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Seven heavens


In religious or mythological cosmology, the seven heavens refer to the seven divisions of the Heaven, the abode of immortal beings, or the visible sky, the expanse containing the Sun, Moon and the stars. This concept dates back to ancient Mesopotamian religions and a similar concept is also found in some Indian religions such as Hinduism, and in some Abrahamic religions such as Islam, Judaism and Catholicism. Some of these traditions, including Jainism, also have a concept of seven earths or seven underworlds.

The idea of seven heavens was originated in ancient Mesopotamia. It was probably a symbolic concept. In Sumerian language, the words for heaven (or sky) and earth are An and Ki.Sumerian incantations of the late second millennium BCE make references to seven heavens and seven earths. One such incantation is: "an-imin-bi ki-imin-bi" (the heavens are seven, the earths are seven.)

The notion of seven heavens may have been derived from the "magical" properties of the number seven, like the seven demons or the seven thrones. The number seven appears frequently in Babylonian magical rituals. The seven Jewish and the seven Islamic heavens may have had their origin in Babylonian astronomy.


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