Questions tagged [malach-angel]
Relating to Angels in Judaism.
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Free will a prerequisite for punishment?
I read that the angel Metat was subjected to 60 pulsei de-nura (Aramaic: פולסא דנורא "lashes of fire"). I have been taught that angels do not have free will. Did this angel act from free will or did ...
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Does Maimonides Allow Prayer to Angels?
In his Mishna Commentary to Sanhedrin 10:1 Maimonides lists as his 5th principle the prohibition to pray to an angel even as an intermediary.
He counts this in his enumeration of his 13 principles in ...
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Scriptural evidence that angels have no free will
Judaism does not believe in the free will of angels. What is the scriptural evidence for that and since when has such belief been held within the Jewish community?
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How were Achiman, Sheshai and Talmai "Sons of Giants"?
In Bamidbar 13:22, the Torah tells us that the spies saw Achiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the sons of Giants. Rashi tells us they were the descendants of Shamchazai and Azael, angels who fell from heaven ...
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Is free will limited to humans?
Do other beings besides humans have free will? Perhaps animals have free will? What about angels?
Does the status of other types of beings' freedom of will affect us in any way?
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Tuesday and Friday nights
Bavli P'sachim 112:2 has a story of an angel of destruction who would work daily (see Rashash) until asked to quit. When she requested some time to work, the rabbi she was talking with allowed her ...
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What is the source for the tradition that the philtrum is formed by an angel before birth?
Physiological context: The philtrum is the dip or groove in the middle of the upper lip below the nose (link). It is a feature of most mammals, thought to draw water from the mouth to the nose to keep ...
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Sources for free will of angels
I want to define free-will for this question as a moral right and wrong decision, not an arbitrary decision or a true/false decision. I am familiar with sources that say that angels do not have free ...
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Earliest Sources To Avoid Pronouncing the Name 'Samael'
What are the earliest explicit sources that reference the practice of not pronouncing the name 'Samael'?
I ask since I have heard many people doing this. It is referenced here: http://www.yeshiva.org....
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What is wrong with asking the angels for a blessing in Shalom Aleichem?
In the artscroll zemiros book they mention that the Gra and Rav Emden either did not say or modified the shabbat song Shalom Aleichem because there is a stanza which requests that the angels bless us. ...
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Are Jews greater than angels?
In a spiritual sense which is greater - or if you prefer, has more kedusha - angels or Jews and why? Please explain and cite explicit sources, not inferences.
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Michoel/Gavriel Wrestling Yaakov
Although Rashi follows Chazal in identifying the angel which wrestled with Yaakov as the Sar (archangel) Shel Esav, the Yalkut Shimoni (132), Zohar Bo (51b), and the Pirkei D'Rav Elazar all identify ...
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Saying names of angels
I've heard you shouldn't say the names of angels, except for the four that surround us at night.
What's the source and reason for this? Is it halacha or kaballah?
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Angel in the womb for women?
The Talmud (Niddah 30b) teaches us that when a child is in the womb, an angel comes and teaches it the entire Torah, which he subsequently forgets.
The simple reading of the Gemara gives no reason to ...
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Why do the angels need a ladder?
We know the angels in Yaakov's dream go down and up a ladder but why do they need the ladder? Angels appear on earth and with Hashem throughout the Bible without a ladder.
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Why are there angels?
I understand that the translation of the Hebrew word מלאך means "messenger" and an angel is "G-d's messenger."
We see angels mentioned in various roles. Frequently, angels appear in dreams. Sometimes,...
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Go in Peace - why are we sending the Angels away
On Friday night we welcome the angels by singing Shalom Aleichem the question is why do we tell them:
צֵאתְכֶם לְשָׁלוֹם מַלְאֲכֵי הַשָּׁלוֹם מַלְאָכֵי עֶלְיוֹן
Essentially sending them away that ...
