mercy
The Seven Angels Of The Planetary Week
If you are reading this, you are probably familiar with the idea that the angelic realm watches over us. Angels are divine beings who constantly protect, guide, and support humanity.
Each of us has a guardian angel assigned to us at birth, who remains by our side throughout our lives, providing constant protection and guidance.
While guardian angels have a more intimate and personal role in our lives, archangels oversee broader aspects of our existence and can provide specialized support, guidance, and assistance. For example, Michael offers protection, Raphael provides healing, and Gabriel helps us communicate.
It is often assumed that archangels are a purely Christian concept, when in fact they are deeply rooted in various religious, mystical, and cultural traditions. Our modern knowledge of the archangels can be traced back through a complex interplay of mythology, theology, and mysticism across many civilizations and time periods.
Early accounts of such powerful celestial beings can be found, for example, in the mythologies of Mesopotamia and Canaan. These cultures had divine messengers who can be seen as precursors to the concept of archangels. One of the clearest early influences on the development of archangelic figures can be found in Zoroastrianism. The Amesha Spentas, or “Holy Immortals,” are divine beings who serve Ahura Mazda, the Supreme God. These beings resemble later archangelic figures in their roles and attributes.
What is also not commonly known about the archangels is that each day of the week is traditionally associated with a specific angel. This tradition is rooted in a fascinating blend of ancient astronomy, mythology, and religious mysticism, including Kabbalistic teachings, Christian mysticism, and angelology. It is the result of associating the days of the week with the seven classical planets, which in turn are traditionally associated with seven archangels.
The Fierce Journey To The Heart Of The Goddess
There are many divine beings around us throughout our lifetime. When I do a reading, a variety of angels, spirit guides, ascended masters, and goddess archetypes may show up to lend their wisdom, love, and guidance to my clients, for whatever situation they are going through.
Not only do we have guardian angels constantly with us, but we also have various ‘inner band’ and ‘outer band’ spirit guides who interchange through different periods and cycles in our lifetime. We also have deities or higher-level beings with us during certain times.
Recently I have had many encounters with the goddess Kuan Yinin during readings. She is the Buddhist bodhisattva associated with compassion and was first known as the ‘goddess of mercy’ among Jesuit missionaries in China. Guanyin, Guan Yin or Kuan Yin, is short for Kuan-shi Yin, meaning she who ‘observes the cries of humanity.’
She is a popular goddess in Chinese folk religion and worshipped in many communities and cultures all over the world. In the mid-17th century outlawed Christians in Japan created statues of the Catholic Virgin Mary disguised as Kuan Yin, known as the ‘Maria Kannon.’
I have always associated her with compassion, kindness, and forgiveness, but I was recently reminded that Kuan Yin rides a dragon! This makes a lot of sense to me, now that I have examined her legend more closely.
Kuan Yin is teaching us by example. To arrive at a place of compassion and kindness, we must first piece through some uncomfortable feelings of anger, sadness, and fear, to arrive at the ‘heart of the goddess.’ Kuan Yin rides her dragon of fierce bravery through stormy waters and scorching fires. She follows through with the journey to a place of completion and does not avoid the challenges that confront her along the way.