A seraph ( ; pl.: ) is a celestial or

heavenly being An angel is a Spirit (supernatural entity), spiritual (without a physical body), heaven, heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with Bird wing, bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the Transce ...

originating in Ancient Judaism. The term plays a role in subsequent

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 ...

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

and

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

. Tradition places seraphim in the highest rank in

Christian angelology In Christianity, angels are the messengers of God. affirms that "all f them areministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation". In the Bible attributes the guardianship of men to the angels. In Jesus w ...

and in the fifth rank of ten in the

Jewish angelic hierarchy In Judaism, angels (, plural: ''mal’āḵīm'') are supernatural beings that appear throughout the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible), Rabbinic literature, Jewish apocrypha, Christian pseudepigrapha, Jewish philosophy, Jewish mysticism, and traditional J ...

. A seminal passage in the

Book of Isaiah The Book of Isaiah ( ) is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible and the first of the Major Prophets in the Christian Old Testament. It is identified by a superscription as the words of the 8th-century BC prophet Isaiah ben Amo ...

() used the term to describe six-winged beings that fly around the

Throne of God The throne of God is the reigning centre of God in the Abrahamic religions: primarily Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The throne is said by various holy books to reside beyond the Seventh Heaven which is called ''Araboth'' ( ''‘ărāḇōṯ ...

crying " holy, holy, holy". This throne scene, with its triple invocation of holiness, profoundly influenced subsequent

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

, literature and art. Its influence is frequently seen in works depicting angels, heaven and

apotheosis Apotheosis (, ), also called divinization or deification (), is the glorification of a subject to divine levels and, commonly, the treatment of a human being, any other living thing, or an abstract idea in the likeness of a deity. The origina ...

. Seraphim are mentioned as celestial beings in the semi-canonical

Book of Enoch The Book of Enoch (also 1 Enoch; Hebrew language, Hebrew: סֵפֶר חֲנוֹךְ, ''Sēfer Ḥănōḵ''; , ) is an Second Temple Judaism, ancient Jewish Apocalyptic literature, apocalyptic religious text, ascribed by tradition to the Patriar ...

and the

canonical The adjective canonical is applied in many contexts to mean 'according to the canon' the standard, rule or primary source that is accepted as authoritative for the body of knowledge or literature in that context. In mathematics, ''canonical exampl ...

Book of Revelation The Book of Revelation, also known as the Book of the Apocalypse or the Apocalypse of John, is the final book of the New Testament, and therefore the final book of the Bible#Christian Bible, Christian Bible. Written in Greek language, Greek, ...

Origins and development

Syrian - Slab with Six-Winged Goddess - Walters 2116

In Hebrew, the word ''saraph'' means "burning", and is used seven times throughout the text of the Hebrew Bible as a noun, usually to denote " serpent", twice in the

Book of Numbers The Book of Numbers (from Biblical Greek, Greek Ἀριθμοί, ''Arithmoi'', , ''Bəmīḏbar'', ; ) is the fourth book of the Hebrew Bible and the fourth of five books of the Jewish Torah. The book has a long and complex history; its final f ...

, once in the

Book of Deuteronomy Deuteronomy (; ) is the fifth book of the Torah (in Judaism), where it is called () which makes it the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible and Christian Old Testament. Chapters 1–30 of the book consist of three sermons or speeches delivered to ...

, and four times in the

. The reason why the word for "burning" was also used to denote a serpent is not universally agreed upon; it may be due to a certain snake species' fiery colors, or perhaps the burning sensation left by its venomous bite. Regardless, its plural form, ''seraphim'', occurs in both Numbers and Isaiah, but only in Isaiah is it used to denote an angelic being; likewise, these angels are referred to ''only'' as the plural ''seraphim'' – Isaiah later uses the singular ''saraph'' to describe a " fiery flying ''serpent''", in line with the other uses of the term throughout the

Tanakh The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. ''

Hyksos The Hyksos (; Egyptian language, Egyptian ''wikt:ḥqꜣ, ḥqꜣ(w)-wikt:ḫꜣst, ḫꜣswt'', Egyptological pronunciation: ''heqau khasut'', "ruler(s) of foreign lands"), in modern Egyptology, are the kings of the Fifteenth Dynasty of Egypt ( ...

-era

Canaan CanaanThe current scholarly edition of the Septuagint, Greek Old Testament spells the word without any accents, cf. Septuaginta : id est Vetus Testamentum graece iuxta LXX interprets. 2. ed. / recogn. et emendavit Robert Hanhart. Stuttgart : D ...

had their original sources in Egyptian

uraeus drawing of a Uraeus The Uraeus () or Ouraeus (Ancient Greek: , ; Egyptian: ', "rearing cobra", plural: ''Uraei'') is the stylized, upright form of an Egyptian cobra, used as a symbol of sovereignty, royalty, deity and divine authority in anci ...

iconography. In Egyptian iconography, the uraeus was used as a symbol of

sovereignty Sovereignty can generally be defined as supreme authority. Sovereignty entails hierarchy within a state as well as external autonomy for states. In any state, sovereignty is assigned to the person, body or institution that has the ultimate au ...