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Authenticity of Maggid Mesharim
The title says it all: what do various sources say regarding the authenticity of the Meggid Mesharim; a book supposedly containing angelic revelations to R. Joseph Karo. Did R. Karo really write it?
...
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Shalom Aleichem to angels?
The zemer "Shalom Aleichem" is obviously addressed to angels. The Tur (OC Siman 3) gives a short text to says before entering the bathroom: התכבדו מכובדים משרתי עליון, etc. (also obviously addressed ...
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Asking From Angels Borchuni Lshalom
Jews usaly do not ask angels for help as per the RAMBAM. He writes (in Sanhedrin, Perek 11) in the fifth Yesod ha'Emunah the prohibition against serving Avodah Zarah -- that not only should a person ...
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Why can we not say the names of certain angels aloud?
I have found in certain kabbalistic documents that contain names of angels there is an instruction not to say the names of those angels aloud - example with names in parenthesis. I realize we are not ...
user2110
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man is greater than an angel [duplicate]
I heard from someone, that man is greater than an angel. For an angel can never reach higher levels in spirituality, while man can. In addition, man struggles with his evil inclination and an angel ...
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Rabbi Nosson Finkel and angels
I read in Something To Say on page 31, the following:
Rabbi Nosson Finkel of Slobodkah once chided a student for being chronically late to the morning prayers
"Rebbi," the student defended himself, "...
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Why are angelic icons not prominent in Judaism?
I learned that the song Shalom Aleichem is all about welcoming the Shabbat angels, and clearly angels are celebrated in Judaism. However I've noticed that images of angels are not very widespread in ...
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Why did the angel overturning Sodom visit Abraham?
Someone in my synagogue asked today as follows:
Rashi notes (Vayera 18:2, q.v.) that three angels visited Avraham's tent: one was assigned to inform Sara [of her impending pregnancy], one to overturn ...
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Magid Mesharim: How is it that the angel knew Aramaic?
There is a book called "magid mesharim" written by Maran Bet Yosef in Aramaic through the exact words of an angel. My issue with this is that we learned from some Gemaras (Shabbat 12b is one) that ...
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What is the need for angels?
Why did G-d create angels to assign them specific tasks (Bava Metzia 86b)? Since G-d is omnipotent, what is the need for angels -- why doesn't He perform these tasks directly?
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Why did Hashem allow the angel fight with Yaakov?
Why did Hashem allow the angel to even fight with Yaakov in the first place?
Boby
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What do Jews think angels look like?
I'm a Christian and I've seen and been constantly exposed to our common view of angels. That said I like Matisyahu who draws from a different culture based in Judaism rather than Christianity. In his ...
user2566
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How to define the Malach YHVH
The Malach YHVH is mentioned many times, but what is or who is this being exactly? How should one define: Malach YHVH?
It's the Malach YHVH that is talking to Hagar, but after the whole event she ...
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How can angels "give permission" to each other?
As I understood it, angels have no free will and strictly do those things G-d instructs them to do. But in the brachas preceding krias Shema, we say that the angels "all accept upon themselves the ...
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HaMalach HaGoel Osi
Why does Yakov ask the malach (angel) (actually it sounds more like a statement of fact - "he will...") who protected him from evil to bless Ephraim and Menashe? Also, do we find that this actually ...
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If the nations' ministers are all appointed by Hashem, why is it idol worship? [closed]
I apologize if this is a stupid question, but I was pondering it today and I hope you will find it as interesting as I do. Every Rabbinic opinion I've seen, although there are plenty I haven't of ...
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Why was it specifically Gavriel who is Hashem’s messenger to guide events?
Among all of the Malachim, Gavriel seems disproportionately involved in human events:
He was responsible for saving Chananiah, Mishael, and Azariah from the fiery furnace (Berachos 4b, Pesachim 118a-...
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Names of angels
There is a pretty well known point made in the Talmud Yerushalmi Rosh Hashana 1:2
stating that the names we are accustomed to calling the months of our lunar calendar came up with those returning from ...
