Raziel is an angel, yes, but he’s not a household name, even though he has one of the strangest jobs of all the angels.
He arrives after the Bible
The name ‘Raziel’ sure does sound biblical. But it’s not. No, there’s zero mention of this angel anywhere in the Hebrew Bible, despite the fact that angels like Michael and Gabriel are in there. It’s only much later that Raziel actually appears.
He emerged in Jewish mystical and magical writing, through texts that linked him to Kabbalah and angel lore. He was also associated with creation mysteries. But he’s not anywhere in Genesis or other biblical books, so anyone looking for him in there is going to come up empty-handed.
His name gives away the secret
There’s a lot behind a name, and Raziel’s is no different. His name comes from the Hebrew words ‘raz’ and ‘El.’ Scholars have translated ‘raz’ as ‘secret’ and ‘El’ as ‘God,’ meaning that his name pretty much translates to ‘Secret of God.’
It’s kind of fitting, really, because that’s his entire reputation. His job involves hidden knowledge and divine decrees, as well as secret information that ordinary humans aren’t supposed to know about. We’ll talk more about that later.
His weapon is information
Raziel wasn’t your typical kind of angel, in the sense that he didn’t swing a sword or charge into battle. His weapon is information. According to medieval sources, Raziel was connected with secret names, astrology, heavenly structures, amulets, and magical formulas.
He had special ways of using sacred knowledge. There’s even one text associated with Raziel that contains a divine name said to drive away a demon, put out a fire, and heal illness. Raziel’s role, though, is much more like a keeper and transmitter than a heavenly soldier.
Adam gets the book outside Eden
The story of Adam pretty much ends after he’s expelled from Eden. At least, the biblical account doesn’t tell us much about what happened afterward. He is described as living to be 930 years old, but we don’t get much more information aside from that. The later Jewish tradition had a bit more to say.
Adam prays after being expelled and asks for some help to understand what’s going to happen to him after Eden. That’s when Raziel appears. He gives him a book of secret knowledge and teaches him from it, telling him all sorts of hidden information. It seems that Raziel has a part to play in post-Eden events.
The book came in sapphire
Speaking of books, Raziel’s book of secret knowledge was very different from your regular paperback. It was apparently engraved on sapphire stone before it was passed down through generations and eventually reached Solomon.
There are other versions of the story, though. One version says that Noah wrote secret material on sapphire tablets instead, rather than it being Raziel’s book. But one thing’s clear, and it’s that ordinary parchment just wasn’t good enough to note down heavenly secrets.
The predictions get very specific
The predictions in Raziel’s book weren’t exactly vague. Turns out, Adam is told that the book can reveal specific events by month, day, and even night. It supposedly tells him when famine and droughts are meant to strike, along with when he should expect heavy rain and locusts.
Things like war, disease, bloodshed, bad harvests, and heavenly decrees are all part of the book, too. Predicting an event will happen is one thing. Predicting exactly when it will happen, well, that’s seriously impressive.
He listens from behind a curtain
Raziel’s job was to find out secret knowledge, so it’s only fitting that the mystical traditions around him involve Raziel hiding behind a heavenly curtain. He supposedly stood out of sight to listen to the decrees being made in heaven. He then passed that information on.
There are some texts that identify him with a figure called Galizur who does something similar, in terms of eavesdropping. The curtain itself is a lot more than simple decoration, however. It’s meant to mark the boundary between what is openly seen and what is concealed, so it makes sense that Raziel is right at the edge.
His rank keeps changing
You’d think that, with someone as important as Raziel, it’d be easy to figure out his angel rank. But no. One tradition puts him in the same category as the cherubim, and another says he’s linked with the ophanim. Other texts don’t seem to care about giving him a specific category at all.
For these texts, what he knows and where he stands in heaven is a lot more important than his role. It’s not like there was a single agreed system in these writings anyway, and that’s probably why the labels change so much.
His story traveled into Arabic
Raziel was such an important angelic figure that he didn’t stay in Hebrew texts, and versions of his story actually appear in later Arabic manuscripts. These are called Sifr Adam, meaning Book of Adam. The text includes Jewish magical traditions that were copied and adapted into a new setting.Â
His name, however, didn’t stay as Raziel, as he was known as Zaryayil and Daryayil instead. He also appeared with angels tied to planets, seasons, months, days, and hours. In other words, Raziel made it pretty far from his earlier Jewish setting.
Sources: Please see here for a complete listing of all sources that were consulted in the preparation of this article.Â
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