Manichaeism

== Teachings and beliefs ==
[[File:Manichaean clergymen, Khocho, Ruin alpha, 10th-11th century AD, wall painting - Ethnological Museum, Berlin - DSC01743.JPG|thumb|upright=0.9|[[Uyghur people|Uyghur]] Manichaean clergymen, wall painting from the Khocho ruins, 10th/11th century CE. Located in the Museum für Asiatische Kunst, Humboldt Forum, Berlin.]]
[[File:Manichaean picture from cave 25 at Bezeklik Caves.jpg|thumb|upright=0.9|Worship of the [[Tree of Life]] in the World of Light; a Manichaean picture from the [[Bezeklik Caves]]]]

=== General ===
Mani's teaching dealt with the origin of evil, by addressing a theoretical part of the [[problem of evil]] by denying the omnipotence of God and postulating two opposite powers. Manichaean theology teaches a [[Dualistic cosmology|dualistic]] view of good and evil. A key belief in Manichaeism is that the powerful, though not omnipotent good power (God), was opposed by the eternal evil power (devil). Humanity, the world, and the soul are seen as the by-product of the battle between God's proxy, Primal Man, and the devil.<ref name="Bevan, A. A. 1930">Bevan, A. A. (1930). "Manichaeism". ''[[Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics]]'', Volume VIII Ed. [[James Hastings]]. London</ref>

The human person is seen as a battle-ground for these powers: the soul defines the person, but it is under the influence of both light and dark. This contention plays out over the world as well as the human body—neither the Earth nor the flesh were seen as intrinsically evil, but rather possessed portions of both light and dark. Natural phenomena (such as rain) were seen as the physical manifestation of this spiritual contention. Therefore, the Manichaean view explained the existence of evil by positing a flawed creation in the formation of which God took no part and which constituted rather the product of a battle by the devil against God.<ref name="Bevan, A. A. 1930"/>

=== Cosmogony ===
[[File:Yüen dynasty Manichaean diagram of the Universe.jpg|thumb|upright=0.9|''[[Manichaean Diagram of the Universe]]'' depicts the Manichaean [[religious cosmology|cosmology]].]]

Manichaeism presents an elaborate description of the conflict between the spiritual world of light and the material world of darkness. The beings of both the world of darkness and the world of light have names. There are numerous sources for the details of the Manichaean belief. These two portions of the scriptures are probably the closest thing to the original writings in their original languages that will ever be available. These are the Syriac quotation by the [[Church of the East]] Christian [[Theodore bar Konai]] in his 8th century Syriac [[scholion]], the Ketba de-Skolion,<ref name="Konai"/> and the Middle Persian sections of Mani's [[Shabuhragan]] discovered at [[Turpan]] (a summary of Mani's teachings prepared for [[Shapur I]]).<ref name="Shabuhragan"/>

From these and other sources, it is possible to derive an almost complete description of the detailed Manichaean vision<ref>Jonas, Hans The Gnostic Religion, 1958, Ch. 9: Creation, World History, Salvation According to Mani.</ref> (a complete list of Manichaean deities is outlined below). According to Mani, the unfolding of the universe takes place with three creations:{{citation needed|date=September 2017}}

; The First Creation
: Originally, good and evil existed in two completely separate realms, one the World of Light ({{zh|c=明界}}), ruled by the Father of Greatness together with his five Shekhinas (divine attributes of light), and the other the World of Darkness, ruled by the King of Darkness. At a certain point, the Kingdom of Darkness notices the World of Light, becomes greedy for it, and attacks it. The Father of Greatness, in the first of three "creations" (or "calls"), calls to the Mother of Life, who sends her son Original Man ({{lang-arc|Nāšā Qaḏmāyā}}) to battle with the attacking powers of Darkness, which include the Demon of Greed.

The Original Man is armed with five different shields of light (reflections of the five [[Shekhina]]s), which he loses to the forces of darkness in the ensuing battle, described as a kind of "bait" to trick the forces of darkness, as the forces of darkness greedily consume as much light as they can. When the Original Man comes to, he is trapped among the forces of darkness.