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Kiddush cup with the name of angels engraved on the inside
I just bought an antique kiddush cup in Yerushalayim with names of the angels written all throughout the inside on the whole length of the kiddush cup (in several columns around the cup). The store ...
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Arabic and Angels
The angels in Heaven are said to not be able to understand Aramaic because it represents a deviation from the Hebrew language. My question is: Do they understand the Arabic language (as is very close ...
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Getting dressed in the bathroom
I heard an interesting, but confusing, chumrah observed by Rabbi Pesach Levi of Lakewood. He said one should get dressed in one's bathroom because one should not appear naked in front of one's ...
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Why does Rashi say Avraham thought the angels were wayfarers?
Rashi on Breishis 18:16
And the men arose from there, and they looked upon Sodom, and Abraham went with them to escort them,
says
to escort them: Heb. לְשַׁלְּחָם, to escort them. He thought ...
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What angels have vanished after fulfilling their tasks?
I've read in various threads here that once an angel has fulfilled his task he vanishes.
I'm very interested in stories where this happens. What are some examples of stories where angels have ...
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Eisav's angel fought Yaakov. Why Eisav's angel and not Gavriel?
I saw this dvar torah in a forum.
"וַיֵּאָבֵק אִישׁ עִמּוֹ" (לב/כה) פירש רש"י ז"ל : "הוא שרו של עשיו"
שואלים: בפסוק הנאמר על יוסף "וַיִּמְצָאֵהוּ אִישׁ וְהִנֵּה ...
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Why "מלאכי השרת" in only the first stanza of "Shalom Alechem"?
The first stanza of the popular Friday-night song "שלום עליכם" calls angels "מלאכי השלום מלאכי השרת מלאכי עליון" (or, in other versions, just "מלאכי השרת מלאכי עליון"). The other stanzas call them ...
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Yaakov asking for the angel's name
After struggling with the angel Yaakov wanted to know what the angel's name was (Bereishit 32:30):
וַיִּשְׁאַל יַעֲקֹב, וַיֹּאמֶר הַגִּידָה-נָּא שְׁמֶךָ, וַיֹּאמֶר,
לָמָּה זֶּה תִּשְׁאַל לִשְׁמִי; ...
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Do angels speak to the Jewish people today?
The torah talks about people encountering angels -- celestial creations by Hashem like Gavriel and others. (For example, Avraham, Yaakov, and Moshe encounter these beings.) And in the Talmud and ...
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Why did the angels not go straight to S'dom?
It says in Bereishis 18,16 “and the men arose from there and they looked upon S’dom, and Avraham went with them to escort them”. This is followed by several posukim dealing with the dialogue between ...
user4523
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10 types of angels
In Hilchot Yesodei Hatorah 2:7 Rambam says:
שִׁנּוּי שְׁמוֹת הַמַּלְאָכִים עַל שֵׁם מַעֲלָתָם הוּא. וּלְפִיכָךְ נִקְרָאִים חַיּוֹת הַקֹּדֶשׁ וְהֵם לְמַעְלָה מִן הַכּל וְאוֹפַנִּים וְאֶרְאֶלִּים ...
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Why does Yaakov say, "ראיתי אלוקים פנים אל פנים"?
In Bereishit 32:31, Yaakov says, "ראיתי אלוקים פנים אל–פנים" after his encounter with the angel. Most commentators, such as Rashi, interpret that when Yaakov says this, he really meant "I have seen [...
user5540
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Source for exclusively learning/seeking Torah from someone whose face is glowing like an angel?
I remember several times coming across a text that asked something along the lines of:
"Who should one seek/learn Torah from?"
or
"How does one know whether to seek/learn Torah from a certain Rabbi?"
...
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Does a killer with permission lose his צלם אלקים?
Haamek Davar (ad loc.) explains that צלם אלקים (in Genesis 1:26–27) refers to an angel, also called a person's מזל, which envelops each of us and protects him from harm. He (to 4:14) explains further ...
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