royalty Royalty may refer to: * the mystique/prestige bestowed upon monarchs ** one or more monarchs, such as kings, queens, emperors, empresses, princes, princesses, etc. *** royal family, the immediate family of a king or queen-regnant, and sometimes h ...

divinity Divinity (from Latin ) refers to the quality, presence, or nature of that which is divine—a term that, before the rise of monotheism, evoked a broad and dynamic field of sacred power. In the ancient world, divinity was not limited to a single ...

and divine authority, and later iconography often showed uraei with wings. In the early monarchic period of

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

and Judah, Egyptian motifs were evidently borrowed by the Israelites ''en masse'', as a plethora of personal seals belonging to classes ranging from commonfolk to royalty have been discovered, which incorporate several pieces of ancient Egyptian iconography, including the

winged sun The winged sun is a solar symbol associated with divinity, Royal family, royalty, and power in the Ancient Near East (Ancient Egypt, Egypt, Mesopotamia, Anatolia, and Ancient Persia, Persia). The Illyrian religion#Sun, Illyrian Sun-deity is also ...

ankh The ankh or key of life is an ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic symbol used to represent the word for "life" and, by extension, as a symbol of life itself. The ankh has a T-shape topped by a droplet-shaped loop. It was used in writing as a tri ...

, the ''

hedjet Hedjet () is the White Crown of pharaonic Upper Egypt. After the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt, it was combined with the Deshret, the Red Crown of Lower Egypt, to form the Pschent, the double crown of Egypt. The symbol sometimes used for ...

'' and ''

deshret Deshret () was the Red Crown of Lower Egypt. It was red bowl shaped with a protruding curlicue. When combined with the Hedjet (White Crown) of Upper Egypt, it forms the Pschent (Double Crown), in ancient Egyptian called the ''sekhemti''. The Re ...

'' crowns of Upper and

Lower Egypt Lower Egypt ( ') is the northernmost region of Egypt, which consists of the fertile Nile Delta between Upper Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea, from El Aiyat, south of modern-day Cairo, and Dahshur. Historically, the Nile River split into sev ...

, scarabs, and the uraeus cobra. These uraei often had four wings, as opposed to the Egyptian standard which only gave them two. These images have been connected with the ''seraphim'' angels associated with Isaiah's visions, or perhaps more directly to the aforementioned "fiery flying serpent", but this continues to be debated – and an image of serpentine ''seraphim'' clashes with Isaiah's own vision, which clearly envisioned ''seraphim'' with heads, legs, and arms – although, on the second matter, some scholars have proposed that the covered "feet" of the seraphim should be identified as genitals, as "feet" are often used in the Hebrew Bible as a euphemism for the

penis A penis (; : penises or penes) is a sex organ through which male and hermaphrodite animals expel semen during copulation (zoology), copulation, and through which male placental mammals and marsupials also Urination, urinate. The term ''pen ...

. The vision in Isaiah Chapter 6 of seraphim in an idealized version of

Solomon's Temple Solomon's Temple, also known as the First Temple (), was a biblical Temple in Jerusalem believed to have existed between the 10th and 6th centuries Common Era, BCE. Its description is largely based on narratives in the Hebrew Bible, in which it ...

represents the sole instance in the Hebrew Bible of this word being used to describe celestial beings. "... I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple. Above it stood the seraphim: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly." (Isaiah 6:1–3) And one cried to another, "Holy, holy, holy, is YHWH of hosts: the whole earth is full of His glory." (verses 2–3) One seraph carries out an act of

ritual purification Ritual purification is a ritual prescribed by a religion through which a person is considered to be freed of ''uncleanliness'', especially prior to the worship of a deity, and ritual purity is a state of ritual cleanliness. Ritual purification ...

for the prophet by touching his lips with a live coal from the altar (verses 6–7) "And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged." The text describes the "seraphim" as winged celestial beings with a fiery passion for doing God's good work. Notwithstanding the wording of the text itself, at least one Hebrew scholar claims that in the Hebrew Bible the seraphim do not have the status of

angels 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 ...

, and that it is only in later sources (like ''

De Coelesti Hierarchia ''De Coelesti Hierarchia'' (, "On the Celestial Hierarchy") is a Pseudo-Dionysian work on angelology, written in Greek and dated to ca. AD the 5th century; it exerted great influence on scholasticism and treats at great length the hierarchie ...

'' or ''

Summa Theologiae The ''Summa Theologiae'' or ''Summa Theologica'' (), often referred to simply as the ''Summa'', is the best-known work of Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274), a scholastic theologian and Doctor of the Church. It is a compendium of all of the main the ...

'') that they are considered to be a division of the divine messengers. Seraphim appear in the 2nd-century BC

, where they are mentioned, in conjunction with

cherub A cherub (; : cherubim; ''kərūḇ'', pl. ''kərūḇīm'') is one type of supernatural being in the Abrahamic religions. The numerous depictions of cherubim assign to them many different roles, such as protecting the entrance of the Garden of ...

im, as the heavenly creatures standing nearest to the

throne of God The throne of God is the reigning centre of God in the Abrahamic religions: primarily Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The throne is said by various holy books to reside beyond the Seventh Heaven which is called ''Araboth'' ( ''‘ărāḇōṯ ...

