World of angels

The equivalent for evil and negative beings, according to religious tradition, are certainly angels or „meleci“. The theological idea of ​​good spiritual creatures indisputably existed long before Zarathustra, the originator of monotheism, but what we know today as angels is the final product of the mind of that great prophet. Amshaspandan or Amesha Spentas in the religion of Zarathustra represent the great angels, what is known in Christianity as archangels. There are seven of them, which is the sacred number of Zoroastrianism or Mazdaism, and they belong to the divine accompaniment of the Supreme God. Amesha Spentas, also called the Immortal Benefactors, are God’s helpers, in fact the connection of Ahura Mazda with the material world. Among them are 4 male and 3 female angels. Of these seven, Arashtat or Asha Vahishta stands out, which in translation means truth and justice, and is in charge of maintaining the physical and moral order on Earth and is the embodiment of the best truth and justice. The most prominent is the male Amesha Spentas and the main rival to the demon world. The second month in the Persian calendar is dedicated to him. His eternal opponents are the demons of lies, among whom the most dominant is the evil demon Indra.

When the Jews created Judaism, they incorporated into their faith many segments of the ancient Egyptian and Persian religions, including Amesha Spentas, whose monotheism deprived them of sexuality and real names, but retained the wings and human form and virtues that adorned them.

According to Zarathustra's preaching, every man has his guardian angel known as Faravashis or Arda Fravash, who follows and helps him. Zarathustra himself announced that he had received an express command from God to call on Faravashis for help whenever he needed it. That is why he told the people to follow his example.


Angels and children

Islam describes angels as human-like beings with two, four and sometimes more wings. It is claimed that each individual has with him four angels, who tirelessly record his good and bad deeds. They are called Kiramen kitabin or "hafeza meleci". From this group two angels record during the day, and the other two record during the night all man's movements and actions as well as words. Also, there are angels who dwell in paradise and their leader is called Ridvan, and there are also those who visit hell itself, whose fire cannot harm them. They are called Zebeniye as a group and there are 19 of them in total, their leader is named Malik.

Contrary to the above-mentioned Arab belief, Bosniaks, under the influence of former Arian Christianity, believe that each man has only two angels: one sits on his right shoulder and the other on his left shoulder. The one on the right shoulder writes his good deeds while the one on the left writes his evil deeds. Also, according to popular belief, angels protect man and defend him from all evil, especially injustice. The folk song tells how the father threw the innocent accused daughter down the tower three times to see if she was guilty or not:


He took Tidža by her white hand,
So he throws her down the tall tower,
Hatidža was guarded by angels,
She broke neither her legs nor her arms.


Bosnian:

Uze Tidžu za bijelu ruku,
Pa je baca niz visoku kulu,
Hatidžu su meleći čuvali,
Ne slomila ni noge, ni ruke.


In Islamic tradition, angels are believed to leave that house where there are dogs or cats. Although it is generally believed that the cause is impurity, the real reason is probably hidden in the pre-Islamic or primarily Egyptian worship of the goddess Bast, depicted with a cat's head, and Anubis, the dog-headed god. With this ban, Islam wanted to suppress pagan characteristics among the Arab peoples in every segment.

The Bosniak people claim that angels accompany people throughout their lives, literally from birth to death. Folklore says that no child wants to come out of the mother's womb, until the angels give him a "senet", or a written guarantee, that he will never die. However, as soon as the child leaves the mother, they snatch the "senet" from his hands and that is why he cries inconsolably at birth.

According to the saying, every little child is like an angel. However, he loses this lovely quality as soon as he speaks, because in addition to beautiful words, he is also able to say ugly ones. Also, while they are very small, and in their privileged position, small babies are supposed to be able to see angels so they know how to smile at them. The connection with the angels is not lost until the onset of puberty, during which time they faithfully protect and guard them, especially in the event of a fall or other accident.


