[meta] witches, beasts, Azazel, and the Book of Enoch: canon supernatural style

[vanitashaze]

1. Brace yourselves, guys. The wheel has turned*; thanks to general not-scariness and an interesting pairing that isn't incestuous, I am in the thrall of a new fandom. And I never would have guessed which one, because Supernatural, seriously? I tell you, I love Dean, but it's all about Castiel for me. Without the angels the show was, mostly, very claustrophobic in scope. Broad in mythology, but in terms of narrators, it was all Hunters, and they're apparently not a very diverse group, in terms of background, life experiences, advocation, world-view, or even - let's face it - race or gender. But with Cas, I have an inhuman entity that's possibly been around longer than time itself, who sees time, who doesn't understand humans - but is working on it - who drank wine to celebrate the Christ child's birth. (Yes, this is totally canon for me!) I mean, guys, come on. I have centuries of history to play around with, not to mention theology and all the issues it brings up, the ones that start arguments at my family's holidays once the schnapps start going around: free will, destiny, the nature of God, the nature of existence, etc., etc. Yay.

Which brings me to the point of this whole thing. Lately I've been reading - okay, sometimes skimming - a lot of religious texts, and look what I found in the Book of Enoch. (It's non-canonical, but considered to be canon by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, so that's something! It's not as if I'm viewing this from a historical or even theological perspective, so it doesn't particularly matter; at least with what I'm doing with it, it's all literature.)

"And all the others together with them took unto themselves wives, and each chose for himself one, and they began to go in unto them and to defile themselves with them, and they taught them charms and enchantments, and the cutting of roots, and made them acquainted with plants... And Azâzêl taught men to make swords, and knives, and shields, and breastplates, and made known to them the metals of the earth and the art of working them, and bracelets, and ornaments, and the use of antimony, and the beautifying of the eyelids, and all kinds of costly stones, and all coloring tinctures. And there arose much godlessness, and they committed fornication, and they were led astray, and became corrupt in all their ways. Semjâzâ taught enchantments, and root-cuttings, 'Armârôs the resolving of enchantments, Barâqîjâl (taught) astrology, Kôkabêl the constellations, Êzêqêêl the knowledge of the clouds, Araqiêl the signs of the earth, Shamsiêl the signs of the sun, and Sariêl the course of the moon." - Book of Enoch, Chapter VI

So angels created the witches, did they? The ones who were taught "charms and enchantments, and the cutting of roots", and "were made... acquainted with plants." Not to mention the other nasty beasties, not mentioned above, the giants, "who consumed all the acquisitions of men. And when men could no sustain them, the giants turned against them and devoured mankind. And they began to sin against the birds, and beasts, and reptiles, and fish, and to devour one another's flesh, and drink the blood."

Reads like an Abominable Snowman article in The Enquirer, don't it? But the potential amount of stuff the angels have fucked up, then and since, is wonderful in a really horrible kind of way.

2. And in other news, I was denied admission to my Early Decision school. Fuck.


*And I know this because I'm reading the fucking Canterbury Tales and thinking, Oh, "Knight's Tale", that's totally about Dean, Sam, and Ruby! A horse fell on Sam! Ha! Except for the fact that it doesn't have anything to do with them, and the analogy really doesn't make sense after all.

Comments

[aestheticized.livejournal.com]

Can I just say that you are ridiculously smart and talented, so I am MASSIVELY confused why ANY school would deny you admission, um, ever. Seriously.

in case you're wondering: with this icon I refer to younger myself.

[vanitashaze.livejournal.com]

Aw, thank you! That's so sweet. Yeah, I promise I put up a good front online, but I haven't always been such a great intellectual in real life. Or, rather, I love learning and books and making connections, but I as an underclassman I was a teacher's worst nightmare: smart enough to be interesting but completely lacking in discipline, punctuality, the ability to not fall asleep in class, etc. Of course, that's all changed now. Mostly.

It's those nasty little buggers called CONSEQUENCES, isn't it? Of the "...to one's actions as a teenager" breed. (Personally, I can't stand them. Hit 'em with a stick every time I find some.)

[rogueslayer452.livejournal.com]

01. You and I must have the same brain because I've been doing exactly the same thing as you're doing with getting more into the theological aspect of Supernatural and researching more on the subject.

I loved the show before, but I am happy they expanded their own mythology into the angels storyline and integrating the Heaven/Hell/Apocalypse into the bigger arc of the entire plot of the show because, like you said, most of what we had was pretty one-sided with the Winchesters and not so much with other hunters in the hunting community, and it was getting claustrophobic with just dealing with the demons and Sam's big destiny which, we knew, but didn't have specifics for. Besides, how can you have demons and Hell and not angels and Heaven? They're both sides of the same coin. Thus, I am very ecstatically happy that they went in the direction of adding it to the arc -- otherwise it would have been the same-old demon hunts with nothing behind it.

I really need to check out the Book of Enoch, and have been meaning to. Mostly I've been reading up on the Book of Revelation, not just the text itself but reading up on different interpretations of the book, study guides, what it means in the theological sense, etc.