; The Second Creation
: Then the Father of Greatness begins the Second Creation, calling to the Living Spirit, who calls to his five sons, and sends a call to the Original Man (Call then becomes a Manichaean deity). An answer (Answer becomes another Manichaean deity) then returns from the Original Man to the World of Light. The Mother of Life, the Living Spirit, and his five sons begin to create the universe from the bodies of the evil beings of the World of Darkness, together with the light that they have swallowed. Ten heavens and eight earths are created, all consisting of various mixtures of the evil material beings from the World of Darkness and the swallowed light. The sun, moon, and stars are all created from light recovered from the World of Darkness. The waxing and waning of the moon is described as the moon filling with light, which passes to the sun, then through the [[Milky Way]], and eventually back to the World of Light.

; The Third Creation
: Great demons (called [[archon (Gnosticism)|archons]] in bar-Konai's account) are hung out over the heavens, and then the Father of Greatness begins the Third Creation' Light is recovered from out of the material bodies of the male and female evil beings and demons, by causing them to become sexually aroused in greed towards beautiful images of the beings of light, such as the Third Messenger and the Virgins of Light. However, as soon as the light is expelled from their bodies and falls to the earth (some in the form of abortions – the source of [[fallen angel]]s in the Manichaean myth), the evil beings continue to swallow up as much of it as they can to keep the light inside of them. This results eventually in the evil beings swallowing huge quantities of light, copulating, and producing Adam and Eve. The Father of Greatness then sends [[Jesus the Splendour]] to awaken Adam, and to enlighten him to the true source of the light that is trapped in his material body. Adam and Eve, however, eventually copulate, and produce more human beings, trapping the light in bodies of mankind throughout human history. The appearance of the Prophet Mani was another attempt by the World of Light to reveal to mankind the true source of the spiritual light imprisoned within their material bodies.

{{gallery|align=center|mode=packed
|File:Analysis of Doctrinal Iconography of Mani’s Cosmology.jpg|Analysis of Mani's cosmology as illustrated in the [[Manichaean Diagram of the Universe|Manichaean Diagram]]
|File:Cathayan Manichaean Cosmology - Heaven Scene.jpg|Heaven scene from the Manichaean Diagram
|File:Virgin of Light (Manichaean Cosmology).jpg|"Maiden of Light" from the Manichaean Diagram
}}

==== Cosmology ====
In the sixth century, many Manichaeans saw "the earth" as "a rectangular [[parallelepiped]] enclosed by walls of crystal, above which three [sky] domes" existed, with the other two being above and larger than the first one and second one, respectively.<ref name="Gnostic">{{Cite book |last=Doresse |first=Jean |title=The Secret Books of the Egyptian Gnostics |publisher=MJF Books |year=1986 |isbn=978-1-56731-227-0 |location=New York |page=269 |language=en-US}}</ref> These represented the "three [[heaven]]s" in [[Chaldea#Religion|Chaldean religion]].<ref name="Gnostic" />

=== Outline of the beings and events in the Manichaean mythology ===
Beginning with the time of its creation by Mani, the Manichaean religion has had a detailed description of deities and events that took place within the Manichaean scheme of the universe. In every language and region that Manichaeism spread to, these same deities reappear, whether it is in the original Syriac quoted by Theodore bar Konai,<ref name="Konai"/> or the Latin terminology given by Saint Augustine from Mani's ''[[Fundamental Epistle|Epistola Fundamenti]]'', or the Persian and Chinese translations found as Manichaeism spread eastward. While the original Syriac retained the original description that Mani created, the transformation of the deities through other languages and cultures produced incarnations of the deities not implied in the original Syriac writings. Chinese translations are especially syncretic, borrowing and adapting terminology common in [[Chinese Buddhism]].{{sfnp|Ma|Wang|2018}}

