The Auphanim (Hebrew: אוֹפַנִּים, meaning "wheels") are a sublime class of angelic beings in Jewish mysticism and Kabbalah, characterized by their perpetual, whirling motion and their role as the driving forces of the cosmos. In the celestial hierarchy, they represent the active, kinetic energy that translates divine will into cosmic manifestation, manifesting visually as magnificent, multi-eyed wheels of fire.

Position on the Tree of Life

Within the Kabbalistic Tree of Life, the Auphanim are assigned to the second Sephirah, Chokmah (Wisdom). As the angelic order of Assiah (the material world of action) at this level, they represent the dynamic, outward-pouring force of the Father. While the Chaioth ha-Qadosh guard the supreme crown of Keter, the Auphanim act as the wheels of the divine chariot, transmitting the primordial spark of creation into the structured universe.

Astrological and Planetary Correspondence

The Auphanim are directly linked to Mazloth, the Sphere of the Zodiac or the fixed stars. This association perfectly mirrors their name and nature: just as the zodiacal belt appears to revolve eternally around the Earth, the Auphanim are the cosmic wheels whose revolutions govern the cycles of time, stellar influences, and the macrocosmic order.

Historical Context

The primary source for the Auphanim is the biblical Book of Ezekiel (Ezekiel 1:15–21), where the prophet beholds them during his vision of the Merkabah (the Divine Chariot). Ezekiel describes them as wheels on the earth beside the living creatures, sparkling like beryl, constructed as "a wheel within a wheel," and filled with eyes all around their rims. Wherever the spirit of the living creatures went, the wheels went, for "the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels."

In later apocalyptic literature, such as the Book of Enoch, the Ophanim are grouped alongside the Seraphim and Cherubim as the sleepless guardians of the Throne of Glory. In the medieval philosophical hierarchy established by Maimonides in the Mishneh Torah, the Auphanim are ranked second only to the Chaioth ha-Qadosh, cementing their status as primordial forces of the highest order.

The Auphanim in Liber 777

In Aleister Crowley's Liber 777, the Auphanim are positioned in Key Scale 2 under the column "Angels of Assiah." Here, they represent the active, swirling energies of Chokmah operating within the lowest world of Assiah, serving as the spiritual engines that drive the zodiacal forces and the evolutionary momentum of the cosmos.