. In non-biblical sources they are sometimes called the ''Akyəst'' ( "serpents", "

dragon A dragon is a Magic (supernatural), magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but European dragon, dragons in Western cultures since the Hi ...

s"; an alternate term for

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location or state in the afterlife in which souls are subjected to punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history sometimes depict hells as eternal destinations, such as Christianity and I ...

). In the

Second Book of Enoch The Second Book of Enoch (abbreviated as 2 Enoch and also known as Slavonic Enoch, Slavic Enoch, or the Secrets of Enoch) is a pseudepigraphic text in the apocalyptic genre. It describes the ascent of the patriarch Enoch, ancestor of Noah, throu ...

, two classes of celestial beings are mentioned alongside the seraphim and cherubim, known as the '' phoenixes'' and the '' chalkydri'' ( ''khalkýdrai'', compound of ''khalkós'' "brass, copper" + ''hýdra'' " hydra", "water-serpent"—lit. "brazen hydras", "copper serpents"). Both are described as "flying elements of the sun" that reside in either the 4th or 7th heaven, who have twelve wings and burst into song at sunrise. In the

(4:4–8), the beasts are described as being forever in God's presence and praising him: " d they rest not day and night, saying, 'Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.'" This account differs slightly from the account of Isaiah, stating in the eighth verse, "And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within". They appear also in the

Gnostic Gnosticism (from Ancient Greek: , romanized: ''gnōstikós'', Koine Greek: �nostiˈkos 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems that coalesced in the late 1st century AD among early Christian sects. These diverse g ...

text, ''

On the Origin of the World On the Origin of the World is a Gnostic work dealing with creation and the end time. It was found among the texts in the Nag Hammadi library, in Codex II and Codex XIII, immediately following the '' Reality of the Rulers''. There are many pa ...

''.

In Judaism

The 12th-century scholar

Maimonides Moses ben Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (, ) and also referred to by the Hebrew acronym Rambam (), was a Sephardic rabbi and Jewish philosophy, philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah schola ...

placed the seraphim in the fifth of ten ranks of angels in his exposition of the

. In

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 ...

, the seraphim are the higher angels of the World of Beriah ("Creation", first created realm, divine understanding), whose understanding of their distance from the absolute divinity of

Atziluth Atziluth or Atzilut (also ''Olam Atsiluth'', עוֹלָם אֲצִילוּת, literally "the World of Emanation") is the highest of four worlds in which exists the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. It is also known as "near to God."MEIJERS, L. D., and J. ...

causes their continual "burning up" in self-nullification. Through this they ascend to God, and return to their place. Below them in the World of

Yetzirah Yetzirah (also known as ''Olam Yetsirah'', עוֹלָם יְצִירָה in Hebrew) is the third of four worlds in the Kabbalistic Tree of Life, following Atziluth and Beri'ah and preceding Assiah. It is known as the "World of Formation". "Y ...

("Formation", archetypal creation, divine emotions) are the Hayot angels of Ezekiel's vision, who serve God with self-aware instinctive emotions ("face of a lion, ox, eagle"). Seraphim are part of the angelarchy of modern

Orthodox Judaism Orthodox Judaism is a collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Torah, Written and Oral Torah, Oral, as literally revelation, revealed by God in Ju ...

. Isaiah's vision is repeated several times in daily

Jewish services Jewish prayer (, ; plural ; , plural ; Yinglish: davening from Yiddish 'pray') is the prayer recitation that forms part of the observance of Rabbinic Judaism. These prayers, often with instructions and commentary, are found in the ...

, including at Kedushah prayer as part of the repetition of the

Amidah The ''Amidah'' (, ''Tefilat HaAmidah'', 'The Standing Prayer'), also called the ''Shemoneh Esreh'' ( 'eighteen'), is the central prayer of Jewish liturgy. Observant Jews recite the ''Amidah'' during each of the three services prayed on week ...

, and in several other prayers as well.

Conservative Judaism Conservative Judaism, also known as Masorti Judaism, is a Jewish religious movements, Jewish religious movement that regards the authority of Jewish law and tradition as emanating primarily from the assent of the people through the generations ...

retains the traditional doctrines regarding angels and includes references to them in the liturgy, although a literal belief in angels is by no means universal among adherents. Adherents of

Reform Judaism Reform Judaism, also known as Liberal Judaism or Progressive Judaism, is a major Jewish religious movements, Jewish denomination that emphasizes the evolving nature of Judaism, the superiority of its Jewish ethics, ethical aspects to its ceremo ...

and

Reconstructionist Judaism Reconstructionist Judaism () is a Jewish religious movements, Jewish movement based on the concepts developed by Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan (1881–1983)—namely, that Judaism as a Civilization, Judaism is a progressively evolving civilization rather ...

generally take images of angels as symbolic. A Judean seal from the 8th century BCE depicts them as flying

asp (snake) Asp is the modern anglicisation of the word "'' aspis''", which in antiquity referred to any one of several venomous snake species found in the Nile region. The specific epithet, ''aspis'', is a Greek word that means "viper".Gotch AF. 1986. ''R ...

, yet having human characteristics, as encountered by Isaiah in his commissioning as a prophet.

In Christianity

Medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

Christian

places seraphim in the highest choir of the angelic hierarchy. They are the caretakers of

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 ...

's throne, continuously singing "holy, holy, holy".

Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite (or Dionysius the Pseudo-Areopagite) was a Greek author, Christian theologian and Neoplatonic philosopher of the late 5th to early 6th century, who wrote a set of works known as the ''Corpus Areopagiticum'' ...

in his '' Celestial Hierarchy'' (vii), drew upon the

in fixing the fiery nature of seraphim in the medieval imagination. Seraphim in his view helped God maintain perfect order and are not limited to chanting the ''

trisagion The ''Trisagion'' (; 'Thrice Holy'), sometimes called by its incipit ''Agios O Theos'', is a standard hymn of the Divine Liturgy in most of the Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox, Western Orthodox, Oriental Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodox, an ...

''. Taking his cue as well from writings in the Rabbinic tradition, the author gave an etymology for the ''Seraphim'' as "those who kindle or make hot"

The name seraphim clearly indicates their ceaseless and eternal revolution about Divine Principles, their heat and keenness, the exuberance of their intense, perpetual, tireless activity, and their elevative and energetic assimilation of those below, kindling them and firing them to their own heat, and wholly purifying them by a burning and all-consuming flame; and by the unhidden, unquenchable, changeless, radiant and enlightening power, dispelling and destroying the shadows of darkness

Origen Origen of Alexandria (), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an Early Christianity, early Christian scholar, Asceticism#Christianity, ascetic, and Christian theology, theologian who was born and spent the first half of his career in Early cent ...

wrote in '' On First Principles'' that the Seraphim, in the

, are the physical representation of the

Christ Jesus ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Christianity, central figure of Christianity, the M ...

and the

Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit, otherwise known as the Holy Ghost, is a concept within the Abrahamic religions. In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is understood as the divine quality or force of God manifesting in the world, particularly in acts of prophecy, creati ...

. His rationale comes from the idea that nothing "can wholly know the beginnings of all things and the ends of the universe" aside from

. Origen concludes this section in writing about the Seraphim as beings that have the knowledge of God revealed to them which elevates the role of the Seraphim to divine levels:

Nevertheless whatever it is that these powers may have learned through the revelation of the Son of God and of the Holy Spirit-and they will certainly be able to acquire a great deal of knowledge, and the higher ones much more than the lower-still it is impossible for them to comprehend everything; for it is written, 'The more part of God's works are secret.

This quote suggests that Origen believed the Seraphim are revealed this knowledge because of their anointed status as Son of God and the Holy Spirit. He was later criticized for making such claims and labeled a heretic by the Christian church. However, his theory about the Seraphim, as referred to in

Isaiah Isaiah ( or ; , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "Yahweh is salvation"; also known as Isaias or Esaias from ) was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named. The text of the Book of Isaiah refers to Isaiah as "the prophet" ...

, would be reflected in other early Christian literature, as well as early Christian belief through the second century.

Thomas Aquinas Thomas Aquinas ( ; ; – 7 March 1274) was an Italian Dominican Order, Dominican friar and Catholic priest, priest, the foremost Scholasticism, Scholastic thinker, as well as one of the most influential philosophers and theologians in the W ...

in his ''

'' offers a description of the nature of seraphim: The seraphim took on a mystic role in

Giovanni Pico della Mirandola Giovanni Pico dei conti della Mirandola e della Concordia ( ; ; ; 24 February 146317 November 1494), known as Pico della Mirandola, was an Italian Renaissance nobleman and philosopher. He is famed for the events of 1486, when, at the age of 23, ...

's ''

Oration on the Dignity of Man The ''Oration on the Dignity of Man'' (''Oratio de hominis dignitate'' in Latin) is a public discourse composed in 1486 by Pico della Mirandola, an Italian scholar and philosopher of the Renaissance. It remained unpublished until 1496. The ''Pic ...

'' (1487), the epitome of Renaissance humanism. Pico took the fiery Seraphim—"they burn with the fire of charity"—as the highest models of human aspiration: "impatient of any second place, let us emulate dignity and glory. And, if we will it, we shall be inferior to them in nothing", the young Pico announced, in the first flush of optimistic confidence in the human capacity that is the coinage of the Renaissance. "In the light of intelligence, meditating upon the Creator in His work, and the work in its Creator, we shall be resplendent with the light of the Cherubim. If we burn with love for the Creator only, his consuming fire will quickly transform us into the flaming likeness of the Seraphim."

Bonaventure Bonaventure ( ; ; ; born Giovanni di Fidanza; 1221 – 15 July 1274) was an Italian Catholic Franciscan bishop, Cardinal (Catholic Church), cardinal, Scholasticism, scholastic theologian and philosopher. The seventh Minister General ( ...

, a

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

theologian who was a contemporary of Aquinas, uses the six wings of the seraph as an important analogical construct in his mystical work ''The Journey of the Mind to God''. Christian theology developed an idea of seraphim as beings of pure light who enjoy direct communication with God. The plural form of the word, ''seraphim'', was given to

Seraphim of Sarov Seraphim of Sarov (; – ), born Prókhor Isídorovich Moshnín (Mashnín) �ро́хор Иси́дорович Мошни́н (Машни́н) is one of the most renowned Russian saints and is venerated in the Eastern Orthodox Church and t ...

upon his reception into the

Sarov Sarov () is a closed city, closed town in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It was known as Gorkiy-130 (Горький-130) and Arzamas-16 (), after a (somewhat) nearby town of Arzamas,SarovLabsCreation of Nuclear Center Arzamas-16/ref> from 194 ...

monastery. This later inspired Eugene Dennis Rose, a former student of

Alan Watts Alan Wilson Watts (6 January 1915 – 16 November 1973) was a British and American writer, speaker, and self-styled "philosophical entertainer", known for interpreting and popularising Buddhist, Taoist, and Hinduism, Hindu philosophy for a Wes ...

