Raziel, ( ''Rāzīʾēl,'' "

God In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

is my Mystery") also known as Gallitsur ( Hebrew: גַּלִּיצוּר ''Gallīṣūr'') is an

angel An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...

within the teachings of

Jewish mysticism Academic study of Jewish mysticism, especially since Gershom Scholem's ''Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism'' (1941), draws distinctions between different forms of mysticism which were practiced in different eras of Jewish history. Of these, Kabbal ...

(of the

Kabbalah Kabbalah or Qabalah ( ; , ; ) is an esoteric method, discipline and school of thought in Jewish mysticism. It forms the foundation of Mysticism, mystical religious interpretations within Judaism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ...

Judaism Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...

) who is the "Angel of Secrets" and the "Angel of Mysteries”. He is also called "Keeper of All Magic." He is one of the angels associated with the sephirah Chokmah of

, alongside Jophiel.Lewis, James R., Oliver, Evelyn Dorothy, Sisung Kelle S. (Editor) (1996), ''Angels A to Z'', Entry: Raziel, pp. 346, 347, Visible Ink Press, The angel Raziel can be compared to the Manda d-Hayyi of

Mandaeism Mandaeism (Mandaic language, Classical Mandaic: ),https://qadaha.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/nhura-dictionary-mandaic-english-mandaic.pdf sometimes also known as Nasoraeanism or Sabianism, is a Gnosticism, Gnostic, Monotheism, ...

. Both are described as intermediaries who convey divine knowledge to humans, especially Adam. In Jewish mysticism, Raziel delivers the " Sefer Raziel" to Adam, containing esoteric secrets about the universe and divine mysteries, while in Mandaism, Manda d-Hayyi instructs Adam about the mysteries of life and creation. In

, after the creation of the material world, Adam Kasia (

Adam Kadmon In Kabbalah, Adam Kadmon (, ''ʾāḏām qaḏmōn'', "Primordial Man") also called Adam Elyon (, ''ʾāḏām ʿelyōn'', "Most High Man"), or Adam Ila'ah (, ''ʾāḏām ʿīllāʾā'' "Most High Adam" in Aramaic), sometimes abbreviated as A ...

in the Mandaean tradition) asks Abatur ( Ancient of Days or

Metatron Metatron (Mishnaic Hebrew: ''Meṭāṭrōn''), or Matatron (), is an angel in Judaism, Gnosticism, and Islam. Metatron is mentioned three times in the Talmud, in a few brief passages in the Aggadah, the Targum, and in mystical kabbalah, Kabba ...

in the Mandaean tradition. The

Merkabah Merkabah () or Merkavah mysticism (lit. Chariot mysticism) is a school of History of Judaism, early Jewish mysticism (), centered on vision (spirituality), visions such as those found in Ezekiel 1 or in the hekhalot literature ("palaces" literat ...

text Re' uyot Yehezkel identifies the Ancient of Days as

) what he will do when he goes to Tibil (

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...

or Malkuth). Abatur responds that Adam will be helped by Manda d-Hayyi, who instructs humans with sacred knowledge and protects them.

Mysticism and tradition

Various teachings assign Raziel to diverse roles, including that of a cherub, a member of the

Ophanim The ophanim ( , ; singular: ), alternatively spelled auphanim or ofanim, and also called galgalim ( , ; singular: ), refer to the wheels seen in Ezekiel's vision of the chariot (Hebrew ) in . One of the Dead Sea Scrolls (4Q405) construes them ...

, and chief of the Erelim. Raziel, under the alternate name Gallitsur, "Revealer of The Rock", is described as the "ruling prince of the 2nd Heaven". He is said to expound the clear teachings of the "

Torah The Torah ( , "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is also known as the Pentateuch () ...

's divine wisdom" and protects the ministering angels from the living creatures that uphold the universe.Davidson, Gustav (1967),
A Dictionary of Angels, Including The Fallen Angels
', Entry: Free Press, p. 120, Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 66-19757,

Authorship of ''Sefer Raziel HaMalakh''

The famous '' Sefer Raziel HaMalakh'' "Book of Raziel the Angel" attributed to this figure is said to contain all secret knowledge, and it is considered to be a book of magic. He stands close by

's throne and therefore hears and writes down everything said and discussed. He purportedly gave the book to

Adam and Eve Adam and Eve, according to the creation myth of the Abrahamic religions, were the first man and woman. They are central to the belief that humanity is in essence a single family, with everyone descended from a single pair of original ancestors. ...

after they ate from the forbidden

tree of the knowledge of good and evil In Christianity and Judaism, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (, ; ) is one of two specific trees in the story of the Garden of Eden in Genesis 2–3, along with the tree of life. Alternatively, some scholars have argued that the tre ...

