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Maṭarta
In Mandaean cosmology, a maṭarta ( myz, ࡌࡀࡈࡀࡓࡕࡀ; plural form: ''maṭarata'') is a "station" or "toll house" that is located between the World of Light (''alma ḏ-nhūra'') from Tibil (Earth). It has variously been translated as "watch-station", "toll-station", "way-station", or "purgatory". Maṭartas are guarded by various uthras (celestial beings from the World of Light) and demons. Ruha, the queen of the underworld, is the ruler or guardian of the third maṭarta. To reach the World of Light (''alma ḏ-nhūra'') from Tibil (Earth), souls must pass through the various maṭartas that are situated in between. Rituals such as the ''masiqta'' can help guide souls past the various maṭarta so that they could reach the World of Light. In the Ginza Rabba In the Ginza Rabba, Chapter 3 in Book 5 of the ''Right Ginza'', Book 6 of the ''Right Ginza'' (also known as the "Book of Dinanukht"), and Chapter 4 in Book 1 of the ''Left Ginza'' give detailed descriptions of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mandaean Cosmology
Mandaean cosmology is the Gnostic conception of the universe in the religion of Mandaeism. Mandaean cosmology is strongly influenced by Jewish mythology, Jewish, Babylonian mythology, Babylonian, Persian mythology, Persian, Egyptian mythology, Egyptian, Greek mythology, Greek, Manichaeism, Manichaean and other Near Eastern religions and philosophies. Emanations The three major Emanationism, Emanations or "Lives" (''Hayyi'') in Mandaeism are: #The Second Life: Yushamin, the primal uthra #The Third Life: Abatur, the weigher of souls, and also the father of the ''uthri'' (plural of ''uthra'') #The Fourth Life: Ptahil, the creator of the material world The Second Life, Third Life, and Fourth Life are emanations of the First Life, Hayyi Rabbi (the Supreme God). Realms Mandaean cosmology divides the universe into three realms: #World of Light or Lightworld (''alma ḏ-nhūra'') #Tibil, or Earth #World of Darkness (Mandaeism), World of Darkness or underworld (''alma ḏ-hšuka'') Acco ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Abatur
Abatur ( myz, ࡀࡁࡀࡕࡅࡓ, sometimes called Abathur; Yawar, myz, ࡉࡀࡅࡀࡓ; and the Ancient of Days) is an Uthra and the second of three subservient emanations created by the Mandaean God '' Hayyi Rabbi'' ( myz, ࡄࡉࡉࡀ ࡓࡁࡉࡀ, “The Great Living God”) in the Mandaean religion. His name translates as the “''father of the Uthras''”, the Mandaean name for angels or guardians. His usual epithet is ''the Ancient'' (''Atiga'') and he is also called ''the deeply hidden and guarded''. He is described as being the son of the first emanation, or '' Yoshamin'' ( myz, ࡉࡅࡔࡀࡌࡉࡍ). He is also described as being the angel of Polaris. He exists in two different personae. These include Abatur Rama ( myz, ࡀࡁࡀࡕࡅࡓ ࡓࡀࡌࡀ, the "lofty" or celestial Abatur), and his "lower" counterpart, Abatur of the Scales ( myz, ࡀࡁࡀࡕࡅࡓ ࡌࡅࡆࡀࡍࡉࡀ, Abatur Muzania), who weighs the souls of the dead to determine their fate. In Ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hierarchy
A hierarchy (from Greek: , from , 'president of sacred rites') is an arrangement of items (objects, names, values, categories, etc.) that are represented as being "above", "below", or "at the same level as" one another. Hierarchy is an important concept in a wide variety of fields, such as architecture, philosophy, design, mathematics, computer science, organizational theory, systems theory, systematic biology, and the social sciences (especially political philosophy). A hierarchy can link entities either directly or indirectly, and either vertically or diagonally. The only direct links in a hierarchy, insofar as they are hierarchical, are to one's immediate superior or to one of one's subordinates, although a system that is largely hierarchical can also incorporate alternative hierarchies. Hierarchical links can extend "vertically" upwards or downwards via multiple links in the same direction, following a path. All parts of the hierarchy that are not linked vertically to on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Enoch (ancestor Of Noah)
Enoch () ''Henṓkh''; ar, أَخْنُوخ ', ommonly in Qur'ānic literature ' is a biblical figure and Patriarchs (Bible)">patriarch prior to Noah's flood, and the son of Jared (biblical figure), Jared and father of Methuselah. He was of the Antediluvian period in the Hebrew Bible. The text of the Book of Genesis says Enoch lived 365 years before he was taken by God. The text reads that Enoch "walked with God: and he was no more; for God took him" (), which is interpreted as Enoch's entering heaven alive in some Jewish and Christian traditions, and interpreted differently in others. Enoch is the subject of many Jewish and Christian traditions. He was considered the author of the Book of Enoch and also called the scribe of judgment. In the New Testament, Enoch is referenced in the Gospel of Luke, the Epistle to the Hebrews, and in the Epistle of Jude, the last of which also quotes from it. In the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, and Oriental Orthodoxy, he is venerated as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Patriarch
The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and in certain cases also ''popes'' – such as the Pope of Rome or Pope of Alexandria, and ''catholicoi'' – such as Catholicos Karekin II). The word is derived from Greek πατριάρχης (''patriarchēs''), meaning "chief or father of a family", a compound of πατριά (''patria''), meaning "family", and ἄρχειν (''archein''), meaning "to rule". Originally, a ''patriarch'' was a man who exercised autocratic authority as a pater familias over an extended family. The system of such rule of families by senior males is termed patriarchy. Historically, a patriarch has often been the logical choice to act as ethnarch of the community identified with his religious confession within a state or empire of a different creed (such as C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mysticism
Mysticism is popularly known as becoming one with God or the Absolute, but may refer to any kind of ecstasy or altered state of consciousness which is given a religious or spiritual meaning. It may also refer to the attainment of insight in ultimate or hidden truths, and to human transformation supported by various practices and experiences. The term "mysticism" has Ancient Greek origins with various historically determined meanings. Derived from the Greek word μύω ''múō'', meaning "to close" or "to conceal", mysticism referred to the biblical, liturgical, spiritual, and contemplative dimensions of early and medieval Christianity. During the early modern period, the definition of mysticism grew to include a broad range of beliefs and ideologies related to "extraordinary experiences and states of mind." In modern times, "mysticism" has acquired a limited definition, with broad applications, as meaning the aim at the "union with the Absolute, the Infinite, or God". This l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jewish Apocrypha