, to adopt the name when he also entered Orthodox monasticism, later becoming known as Fr Seraphim Rose.

In Islam

The

Bearers of the Throne Bearers of the Throne or also known as ḥamlat al-arsh (), are a group of angels in Islam. The Quran mentions them in and . They are mentioned in the al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya, a book of prayers attributed to Ali ibn Husayn Zayn al-Abidin. ...

(''ḥamlat al-arsh'') are comparable to seraphim, described with six wings and four faces according to tradition. No description of their features is given in the Quran, only that their number is eight in . Their affiliation is not always clear and sometimes their role is swapped with the cherubim. In a book called ''Book of the Wonders of Creation and the peculiarities of Existing Things'', these angels rank the highest, followed by ''the spirit'', the archangels and then the cherubim. The Bearers of the Throne are entrusted with continuously worshipping God. Unlike the messenger angels, they remain in the heavenly realm and do not enter the world. Seraphim (''Sarufiyyun'' or ''Musharifin'') are directly mentioned in a

hadith Hadith is the Arabic word for a 'report' or an 'account f an event and refers to the Islamic oral tradition of anecdotes containing the purported words, actions, and the silent approvals of the Islamic prophet Muhammad or his immediate circle ...

from

Al-Tirmidhi Muhammad ibn Isa al-Tirmidhi (; 824 – 9 October 892 CE / 209–279 AH), often referred to as Imām at-Termezī/Tirmidhī, was an Islamic scholar, and collector of hadith from Termez (early Khorasan and in present-day Uzbekistan). He w ...

about a conversation between

Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...

and

, during the Night Journey, concerning what is between the Heavens and the Earth, often interpreted as a reference to the "Exalted assembly" disputing the creation of

Adam Adam is the name given in Genesis 1–5 to the first human. Adam is the first human-being aware of God, and features as such in various belief systems (including Judaism, Christianity, Gnosticism and Islam). According to Christianity, Adam ...

Surah A ''surah'' (; ; ) is an Arabic word meaning 'chapter' in the Quran. There are 114 ''suwar'' in the Quran, each divided into ayah, verses (). The ''suwar'' are of unequal length; the shortest ''surah'' (al-Kawthar) has only three verses, while ...

Ṣād Tsade (also spelled , , , , tzadi, sadhe, tzaddik) is the eighteenth letter of the Semitic abjads, including Phoenician ''ṣādē'' 𐤑, Hebrew ''ṣādī'' , Aramaic ''ṣāḏē'' 𐡑, Syriac ''ṣāḏē'' ܨ, Ge'ez ''ṣädäy'' ጸ, an ...

. In Islamic traditions, they are often portrayed in

zoomorphic The word ''zoomorphism'' derives from and . In the context of art, zoomorphism could describe art that imagines humans as non-human animals. It can also be defined as art that portrays one species of animal like another species of animal or art ...

forms. They are described as resembling different creatures: An eagle, a bull, a lion and a human. Other

s describes them with six wings and four faces. While according to a hadith transmitted from

At-Targhib wat-Tarhib ''At-Targhib wat-Tarhib'' () or ''Targhib wal Tarhib'', () is one of the Hadith book collections compiled and authored by Hafiz Zaki al-Din al-Mundhiri. Etymology The term ''"targhib"'' means "encouragement", "motivation", "stimulation" or " ...

authored by ʻAbd al-ʻAẓīm ibn ʻAbd al-Qawī al-Mundhirī, the bearers of the throne were angels who were shaped like a

rooster The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated subspecies of the red junglefowl (''Gallus gallus''), originally native to Southeast Asia. It was first domesticated around 8,000 years ago and is now one of the most common and w ...

, with their feet on the earth and their nape supporting the

in the highest sky. a number modern Islamic scholars from

Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University (IMSIU) (), commonly known as Al-Imam University (IMAMU) (Arabic: إمامو), is a public university in the sub-municipality of Shemal in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It was founded in 1950 as an Islamic semin ...

, and other institutes of Yemen and Mauritania also agreed the soundness of this hadith by quoting the commentary from Ibn Abi al-Izz who supported this narrative.

Al-Razi Razi () or al-Razi () is a name that was historically used to indicate a person coming from Ray, Iran. People It most commonly refers to: * Muhammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi (865–925), influential physician, alchemist and philosopher, also known b ...

identifies the seraphim with the angels around God's throne, next to the cherubim. They circulate the throne and keep praising God.

Ibn Kathir Abu al-Fida Isma'il ibn Umar ibn Kathir al-Dimashqi (; ), known simply as Ibn Kathir, was an Arab Islamic Exegesis, exegete, historian and scholar. An expert on (Quranic exegesis), (history) and (Islamic jurisprudence), he is considered a lea ...

