What's the deal with Manichaeism?
Been reading a lot about it lately and when it comes to beliefs, I only see their weird creation story about light and dark, demiurge, etc.
Does anybody know what Mani's message for life actually was? What were Manichaean morals?
Or is it all just lost to history since other religions destroyed his books?
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We actually do know a fair bit about Manichaeism due to surviving fragments and more.
>Does anybody know what Mani's message for life actually was? What were Manichaean morals?
The social organization of Manichaeism was broken into two groups of peoples: The Hearers and the Elect. In order to explain what both do it's necessary understand Manichaeism's cosmogony. I will quote from my play here:
"in the beginning, the kingdoms of light and darkness were eternally separated. In the North, the resplendent Kingdom of Light was ruled by the venerated
21Father, surrounded by his emanating archangels. All was well and beautiful until the loathsome Prince of Darkness, from his Dark Kingdom in the South, invaded with his five worlds: black smoke, scorching fire, chilling breeze, turbid water, and indelible darkness. The Father, in retaliation, derived the First Man to subdue these dark forces. He descended emanating his Living Soul, composed of the five elements: warm fire, refreshing wind, limpid water, light, and ether. The abysmal demons opened their mouths and attempted to swallow his Living Soul, which is identical to thy Lord!
ith guile, the First Man spread his Living Soul over the vile beasts. His Living Soul rained down crystalline water and crept into their inner darkness. The five worlds of the evil ones absorbed the divine elements of the Living Soul without knowing it! The war was finally over at last, with the monsters' satiated. The Father, finally, sent his Second Son, the Living Spirit, to retrieve his brother. The Living Spirit communes with the shattered pieces of Living Soul, urging it to break from the binds of darkly matter and remigrate to the Kingdom of Light!"
CONTINUED
...
Demiurge be ye gone! You smell!
Can I get some sources for further reading
Now, to explain the role of the Elect and Hearers. The Hearers are considered lay practitioners who understand Mani's teachings but cannot commit wholly to it. Mani also believed in reincarnation where a "Great Architect" constantly reinvents the world after a certain period during the turmoil between intermixing light and darkness; the gibbous moon collects "liberated light" and waxes it unto the sun whereby it takes a scintillating journey to the Father, also called Ohrmazd and more by Mani.
The Hearers cannot liberate their inner light entirely due to their need for toil. However, the Elect basically live relaxed lives. meditating, belching, and eating watermelon (which Mani considered divine) in order to liberate their light wholly, breaking free from transmigration and the binds of darkness.
Sure, I wasn't done explaining though... Check here: Anyways, here are the sources I recommend:
1. Religions of Iran: From Prehistory to the Present by Richard Foltz
2. The Secret History of the Gnostics: Their Scriptures, Beliefs and Traditions by Andrew Philip Smith
3. Religions of Late Antiquity in Practice by Richard Valantasis
4. Gardens of Light by Amin Maalouf
#4 is actually historical fiction, so it take some liberties. However, it is the funnest read and does convey certain events in Mani's life well. I recommend #2 the most for brief but thorough overview.
Thanks, that's good info.
I'm still confused about what the endgame of this religion is supposed to be for a loyal follower?
Is the goal to return to the kingdom of light by fighting the darkness in this life?
Is there reincarnation with some "out" like enlightenment in Buddhism? I know Mani was supposedly influenced by Buddhism.
Some kind of salvation like Christianity? It has that influence too.
This part confuses me. There isn't much mentioned online about the goals/morals of this religion beyond their cosmology.
Thank you again. That's pretty useful.
The Elect sound vaguely like the monk class in certain types of Buddhism.
Was their goal to escape reincarnation/darkness then? It sounds like this transmigration you mentioned is either something like nirvana or oneness with the light/God.
>Is the goal to return to the kingdom of light by fighting the darkness in this life?
Yeah, every being contains both light and darkness due to the Prince of Darkness' demons swallowing the rain of light from Living Soul of the first man. The goal is, through spiritual practice, to liberate one's light from the the darkness, which encases it, and liberate it through a journey through the Milky Way back to the Kingdom Light, where it is unitary or so.
>Is there reincarnation with some "out" like enlightenment in Buddhism?
I answered that here:
>first man
First Man, forgot to cap.
>liberate it through a journey through
help it migrate through a journey to*
Also, one more point, The Elect basically live like Jains, they don't toil since it's seen to tarnish the process of liberating light, don't eat meat, abstain from sexual relations, and more. The Hearers can farm and such for the sake of Elect, but they are claimed not to be as easily liberate, however they do secure better rebirth from what I remember.
In Cologne-Mani Codex, which documents Mani's life in a Baptist sect near Euphrates river and his parting with them over some key points, Mani claims even plants can scream, so the Elect are really meant to live very ascetically like Jains to facilitate process of liberating light.
I am posting this to point to where I answered the questions before I head out to watch some films. Anyways, Cathars of Europe worshiped the memory of Mani/Manes, and their beliefs were heavily influenced by Manichaeism.
...
It had a great influence on St. Augstine who was one before converting to Christianity. It may have also provided the impetus in establishing certain customs or practices which are common place in churches during the time Christians' competition with it.
The authorities feared them from what've read, they were heavily presecuted
These melon eaters must be stopped! They are a threat to our turnip eating way of life!!
The clergy or the 'elect' had to have their food brought to them by the laypeople or the 'hearers' to avoid pollution from action and they practiced vegetarianism.
There were two kinds of Manichaeans, the Elect Saints and the Hearers. The Elect, who formed the nucleus of a Manichaean cell, were committed to a missionary life of poverty and celibacy. They were strict vegetarians, drank no wine, and were forbidden even to harvest or prepare food, because Mani had a revelation that it is a kind of murder to damage plants by harvesting. The sect survived because the Hearers incurred the sin of preparing food, and were released from sin by the prayers of the Elect who ate it: Mani taught that fragments of the divine which were trapped in plants could be released when ingested by the pure body of the Elect. The Hearers were also allowed a wife or concubine, but were taught to avoid procreation because it entraps more divine spirits in matter. Manichaean cells, like Christian churches, were kept in touch with one another by a hierarchy analogous to the Christian clergy, so when Augustine left Carthage for Rome he was able to stay with another Hearer and meet some of the Elect.
www-personal.umich.edu
It all looks very culty and secty and new agish like Bahá'ís and such with a notion like "First there was Krishna, then you had Buddha, then came Jesus, and now has come Mani."
>can't talk about an interesting religion because it isn't in complete agreement with my limited abr*hamic world views
There's also reason to believe Manichaeism had a formative influence on Pure Land Buddhism. Manichaeism was growing in China before being suppressed, and there's actually a very small group of followers of Mani still, even with a temple:
From the Wiki:
The Buddha of Light (Prophet Mani) carved from the living rock.
Is it customary for Chinese to create a "Buddha" for every religion?
Mani actually likened himself to Zoroaster, Buddha, Paraclete of the Truth (as promised in the New Testament), and more depending on the cultural context of the people he's preaching to.
My question is regarding Chinese temple though. Is Mani special for getting a Buddha statue built in his honor? Or is this custom prolific?
>Is Mani special for getting a Buddha statue built in his honor?
Yes. Manichaeism spread significantly to China, and some scholars claim it could have become as popular as Daoism or Confucianism. However, it was purged by Chinese officials.
Manichaeism does have many parallels with Buddhism.
>Or is this custom prolific?
From my own research, it's not really prolific.
>oh look it's that same guy from the other thread who freaked out when I refuted Gnosticism 3 weeks ago.