Tawm in the Fihrist of an-Nadim) who enlightens him and encourages him in his missionary vocation. The Twin protects him spiritually against the snares of Greed (Az) and Evil (Ahrmen).
Angelic apparitions can be found in the myth of Manichaean cosmogony: during the first emanation, after the Mother of Life has produced Primordial Man, an angel emitting light called Nahashbat appears before him with a crown in his hand. There are also angelic presences that provide rewards, fine garments, the diadem, and the crown of light to the soul after death, when the soul of the Elect is escorted by gods and angels, who protect it against demons, until it meets its light image. In the universal eschatology of judgment day, Jesus will chair the court, surrounded by the Elect who have become angels. Concerning this angelic court, we have the evidence of Augustine of Hippo (354–430) who speaks of ranks of angels (cohortes angelorum ), which make up the divine entourage in the paradise that is the Kingdom of Light. In his work, the Book of Giants, Mani retells the story of the fall of the angels (from the first book of Enoch), combining it with other narrative material. The Egregoroi, for example, who are attracted to women and marry them, become demons imprisoned in the world from which the race of giants originated, and are defeated by the archangels Raphael, Michael, Gabriel, and Istrael, as well as by Uriel and Fanuel.
Medieval, Modern, and Contemporary Ideas
In late antiquity and the early Middle Ages, there continued to be reservations about the role of angels. In the seventh century, Pope Gregory I specified that the name angel should refer to their role and not their nature (nomen est officii non naturae ). Based upon a passage of Ezekiel (28:13) concerning jewels, Gregory theorized a set of links between precious stones and angels according to their essence and spiritual clarity (Sardonyx, Topaz, and Jasper; Crisolite, Onyx, and Beryl; and Sapphire, Ruby, and Emerald).
During the Middle Ages, the work of Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) and Bonaventure marked the high point of the success of Dionysius the Areopagite in scholastic philosophy. After the Lateran Council of 746, the cult was restricted to the three archangels, thus establishing the preeminence of Michael (soldier angel and protector), Raphael (guardian angel and healer), and Gabriel (the angel of the Annunciation); as a result of the addition of the epithet "Saint," these angels became humanized and Michael in particular was the subject of a popular cult and devotion with the establishment of shrines that spread his veneration throughout Europe. Michael's protective warlike qualities were appreciated by "barbarian" nations—among them the Celts, Germans, Slavs, and Baltic peoples—who gradually converted to the Christian faith. The cult of Saint Michael resulted in a pilgrimage route known as the "way of angels," which linked Normandy's Mont Saint-Michel with San Michele della Chiusa in Piedmont, Italy and San Michele del Gargano in Puglia, Italy.
The heretical and dualist ideological ideas of religious movements such as the Bogomils and Cathars reworked the story of the fallen angel, Satan. According to the Cathars, the devil created the human body by imprisoning an angel of light; this soul has an angelic nature which longs to return to heaven, but is condemned to be continually reborn in bodily form until it discovers the truth. Every angel/soul therefore has an individual spirit (Spiritus sanctus ); the Virgin Mary herself was regarded as an angel in order to justify, from a docetic perspective, the immaterial nature of the body of the Savior. In the Encratite anthropology of the Bogomils, imitating the angel-eunuchs who live in heaven was a way of attaining, via asceticism, the detachment and sublimation of sexuality required to strive against materialism and reproductive instincts.
In medieval Grail epics, angels appear in a variety of situations as beings who impart stories of the Grail to hermits in visions. The Grail itself was originally a precious stone, an emerald, which fell to earth from the crown of Lucifer during the battle between the good and bad angels. In this battle, caused by Lucifer's rebellion, a number of so-called neutral angels did not take part and they became the guardian angels of the Grail. Four angels support the throne on which Joseph of Arimathea is seated, and this quartet carries two candles, the crimson silk, and lance to be placed above the Grail which is used to catch the drops of the blood of Christ.
The Renaissance, with its rediscovery of Neoplatonic theurgy and magic, witnessed a reformulation of various angelological and demonological ideas. These had been inherited from such ancient philosophers as Iamblichus, Proclus, and Psellus, and spread until the time of the philosopher Giordano Bruno (1548–1600). After him there was a gradual censorship by the Counter-Reformation of the phantasia of Renaissance pagan imagination. In the works of Marsilio Ficino (1433–1499) the idea of philosophy is seen as a mystery initiation, consisting of meditations and visions intended to raise the mind to the plane of angels, demons and planets. Pico della Mirandola asserted that elements of Christian angelology are also present, tinged with Platonism and qabbalism. In the natural philosophy of Paracelsus, magic allows control of the world of heavenly, astral, and earthly intelligence as well as the elemental demons connected with the four elements. For Henricus Cornelius Agrippa, the basic angelological hierarchy was divided into four categories of angel:
of Fire (Seraphim, Virtues, Powers);
of Air (Dominations, Principalities);
of Water (Thrones, Archangels);
and of Earth (Cherubim).
