Saturday, April 21, 2007

As the April A-Z blog challenge on all things mystical begins winding down to a close, here's the letter U...


Angels among us... such is believed by a variety of religions and has been portrayed in an endless assortment of fiction novels. Everyone from Dean Koontz to Clive Barker has written about the role of angels in our dimension.

Did you know that many New Age and pagan followers also believe in angels? What's more, that one of the archangels is the keeper of this blog series, if you will...the one who resides over hidden mysteries and intuition, prophesy and insight. He is Uriel.

Uriel is one of the four archangels, each associated with a specific direction and element. Uriel is attributed to powers of the North and of the Earth, and is often portrayed wearing "earth" colors--greens and browns. Sometimes he is shown bearing a scroll, which represents wisdom. He is also associated with the planet Venus.

Some lore has called Uriel the "Angel of Death," which makes him decidedly less friendly sounding than one might hope for in an angel. In fact, this association refers to him as a source of comfort to those in their hour of need, rather than as a grim reaper come to exact punishment.

Not that an archangel is a being to trifle with; Uriel is the angel depicted standing over the Garden of Eden with a fiery sword, barring entrance. In fact, despite his association with Earth elements, it may be of interest to some to note that he is also known as the Flame of God, Light of God...or "Sun" of God. He also oversees thunder and lightning.

Those who engage in spiritual practices where angels are looked to for guidance and strength would call upon Uriel during times of change or transformation, or when in need of calm in times of stress and anger. As the keeper of mystical insights, he can help guide those having difficulty tuning into their inner psychic.

For more information on Uriel, check out these sites:

http://www.anewbelief.com/Angels/uriel.html
http://www.uriel.com/uriel/index.htm
http://www.shininglite.com/new_page_4.htm

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