Shamsiel

For the Angel in Neon Genesis Evangelion, see Angel (Neon Genesis Evangelion) § Shamshel.

Shamsiel (Hebrew and Aramaic: שִׁמְשִׁיאֵל Šīmšīʾēl, "God is my sun" Greek: Σεμσιήλ Semsiḗl), also spelled Samsâpêêl, Shamshel, Shashiel or Shamshiel, was the 16th Watcher of the 20 leaders of the 200 fallen angels that are mentioned in the Book of Enoch. The name means "God is my sun",[1] which is fitting since it has been said that Shamsiel taught men the signs of the sun[2] during the days of Jared or Yered. Shamash (the Babylonian sun god) may share some mythological basis with Shamsiel.[1]

Shamsiel is said to lead 365 legions of lesser angels in the Zohar and it is said that he was assigned by God to guard the Garden of Eden after Adam and Eve were expelled; comparable to cherubim. There is apparently some disagreement in sources as to whether Shamsiel is a fallen angel; he is still regarded as the ruler of the 4th Heaven.[3]

  1. ^ a b The Ethiopic Book Of Enoch., Knibb, Michael A., Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1978, repr. 1982.
  2. ^ Rosemary Guiley The Encyclopedia of Demons and Demonology Infobase Publishing, 2009 ISBN 9781438131917 p. 233
  3. ^ "Shamshiel". raziel.secondfoundation.org. Archived from the original on 21 September 2005. Retrieved 13 January 2022.