ANGELS’ SUPERIORITY TO ONE ANOTHER

Angels have superiority to one another. The most superior angels are the four archangels. The first of them is Jabra’il (Gabrial) '’alaihi ’s-salam'. His duty was to bring wahi (revelation) to prophets, to inform them of the orders and prohibitions. The second one is Israfil (Israfel) '’alaihi ’s-salam', who will sound the last trump called ‘Sur’. He will sound the Sur twice. At the first sound every living being but Allahu ta’ala will die. At the second sound all will be resuscitated. The third one is Mika’il (Michael) '’alaihi ’s-salam'. It is his duty to make up cheapness, expensiveness, scarcity, abundance [economic order, to bring comfort and ease] and to move every object. The fourth one is ’Azra’il '’alaihi ’s-salam', who takes the souls [jan, Persian for Arabic ‘ruh’] of human beings. After these four, there are four superior classes of angels: four angels of hamalat al-’Arsh, who will be eight on the Resurrection; angels in Divine Presence, called muqarrabun; leaders of torturing angels, called karubiyun; and angels of Mercy, named ruhaniyun. All these higher angels are also higher than all human beings except prophets '’alaihimu ’s-salawatu wa ’t-taslimat'. The sulaha’ and Awliya’ [1] among Muslims are higher than common or lower angels. And common angels are superior to common, that is, disobedient, sinful Muslims.

GLOSSARY
[1] Awliya: (pl. of Wali) a person loved by Allahu ta’ala.