Ariel (also Arael, Ariael) :
Angel whose name means "
lion of
God." Ariel appears in biblical, apocryphal,
Gnostic,
Coptic and
occult literature in a variety of guises, both
angel and
demon.
The
apocryphal book of
Ezra calls
Ariel an angel. In the
Old Testament, the book of
Isiah refers to Ariel as an
altar,
man and
city. This was echoed by the
Renaissance occultist Henry Cornelius Agrippa von Nettesheim, who referred to Ariel as a
demon,
angel or
city. In
Hebrew lore, Ariel is a name for
Jerusalem, and in kabbalistic
lore it is the name of a virtue. Ariel is ranked among the seven princes by Thomas Heywood in
The Hierarchy of the Blessed Angels. In the Coptic
Pistis Sophia, Ariel rules the
lower world, and in
Gnosticism he is associated with the creator god Ialdabaoth. In ceremonial
magical texts,
Ariel is described as a lion-headed
angel.
Shakespeare named a
fairy Ariel in
The Tempest. Ariel also figures in
Gaelic prayers of protection for the home and
earth.
source for additional reading/information:
Davidson, Gustav. A Dictionary of Angels. New York: The Free Press, 1967.