Mythological or biblical question

Is there a being/creature which inhabits a region between Heaven and Hell?- no, not humans. Some supernatural being that coordinates communication between the two regions. I was trying to think of an afterworld creature neither heavenly nor hellish for a short story and came up blank.

What a fantastic ballad, thanks Medievalist. I don't think the aery spirits are quite what I want, but now I can't resist chasing them up - drat, so much to learn, only one lifetime! I love the ballad.

As for Navigator's mention of Araf, I'm woefully under-educated, so it too goes on the list - do you happen to have any recommendations for good Intro to Islam and/or Muslim world texts? I know, provide me with info and I just keep on asking - like the Elephant Child's "Why?"

Messenger gods Thanks, Birol, how could I have forgotten them? Hinduism was a good suggestion, too, Angelinity. Like you, I'd forgotten to think of mythologies beyond the Western/Middle Eastern region. No excuse for me, living in Australia among the gorgeous Dreamtime stories.

Teddy, the question was general because I don't have a specific story to slot the "go-between" into - I did have such a story, but for that I ended up promoting Gog (from Gog, King of Magog) to "Finder of the Damned" - as DClary suggested, I plain made it up! But other stories will involve this supernatural realm, and I find "messenger" characters important in a number of stories, so I thought I'd pose the general question. And I'm really glad I did.

The idea of seven heavens and seven hells is totally new to me, so I can't really think of specific questions which won't waste your time - except, of course - please, can you recommend what I can read as an introduction to Jewish mysticism and midrash?

Thanks everyone immensely. I'm going to go send rep points - to everyone except the nameless one (RT) who thinks a POET can be trusted as a messenger! Don't you know they forget stuff that doesn't rhyme

Jenny

Nicole, I think you've got a squirrel story in you, just trying to break out. Thanks for the tip, I'd never heard of Ratatosk.

Pantheon.org's been added to favourites. Thanks, Navigator.

Teddy, I'm going to get "The Other Bible" from the library just as soon as the person currently reading it (it's overdue, grrr) returns it. It sounds like a respectable translation of the Apocrypha. And "Paradise Lost" I have scattered in bits through various poetry collections - that'll do for a start. Thanks.

Quick update. "The Other Bible" was a bust. I skimmed it, but instead of full texts they were extracts (and sometimes very old translations - nothing wrong with old, but what about the advantages of scholarship since the Nineteenth Century, hmm?). The only thing I learned - and it wasn't on topic - was the story about Lilith. I'd never heard of an equal partner for Adam before Eve.

However Milton is gorgeous and I'm so glad that with prompting from here I got over my inferiority complex ("but I won't understand him!") and started reading Paradise Lost. The descent of Raphael is lovely, and coming from a dry region, the explanation of paradise lost as the drying up of a water rich land really worked for me. Thanks, Teddy.