by Michel Tardieu, 136pp, 1981
Manichaeism offers a short look at the ancient (and medieval) religion of Manichaeism, founded by the Babylonian prophet Mani in the third century AD. Mani was born and raised near Nippur in the Babylonian province of Parthian Persia. Visions guided him to question the prevailing religions of Judaism and Christianity, then develop his own path.
Mani toured all through Persia and Babylonia to spread his message, and gained a significant following. He spent some time in the court of the Parthian king Shapur I, for whom he wrote one of his several manuscripts, the Shabuhragan. He may have been successful in converting Shapur, which would have given his movement a boost. But that king died around 272AD, and his son Bahram was under the unshakable influence of a Zoroastrian priest named Karder. Mani was eventually imprisoned and died.
His religion continued to spread, however, despite its followers being persecuted in different times and places. It spread as far west as Algeria and Sicily, as far south as Nubia and Yemen, and all the way to Taiwan in the east. Manichaeism seemed to last longest in China, where it finally died out in the 14th C. Marco Polo met some Manichaeans in his travels.
This book reveals Mani's origins, and speaks of his father and early religious influences among the Elchasites and star-worshiping Sabaeans of Babylon. It then speaks to how he developed his own views and their resemblance to Christianity and reaction to Judaism. The book then covers Mani's life and death, discusses the nature of his several texts, and the organization of Manichaeism's religious community. Finally, the book takes a look at the cosmology and pantheon of the religion.
Manichaeism seems quite comprehensive in all these areas, though I think the book would have been improved by offering a little more of a survey of the prevailing religious thought at the time. We brush up, for example, against Zoroastrians and Nestorians in this book, but the author doesn't provide much insight as to how these various religions might have come into conflict. The book is also pretty shy on legacy, and doesn't say much out how Manichaeism might have influenced later religious thought.
One curious point that the author makes is that Manichaeism isn't a dualist religion, but one based rather on the nature of conflict. This is not, I don't think, a widely held view - in fact, I mostly see the word "Manichaean" being used as a synonym for black-and-white thinking. There's a very comprehensive Wikipedia article on Mancichaeism, which doesn't list this book under 'further reading' but does list one called The Medieval Manichee: a study of the Christian dualist heresy by Steve Runciman, published around the same time. I would have liked to have seen the argument for it not being dualistic explored further in this book by the author.
Manichaeism is therefore recommended as a short introduction to the subject. It's not a one-stop-shop for all things Manichaean, but it'll get you started. It's well written and accessible to the layman.
Manichaeism offers a short look at the ancient (and medieval) religion of Manichaeism, founded by the Babylonian prophet Mani in the third century AD. Mani was born and raised near Nippur in the Babylonian province of Parthian Persia. Visions guided him to question the prevailing religions of Judaism and Christianity, then develop his own path. Mani toured all through Persia and Babylonia to spread his message, and gained a significant following. He spent some time in the court of the Parthian king Shapur I, for whom he wrote one of his several manuscripts, the Shabuhragan. He may have been successful in converting Shapur, which would have given his movement a boost. But that king died around 272AD, and his son Bahram was under the unshakable influence of a Zoroastrian priest named Karder. Mani was eventually imprisoned and died.
His religion continued to spread, however, despite its followers being persecuted in different times and places. It spread as far west as Algeria and Sicily, as far south as Nubia and Yemen, and all the way to Taiwan in the east. Manichaeism seemed to last longest in China, where it finally died out in the 14th C. Marco Polo met some Manichaeans in his travels.
This book reveals Mani's origins, and speaks of his father and early religious influences among the Elchasites and star-worshiping Sabaeans of Babylon. It then speaks to how he developed his own views and their resemblance to Christianity and reaction to Judaism. The book then covers Mani's life and death, discusses the nature of his several texts, and the organization of Manichaeism's religious community. Finally, the book takes a look at the cosmology and pantheon of the religion.
Manichaeism seems quite comprehensive in all these areas, though I think the book would have been improved by offering a little more of a survey of the prevailing religious thought at the time. We brush up, for example, against Zoroastrians and Nestorians in this book, but the author doesn't provide much insight as to how these various religions might have come into conflict. The book is also pretty shy on legacy, and doesn't say much out how Manichaeism might have influenced later religious thought.
One curious point that the author makes is that Manichaeism isn't a dualist religion, but one based rather on the nature of conflict. This is not, I don't think, a widely held view - in fact, I mostly see the word "Manichaean" being used as a synonym for black-and-white thinking. There's a very comprehensive Wikipedia article on Mancichaeism, which doesn't list this book under 'further reading' but does list one called The Medieval Manichee: a study of the Christian dualist heresy by Steve Runciman, published around the same time. I would have liked to have seen the argument for it not being dualistic explored further in this book by the author.
Manichaeism is therefore recommended as a short introduction to the subject. It's not a one-stop-shop for all things Manichaean, but it'll get you started. It's well written and accessible to the layman.