The Jewish apocrypha () are books written in large part by Jews, especially during the Second Temple period, not accepted as sacred manuscripts when the Hebrew Bible was canonized. Some of these books are considered sacred by most Christians, and are included in their versions of the Old Testament. The Jewish apocrypha is distinctive from the New Testament apocrypha and biblical apocrypha as it is the only one of these collections which works within a Jewish theological framework. Apocrypha in Judaism Certain circles in Judaism, such as the Essenes in Judea and the Therapeutae in Egypt, were said to have a "secret" literature (see Dead Sea scrolls). The Pharisees were also familiar with these texts. A large part of this "secret" literature was the apocalypses. Based on unfulfilled prophecies, these books were not considered scripture, but rather part of a literary form that flourished from 200 BCE to 100 CE. These works usually bore the names of ancient Hebrew worthies to es ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Second Book Of Enoch
The Second Book of Enoch (abbreviated as 2 Enoch and also known as Slavonic Enoch, Slavic Enoch or Secrets of Enoch) is a pseudepigraphic text in the apocalyptic genre. It describes the ascent of the patriarch Enoch, ancestor of Noah, through ten heavens of an Earth-centered cosmos. The Slavonic edition and translation of 2 Enoch is of Christian origin in the 8th century but is based on an earlier work. 2 Enoch is distinct from the Book of Enoch, known as 1 Enoch, and there is also an unrelated 3 Enoch, although none of the three books are considered canonical scripture by the majority of Jewish or Christian bodies. The numbering of these texts has been applied by scholars to distinguish each from the others. The cosmology of 2 Enoch corresponds closely with beliefs of the Early Middle Ages about the metaphysical structure of the universe. It may have been influential in shaping them. The text was lost for several centuries, then recovered and published at the end of the ninetee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eastern Orthodoxy
Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or " canonical") Eastern Orthodox Church is organised into autocephalous churches independent from each other. In the 21st century, the number of mainstream autocephalous churches is seventeen; there also exist autocephalous churches unrecognized by those mainstream ones. Autocephalous churches choose their own primate. Autocephalous churches can have jurisdiction (authority) over other churches, some of which have the status of " autonomous" which means they have more autonomy than simple eparchies. Many of these jurisdictions correspond to the territories of one or more modern states; the Patriarchate of Moscow, for example, corresponds to Russia and some of the other post-Soviet states. They can also include metropolises, bishoprics, parish ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aerial Toll House
Aerial toll houses (also called " telonia", from the / ''telonia'', customs) are a belief held by some in the Eastern Orthodox Church which states that "following a person's death the soul leaves the body, and is escorted to God by angels. During this journey the soul passes through an aerial realm, which is inhabited by wicked spirits (Ephesians 6:12). The soul encounters these demons at various points referred to as ''toll-houses'' where the demons then attempt to accuse it of sin and, if possible, drag the soul into hell." A number of the Eastern Orthodox saints, modern elders and theologians have openly endorsed it, but some theologians and bishops have condemned it as heretical and gnostic in origin. Aerial toll houses are part of the particular judgment. Teaching The most detailed account of the aerial toll-houses is found in the biography of Basil the Younger, found in the ''Lives of Saints'' for 26 March. In this rendering, Theodora, spiritual student of Basil, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pistis Sophia
''Pistis Sophia'' ( grc-koi, Πίστις Σοφία) is a Gnostic text discovered in 1773, possibly written between the 3rd and 4th centuries AD. The existing manuscript, which some scholars place in the late 4th century, relates one Gnostic group's teachings of the transfigured Jesus to the assembled disciples, including his mother Mary, Mary Magdalene, and Martha. (In this context, "transfigured" refers to Jesus after his death and resurrection, not the event during his life where he spoke to appearances of Moses and Elijah on a mountain.) In this text, the risen Jesus had spent eleven years speaking with his disciples, teaching them only the lower mysteries. After eleven years, he receives his true garment and is able to reveal the higher mysteries revered by this group. The prized mysteries relate to complex cosmologies and knowledge necessary for the soul to reach the highest divine realms. Much of the first two books of the manuscript are dedicated to outlining the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Book Of Thomas
The ''Book of Thomas the Contender'', also known more simply as the ''Book of Thomas'' (not to be confused with the Gospel of Thomas and the Infancy Gospel of Thomas), is one of the books of the New Testament apocrypha represented in the Nag Hammadi library ( CG II), a cache of Gnostic gospels secreted in the Egyptian desert. The title derives from the first line of text. The colophon appended to the text gives the title ''The Contender writing to the Perfect''. Composition There are two competing theories as to the composition of the text: *Firstly, since it is only the initial 3/5 which constitute dialogue, with the remainder being a monologue, it may have originally been two works, one of dialogue, one of monologue. *Alternatively, and not in the least because of the two titles, the work is thought to have originated as a letter, with a name of the form ''Epistle of the Contender'', written by a Jew who upheld Hellenic philosophy. The text is thought to have later been ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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