Angel of death

While in the Christian tradition the most famous angels are Gabriel and Michael, in Islam the most mentioned are Jibril, which is the Arabic name for Gabriel, and the angel of death Azrail. It is also interesting to say that in the foundations of the Islamic belief, by which an individual confirms that he is a Muslim, immediately after believing in one God, comes another belief that says: I believe in the angels of God.

Traditionally, the Bosniak people are prone to fatalism, as evidenced by the following legend about how one night an angel Azrail came to a man to take his soul. The poor man was terrified of dying and death, so he cried and begged Azrail on his knees to let him escape and continue to live. The angel allowed him to do so and he rushed outside, rode his horse and hurried across the meadow towards the forest and further in the direction of the hill. The frightened man rode for almost an hour, constantly turning back, afraid that Azrail would follow him. At some point of joy and inattention, as he escaped death, at the bend of the old road his horse crashed down a sharp slope. As he was losing consciousness and dying, the angel Azrail appeared before him and said to him, "Behold, man, here God has ordained you to die, in this very place. Now you see that death cannot be escaped, it awaits you in a place that you are destined ".

Probably in some connection with this tradition, at least because of the horse, is the popular belief that the angel Azrail appears in a dream as a white horse and with his appearance hints at the death of a loved one.

Following the example of Zarathustra's seven archangels, who are in constant confrontation with demons, this eternal struggle between good and evil is also reflected in Bosnian traditions. Through it, our people in a poetic way evoked and approached their understanding of the natural phenomena with which they have been surrounded since the beginning.

Namely, folklore claims that there are two angels, the first of which is blind and the second deaf. Allah sends them every time to drive away clouds and storms where He wants to punish people for some sin. But if one who is not deaf hears the sound of the call to prayer (Azan), he will immediately direct the clouds to the opposite side of that place, and thus save him from the weather. It is also said that in this plan the devil (shaitan) wants to stop him, so a fight breaks out between the two of them. When an angel swings his sword at the devil, then, according to legend, lightning strikes the sky.

At the end of the first part of the text about angels, it would be worth mentioning another Bosnian belief that says the following: whoever sleeps on his back all night is guarded by an angel, and whoever sleeps on his stomach is surrounded by devils.

According to Romanian belief, angels have a human body with wings, and they can rarely be seen. But, regardless of that, the angel is a faithful companion of a man, who persistently follows him, except in one case, namely, when he enters the tavern, the angel will not enter after him, but stands on the threshold and waits for him. Likewise, it is argued that no one should be threatened with a knife in anger, as the angel is three steps away from the man.

Just like the Bosniak peoples, Romanians have the highest beliefs about the connection between angels and children. As soon as a child is born God immediately sends a guardian angel to see him. But an angel will not come home if he finds salt on the window, or closed windows, or people standing next to them and listening curiously.

His true mission begins immediately after the child's baptism, when he becomes a Christian, in order to enjoy all the benefits of God's protection. Then the angel approaches the child and usually does not separate from him until death. All the time the angel is on his right side or sitting on his right shoulder, while the devil is positioned on his left side or on his left shoulder. That is why Romanians believe that left-handed people, those who do everything with their left hand, are devils.

Also, it is believed that those children who die immediately after baptism, and sometimes even those who have not reached the age of seven, do not have any sins, so after death they turn into angels. They remain with God by serving Him or praying for the souls of their parents. When their parents die, and by some chance end up in hell, then these angels descend to the underworld and, waving their wings, create the wind, to cool the fire of hell and ease their parents torment.


Masters of karma

Based on everything said in the first part, and this introduction to the lecture on angels, it is quite easy to conclude that every human being is born without sin, he is pure and innocent, just like the angels themselves. But through growing up and living, his ignorance and irrational deeds make him susceptible to evil and put his soul to the test.

Nevertheless, each individual has his guardian angel, who is spiritually responsible for his own destiny, that is, he bears full responsibility for the life of his protégé. In this way it is clearly stated that no guardian angel is superior to another angel, nor does he have the right to rule over him, that is, to interfere. The responsibility is individual. It is from this rule that independence in carrying out the mission of the guardian angel derives. Since the guardian angel is our protector and guide, he will never harm us, since, according to secret teachings, he was ordained by the Masters of Karma, spiritual teachers who deal with incarnations, and they themselves are subordinate to God, or even according to some interpretations, represent him.

