Ariel

Culture: Jewish and later Christian apocryphal and literary tradition   Domain: Earth, nature's protection (a name with varied, debated associations)

Ariel ("lion of God") appears as a name in different roles across scripture and later literature: as a poetic name for Jerusalem in Isaiah, and, in later apocryphal and literary tradition (including Shakespeare's The Tempest, where the name is used quite differently), as an angelic or spirit figure associated variously with earth, water or air depending on the source.

Associations

Earth's protection, varied and layered meaning, grounded strength.

Ways people honor him or her (modern)

• Research the notably varied uses of this name across different texts and periods honestly
• Protect and tend a natural, earthy space
• Keep a growing plant on the altar
• Read Isaiah's poetic use of "Ariel" as one of the name's oldest attested appearances

Approach any deity with respect and do your own research. Practices vary widely between traditions, and modern devotional practice often goes beyond what survives in ancient sources.