==== The World of Light ====
* ''The [[Father of Greatness]]'' (Syriac: {{lang|syr|ܐܒܐ ܕܪܒܘܬܐ}} ''Abbā dəRabbūṯā''; Middle Persian: ''pīd ī wuzurgīh'', or the Zoroastrian deity ''[[Zurvan|Zurwān]]''; Parthian: ''Pidar wuzurgift, Pidar roshn''; {{zh|c=無上明尊|l=Unsurpassed Divinity of Light}} or {{lang|zh|薩緩}} {{lit|Zurvan}})
** ''His Four Faces'' (Greek: {{lang|el|ὁ τετραπρόσωπος πατήρ τοῦ μεγέθους}}; {{zh|c=四寂法身|l=Four Silent [[Dharmakaya]]s}}){{sfnp|Ma|Wang|2018}}
*** ''Divinity'' (Middle Persian: ''[[Yazata|yzd]]''; Parthian: ''bg'''; {{zh|c=清净}})
*** ''Light'' (Middle Persian and Parthian: ''rwšn''; {{zh|c=光明}})
*** ''Power'' (Middle Persian: ''zwr''; Parthian: ''z'wr'''; {{zh|c=大力}})
*** ''Wisdom'' (Middle Persian: ''whyh''; Parthian: ''jyryft''; {{zh|c=智慧}})
** ''His Five [[Shekhinah|Shekhinas]]'' (Syriac: {{lang|syr|ܚܡܫ ܫܟܝܢܬܗ}} ''khamesh shkhinatei''; Chinese: {{nowrap|{{linktext|五|種|大}} ''wǔ zhǒng dà'',}} {{lit|five great ones}}):<ref>Chart from: E. Waldschmidt and W. Lenz, Die Stellung Jesu im Manichäismus, Berlin, 1926, p 42.</ref>{{sfnp|Ma|Wang|2018}}
{| class="wikitable" style="margin-left: 40px;"
|-
! scope="col" | Shekhina:
! scope="col" | Reason
! scope="col" | Mind
! scope="col" | Intelligence
! scope="col" | Thought
! scope="col" | Understanding
|-
|Syriac
|<span lang="syr" dir="ltr">{{linktext|ܗܘܢܐ}} ''hawnā''</span>
|<span lang="syr">{{linktext|ܡܕܥܐ}} ''madde{{okina}}ā''</span>
|<span lang="syr">{{linktext|ܪܥܝܢܐ}} ''reyānā''</span>
|<span lang="syr" dir="ltr">{{linktext|ܡܚܫܒܬܐ}} ''maḥšavṯɑ''</span>
|<span lang="syr" dir="ltr">{{linktext|ܬܪܥܝܬܐ}} ''tar{{okina}}iṯā''</span>
|-
|Parthian
|''bām''
|''manohmēd''
|''uš''
|''andēšišn''
|''parmānag''
|-
|Chinese
|{{nowrap|{{linktext|相}} ''xiāng'',}} {{grey|"phase"}}
|{{nowrap|{{linktext|心}} ''xīn'',}} {{grey|"heart-mind"}}
|{{nowrap|{{linktext|念}} ''niàn'',}} {{grey|"mindfulness"}}
|{{nowrap|{{linktext|思}} ''sī'',}} {{grey|"thought"}}
|{{nowrap|{{linktext|意}} ''yì'',}} {{grey|"meaning"}}
|-
|Turkic
|qut
|ög
|köngül
|saqinç
|tuimaq
|-
|Greek
|νοῦς (Nous)
|ἔννοια (Ennoia)
|φρόνησις (Phronēsis)
|ἐνθύμησις (Enthymēsis)
|λογισμός (Logismos)
|-
|Latin
|mens
|sensus
|prudentia
|intellectus
|cogitatio
|}
* ''The Great Spirit'' (Middle Persian: ''Waxsh zindag, Waxsh yozdahr''; Latin: ''Spiritus Potens'')

==== The first creation ====
* ''The Mother of Life'' ({{lang-syr|ܐܡܐ ܕܚܝܐ}} ''imā dəḥayyē''; {{lang-pal|mʾdrʾy zyndgʾn}}; {{zh|c=善母佛|l=Good Mother Buddha}})
* ''The First Man'' ({{lang-syr|ܐܢܫܐ ܩܕܡܝܐ}} ''Nāšā Qaḏmāyā''; {{lang-pal|[[Ahura Mazda|Ohrmazd Bay]]}}, the Zoroastrian god of light and goodness; Latin: ''Primus Homo'')
** ''First Enthymesis'' ({{lang-pal|hndyšyšn nxwysṯyn}}; {{zh|c=先意|l=First Understanding}})
** ''His five Sons'' (the five Light Elements; {{lang-xpr|panj rōšn}}; {{lang-pal|[[Amesha Spenta|Amahrāspandān]]}}; {{zh|c=五明子}}){{sfnp|Ma|Wang|2018}}
*** ''Ether'' ({{lang-xpr|ardāw}}; {{lang-pal|frâwahr}}; {{zh|c=氣}})
*** ''Wind'' (Parthian and {{lang-pal|wād}}; {{zh|c=風}})
*** ''Light'' (Parthian and {{lang-pal|rōšn}}; {{zh|c=明}})
*** ''Water'' (Parthian and {{lang-pal|āb}}; {{zh|c=水}})
*** ''Fire'' (Parthian and {{lang-pal|ādur}}; {{zh|c=火}})
** His sixth Son, the ''Answer-God'' ({{lang-syr|ܥܢܝܐ}} ''{{okina}}anyā''; Parthian and {{lang-pal|[[Xroshtag and Padvaxtag|xroshtag]]}}; {{zh|c=勢至}} ''[[Mahasthamaprapta|Shì Zhì]]'' "The Power of Wisdom", a Chinese [[bodhisattva]]). The answer sent by the ''First Man'' to the ''Call'' from the World of Light.
* ''The Living Self'' (Parthian and {{lang-pal|grīw zīndag}}, {{lang|pal|grīw rōšn}}; {{zh|c=明性|l=Light Nature}}) The ''[[Anima mundi#Manichaeism|anima mundi]]'' made up of the five Light Elements, identical with the [[Suffering Jesus]] who is crucified in the world.