But the potential amount of stuff the angels have fucked up, then and since, is wonderful in a really horrible kind of way.

It really is. Really makes one rethink what they normally thought of the images of angels, they're not entirely fluffy cherubs. Which is something I really appreciate the show doing, not presenting angels as kind-hearted white-robed creatures with halos, but as badass motherfuckers who are scary as fuck and have just as many screwed up notions as anyone else. Which is one of the reasons why I am so fascinated by it all.

02. Oh, I'm so sorry. :((

may I just say, I LOL'd at your icon in a massive fashion. [p1]

[vanitashaze.livejournal.com]

Ah, the brain-sharing theory is well-established, is it not? Otherwise neither of us would be half as insane as we are*.

I highly recommend Enoch. It's very mythically inclined, with less of a theological and more of a narrative folklore bend than the majority of the canon, but absolutely stuffed with things that could easily be supernaturally useful, and of course a great deal of it does deal with the angels, both their early dealings on earth and their subsequent falls. And, yeah, screwed-up angels for the win. If there's one trend I really, really hate in fandom, it's the woobiefication of Castiel. He's adorable, I get it, and innocent in many ways, but he's also a SOLDIER of the LORD, and possibly older than time, certainly older than humans and civilization, and as you say, one badass motherfucker. Like Spock. He's experiencing severe culture shock, he doesn't pick up on a lot of the nuances, and his ways are strange to us - not to mention emotion and emotional reaction doesn't translate perfectly cross-species; my canon is that Castiel does feel, intensely so, but differently than homo sapiens, and I think Anna spent so much time among humans emoting and expressing that emotion in human ways that she forgot there was any other way to feel - but that doesn't make him an idiot or a child or, my god, lesser than humans. I fully maintain that for Castiel, feeling humanly is no better or worse than feeling angelically: like empathy vs. rationality, or any opposing schools of moral thought, they both emphasize different things and fall short in others. Like, I think angels could use some help looking at the little stuff and humans need help seeing the big picture*. The best would be a combination of both, right? A blend of human and angelic feeling, like the type that Anna has, that (I think) Castiel is beginning to develop.

may I just say, I LOL'd at your icon in a massive fashion. [p2]

[vanitashaze.livejournal.com]

*Which really all comes down to the different species' temporal experiences - humans live linearly and biologically/psychologically separate from their fellows and so would be naturally predisposed to view things from a smaller, more individualistic way, while I think angels at their purest think of themselves sort of like bees do - individuals, yes, but also individual components of a greater organism. Angel radio, you know? Not aural but psychic, and heavily intertwined with their psychological state. We've already seen that the angels place a huge emphasis on not standing out, on inter-group assimilation, and it's no wonder, communal creatures as they are. Bees and termites lose all semblance of intelligence when taken away from their hive / nests; even if they're kept in the best of care, prairie dogs will die in solitary confinement, actually need those massive amounts of physical interaction to survive. Something tells me angels don't do too well on their own, either. I mean, every angel we've seen so far who's gone off on their own has either been made to forget their angelic existence (Anna) or is absolutely off their rocker (Gabriel, Lucifer, etc.), even from the angelic point of view. It must be a huge psychological shock to be suddenly deprived of that closeness. Poor Castiel - with his diminished abilities, I bet the angel radio is diminishing as well; it's amazing that he's not more confused, disoriented, and puzzled than he already is. Really, no wonder he's started to interact with humans to the degree which he has, this season: it's a subtle defense mechanism, a placebo, just like (I'll bet) some of his motivation to find God. The angels have been kicked out; he's looking for something bigger, a communal organism, to be part of. Connections beyond his own limited body, which (it's implied) doesn't even have Jimmy's consciousness in it to keep him company anymore. I mean, Jimmy must have been angry, upset, confused, and in pain ("It's like riding a comet", or whatever) for much of their acquaintance, but at least it was better than that huge, aching silence which he's experiencing, and I think, to his horror, is realizing that this is what it's like for humans all the time. We don't know anything better. That might be one reason why fallen angels turn human - for protection, yes, so that the demons (or humans) can't get any information, but also I think for mercy. They make them forget so they won't go insane. Only, it doesn't seem to be working lately (viz: Anna; I can hardly believe that she's the only angel to fall in the last 2000 years). Maybe because of the physical proximity of the angels? I don't think it would matter for an angel but biologically human as she was, it might have.

Wow. Insanely long brain-thread is long. But to sum it up: YAY SUPERNATURAL.


*And yes, that was a bad joke. Very, very bad joke.

Re: may I just say, I LOL'd at your icon in a massive fashion. [p2]

[rogueslayer452.livejournal.com]

while I think angels at their purest think of themselves sort of like bees do - individuals, yes, but also individual components of a greater organism. Angel radio, you know? Not aural but psychic, and heavily intertwined with their psychological state.