, on the other hand, identifies the seraphim with those who carry the throne, the highest order of angels.

In culture

Arts, entertainment, and media

Multiocular O This is a list of rare glyph variants of the Cyrillic letter . They were proposed for inclusion into Unicode in 2007 and incorporated as in Unicode 5.1. Monocular O Monocular O () is one of the rare glyph variants of Cyrillic letter . This glyp ...

() is an exotic

glyph A glyph ( ) is any kind of purposeful mark. In typography, a glyph is "the specific shape, design, or representation of a character". It is a particular graphical representation, in a particular typeface, of an element of written language. A ...

variant of the

Cyrillic The Cyrillic script ( ) is a writing system used for various languages across Eurasia. It is the designated national script in various Slavic, Turkic, Mongolic, Uralic, Caucasian and Iranic-speaking countries in Southeastern Europe, Ea ...

letter O, containing 10 eyes (though certain fonts may incorrectly load the formerly-prescribed 7 eyes). This glyph variant can be found in a single manuscript in the

Old Church Slavonic Old Church Slavonic or Old Slavonic ( ) is the first Slavic languages, Slavic literary language and the oldest extant written Slavonic language attested in literary sources. It belongs to the South Slavic languages, South Slavic subgroup of the ...

phrase "" (, "many-eyed seraphim"). * In the real time strategy game ''Supreme Commander'', Seraphim is the name given to a faction of aliens who represent the first contact of aliens to human civilization. After the first Seraphim are killed by human colonists, they launch a massive assault on humanity, which is the premise of the expansion, Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance. * In the tower defense strategy game The Battle Cats, the Divine Cyclone and Mini Angel Cyclone appear to have designs inspired by Seraphs, with the latter having an ability resembling that of a flame. * The manga and anime series ''

Seraph of the End is a Japanese dark fantasy manga series. It is written by Takaya Kagami, illustrated by Yamato Yamamoto and features storyboards by Daisuke Furuya. The series is set in a world that allegedly comes to an end at the hands of a "human- ...

'' (2012), written by Takaya Kagami, contains several Seraphs. *In the strategy game '' Monster Train'', the primary villain, Seraph the Traitor, is a transcended, six-winged being and the de facto ruler of Heaven. In a bid to bring peace and stability to the collective Realm of Heaven, Hell, and Humans, Seraph helps forge a mutual covenant between Heaven and Hell. He later betrays this agreement and invades Hell, massacring the Hellborne and imposing his moral absolutism upon the survivors. *In the MMORPG ''

Wizard101 ''Wizard101'' is a 2008 massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed and published by KingsIsle Entertainment. Players take on the role of student wizards who must save the Spiral, the fictional universe in which the game is ...

'', a prominent character Lady Oriel is a seraph, and a spell titled "Seraph" may be cast by the player in which a seraph is summoned to attack the enemy. *Galeem, from the ''

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' is a 2018 crossover fighting game developed by Bandai Namco Studios and Sora Ltd. and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch. It is the fifth installment in the '' Super Smash Bros.'' series, succeeding ' ...

'' single-player campaign "World of Light", resembles a seraph, in that it is an ethereal being of light with six wings. Galeem is the campaign's antagonist, who attempted to destroy everything in existence and turn everyone (except the fighters) into spirits. *In the voxel-based video game '' Vintage Story'', the species of the main character are called Seraphs. *In ''

Final Fantasy VII is a 1997 role-playing video game developed by Square for the PlayStation. The seventh main installment in the ''Final Fantasy'' series, it was released in Japan by Square and internationally by Sony Computer Entertainment, becoming the first ...

'' there is a major boss named "Safer Sephiroth", which some believe is mistranslation of "Seraph Sephiroth". *In video game ''Doom'' (2016), it is mentioned that a Seraph uses the Divinity Machine on the Doom Slayer, a device meant to bless him with great strength and speed in his fight against the Titan on Taras Nabad. In the sequel ''

Doom Eternal ''Doom Eternal'' is a 2020 first-person shooter game developed by id Software and published by Bethesda Softworks. The sequel to '' Doom'' (2016), and the seventh game in the ''Doom'' series, it was released for PlayStation 4, Stadia, Wind ...

'', it is confirmed that the character Samuel Hayden is in fact the Seraphim who blessed the Doom Slayer. *In ''

The Bastard Executioner ''The Bastard Executioner'' is an American historical fiction drama television series, created by Kurt Sutter, that aired on FX from September 15, 2015, to November 17, 2015. On November 18, 2015, Sutter announced that he had voluntarily pulle ...

