Aziraphale, Raphael, and other angelic names you should probably know
Yes, Iām digging out my oldest piece of Good Omens meta. If youāre one of the very few people who might remember it from my main blog or had followed me on Twitter before it was shared there last year, you should already get the gist of whatās going to come next. For the rest of you, this might serve as a nice warning of how true brainrot begins.
We will start at the very beginning: the name-giving. Since God has created the world with one word, in the Bible and related Jewish tradition names of things are considered of great importance. As the life-givers, they imbue meaning and power to those who bear them, and often lead them towards a certain predetermined path. The concept of true names in general is a global phenomenon, with traces of this belief to be found everywhere from Plato's Theory of Forms through Grimmās fairytales and beyond, not only in religious, but also philosophical and anthropological context. Considering the vast number of options to choose from, coining a new name instead of just repeating someone elseās is certainly a choice.
Unsurprisingly, the one who came up with the name Aziraphale was Terry Pratchett, and according to an interview it was originally pronounced Aziraphael:
āIt should be Azz-ear-raf-AE-el, but we got into the habit of pronouncing it Azz-ear-raf-ail, so I guess thatās the right way now.ā
Donāt worry, weāll get there in a moment. The second thing you need to remember from this interview is Terryās answer to the question about the nameās origin:
āIt was made up butā¦ erā¦ from real ingredients. [The name] Aziraphale could be shoved in a list of ārealā angels and would fit right inā¦ā
Conveniently, Iāve already explained who he was and why he was so important in Judaism in one meta discussion on Tumblr, so Iāll be lazy and copy-paste my thoughts and expand them to add some details from other Abrahamic religions.
Before the Beginning, or the Angel of Love
Long story short, Libbiel was one of the archangels working with God on the creation of humans. The idea was opposed by some of them, especially the Angel of Truth, who was promptly cast down from Heaven to Earth (but promised to spring back out of the Earth eventually, donāt worry).
Unlike Michael and Gabriel, Libbiel (āGod is my heartā) warned his angelic troops to accept the Ineffable Plan in advance and saved them from the Fall, which granted him Godās recognition and a new name, Raphael, the Rescuer, appointing him as the Angel of Healing (āGod has healedā).
This seems to check out within the Good Omens universe: Aziraphale was involved in the Earth creation project before the rollout and had enough access to the human plans to see them with his own eyes and share this knowledge with the angel that eventually became Crowley.
He also appeared extremely anxious at the very mention of Crowleyās obligation to dissent and wanted to save him from any negative consequences even at the cost of interrupting the conversation heās been enjoying so much.
Weāve noticed some peculiar reactions of Aziraphale to any mentions or acts of love, right? They usually involve reaching out to Crowley and might either suggest his feelings toward him or how physically overwhelmed he is with the very concept of love (or both, actually).
Interestingly, one of the official titles of archangel Raphael is Angel of Love. In Christianity he is considered a patron saint of happy meetings, matchmaking and marriage, and his healing powers involve especially eyes andā¦ heart, in the context of both mental health and human love.
Raphael also has a canonical (at least in Catholicism) episode of playing a human matchmaker on Godās behalf in the Book of Tobit, in which he appears on Earth under the disguise of a man named Azariah. Aziraphale seems now like an obvious portmanteau for Azariah, Raphaelās alias used while disguising himself as a human, and Raphael, the name given to him by God as a commendation. An archangel embracing some humanity of his own volition.
Raphaelās color is sometimes mentioned as light blue, exactly like the light Aziraphale emits in the S2 opening sequence, and his symbol is a serpent (the ancient Caduceus, but I feel like at this point we can call him Crowley).
The angelic couple, or Zophiel and Barachiel
Remember that bit of Terryās interview about real ingredients? Raphaelās backstory already seems complicated enough, but what if Aziraphale had not one, but two angelic prototypes? I happen to know one more angel ā a cherub said to possess great feminine energy ā whose story rings some alarm bells.
This is Jophiel (āThe Beauty of Godā) or Zophiel (āMy Rock is Godā, āWidom of Godā, āGodās Rageā), believed to be a companion to the angel Metatron, regent of the Principalities and leader of the Cherubim, a heavenly protector ā one of the child amulet angels.