==== The second creation ====
* ''The Friend of the Lights'' ({{lang-syr|ܚܒܝܒ ܢܗܝܖܐ}} ''ḥaviv nehirē''; {{zh|c=樂明佛|l=Enjoyer of Lights}}){{sfnp|Ma|Wang|2018}} Calls to:
* ''The Great Builder'' ({{lang-syr|ܒܢ ܖܒܐ}} ''ban rabbā''; {{zh|c=造相|l=Creator of Forms}}) In charge of creating the new world that will separate the darkness from the light. He calls to:
* ''The Living Spirit'' ({{lang-syr|ܪܘܚܐ ܚܝܐ}} ''ruḥā ḥayyā''; {{lang-pal|[[Mithra|Mihryazd]]}}; {{zh|c=淨活風|p=Jìnghuófēng}}; {{lang-la|Spiritus Vivens}}; {{lang-gr|Ζων Πνευμα}}). Acts as a [[demiurge]], creating the structure of the material world.
** ''His five Sons'' ({{lang-syr|ܚܡܫܐ ܒܢܘܗܝ}} ''ḥamšā benawhy''; {{zh|c=五等驍健子|l=Five Valiant Sons}})
*** ''The Keeper of the Splendour'' ({{lang-syr|ܨܦܬ ܙܝܘܐ}} ''ṣfat ziwā''; {{lang-la|Splenditenens}}; {{zh|c=催光明使|l=Urger of Enlightenment}}). Holds up the ten heavens from above.
*** ''The King of Glory'' ({{lang-syr|ܡܠܟ ܫܘܒܚܐ}} ''mlex šuvḥā''; {{lang-la|Rex Gloriosus}}; {{zh|c=地藏}} ''[[Kṣitigarbha|Dìzàng]]'' "Earth Treasury", a Chinese [[bodhisattva]]).
*** ''The Adamas of Light'' ({{lang-syr|ܐܕܡܘܣ ܢܘܗܪܐ}} ''adamus nuhrā''; {{lang-la|Adamas}}; {{zh|c=降魔使|p=Jiàngmó shǐ}}). Fights with and overcomes an evil being in the image of the King of Darkness.
*** ''The Great King of Honour'' ({{lang-syr|ܡܠܟܐ ܪܒܐ ܕܐܝܩܪܐ}} ''malkā rabbā dikkārā''; [[Dead Sea Scrolls]] {{lang-arc|מלכא רבא דאיקרא}} ''malka raba de-ikara''; {{lang-la|Rex Honoris}}; {{zh|c=十天大王|p=Shítiān Dàwáng|l=Ten Heavens Great King}}). A being that plays a central role in [[The Book of Enoch]] (originally written in Aramaic), as well as Mani's Syriac version of it, the [[Book of Giants]]. Sits in the [[Seven Heavens|seventh heaven]] of the ten heavens (corresponding to the [[celestial spheres]], the first seven of which house the [[classical planets]]) and guards the entrance to the world of light.
*** ''Atlas'' ({{lang-syr|ܣܒܠܐ}} ''sebblā''; {{lang-la|[[Atlas (mythology)|Atlas]]}}; {{zh|c=持世主|p=Chíshìzhǔ}}). Supports the eight worlds from below.
** His sixth Son, the ''Call-God'' ({{lang-syr|ܩܪܝܐ}} ''qaryā''; {{lang-pal|[[Xroshtag and Padvaxtag|Padvaxtag]]}}; {{zh|c=觀音}} ''[[Guanyin]]'' "watching/perceiving sounds [of the world]", the Chinese Bodhisattva of Compassion). Sent from the Living Spirit to awaken the First Man from his battle with the forces of darkness.