A system of angel and demon intelligence was linked to the seven planets and to graphic signs and pentacles used in performing magical ceremonies. Angels were also connected to signs of the zodiac, the four winds, and the four cardinal points of the compass. There were angels that describe the functions and powers of God (Vision, Strength, Virtue, Glory), while three good demons protect humankind by acting as guardian angels.
In the modern age there have been individuals and secret societies with universalist, utopian systems, such as the Rosicrucians, who were interested in the ideas of theosophy and alchemy. Illustrations in alchemical writings from the fifteenth century (Opera Chemica ) attributed to Raimondo Lullo represent the biblical episode of Tobit and Raphael, the healing angel, and hint that the alchemical Great Work of the philosopher should always take place under the guidance of heavenly powers so as not to stray into darkness. In the work of Jakob Boehme (1575–1624), angels intervene in the alchemical work of the Magus and their revelation determines the success of the work. An account by Johann Georg Gichtel depicts the battle of Saint Michael with the Dragon, symbolizing the struggle between the forces of Love and Anger and between Light and Darkness. In Elizabethan England there was a kind of angelic spiritualism, particularly illustrated by the magus John Dee. Dee may have inspired both the character of Prospero, the master of the sprite Ariel in Shakespeare's The Tempest, as well as the title character in Gustav Meyrink's 1927 novel The Angel of the West Window. Dee claimed to have been visited by the angel Uriel, who brought him a gift of a magic crystal to enable the magus to communicate with him via a supposed language of angels.
During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries spiritualism and evocation of angels was widespread: in the writings of the Lutheran theologian Emanuel Swedenborg (1688–1772) the universe has a spiritual structure and the human microcosm is the image of the divine macrocosm; angels allowed communion with the divine which could be known via visionary experiences. This theosophy influenced not only philosophers but also artists and writers like William Blake (1757–1827), who put forward ideas concerning angels in both his engravings and his poetic works. Swedenborg was identified with an angel in Blake's Marriage of Hell and Heaven, while the "Four Zoas" in Blake's poetry are angelic and devil images of the four elements. Angelic influence in romantic and spiritualist imagination was marked in Pre-Raphaelite and Impressionist art. Twentieth-century occult movements, like the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, practiced a version of angelic spiritualism and provided visionary and poetic inspiration. One of its most famous members was William Butler Yeats (1865–1939); another famous member of an esoteric brotherhood, the magician Aleister Crowley (1875–1947), carried out ritual "magick" ceremonies by calling upon an angelic being named Aiwass. In other cases the subject of angels was the source of philosophical ruminations from the great artistic and cultural figures of the twentieth century, including Gershom Scholem, Walter Benjamin, Paul Klee, and Rainer Maria Rilke. Angels have also become subject matter for mass-media interpretations, perhaps most notably by German filmmaker Wim Wender's 1987 classic Wings of Desire. Also bearing mention are the spiritualist and irrational New Age movements and kinds of recollective possession and contacts with spirit guides via mediumistic channeling experiments.
See Also
Bibliography
Anges et Démons: Actes du Colloque de Liège et de Louvain-la-Neuve, 25-26 Novembre 1987, edited by Julien Ries & Henri Limet, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium, 1989. See pages 383–398.
Bussagli, Marco. Storia degli Angeli: Racconto di Immagini e di Idee. Milan, 1991.
Cacciari, Massimo. L'angelo necessario, 2d ed. Milan, 1998. Translated as The Necessary Angels (New York, 1994).
Coomaraswamy, Ananda Kentish. "Angels and Titans." Journal of American Oriental Society 55 (1935): 373–419.
Corbin, Henri. Le paradoxe du monothéisme. Paris, 1981.
Couliano, Ioan. Eros et magie à la renaissance: 1484. Paris, 1984.
Couliano, Ioan. Les gnoses dualistes d'occident. Paris, 1989.
Cumont, Franz. "Les anges du paganisme." Revue de l'histoire des religions 36 (1915): 159–182.
Génies, Anges et Démons Egypt-Babylon-Israël-Islam-Peuples Altaïque-Inde-Birmanic-Asie du sud-Est-Tibet-Chine. Paris, 1971.
Leclercq, Henri. "Anges." In Dictionnaire d'archéologie chrétienne et de liturgie, edited by Fernand Cabrol and Henri Leclercq, Vol. 1/2, cols. 2080–2161. Paris, 1907.
Maier, S.A. "Angel." In Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible, edited by Karel van der Toorn, Bob Becking, and Pieter W. van der Horst, pp. 81–90. New York, 1995.
Montgomery, A. James. Aramaic Incantation Texts from Nippur. Philadelphia, 1913.
Pettinato, Giovanni. Angeli e Demoni a Babilonia: Magia e Mito nelle Antiche Civiltà Mesopotamiche. Milan, Italy, 2001.
Piras, Andrea. "Messaggeri e inviati nello zoroastrismo." Avallon 42 (1997): 17–33.
The Intellectual Heritage of Assyria and Babylonia in East and West. A Searchable Database of the Legacy of Ancient Mesopotamia to Later Civilizations : entry "Angels." Available from http://www.aakkl.helsinki.fi/melammu/.
Andrea Piras (2005)
Translated from Italian by Paul Ellis