'', the Order of Seraphim are charged with preserving and protecting Jesus Christ's nine-volume, handwritten ''Libro Nazareni'' (''New Testament'') from the Church, which, as Annora and Ventrishire's manor priest, Father Ruskin, discuss in episodes 7 ("Behold the Lamb / Gweled yr Oen") and 8 ("Broken Things / Pethau Toredig"), and 9 ("The Bernadette Maneuver / Cynllwyn Bernadette"), could be toppled by the book's release to the public. For that reason, the Church's leaders, such as Robinus, the Archdeacon of Windsor, and their Knights of the Rosebud/''Rosula'', have targeted both the book and its protectors to be hunted and destroyed. In episode 3, some young Welsh people who want to earn credibility with the rebels against the government unwisely masquerade as members of the Order of Seraphim, by adorning themselves with seraphim face paint and attack the Baroness' wagon and its knights, which causes repercussions throughout the season for those captured, for their village, and for those affected by escalated hunts for rebels and for members of the Order of Seraphim. *Seraphim are the name of a species within video game '' Tales of Zestiria''. The main character, Sorey, is heavily implied to become one by the end. *The second phase of Dogma, from video game '' The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth'', resembles a seraph, being a being with many wings that also uses light attacks. "Seraphim" is also the name of one of the attainable transformations in the game (gained by gathering a certain quantity of specific items), although it does not resemble a seraph aesthetically. * Seraphs also appear in the CW TV show ''

Supernatural (American TV series) ''Supernatural'' is an American television series created by Eric Kripke. It was first broadcast on September 13, 2005, on The WB, and subsequently became part of successor network The CW's lineup. Starring Jared Padalecki as Sam Winchester and ...

''. They are shown as more powerful ''

'', but still weaker than an ''

Archangel Archangels () are the second lowest rank of angel in the Catholic hierarchy of angels, based on and put forward by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite in the 5th or 6th century in his book ''De Coelesti Hierarchia'' (''On the Celestial Hierarchy'') ...

''. When the angel Castiel (originated from "Cassiel") dies, he is brought back as a Seraph, although he still does not possess the power to go up against the archangel who killed him,

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 ...

. *

Seraph A seraph ( ; pl.: ) is a celestial or heavenly being originating in Ancient Judaism. The term plays a role in subsequent Judaism, Islam and Christianity. Tradition places seraphim in the highest rank in Christian angelology and in the fif ...

is a supporting character in the second and third films of The Matrix Trilogy. Seraph is an exile program who is seen acting as a "guardian angel" of the Oracle, and is described as the personification of a sophisticated challenge-handshake authentication protocol which guards the Oracle. *In ''

Mega Man Zero is an action game, action-platformer, platform game series in Capcom's ''Mega Man'' video game franchise. It was developed by Inti Creates, with Co-Producer Keiji Inafune and Director Yoshinori Kawano. The series consists of four games that were ...

'', an action-platform video game, Copy X transforms into a Seraph-like appearance in his second form. *In the ''

Armored Core is a third-person shooter mecha video game series developed by FromSoftware. The series centers on a silent protagonist who takes on work as a mercenary pilot in the far future, operating large robot combat units known as Armored Cores at the b ...

'' video game series, the villain Nine-Ball is featured as a recurring antagonist. Its second and most powerful form, debuting in '' Armored Core: Master of Arena'', is known as Nine-Ball Seraph. *In the ''

Street Fighter is a Media mix, Japanese media franchise centered on a series of fighting games developed and published by Capcom. Street Fighter 1, The first game in the series was released in 1987, followed by List of Street Fighter video games, six other ma ...

'' series of video games, the character

Gill A gill () is a respiration organ, respiratory organ that many aquatic ecosystem, aquatic organisms use to extract dissolved oxygen from water and to excrete carbon dioxide. The gills of some species, such as hermit crabs, have adapted to allow r ...

uses a move called Seraphic Wing, in which he reveals six wings and unleashes godly energy that does several hits. In

Street Fighter III is a 1997 fighting game in Capcom's ''Street Fighter'' series, originally released as a coin-operated arcade game. The game, which was designed as a direct sequel to ''Street Fighter II'' (1991), initially discarded every previous character exc ...

, it is the strongest move in the game and can one-hit KO an opponent if they are not blocking. In

Street Fighter V ''Street Fighter V'' is a 2016 fighting game developed by Capcom, Dimps and Taito and published by Capcom for PlayStation 4 and Microsoft Windows, Windows. The major follow-up to ''Street Fighter IV'' (2008) as part of Capcom's ''Street Fighter'' ...

, it is his critical art. While it cannot instantly defeat an opponent like before, it deals a lot of damage. *

is also the name of the first Jewish superhero who debuted in ''

Super Friends ''Super Friends'' is an American animated television series about a team of superheroes which ran from 1973 to 1985 on ABC as part of its Saturday-morning cartoon lineup. It was produced by Hanna-Barbera and was based on the Justice League of Am ...

'' # 7 by E. Nelson Bridwell, Ramona Fradon, and Bob Smith in 1977. *

LE SSERAFIM Le Sserafim ( ; ; stylized in all caps) is a South Korean girl group formed by Source Music, a sub-label of Hybe Corporation, Hybe. The group consists of five members: Sakura Miyawaki, Sakura, Kim Chaewon, Huh Yunjin, Kazuha, and Hong Eunchae. ...

is the five-member

K-pop K-pop (; an abbreviation of "Korean popular music") is a form of popular music originating in South Korea. It emerged in the 1990s as a form of youth subculture, with Korean musicians taking influence from Western Electronic dance music, danc ...

girl group from HYBE and

Source Music Source Music () is a South Korean record label established in 2009 by So Sung-jin. In July 2019, the company was acquired by Hybe Corporation, making the company part of the collective term "Hybe Labels". The company manages girl group Le Sserafim ...

that debuted in 2022 whose name is partly inspired by the Seraphim. * In the manga

One Piece ''One Piece'' (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. It follows the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy and his crew, the Straw Hat Pirates, as he explores the Grand Line in search of the myt ...

