According to many mystical-religious movements, creation – which many call evolution – consists of creative energy patterns. Archangels play a special role in this. They have crucial roles in all mainstream religions, including Christianity, Judaism and Islam, and are the protectors of the countless levels of creation. Archangels are associated with the rays of divine light. Compare to white light (God) that disintegrates in a prism into the rainbow colors (archangels).
Contents
- Creative energy patterns
- Monotheism
- The eight archangels
- The rays of divine light
- Cultural filter
- Alice Bailey
- Quantum theory and the Kabbalah
Creative energy patterns
Everything around us is based on and driven by energy. The archangels occupy a special place in that respect, because according to various mystical-religious movements they hold these creative energy patterns together. The word archangel is derived from the Greek archángelos , meaning chief messenger. The most famous archangels are Michael, Gabriel, Raphael and Uriel. Some theologians describe them as the protectors of creation. In that sense they would be the symbolic stitching that holds evolution or creation together.
19th-century Russian icon depicts the seven archangels from the Eastern Orthodox Church / Source: Unknown, Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
Monotheism
As monotheism developed in the Middle East in days gone by, believers gradually experienced a growing gap between God and his creation. People increasingly felt the need to personify forces that they found important in everyday life, such as love and hope. The angels at that time were a kind of heavenly ambassadors and servants of God. Ultimately, this caused a pandemonium of paradisiacal forces in the form of angels who helped supervise people’s daily lives and to whom people turned in prayers.
Canons The result was that a heavenly government was devised , in accordance with the worldly forms of government. In its earliest form, the archangels of the canonics of the Hebrew Bible are derived from the Persian seven amshaspands , or the seven chief servants (gods) of the Persian supreme god Ahura Mazda (early monotheism).
The eight archangels
Each archangel is represented by a ray of light and a planet. There is also a hierarchy among the archangels, with Michael being the leader. There are eight exalted archangels in all, with Uriel and Sandalphon considered as a unit because they shape the world of manifestation. These supreme angels are:
- Michael – golden ray of light, the sun.
- Gabriel – yellow ray of light, Mercury.
- Raphael – violet ray of light, Venus.
- Uriel – silver ray of light, the moon.
- Sandalfon – green ray of light, the earth.
- Hanaël (Chamuel) – red ray of light, Mars.
- Samael (Samuel or Satan) – blue ray of light, Saturn.
- Zadkiel – indigo ray of light, Jupiter.
The rays of divine light
The development of the belief in archangels did not stand still. In symbolism, since the nineteenth century, the archangels have often been compared to the rays of divine light, as white light (God) that is separated into rainbow colors through a prism (archangels). During the period mentioned, two Western women played an important role in the explanation of creation: HP Blavatsky (1831-1891) and Alice Bailey (1880-1949). Famous and infamous in that respect is The Secret Doctrine of Madame HP Blavatsky, the founder of the theosophical movement.
Statue of an angel in the Metairie Cemetery in New Orleans, Louisiana / Source: Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons (PD)
Cultural filter
These women were convinced that all religions expressed essentially the same thing. Only that knowledge would have passed through a cultural filter, comparable to a mountain that symbolizes universal knowledge and around which civilizations are situated. Every culture sees a different view of the same mountain, universal knowledge. Helena Blavatsky’s Secret Doctrine (1888) is therefore considered the key to helping the reader better understand and appreciate the religious writings of all cultures.
Alice Bailey
The idea of comparing the archangels to the seven rays (rainbow colors) of the divine (white) light first appeared in Alice Bailey’s The Treatise on the Seven Rays (1936). She does not say a word about archangels, but according to many, these angels are the protectors of those divine, colorful rays. Compare them with the cosmic rays with which God (the pure, white light) manifests himself in the creation that one sees around oneself and of which one is a part. Alice Bailey called those rays the creative builders.
Quantum theory and the Kabbalah
The above-mentioned mystical insights are reflected in quantum physics, which talks about the different dimensions in the super fiber theory. This insight is more or less consistent with the kabbalistic doctrine in which the seven lower sefirot are called the gates of light, or invisible emanations through which God has shaped the world and in which he manifests himself.
Archangels The archangels are said to be the guardians of those gates of creation and have been given specific tasks, such as judging souls and mediating between God and man. For example, one of the specific duties of the Archangel Michael is to watch over and protect Israel.
read more
- The eight exalted archangels – Michael
- The eight exalted archangels – Gabriel
- The Eight Exalted Archangels – Samael (Satan)
- The eight exalted archangels – Uriel
- When did the angels get wings?