MANI, MANICHEANS.
Origin of Man (§ 6). The End of the World (§ 7). Two Classes of Manicheans (8 8). Fasts, Feasts, and Prayer (§ 9). The Church (§ 10).
The Future Life (§11).
Mani's Attitude Toward the Bible (§ 12).
Manichean Literature (§ 13).
History of the Religion (§ 14).
Component Sources of the System (§ 15).
sonal center around which to gather its forces, for
want of which, as contrasted with Christianity, it
failed to attain popularity. Even more
i. The dangerous than this was a religion
Religion which, rising in the Orient, united in
Character- itself the charms of the new with the
ized. allurements of the old as represented
in the mysteries — which were so
attractive to the peoples of that time. This was
Mithraism, of which Renan once rightly remarked,
Hani, Manichean.8
THE NEW SCHAFF-HERZOG
" If the world had not become Christian in the fourth century, it would have become Mithraic." See Mithra, Mithraism. When this enemy had been conquered by the polemics of the Fathers, Babylonia, the cradle of Mithraism, sent a dreadworthy successor to the West, the religion of Mani, or Manicheism. Of Babylonian-Persian origin, the teaching of Mani found its way smoothed by its predecessor, Mithraism. Christianity fought its hardest battle with this new religion, which, though too far removed from Christianity to become a Christian sect, yet combined in itself all the elements which made Gnosticism, with its emphasis upon higher wisdom, so dangerous to Christianity. Manicheism had an existence of nearly a thousand years. It united to Ophitism, the oldest and purest form of Gnosticism, the best elements of the teachings of Marcion and Bardesanes, and so built up the most important of all Gnostic systems. Yet it had, at least as respects Christianity, all the advantages of independence; and it confidently claimed ability to supply a universal need. Its basis was pagan as contrasted with the Christian foundation of other forms of Gnosticism. Mani's object was to give to the Persians of Sassanian times a better religion than that of Zoroaster; he had not apostolic Christianity in view as an opponent. Hence he utilized the sources found in the metropolis of metropolises, Babylon, and built upon the foundations of religion laid there so many centuries earlier. That he later had regard to the Christianity of the West and to the Buddhism of the East is indeed not to be denied; but the influence of Christianity is small compared with the abounding paganism worked into his system. The elements, then, out of which Mani created the religion which he gave to his disciples to propagate, were the Babylonian-Aramaic beliefs of his time, with Parseeism controlling the theory, Buddhism influencing the ethics and life, Christianity furnishing holy names and external analogies, and Mandaism giving its " king of light." A great literature arose about this faith. Concerning the founder Christians and non-Christians wrote; Church Fathers and professional polemists as well as philosophers and historians who had no bias, litterateurs of the East and of the West were engaged in discussing it. Christian sources are in Greek, Latin, Syriac, Armenian, and a few in Arabic; the non- Christian mainly in Arabic or Persian, and the latter, as belonging to the soil on which the religion grew and because of the natural sympathy and habits of writing of the East, are the most valuable as giving the purest forms of tradition.
The native name of the founder is Mani (Gk. Manes, Manichaios, Lat. Manes or Manichatus), the etymology of which is doubtful. It is not of Persian but of Babylonian-Aramaic derivation, and is to be connected with the Mana so frequently occurring in Mandaean writings (see Man- 2. Mani's d.eans). The Acta Archelai gives the Origin; founder's original name as Curbicius, Legendary changed later into Curbicus and Urbi- Accretions. cus. Mani's father's name is given as Fatak (Patak), and his family is said to have been of distinguished Persian origin, to have emigrated from Ecbatana in Bactria and
settled near Ctesiphon. His mother is reputed to have belonged to the Arsacidae. Mani is said to have been born in the city of Mardinu in 215-216; he was crucified at Gundev Shapur in 276. A cycle of legend surrounds the circumstances of his birth. According to reports, his father took the boy under his especial care, removed him from his mother and, in consequence of a change in his religious convictions, joined a South Babylonian sect, the Mu'tasilah, " baptizers," and took up his residence in the district of Mesene on the lower Tigris, where he gave his son instruction until his twelfth year, at which time Mani reached independent conclusions on the matter of religion. Reports indicate that Fatak was essentially a religious leader who used his son to further the diffusion of his teachings. The Acta Archelai mentions two supposed forerunners of Mani, Scythianus and Terebinthus. The former is reported to have been a " Saracen " merchant of Arabia who went to Egypt and absorbed all the wisdom of that land during a residence there, and through his disciple Terebinthus wrote a number of books. He then went to Judea to propagate his doctrines but was worsted in a disputation and lost his life. Terebinthus fled to Babylonia with his master's books and treasures, there took the name of Buddas (or Baiddas), engaged in a disputation with Persian priests of Mithra, but was worsted, gaining as convert only an old widow who fell heir to his books and treasures, and bought as a slave Curbicius (see above), who in turn came into possession of the treasures of Scythianus. But this whole story arises in a misconception. " Terebinthus," though it might be used as a proper name, means " pupil," and embodies also a development of the term rubbiya, having the same general meaning. Mani is spoken of as the disciple of his father, is identified with Terebinthus, and his father with Scythianus, as coming from the country of the Scythians, while the term " Saracen " (see above) is explicable from Fatak's settlement in Mesene (Characene). This explanation fits well with the varied sources drawn upon in the construction of the system. Allegorical reconstruction then accounts for the story of Scythianus and Terebinthus given above.
Manichean tradition places the first independent development in the religious life of Mani in his twelfth year. The traveled youth received then a revelation from the king of light through the angel Elta'um (" El [God] is allied," cf. the name of the Talmudic angel Tumiy'el, in which the elements are the same, only reversed in order) directing him to
withdraw from the Mu'tasilah and
3. Mani's purify himself by ascetic practises.
Life. The next twelve years were spent in
preparation for his work, especially in the study of Babylonian religion; during this time he was in contact with the Christians of South Babylonia. Mani's first public appearance is set by a trustworthy Manichean source on the coronation day of Shapur I., Mar. 20, 242, and he is asserted to have begun his work as a religious teacher in his twenty-eighth year. While the occasion, the collection of a large concourse of people, was happily chosen, the disfavor of the king compelled