An
angel prominent in
Islamic lore, though not named in the
Koran. The name
Israfil means "the burning one." Israfil serves as the angel of
resurrection who blows the
trumpet on
Judgment Day - to bring of his own demise, for he and other angels supposedly will be destroyed in the universal conflagration that will be unleashed.
According to
lore,
Israfil served as a companion to the prophet
Muhammad for three years before being succeeded by
Gabriel.
A well-known Islamic story says that
Allah dispatched
Michael,
Gabriel,
Israfil and
Azrael to the four corners of the earth, to get seven handfuls of
dust for the creation of
Adam. However only
Azrael, the
Angel of Death, was able to accomplish this.
source for additional reading/information:
Davidson, Gustav. A Dictionary of Angels. New York: The Free Press, 1967.