Auphanim (אופנים) are the 'Wheels'—a high angelic choir in the world of Briah, the world of pure creation. Their name, a plural form of the Hebrew word for 'wheel,' directly evokes the central image of Ezekiel's vision: 'the appearance of the wheels and their work was like unto the colour of a beryl: and they four had one likeness: and their appearance and their work was as it were a wheel in the middle of a wheel' (Ezekiel 1:16). These are not inert mechanisms but living, intelligent beings, described as full of eyes and moving in perfect, coordinated harmony with the Cherubim, whom they accompany. In the Merkabah (chariot) tradition, the Auphanim are the actual wheels of the divine throne-chariot, their ceaseless motion representing the dynamic, ever-turning nature of divine providence and the constant flow of creative energy from the highest source.

Position on the Tree of Life

The Auphanim are assigned to the second Sephirah, Chokmah (Wisdom), on the Tree of Life. Chokmah is the first outpouring of pure, undifferentiated force from Keter, the Crown. As the 'Wheels,' the Auphanim perfectly embody this principle: they are the primal, dynamic impulse of creation, the force that sets the cosmos in motion. Their ceaseless turning mirrors the unceasing, potent energy of Chokmah, which is the root of all subsequent form and structure. This placement places them directly below the Seraphim (Keter) and above the Kerubim (Binah), forming a triad of the highest angelic orders in Briah.

Astrological and planetary correspondence

In the system of Liber 777, the Auphanim, through their connection to Chokmah, are linked to the zodiac. Chokmah is the sphere of the Mazloth, the fixed stars, and the zodiacal belt. The Auphanim thus represent the vast, impersonal, and cyclical forces of the heavens—the great turning wheel of the constellations that governs the ages and the fundamental patterns of existence. This is not the subtle influence of a single planet but the grand, overarching structure of cosmic time and destiny.

Historical context

The primary source for the Auphanim is the first chapter of the Book of Ezekiel, which describes the prophet's vision of the divine chariot. This text became the foundation of the Merkabah mystical tradition, which flourished in late Second Temple Judaism and early rabbinic periods. In these esoteric texts, the Auphanim are not merely angels but a distinct order of the celestial hierarchy, often described in terrifying and magnificent detail. They are the 'living wheels' (Ofanim ha-chayyim), whose movement is inseparable from the sound of 'great waters' and the voice of the Almighty.

Later Jewish angelology, as systematized in works like the Zohar and the writings of Maimonides, codified the Auphanim as one of the ten principal angelic choirs. Maimonides, in his Mishneh Torah, places them in the second rank, directly below the Chayot Ha-Kodesh (Holy Living Creatures), which aligns with their role in Ezekiel's vision. In Christian angelology, they were adopted by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite as the 'Thrones' (θρόνοι), a name that emphasizes their function as the bearers of God's throne and the receptacles of divine judgment and stability. This Christian interpretation, however, shifts the emphasis from their dynamic, wheel-like motion to a more static, foundational role.

In the Hermetic Qabalah, as synthesized by the Golden Dawn and later by Aleister Crowley in Liber 777, the Auphanim are restored to their more dynamic, Chokmah-aligned function. They are the force that drives the wheel of the zodiac, the pure, unformed energy of wisdom that precedes and enables all manifestation.

In the table of Liber 777, the Auphanim appear as the choir of angels assigned to the second Sephirah, Chokmah, within the world of Briah. They stand as the second of the ten angelic orders, directly below the Seraphim of Keter and above the Kerubim of Binah, embodying the primal, wheeling force of divine wisdom.