Raziel first gained the Shift Glyph in his initial meeting with the Elder God at the beginning of Soul Reaver, where Raziel encountered his first Planar portal and was explained how to manifest in the Material Realm in order to hunt down the Vampires of Kain's empire. The ability was a 'gift' from the Elder God and counted as his first on the ring menu (though in contrast to the other Glyphs, the Shift Glyph did not require any Eldritch Energy to cast.)