Which makes the angels so interesting, because they aren't like demons or what we've seen of demons on the show; they have this hive-like familial kind of way of existing, which is fascinating to watch and see how everything is unraveling as their entire hive is falling apart, unaware of where to go and what to do and who to trust and believe and whatnot. And with Castiel, who is perhaps the ONLY angel who hasn't gone off the reservation in wanting to escape, to forget, or just to simply say "fuck it I'm tired of this shit" (i.e. like Raphael and Gabriel, who are fierce archangels that just had enough, which is very devastating in and of itself because, well, they're archangels for crying out loud! Heaven's fiercest weapons, if those weapons are giving up...what's left?) Also, Castiel has the help and trust of Dean, which to me says a lot because without Dean and his strong faith in God (which to me seems like many of the angels have lost), he would have gone down those same roads as his brothers as well.

This is where the fucked up family in Heaven comes in, and where I believe Castiel is probably the only one that can repair his family back together. At least, that's my own fannish speculation because, from evidence, Castiel has more strength in his faith and hope than freaking archangels, and he's understanding humanity on a personal level (and he hasn't fallen or given up his grace, bringing back that balance between both sides of the war) it's a sign of something more, I think. His destiny intertwined with the Winchesters, and why I think he's been brought back. To place that balance again between his family in Heaven as Dean will do on Earth.

Oh, and this is why I parallel the angels to Cylons from BSG because they are so similar in this manner. The similarities are uncanny, for reals.

Wow. Insanely long brain-thread is long. But to sum it up: YAY SUPERNATURAL.

YAY SUPERNATURAL YAY!!! (long-winded response for me, too, I can get quite chatty, especially when it concerns Castiel. ;D)

i commit, quickly, drive-by commenting, but...

[vanitashaze.livejournal.com]

It's a sign of something more, I think. His destiny intertwined with the Winchesters, and why I think he's been brought back. To place that balance again between his family in Heaven as Dean will do on Earth.

This? Makes so much sense. I would have never thought of it, but it's obvious, of course; it's not just humanity that needs fixing, but heaven as well.

...I wonder if Cas will actually find God, though. Something tells me he won't, not because he for-sure doesn't exist, but because I can't see the writers committing themselves like that. Like Schrodinger's damn cat. Saying, definitively, that God is dead or doesn't, cares or doesn't, is going to offend somebody.

Anyway. Coming back and talking your YAY SUPERNATURAL YAY!!! long-wind when I'm not so tired and tipsy, and I can do it justice.

Re: may I just say, I LOL'd at your icon in a massive fashion. [p1]

[rogueslayer452.livejournal.com]

That's one of the reasons why I really want to check it out, I really love this kind of stuff and, thanks to Supernatural, I've been introduced to shitloads of meta-induced research material. Whee.

If there's one trend I really, really hate in fandom, it's the woobiefication of Castiel. He's adorable, I get it, and innocent in many ways, but he's also a SOLDIER of the LORD, and possibly older than time, certainly older than humans and civilization, and as you say, one badass motherfucker. Like Spock.

Oh, I completely agree with you right there. I understand the fascination of his purity and innocence, which I love too because it's adorable, but come on fandom, angel of the freaking LORD! He's a soldier, he's fought battles, he's watched battles and wars happening here on Earth, he's seen so much more than anything. He might be inexperienced with the being human aspect, particularly since some of his powers have been diminished, but he's not a child. He knows much more than he's letting on, that's part of his enigmatic presence. So yeah, long story short, I agree that's an annoying trend that I wish fandom would stop.

Also, lol definitely like Spock. XD

my canon is that Castiel does feel, intensely so, but differently than homo sapiens

I've always thought and believed that the angels did feel and have emotions. Just not how we experience of feel them, on a different level of sorts, of the spiritual kind that is more intense than ours. I never believed what was said about angels being emotionless, because that's just bullshit in my opinion. We've seen angels express different personalities which are driven by different amounts of emotions. And really, if angels were emotionless they'd be robotic droids which, as we've seen, they are so not.

I fully maintain that for Castiel, feeling humanly is no better or worse than feeling angelically: like empathy vs. rationality, or any opposing schools of moral thought, they both emphasize different things and fall short in others. Like, I think angels could use some help looking at the little stuff and humans need help seeing the big picture*. The best would be a combination of both, right?

Exactly. This is why I love having Dean/Castiel together because while Castiel has been trying to show Dean that bigger picture, now with him being grounded (so to speak, heh) Dean is teaching him the ropes about humanity, what those little things that celestial beings don't put time to notice such as human interaction, taking a break from all their worries, etc. Plus, a combination of both would be a perfect equilibrium, somehow having that balance between Heavenly beings and humankind. :)

[stubbel.livejournal.com]

That witch-stuff is pretty interesting... I definitely need to do some more research on angels and supernatural's mythology...

I will say YAY and leave it at that. (Also, I'm hoping for fanfiction ;) )

but it's all about Castiel for me

Isn't it for everyone? xD

[vanitashaze.livejournal.com]

True. I think the fandom grew at least by half since Misha came on board.

Also, I'm hoping for fanfiction. Ha, well. I may or may not have something in the works, assuming I can a) get Dean's character voice down right (HARD! VERY HARD!), and b) I don't die of college fail between now and January 15th.