Title: 
Who is Azrael the Angel of Death?

Word Count:
414

Summary:
Muslims have learned about famous Islamic figures, the Quran, hadith, history and even that of other religions but few delve into the figures of heaven and hell. To misunderstand what lies in the next world is to misunderstand our place in this one. The Angel of Death will come to us all and each must know how we will be marked.


Keywords:



Article Body:
Azrael, also know as Iza’il, is one of four Archangels in the Islamic tradition. Azrael is the Angel of Death who forever writing in a large book and forever erasing what he writes: what he writes is the birth of man, what he erases is the name of the man at death." He records the names of each human and then erases them at the time of their death. The book is that of the living and since each person dies and a century is short when compared to the history of the world it appears as though Azrael is continuously writing and erasing names. 

It is believed that Azrael is a gigantic angel that is so large that one foot rests in either the forth or seventh heaven and the other on the bridge that runs between heaven and hell. Christians assume that the angels are all human like creatures with soft features and beautiful wings. This is not always true. Despite Azrael’s size he also has four faces and four thousand wings. His entire body consists of eyes and tongues. Each eye and each tongue corresponds to the amount of people living on the Earth. 

Azrael also has a personality that may astound people. He is a very patient creature, meticulous in his work, soft in his demeanor and work. It is said that many of the other angels didn’t know him that well because he was so unobtrusive. It is believed that Azrael was very kind and gentle to others. Even while bringing death to humans he treats them with kindness. 

Within Azrael’s list are the names of the damned which he circles and black. The names of the blessed are circled in light. When the day of death comes a name from a tree with the persons name on it falls from the tree beneath God’s thrown. After 40 days Azrael must sever the individual’s soul from their body. He will then accompany that soul to heave or hell. After all of the humans are dead than Azrael will pass away as well. 

The angel Azrael lives and dies like many of us. God will have him die when his work is done and mankind has their rightful place in heave or hell. Azrael, despite his morbid job, is one of the most noble Angels. He belongs to a class of a total of seven total Archangels. Other leader angels include Michael (Angel of Weather),