Prophet Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ==Manichaeism== {{main|Manichaeism|Mani (prophet)}} [[File:Seal_of_Mani_(cleaned_up)._Seal_with_figure_of_Mani,_possibly_3rd_century_CE,_possibly_Irak._Cabinet_des_Médailles,_Paris.jpg|thumb|[[Sealstone of Mani]], rock crystal, possibly 3rd century AD, Iraq. [[Cabinet des Médailles]], Paris.<ref name="SPL160">{{cite book |last1=Grenet |first1=Frantz |title=Splendeurs des oasis d'Ouzbékistan |date=2022 |publisher=Louvre Editions |location=Paris |isbn=978-8412527858 |page=93}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Believers, Proselytizers, & Translators The Sogdians |url=https://sogdians.si.edu/believers-proselytizers-translators/ |website=sogdians.si.edu}}</ref> The seal reads ''"Mani, messenger of the messiah"'', and may have been used by Mani himself to sign his epistles.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=GULÁCSI |first1=ZSUZSANNA |title=The Prophet's Seal: A Contextualized Look at the Crystal Sealstone of Mani (216-276 C.E.) in the Bibliothèque nationale de France |journal=Bulletin of the Asia Institute |date=2010 |volume=24 |page=164 |jstor=43896125 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/43896125.pdf |issn=0890-4464}}</ref>]] [[Mani (prophet)|Mani]]{{efn|[[Middle Persian]]: 𐭌𐭀𐭍𐭉/𐭬𐭠𐭭𐭩/𐮋𐮀𐮌𐮈/𐬨𐬁𐬥𐬌/𐫖𐫀𐫗𐫏 ''Māni'', [[New Persian]]: {{Nobold|{{lang|fa|{{nq|مانی}}}}}} ''Māni'', [[Chinese language|Chinese]]: {{Nobold|{{lang|zh|{{nq|摩尼}}}}}} ''Móní'', [[Syriac language|Syriac]] ''Mānī'', [[Koine Greek|Greek]] {{lang|grc|Μάνης}}, Latin ''{{lang|la|Manes}}''; also {{lang|grc|Μανιχαῖος}}, Latin ''{{lang|la|Manichaeus}}'', from Syriac {{lang|syr|ܡܐܢܝ ܚܝܐ}} ''Mānī ḥayyā'' "Living Mani"}} ({{lang-fa|مانی}}, {{circa|April AD 216}}–2 March AD 274 or 26 February AD 277) was an [[Iranian peoples|Iranian]]{{efn|{{harvnb|Boyce|2001|p=111}}: "He was Iranian, of noble Parthian blood..."}} prophet and the founder of [[Manichaeism]], a religion most prevalent in [[late antiquity]]. Mani was born in or near [[Seleucia-Ctesiphon]] (south of modern [[Baghdad]]) in [[Mesopotamia]],<ref name=ICS>{{citation|last=Taraporewala|first=I.J.S.|title=Manichaeism|publisher=Iran Chamber Society|url=http://www.iranchamber.com/religions/articles/manichaeism2.php|access-date=2015-01-12}}</ref> at the time part of the [[Parthian Empire]]. [[Seven Scriptures of Mani|Seven of his major works]] were written in [[Syriac language|Syriac]], and the eighth, dedicated to the [[Sasanian Empire|Sasanian emperor]] [[Shapur I]], was written in [[Middle Persian]].<ref name= "Henning">Henning, W.B., ''The Book of Giants'', BSOAS, Vol. XI, Part 1, 1943, pp. 52–74: "...Mani, who was brought up and spent most of his life in a province of the Persian empire, and whose mother belonged to a famous Parthian family, did not make any use of the Iranian mythological tradition. There can no longer be any doubt that the Iranian names of Sām, Narīmān, etc., that appear in the Persian and Sogdian versions of the Book of the Giants, did not figure in the original edition, written by Mani in the Syriac language."</ref> He died in [[Gundeshapur]]. Manichaeism teaches an elaborate [[dualistic cosmology]] describing the [[conflict between good and evil|struggle]] between a [[Goodness and value theory|good]], [[Spirituality|spiritual]] world of [[light]], and an [[evil]], material world of [[darkness]].<ref>{{Iranica|cosmogony-iii}}</ref> Through an ongoing process that takes place in human history, light is gradually removed from the world of matter and returned to the world of light, whence it came. Mani's teaching was intended to "combine",<ref name="Turner-1993">{{Cite book |last=Turner |first=Alice K. |title=The History of Hell |publisher=[[Harcourt Brace]] |year=1993 |isbn=978-0-15-140934-1 |edition=1st |location=United States |pages=50 |language=en-US}}</ref> succeed, and surpass the teachings of [[Christianity]], [[Zoroastrianism]], [[Buddhism]], [[Marcionism]],<ref name="Turner-1993" /> [[Hellenistic Judaism|Hellenistic]] and [[Rabbinic Judaism]], [[Gnosticism|Gnostic movements]], [[Ancient Greek religion]], [[Babylonian religion|Babylonian]] and [[Ancient Mesopotamian religion|other Mesopotamian religions]],<ref>Widengren, Geo ''Mesopotamian elements in Manichaeism (King and Saviour II): Studies in Manichaean, Mandaean, and Syrian-gnostic religion'', Lundequistska bokhandeln, 1946.