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Manichaeans
Manichaeism (; in ; ) is an endangered former major world religion currently only practiced in China around Cao'an,R. van den Broek, Wouter J. Hanegraaff ''Gnosis and Hermeticism from Antiquity to Modern Times''. SUNY Press, 1998 p. 37 founded in the 3rd century CE by the Parthian prophet Mani (216–274 CE), in the Sasanian Empire. Manichaeism teaches an elaborate dualistic cosmology describing the struggle between a good, spiritual world of light, and an evil, material world of darkness. 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", succeed, and surpass the teachings of Platonism, Christianity, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Marcionism, Hellenistic and Rabbinic Judaism, Gnostic movements, Ancient Greek religion, Babylonian and other Mesopotamian religions, and mystery cults.Arendzen, John (1 October 1910).Manich ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Buddha In Manichaeism
In Manichaeism, the Buddha (喬達摩悉達多) is considered one of the four prophets of the faith, along with Zarathustra in Manichaeism, Zoroaster, Jesus in Manichaeism, Jesus and Mani (prophet), Mani. Mani believed that the teachings of the Buddha, Zoroaster, and Jesus were incomplete, and that his revelations were for the entire world, calling his teachings the "Religion of Light". Manichaeism also often calls Jesus a Buddha. This is because the term prophet was unfamiliar to a Chinese audience so Buddha was used as a substitute. It does not imply a belief in enlightenment. Manichaeism was introduced into China during the Tang dynasty through Central Asia, Central Asian communities and was regarded as an improper form of Buddhism by the Tang authorities. Influences from Buddhism Manichaeism was directly influenced by Buddhism. Like Buddha, Mani (prophet), Mani aimed for Nirvana (Buddhism), nirvana and used this word, showing the significance of Buddhist influences. He fu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jesus In Manichaeism
In Manichaeism, Jesus (Romanization of Parthian and Pahlavi: ) is considered one of the four prophets of the faith, along with Zoroaster, Gautama Buddha and Mani. He is also a "guiding deity" who greets the light bodies of the righteous after their deliverance. Before the introduction of Manichaeism to Central Asia, the number of prophets recognized by it was undetermined. After being introduced to Central Asia, it was determined to be five, that is, the above-mentioned four prophets plus the Hindu god Narayana, because Hinduism had significant influence in ancient Central Asia. Mani, the founder of the church, grew up in a Christian family in the 3rd century AD. His father Pātik was a believer in the church. They lived in southern Mesopotamia under the rule of the Sasanian Dynasty. Although Mani mentions Zoroastrianism and Sakyamuni in his own writings, Jesus is the key point. For example: "Jesus is Mani's savior"; "Mani, the apostle of Jesus Christ" ( Mani's crystal seal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mani (prophet)
Mani (; – 2 March AD 274 or 26 February AD 277) was an Iranian peoples, Iranian prophet and the founder of Manichaeism, a religion most prevalent in late antiquity. Mani was born in or near Ctesiphon (south of modern Baghdad) in Mesopotamia, 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, Shapur I, was written in Middle Persian.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 editio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sealstone Of Mani
The crystal seal of Mani (), also known as the crystal sealstone of Mani or the Manichean Rock-Crystal Seal, is a crystal stone seal with intaglio busts of three Manichean elect. There is a circle of Syriac writing around the intaglio, which could have been a personal seal used by Mani, the founder of Manichaeism. It is the oldest surviving piece of Manichaean art, and the only piece from Sassanid Mesopotamia. It is now in the collection of the National Library of France in Paris. Description According to the research by Hungarian Asian religious art historian Gu Leci, the seal was used between 240 and 274 or 277 AD. She believes that this crystal stone is a unique piece of art. Its uniqueness is not only because of its historical value, but also because of its artistic characteristics that are completely different from other ancient Iranian gem seals. This crystal was originally inlaid in a metal rim, and has two functions: first, its concave surface is used as a seal; sec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Middle Persian
Middle Persian, also known by its endonym Pārsīk or Pārsīg ( Inscriptional Pahlavi script: , Manichaean script: , Avestan script: ) in its later form, is a Western Middle Iranian language which became the literary language of the Sasanian Empire. For some time after the Sasanian collapse, Middle Persian continued to function as a prestige language. It descended from Old Persian, the language of the Achaemenid Empire and is the linguistic ancestor of Modern Persian, the official language of Iran (also known as Persia), Afghanistan ( Dari) and Tajikistan ( Tajik). Name "Middle Iranian" is the name given to the middle stage of development of the numerous Iranian languages and dialects. The middle stage of the Iranian languages begins around 450 BCE and ends around 650 CE. One of those Middle Iranian languages is Middle Persian, i.e. the middle stage of the language of the Persians, an Iranian people of Persia proper, which lies in the south-western Iran highlands on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zarathustra In Manichaeism
In Manichaeism, Zarathustra (瑣羅亞斯德) is considered one of the four prophets of the faith, along with Buddha, Jesus and Mani. Mani believed that the teachings of Gautama Buddha, Zarathustra, and Jesus were incomplete, and that his revelations were for the entire world, calling his teachings the "Religion of Light". Manichaeism considers Zarathustra to be a figure in a line of prophets of which Mani (216–276) was the culmination. Zarathustra's ethical dualism is—to an extent—incorporated in Mani's doctrine, which views the world as being locked in an epic battle between opposing forces of good and evil.. Manicheanism also incorporates other elements of Zoroastrian tradition, particularly the names of supernatural beings; however, many of these other Zoroastrian elements are either not part of Zarathustra's own teachings or are used quite differently from how they are used in Zoroastrianism.. Usage of Zoroastrian theonyms When they moved eastward and were transla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iranian Religions