==== The third creation ====
* ''The Third Messenger'' ({{lang-syr|ܐܝܙܓܕܐ}} ''izgaddā''; {{lang-pal|narēsahyazad}}, {{lang-xpr|hridīg frēštag}}; {{lang|la|tertius legatus}})
* ''[[Jesus the Splendour]]'' ({{lang-syr|ܝܫܘܥ ܙܝܘܐ}} ''Isho{{okina}} Ziwā''; {{zh|c=光明夷數|l=Jesus of Bright Light}} or {{lang|zh|夷數精和}} {{lit|Jesus the Essence of Harmony}}). Sent to awaken Adam and Eve to the source of the spiritual light trapped within their physical bodies.
* ''The Maiden of Light'' (Middle Persian and {{lang-xpr|qnygrwšn}}; {{zh|c=謹你嚧詵}}, a phonetic loan from Middle Persian)
* ''The Twelve Virgins of Light'' ({{lang-syr|ܬܪܬܥܣܪܐ ܒܬܘܠܬܐ}} ''trat{{okina}}esrā btultē''; {{lang-pal|kanīgān rōšnān}}; {{zh|c=日宮十二化女|p=Rìgōng shí'èr huànǚ|l=Sun Palace Twelve Maidens of Transformation}}).{{efn|These are apparently the 'twelve centuries clothed with flowers and full of melodies' (''duodecim saecula floribus convestita et canoribus plena'') at St Augustine, ''Contra Faustum'' 15.5<ref>Augustine, ''[https://archive.org/stream/corpusscriptoru27wissgoog#page/n435/mode/2up Contra Faustum 15.5]''</ref>}}{{sfnp|Ma|Wang|2018}} Reflected in the twelve constellations of the [[Zodiac]].
* ''The Column of Glory'' ({{lang-syr|ܐܣܛܘܢ ܫܘܒܚܐ}} ''esṭun šuvḥā''; {{lang-pal|[[Sraosha|srōš-ahrāy]]}}; {{zh|c=蘇露沙羅夷|p=Sūlù shāluóyí}} and {{lang|zh|盧舍那}}, ''{{lang|zh-Latn|Lúshěnà}}'', both phonetic from {{lang-pal|srōš-ahrāy}}). The path that souls take back to the World of Light; corresponds to the [[Milky Way]].
* ''The Great [[Nous]]''
** ''His five Limbs'' ({{zh|c=五體}}) (See "His Five Shekhinas" [[#The World of Light|above]].)
*** ''Reason''
*** ''Mind''
*** ''Intelligence''
*** ''Thought''
*** ''Understanding''
* ''The Just Judge'' ({{lang-xpr|d'dbr r'štygr}}; {{zh|c=平等王|l=Impartial King}}){{sfnp|Ma|Wang|2018}}
* ''The Last God''

==== The World of Darkness ====
* ''The [[Prince of Darkness (Manichaeism)|Prince of Darkness]]'' (Syriac: {{lang|syr|ܡܠܟ ܚܫܘܟܐ}} ''mlex ḥešoxā''; Middle Persian: ''[[Angra Mainyu|Ahriman]]'', the Zoroastrian supreme evil being)
** ''His five evil kingdoms'' Evil counterparts of the five elements of light, the lowest being the kingdom of Darkness.
** ''His son'' (Syriac: {{lang|syr|ܐܫܩܠܘܢ}} ''Ashaklun''; Middle Persian: ''Az'', from the Zoroastrian demon, ''[[Zahhak|Aži Dahāka]]'')
** ''His son's mate'' (Syriac: {{lang|syr|ܢܒܪܘܐܠ}} ''Nevro'el'')
** Their offspring – ''[[Adam and Eve]]'' (Middle Persian: ''[[Keyumars|Gehmurd]]'' and ''Murdiyanag'')
* ''Giants'' (Fallen Angels, also Abortions): (Syriac: {{lang|syr|ܝܚܛܐ}} ''yaḥtē'', "abortions" or "those that fell"; also: {{lang|syr|ܐܪܟܘܢܬܐ}}; {{lang|el|Ἐγρήγοροι}} ''[[Watcher (angel)#Grigori|Egrēgoroi]]'', "Giants"). Related to the story of the [[fallen angel]]s in the [[Book of Enoch]] (which Mani used extensively in [[The Book of Giants]]), and the {{lang|he|נפילים}} ''[[nephilim]]'' described in Genesis (6:1–4).