Angels and Demons

Explanation: Gabriel appears three times in the Bible: to Daniel, to Zechariah (to announce John the Baptist) and to Mary (the Annunciation). His name means "God is my strength" in Hebrew. He is the only angel to hold a central role in all three monotheisms: Jibril in Islam also transmits the Quran to Muhammad in the cave of Hira.

Explanation: Michael ("who is like God" in Hebrew) is the warrior archangel par excellence. In Judaism he defends Israel, in Christianity he weighs souls at the Last Judgment, in Islam Mika'il takes care of rain and harvests. Mont Saint-Michel in France, his basilica on Mount Gargano in Italy: his cult has shaped entire geographies in Europe.

Explanation: The Quran insists on the fact that Iblis is a jinn, not a fallen angel (sura 18, verse 50). This nuance is essential: jinn have free will like humans, unlike angels who obey Allah by nature. Iblis refuses because he considers himself superior to Adam (he was created from fire, Adam from clay). He becomes Shaitan, the tempter, and obtains a reprieve until the Last Judgment.

Explanation: Raphael ("God heals" in Hebrew) accompanies Tobias under a false name to recover a debt, drive away the demon Asmodeus and cure the father's blindness. He is the only archangel to explicitly reveal himself at the end of his book. Patron of travelers and physicians, his name appears mainly in late books that Protestants do not recognize in their biblical canon.

Explanation: The seraphim cover their face with two wings, their feet with two others, and fly with the last two. Their name comes from "to burn" in Hebrew: they are the "fiery" angels, at the top of the celestial hierarchy codified by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite in the 5th century. A nine-rank hierarchy that medieval painting illustrated in abundance.

Explanation: "Lucifer" means "light-bearer": it is the Latin name of the planet Venus when it appears at dawn. The shift toward Satan comes from a Christian reading of Isaiah 14, which speaks of the fall of the "morning star", applied to the king of Babylon. Saint Jerome, in his Vulgate in the 4th century, translates the expression and fixes the name in the Latin tradition. An etymology that could surprise the Ancients: Venus rising at dawn.

Explanation: The cherubim are placed by God east of the Garden of Eden, accompanied by a flaming sword turning in every direction. Far from the chubby babies of Baroque art, biblical cherubim are formidable beings, often described as hybrids: bull, lion, eagle, man. The statues atop the Ark of the Covenant were also cherubim, with wings extended toward each other.

Explanation: "My name is Legion, for we are many", the possessed man answers Jesus according to Mark 5. A Roman "legion" had about 6,000 soldiers: a measure of the scale of the possession. The demons ask to enter a herd of pigs that immediately throws itself into the lake. A detail that amuses commentators: it is one of the very rare miracles of Jesus with collateral damage.

Explanation: Munkar and Nakir, described in several hadiths, come just after the burial to ask the dead three questions: who is your Lord? what is your religion? who is your prophet? The answers determine a first form of judgment, before the Last Day. The dead person hears the footsteps of the relatives leaving the cemetery: this very concrete detail has inspired a whole funerary literature in classical Arabic.

Explanation: Azrael or Izrail (in Arabic Malak al-Mawt, "the angel of death") is not explicitly named in the Quran, but his function is described there (sura 32, verse 11). His wings are said to be so vast that they cover the East and the West. Jewish tradition sometimes brings him close to the angel Samael, more ambiguous, who combines the function of death and temptation. The connection is not systematic.