In Jewish tradition Zophiel takes on the role of the guardian of the Torah as well as other books and knowledge itself, based on the fact that he was the one to guard the Tree of Knowledge and, armed with a flaming sword, drive Adam and Eve out of Eden. He also watched over Noah and his family during the Flood and was serving as an assistant to King Solomon when he spoke on Wisdom and wrote the books of Proverbs, Wisdom, and Ecclesiastes. In the Anglican tradition he is recognized as an archangel and typically depicted with a fiery sword in hand. The color belonging to Zophiel is yellow.
Lynn Fischer in āAngels of Love and Light: The Great Archangels & Their Divine Complements, the Archeiaiā (November 1996) describes Zophiel as one who
āstirs the feelings through radiation of illumination and into aspiration ā¦ help in absorbing information and studying for and passing tests; dissolution of ignorance, pride, and narrow-mindedness; and exposure of wrongdoing in governments and corporations. Jophiel helps in fighting pollution, cleaning up our planet, and brings to [hu]mankind the gift of beauty. He also provides inspiration for artistic and intellectual thought providing help with artistic projects and to see the beautiful things around us.ā
While this angel is mentioned in other works of fiction, Zophiel makes his most notable appearance in John Miltonās epic poem, Paradise Lost, as the warrior ācherubim with the swiftest wingsā in the battle of Heaven, where he was believed to assist Michael as the standard bearer. Heās presented as a spy returning from a reconnaissance mission to the rebel camp, much in the way Aziraphale had infiltrated Hell and fooled its demons in the wake of Armageddonāt.
As Zaapiel derived from Zaāap (Hebrew) meaning rage, anger or storm, he is also recognised as the angel of storms and, under the variant Zafiel, the angel of rain. This might be the reason why Zophiel is traditionally associated with the archangel of lightning and thunder, Barachiel (āGodās Blessingsā or āLightning of Godā, especially when transcribed as Barakiel or Baraqiel) ā to the point of being mentioned as his partner or consort.
Barachiel is the angel of lightning, but also ā as the name suggests ā blessings. In Catholic iconography he is usually depicted with a staff, a basket of bread, or a rose, each petal of which is representing a blessing from God, tossed out as the angel pleases to bless people. He is the chief of guardian angels, but in particular watches over young children, and sometimes takes on the task of delivering the blessing of offspring to prospective parents.
Like Zophiel is believed to have taught humans languages and wisdom found in books, Barachiel is commonly revered as the angel who taught them astrology, the wisdom of the stars.
Raphaelic legends arenāt all fun and games, but also mention the less marketed aspect of being an archangel: signaling the Day of Judgment. In Christianity, this is usually assigned as another one of Gabrielās jobs, but heās on the run right now, isnāt he? Well, good news! In Islam, Raphael is called Israfil or Israfel and believed to be the angel who blows the trumpet to signal Qiyamah, a counterpart of the Christian Second Coming, instead. The fact that Aziraphale has taken over Gabrielās position in Heaven might be much less coincidental than some think.
And itās important to remember that this power is not only destructive ā while the first blow will kill all creatures and creations, the second one will revive them and prepare for the Last Judgment (yes, the very same one that in Christian belief will be administered by Jesus with the help of Book of Life). Very much in line of what Adam, the Antichrist, has done with the help of a certain shoulder angel and shoulder demon.
This is exactly the sentiment found in the poem āIsrafelā by Edgar Allen Poe. In a material world nothing is meant to last forever, which is a curse and a blessing. A curse because it means death and destruction; miracles may sustain a certain bookshop in its current form through millennia, but as a tombstone to the life they led instead of a home it once used to be. A blessing, because it also means change and a new beginning ā as long as thereās enough life force to replace whatever is lost in the process.
Nothing on Earth lasts forever, but we should use it for inspiration, savor momentary bliss, and hold it in our hearts. Only Heaven and the passions of its angels (fallen or not) are truly eternal.
And we can expect at least two of them to keep loving each other beyond the human concept of time, perhaps in a nice cottage on the South Downs.