The Iranian religions, also known as the Persian religions, are, in the context of comparative religion, a grouping of religious movements that originated in the Iranian plateau, which accounts for the bulk of what is called " Greater Iran". Background The beliefs, activities, and cultural events of the ancient Iranians in ancient Iran are complex matters. The ancient Iranians made references to a combination of several Aryans and non-Aryan tribes. The documented history of Iranian religions begins with Zoroastrianism. The ancient Iranian prophet, Zoroaster, reformed the early beliefs of ancient Iranians, the reconstructed Ancient Iranian religion, into a form of henotheism/monotheism. The Gathas, hymns of Zoroaster's Avesta, introduced monotheistic ideas to Persia, while through the Yashts and Yasna, mentions are made to polytheism and earlier creeds. The Vedas and the Avesta have both served researchers as important resources in discovering early Proto-Indo-Iranian reli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Europe
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east. Europe shares the landmass of Eurasia with Asia, and of Afro-Eurasia with both Africa and Asia. Europe is commonly considered to be Boundaries between the continents#Asia and Europe, separated from Asia by the Drainage divide, watershed of the Ural Mountains, the Ural (river), Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Greater Caucasus, the Black Sea, and the waterway of the Bosporus, Bosporus Strait. "Europe" (pp. 68–69); "Asia" (pp. 90–91): "A commonly accepted division between Asia and Europe ... is formed by the Ural Mountains, Ural River, Caspian Sea, Caucasus Mountains, and the Black Sea with its outlets, the Bosporus and Dardanelles." Europe covers approx. , or 2% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface (6.8% of Earth's land area), making it ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tocharian B
Tocharian B (also known as Kuchean or West Tocharian) was a Western member of the Tocharian branch of Indo-European languages, extinct from the ninth century. Once spoken in the Tarim Basin The Tarim Basin is an endorheic basin in Xinjiang, Northwestern China occupying an area of about and one of the largest basins in Northwest China.Chen, Yaning, et al. "Regional climate change and its effects on river runoff in the Tarim Basin, Ch ... in Central Asia, Tocharian B shows an internal chronological development; three linguistic stages have been detected. The oldest stage is attested only in Kucha. There is also the middle ('classicalʼ), and the late stage. Nomenclature According to Peyrot, the self-designation for the language was ''kuśi'' 'Kuča'. In scholarly works, it is known as Tocharian B, sometimes referred to as West Tocharian or Kuchean. Overview According to scholar Michael Peyrot, Tocharian B is dated between the 5th and 10th centuries AD, and was spread from Kuc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World Religions
World religions is a socially-constructed category used in the study of religion to demarcate religions that are deemed to have been especially large, internationally widespread, or influential in the development of human societies. It typically consists of the "Big Five" religions: Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism. These are often juxtaposed against other categories, such as folk religions, Indigenous religions, and new religious movements (NRMs), which are also used by scholars in this field of research. The "World Religions paradigm" was developed in the United Kingdom during the 1960s, where it was pioneered by phenomenological scholars of religion such as Ninian Smart. It was designed to broaden the study of religion away from its heavy focus on Christianity by taking into account other large religious traditions around the world. The paradigm is often used by lecturers instructing undergraduate students in the study of religion and is also the framewo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Elcesaites
The Elcesaites, Elkasaites, Elkesaites or Elchasaites were an ancient Jewish Christian sect in Lower Mesopotamia, then the province of Asoristan in the Sasanian Empire that was active between 100 and 400 CE. The members of this sect, which originated in the Transjordan, performed frequent baptisms for purification and had a Gnostic orientation. The name of the sect derives from the alleged founder, Elkhasaí ( in Hippolytus), Elksai ( in Epiphanius), or Elkesai ( in Eusebius, and Theodoret). Patristic testimony The sect is directly mentioned only in the commentaries on "heresies" by Early Church Fathers. Hippolytus () Hippolytus of Rome ('' Refutation of All Heresies'', IX, 8–13) records that in the time of Pope Callixtus I (217–222 AD), a Jewish Christian called Alcibiades of Apamea came to Rome, bringing a book which he said had been received in Parthia by a just man named Elchasai. According to Alcibiades, the book had been revealed by an angel high (337,920 cubit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jewish Christian
Jewish Christians were the followers of a Jewish religious sect that emerged in Roman Judea during the late Second Temple period, under the Herodian tetrarchy (1st century AD). These Jews believed that Jesus was the prophesied Messiah and they continued their adherence to Jewish law. Jewish Christianity is the historical foundation of Early Christianity, which later developed into Nicene Christianity (which comprises the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Protestant traditions) and other Christian denominations. Christianity started with Jewish eschatological expectations, and it developed into the worship of Jesus as the result of his earthly ministry in Galilee and Jerusalem, his crucifixion, and the post-resurrection experiences of his followers. Jewish Christians drifted apart from Second Temple Judaism, and their form of Judaism eventually became a minority strand within mainstream Judaism, as it had almost disappeared by the 5th centur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
