Angels, the Devil, and the Battle Within: Lessons from Spiritual Archetypes by Mano Sotelo

How might we see the celestial battle in The War in Heaven as a symbolic struggle within the human soul, mind, and spirit?

The celestial conflict in The War in Heaven can be understood not only as a mythic battle between divine forces but also as a symbolic expression of internal psychological struggle. From a Jungian perspective, angels and demons represent projections of the psyche—embodying both our highest potential and our repressed, shadow selves (Jung, Archetypes 123).

Angels, in this framework, are not merely supernatural beings of light; they reflect the best aspects of human nature—creativity, courage, love, compassion, wisdom, and moral insight. They symbolize the pursuit of spiritual and psychological wholeness—the desire to unite all parts of the self, both conscious and unconscious. These archetypal figures often arise in moments of inspiration, moral clarity, or deep creativity.

Throughout history, many cultures have interpreted such moments as being “filled with spirit”—from the Greek daimon of personal genius, to the Christian Holy Spirit guiding acts of creation and grace, to the Hebrew ruach, the divine breath that animates life and prophetic vision.

In contrast, the devil often represents the shadow—those denied, feared, or undeveloped aspects of the psyche that we project onto others. According to Jung, the devil serves as a scapegoat figure, allowing individuals and societies to avoid confronting their own capacity for envy, cruelty, deception, or weakness (Jung, Psychological 150). While this projection may protect the ego, it ultimately hinders personal growth. To grow spiritually and psychologically, we must face the parts of ourselves we tend to hide—not just reject them. Learning to recognize and integrate these hidden parts is what helps us become whole.

Angels and the Devil: Symbols of Good and Bad Spirits

The word spirit has deep and varied roots. From the Latin spiritus, meaning “breath” or “life force,” it has come to signify the unseen energy that animates a being. Across many traditions, a spirit is not necessarily a ghost or deity, but a force, presence, or impulse that shapes mood, perception, and identity.

When we speak of good or bad spirits, we often refer to unseen influences—whether internal or external—that guide us toward peace or conflict, virtue or vice. These “spirits” mirror what we now call emotional states or personality traits: pride, grace, desire, courage. In this sense, they are not only external entities, but also patterns of consciousness—archetypes we internalize and enact to navigate life.

Each of us moves through the world with a constellation of shifting roles—artist, parent, friend, teacher—each carrying its own tone, posture, and inner voice. These may be seen as social masks, but they can also be understood as “spirits” we temporarily inhabit to adapt, survive, and grow in different environments.

Psychologist Erving Goffman and others have observed that individuals naturally shift between multiple internal roles—or “selves”—throughout daily life. This mirrors ancient spiritual language that described spirits or forces as influencing or inhabiting the human soul (Goffman 28). In this light, what traditional cultures called “being under the influence of a spirit” can be understood today as entering particular emotional states—such as fear, anger, joy, inspiration, or transcendence—or as taking on various functional roles in everyday life.

Bringing It All Together

Seen this way, angels and demons are not just symbols of cosmic forces—they are personifications of our inner complexity. They dramatize the ongoing tension between harmony and chaos, virtue and vice, love and fear. The battle in heaven becomes a metaphor for the internal landscape of the self. War, symbolically, is conflict in all its forms. Heaven is now—the present moment in which those conflicts are lived and resolved.

But does this psychological view mean that angels and demons don’t exist? Not necessarily. Human perception is limited by the narrow range of our senses and cognitive systems. As the electromagnetic spectrum reminds us, much of reality lies beyond what we can see or measure. Whether metaphysical beings exist outside the mind remains an open question—but their symbolic presence has undeniable power within us.

Facing these inner figures—whether angelic or demonic—is part of the lifelong journey toward becoming one’s true self. It involves bringing together the varied, often conflicting parts of who we are as individuals. At its core, this process reflects the soul’s enduring quest for understanding, healing, and peace—qualities symbolically expressed in the visual allegory of The War in Heaven.

Works Cited

Goffman, Erving. The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life. Anchor Books, 1959.

Jung, Carl G. The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious. Translated by R.F.C. Hull, Princeton University Press, 1980.

Jung, Carl G. Psychological Aspects of the Persona. Translated by R.F.C. Hull, Princeton University Press, 1953.

About the Author:

Mano Sotelo is an Arizona-based artist, author, and educator. His graphic novel The War in Heaven blends mythology, philosophy, and spiritual symbolism into a visual allegory of belief, conflict, and the search for inner peace.

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