Namely, man lives on Earth in order to develop spiritually. He is born and dies in order to be reborn. Each new reincarnation is a test he undergoes in order to eventually complete that spiritual path. Likewise, every teaching requires a teacher and this is where we come to the need for a guardian angel, who communicates with us, when he thinks it is necessary, through what we know as the voice of intuition and sometimes through dreams. The need for a guardian is quite logical if we take into account the fact that man has in himself an immortal part, which is called the soul or Higher Self, and which survives through transformation, and that mortal, perishable part or Lower Self. The role of the guardian angel is also to maintain harmony between these two opposites with his guidance and vigilance.


Light for the guardian angel

As the ancestor of monotheism Zarathustra taught, every man has his guardian angel, whom he should turn to for help whenever he needs it. Certainly, Zarathustra did not say that for no reason, because that invisible sweet being can really help us many times; to defend us from evil people, to distract us from bad judgments and intentions, to give us peace and love, to ease the pain, to provide us with the answers... However, you must know that we too can help our guardian angel, empower him, and give him spiritual light. To have a closer relationship with him, we should always pray for our angel, because he is our guardian, counselor and a friend. You do not need any special words or prayers for that, but to pray as your soul desires. It is often enough to say, "Guardian Angel, help me both day and night!"

However, in order to strengthen him, and thus provide ourselves with strong spiritual protection, especially in the bad phases of life, we need to do this simple ritual. For this ritual we need an unused glass, a new white candle and mineral or filtered water. Light a candle somewhere safe and preferably high, such as on a cupboard. Secure it by shedding three drops of another lighted candle and placing this one for the Guardian Angel on them, so that it can be glued to the surface on which it stands. Place a glass of water next to the candle on the right.

Say Our Father three times, and then this:

"My God, I offer you this prayer and the light of this candle, as a spiritual power and as a spiritual light for my Guardian Angel. Accept now, my God, this offer and allow my Guardian Angel to be empowered and enlightened, so that he can more easily protect, defend and guide me through life here on Earth!"

The next day, make the sign of the cross with your right hand in front of the glass on the ground and then pour it into the river or sink. If you pour into the sink, you must first let the tap water flow and then pour out the glass. The effect of this ritual lasts for seven days and can be repeated if you think that you need it, or if you still need strong protection.

In addition to your protector, you can light a candle for the guardian angel of another person with whom you are not on good terms. Namely, when someone is angry with you or you are angry with your partner, or someone directs hatred, anger, resentment, or any kind of negative energy, turn to an invisible protector for help. To calm the eruption of evil thoughts and passions, light a white candle for that person's guardian angel and say this:

"To the guardian angel of NN (say name and surname) calm the hatred, anger and resentment of your protégé so that he does not harm me and does not torment me with his bitter emotions, typical of human weakness. I do not know the cause of his resentment and anger towards me. Maybe jealousy is the main reason for that? But whatever the reason may be, which is unknown to me, it is clear that he / she is trying to release his / her emotional tension against me; you, who are his guardian angel, help him to overcome this acute crisis, this negative crisis; nervous tension, mental weakness, antipathy, or unreasonable anger. Calm him down, show him that I am the person who wishes him well, who loves him, and want us to be good friends because I need him. To the Guardian Angel and my friend N.N., accept this candle that I graciously offer you as proof of my security and devotion. May he, when confronted with me, do so with kindness, respect, love, and empathy, so that in a friendly way we may jointly accomplish our goals, without hurting each other. Let it be so. "

This concludes the prayer, and do not extinguish the candle, but let it burn to the end on its own. After that, throw the rest down the river. Before each described ritual, you must take a shower beforehand, so that your body is clean.

And finally, this should be said: believe in angels because angels are around us.


autor: Raif Esmerović