Archangels, Angels and Magick

The simplest definition of an archangel is a powerful, pure and high-ranking angel whose function in the Briatic World of the Kabbalah is to govern large groups, or hosts, of lesser angels. According to some, archangels have free will, whereas angels do not.

So what is an angel? Again a simple definition would be a pure and high spirit of unmixed good in office and appreciation. Angels are anthropomorphic symbols of what we consider to be good or holy. Angels and archangels are considered specific aspects of the Divine, each with a particular purpose and jurisdiction. They have specific duties, such as bringing teachings, warning or message from the Divine to human beings. The names of the Kabbalistic angels usually end in 'el' or 'yeh', which are divine names indicating that the angels themselves are 'of God'. The word angel itself is derived from the Greek word angelos, meaning messenger.

A key ritual in Ceremonial Magick where the archangels are invoked is the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram (see below). The main aim of this ritual is to eliminate from the sphere of the mind those qualities or sensations which the critical ego deems unnecessary. Its rationale is that a system of vibrations may act upon the human organism in purifying and strengthening ways. The ritual also serves to cast a circle, as in Wicca, but with each of the elements (Watchtowers or quarters) opened with their energy in perfect balance.

But why archangels? The philosophy of magick conceives that of one root source from which all life sprang, one fundamental life current, infinite and omnipresent. This can go by a number of names: the Divine, God, libido, the collective unconscious. Within this universal life are archetypal images - nodal points which act like power stations through which, as it were, the root life-stream flows and is diluted or transmuted so that it can be accessed by and is available to lower life-forms. Generally speaking, these primordial archetypes, man's first definition of the manifest forces of nature, comprise what in magick we mean by gods and archangels and angels.

So, an angelic being may be defined as a cosmic force whose apparent vehicle of manifestation to psychic consciousness is as a form built up by the human imagination.

To show how this operates in magick, I will use Raphael as summoned in the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram. The Magician faces east and powerfully vibrates the name Raphael. At the same time is visualised a vast angelic figure, conceived of in the traditional conventional style, of vibrating yellow and mauve hues. The whole figure, the visualisation complete, will be gracious, slight and airy, and mauve which touches up and brings out the vivid pale yellow will cause the robes to flash and shimmer, giving the impression of shot silk. It may also appear that a gentle breeze is wafted from behind the figure.

The technique of using the magical figures of the archangels, once the appropriate names have been vibrated and some realisation obtained of the presence of the correct type of spiritual power flowing through the figure, is to imagine that the emanation from the archangel penetrates and cleanses the personality. That is to say, in the east from behind the archangel Raphael should be felt a gentle wind or breeze which, permeating the entire body, blows from it every trace of impurity.