(that resulted in their expulsion from the

Garden of Eden In Abrahamic religions, the Garden of Eden (; ; ) or Garden of God ( and ), also called the Terrestrial Paradise, is the biblical paradise described in Genesis 2–3 and Ezekiel 28 and 31.. The location of Eden is described in the Book of Ge ...

) so the two could find their way back "home" and better understand their God. Raziel's fellow

s were deeply disturbed by this, and thus stole the book from Adam and threw it into the ocean. God did not punish Raziel, but instead retrieved the book through the Rahab and returned it to Adam and Eve. According to some sources, the book was passed on through the generations to

Enoch Enoch ( ; ''Henṓkh'') is a biblical figure and Patriarchs (Bible), patriarch prior to Noah's flood, and the son of Jared (biblical figure), Jared and father of Methuselah. He was of the Antediluvian period in the Hebrew Bible. The text of t ...

(In

3 Enoch The Third Book of Enoch (), also known as The Book of the Palaces, The Book of Rabbi Ishmael the High Priest and The Elevation of Metatron, and abbreviated as 3 Enoch) is a Jewish apocrypha, Jewish apocryphal book. Authorship Modern scholars desc ...

believed to have later become the angel

), who may have incorporated his writings into the tome. From Enoch, the archangel

Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino (; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), now generally known in English as Raphael ( , ), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. List of paintings by Raphael, His work is admired for its cl ...

gave it to

Noah Noah (; , also Noach) appears as the last of the Antediluvian Patriarchs (Bible), patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, chapters 5–9), the Quran and Baháʼí literature, ...

, who used the wisdom within to build Noah's Ark. ''The Book of Raziel'' was said to have come into the possession of King

Solomon Solomon (), also called Jedidiah, was the fourth monarch of the Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy), Kingdom of Israel and Judah, according to the Hebrew Bible. The successor of his father David, he is described as having been the penultimate ...

,Raziel, Book of
a
jewishencyclopedia.com
/ref> and some texts claiming to be this volume have appeared.

In popular culture

* In the Japanese

light novel A is a type of Genre fiction, popular literature novel from Japan usually classified as young adult fiction, generally targeting Adolescence, teens to Young adult, twenties or older. The definition is very vague, and wide-ranging. The abbr ...

series '' Date A Live'', Raziel is the name of a spiritual weapon (referred to as Angels within the series), belonging to Nia Honjou and Kurumi Tokisaki. Raziel is a book containing all knowledge of past and present, as well as capable of manifesting anything written in it as reality. * In Cassandra Clare's '' The Shadowhunter Chronicles'', the angel Raziel is responsible for the creation of the race of Shadowhunters by mixing his blood with mortal men. He also appears as a character within the narrative of the original hexalogy. * In the video game series '' Legacy of Kain'', Raziel is the name of a vampire and the most trusted lieutenant of Kain. After his supposed hubris of surpassing his master, Raziel is thrown into the abyss to be forever consumed and is reborn as a Reaver of Souls, a wraith that consumes souls. * In the Mobile Suit Gundam 00 side story ''Mobile Suit Gundam 00P'', one of the mobile suits featured in the side story is named the Gundam Rasiel. It can then be equipped with the GN Sefer to create the Sefer Rasiel which is named after the Sefer Raziel HaMalakh. * In Robert Stone's novel ''Damascus Gate'', Raziel Melker is a hipster-musician, heroin addict, and devotee of

who attaches himself to a charismatic but mentally unstable

Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of '' mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach ...

-figure in 1990s

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

References

External links

''The Full Hebrew only Sefer Raziel Amsterdam Edition in pdf free download '' (PDF)
{{Angels in Abrahamic religions Individual angels Angels in Judaism

Mysticism and tradition

Authorship of ''Sefer Raziel HaMalakh''

In popular culture

See also

References

External links