</ref> and [[Greco-Roman mysteries|mystery cults]].<ref name="Hopkins-2001">{{Cite book |last=Hopkins |first=Keith |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/47286228 |title=A World Full of Gods: The Strange Triumph of Christianity |date=July 2001 |publisher=[[Plume (publisher)|Plume]] |isbn=0-452-28261-6 |location=New York |pages=246, 263, 270 |oclc=47286228}}</ref><ref name="Arendzen-1910-1">Arendzen, John (1 October 1910). "[https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/09591a.htm Manichæism]". ''[[The Catholic Encyclopedia]]''. Vol. 9. New York: The Encyclopedia Press, Inc.</ref> It reveres Mani as the final prophet after [[Zoroaster]], the [[Gautama Buddha]] and [[Jesus Christ]]. Manichaeism was quickly successful and spread far through [[Aramaic]]-speaking regions.<ref name="BeDuhnMirecki2007">{{cite book|author1=Jason BeDuhn|author2=Paul Allan Mirecki|title=Frontiers of Faith: The Christian Encounter With Manichaeism in the Acts of Archelaus|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JQd8b5s5QBUC&pg=PA6|year=2007|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-16180-1|page=6}}</ref> It thrived between the third and seventh centuries, and at its height was one of the most widespread religions in the world. Manichaean churches and scriptures existed as far east as the [[Han Dynasty]] and as far west as the [[Roman Empire]].<ref>Andrew Welburn, ''Mani, the Angel and the Column of Glory: An Anthology of Manichaean Texts'' (Edinburgh: Floris Books, 1998), p. 68</ref> It was briefly the main rival to [[early Christianity]] in the competition to replace classical [[polytheism]] before the [[spread of Islam]]. Under the Roman [[Dominate]], Manichaeism was persecuted by the Roman state and was eventually stamped out in the Roman Empire.<ref name="ReferenceC">R. van den Broek, Wouter J. Hanegraaff ''Gnosis and Hermeticism from Antiquity to Modern Times''SUNY Press, 1998 {{ISBN|978-0-7914-3611-0}} p. 37</ref> While most of Manichaeism's original writings have been lost, numerous translations and fragmentary texts have survived.<ref>{{cite book|editor-first1=Iain |editor-last1=Gardner |editor-first2=Samuel N. C. |editor-last2=Lieu | author-link2=Samuel N. C. Lieu|title=Manichaean Texts from the Roman Empire |location=Cambridge |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |date=2004}}</ref> Manichaeism has survived longer in the east than it did in the west. Although it was thought to have finally faded away after the 14th century in [[South China]],<ref>[[Jason BeDuhn|Jason David BeDuhn]] ''The Manichaean Body: In Discipline and Ritual'' Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. 2000 republished 2002 p.IX</ref> contemporary to the decline of the [[Church of the East]] in [[Ming dynasty|Ming China]], there is a growing corpus of evidence that shows Manichaeism persists in some areas of China, especially in [[Fujian]],<ref name="Li-2004">{{Cite book |last=Li |first=Linzhou |title=福州摩尼教重要遗址——福州台江义洲浦西福寿宫 |year=2004 |edition=1 |pages=44 |language=zh}}</ref><ref name="Chen-2004">{{Cite book |last1=Chen |first1=Yizhou |title=福建摩尼教寺院遗址考 |last2=Tu |first2=Yuanji |year=2004 |edition=1 |pages=82 |language=zh}}</ref> where numerous Manichaean relics have been discovered over time. The currently known sects are notably secretive and protective of their belief system, in an effort to remain undetected. This stems from fears relating to persecution and suppression during various periods of Chinese history.<ref name="Clarence, 2021">{{cite web |last1=Clarence |first1=Siut Wai Hung |title=The Forgotten Buddha: Manichaeism and Buddhist Elements in Imperial China |url=https://blog.nus.edu.sg/imperialchina/2021/12/23/research-2021-4/ |access-date=29 January 2024}}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page