, the elite models of the antagonistic Pacifista cyborgs are called, and are loosely based on, Seraphim. * In the video game ''

Destiny 2 ''Destiny 2'' is a free-to-play online first-person shooter video game developed by Bungie. It was originally released as a pay-to-play game in 2017 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows. It became free-to-play, utilizing the games as a se ...

'', the 19th season is titled ''Season of the Seraph'', named after a team of human operatives, the Seraphs, who worked closely with central character Rasputin, an AI "Warmind", to ensure the safety of humanity. * In the manga '' Seraphim 266613336Wings'', "Seraphim" is the name of a disease that is decimating the population of the world. * In season one, episode six ("Welcome to Heaven") of ''

Hazbin Hotel ''Hazbin Hotel'' is an American Adult animation, adult animated Musical theatre, musical comedy television series created by Vivienne Medrano, Vivienne "VivziePop" Medrano. The series revolves around Charlie Morningstar, crown princess, princes ...

'', two Seraphim, Sera, the head Seraph, and Emily, a junior Seraph, hold a meeting with

Charlie Morningstar Princess Charlotte "Charlie" Morningstar is a fictional character created by Vivienne "VivziePop" Medrano who appears as the protagonist of the musical adult animated series ''Hazbin Hotel'' as the princess of Hell. She is primarily voiced by ...

over her plan to redeem souls that are in

. * In the video games ''

League of Legends ''League of Legends'' (''LoL'', commonly referred to as ''League'', is a multiplayer online battle arena video game developed and published by Riot Games. Inspired by ''Defense of the Ancients'', a Mod (video games), custom map for ''Warcraf ...

'' and ''

Legends of Runeterra ''Legends of Runeterra'' (''LoR'') is a 2020 digital collectible card game developed and published by Riot Games. Inspired by the physical collectible card game '' Magic: The Gathering'', the developers sought to create a game within the same g ...

'', there is a champion named Seraphine, whose name is likely derived from Seraphim. During her release campaign, Seraphine had an online presence through Twitter, Instagram, SoundCloud, and Spotify, and became a guest member of

K/DA K/DA ( ) is a virtual K-pop girl group consisting of four themed versions of ''League of Legends'' characters Ahri, Akali, Evelynn and Kai'Sa. (G)I-dle members Miyeon and Soyeon provide the voices of Ahri and Akali, respectively, Madison Bee ...

on their 2020 single More. In addition, ''League of Legends'' also includes an item named Seraph's Embrace. * In the ''

Fire Emblem is a Video games in Japan, Japanese fantasy tactical role-playing game franchise developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo. First produced and published for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1990, the series currently con ...

'' video game series, there is a damaging spell in several titles called Seraphim that is especially effective against monsters. It is often portrayed as being made up of light and, sometimes, feathers.

Logos and mascots

*Several Catholic schools use a seraph or a seraph-related symbol as their mascot: ** Koinonia Academy,

Plainfield, New Jersey Plainfield is a City (New Jersey), city in Union County, New Jersey, Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Nicknamed "The Queen City",

, United States ** Mater Dei Catholic Preparatory School, Middletown, New Jersey, United States ** St. Bonaventure High School,

Ventura, California Ventura, officially named San Buenaventura (Spanish for "Saint Bonaventure"), is a city in and the county seat of Ventura County, California, United States. It is a coastal city located northwest of Los Angeles. The population was 110,763 at the ...

, United States ** St. Madeleine Sophie Catholic School,

Bellevue, Washington Bellevue ( ) is a city in the Eastside (King County, Washington), Eastside region of King County, Washington, United States, located across Lake Washington from Seattle. It is the third-largest city in the Seattle metropolitan area, and the f ...

, United States * Kingswood College in Randles Hill,

Kandy Kandy (, ; , ) is a major city located in the Central Province, Sri Lanka, Central Province of Sri Lanka. It was the last capital of the Sinhalese monarchy from 1469 to 1818, under the Kingdom of Kandy. The city is situated in the midst of ...

, Sri Lanka, a public school, claims the seraph as its mascot. * Both the

University of Pisa The University of Pisa (, UniPi) is a public university, public research university in Pisa, Italy. Founded in 1343, it is one of the oldest universities in Europe. Together with Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa and Sant'Anna School of Advanced S ...

and

Sapienza University of Rome The Sapienza University of Rome (), formally the Università degli Studi di Roma "La Sapienza", abbreviated simply as Sapienza ('Wisdom'), is a Public university, public research university located in Rome, Italy. It was founded in 1303 and is ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, feature a seraph as their logo.

Notes

References

External links

* ''

Jewish Encyclopedia ''The Jewish Encyclopedia: A Descriptive Record of the History, Religion, Literature, and Customs of the Jewish People from the Earliest Times to the Present Day'' is an English-language encyclopedia containing over 15,000 articles on the ...

''
"Seraphim"

* {{Book of Isaiah Angels in Christianity Angels in Judaism Angels in Islam Book of Isaiah Classes of angels Dragons Fire in religion Serpents in the Bible Hebrew words and phrases in the Hebrew Bible