Manichaean scripture

The Manichaean religion has nine main books as part of its scripture: seven of them are the Seven Treatises, which were written by Mani himself in the Syriac language, one is the Shabuhragan, written by Mani in Middle Persian, and the last one is the Arzhang, a collection of illustrations created by Mani.

There is also a secondary literature called the Kephalaia, which gives comments and explanations on the scripture, but it is not considered part of the main scripture itself.[1][2]

Seven Treatises

The Seven Treatises are seven important books in Manichaeism. They were written by the founder of the religion, Mani, and are considered to be the holy scriptures of Manichaeism.[3]

Mani wanted to make a new religion that would bring everyone together. He thought that other religions were not good enough because they only worked when the person who started the religion was still alive. After that person died, the religion became broken into different parts and people did not follow it the same way. Mani believed that his new religion, Manichaeism, was better because it would be popular in every country and every language. He also thought that it would last forever because it had important books and leaders who would keep it strong.[4] The Manichaean Compendium refers to the Seven Treatises as ships, saying, "Create seven of them for sailing."[5]

Unfortunately, none of the Seven Treatises have been found in their complete form. Parts of the scriptures have been found in different languages such as Coptic, Middle Persian, Parthian, Sogdian, Uighur and others, but more research is needed to determine which treatise each fragment belongs to.

Name comparison

English Name "Keflea" 148; "Sermon 25" Hymn 46-47; 139-40 Keflea 5 Sermons 94 Transliteration of "A Brief Introduction to Maniguang Buddhism Methods" Paraphrase of "A Brief Introduction to Maniguang Buddhism"
Gospel of Mani[6] Euaggelion Euaggelion Euaggelion Euaggelion 大应轮部（希腊文：evangelion） 彻尽万法根源智经
Treasure of Life[6] Thēsauros Thēsauros Thēsauros Thēsauros 寻提贺部（粟特文：smṭyh'） 净命宝藏经
The Epistles[6] Epistolaue Epistolaue Epistolaue Epistolaue 泥万部（中古波斯文：dēwān） 律藏经/药藏经
The Book of Mysteries[6] mMustērion mMustērion pTa tōn mustērion mMustērion 阿罗瓒部（中古波斯文：razan） 秘密法藏经
Pragmateia[6] Pragmateia Pragmateia Pragmateia Pragmateia 钵迦摩帝夜部（希臘文：pragmateia） 证明过去教经
The Book of Giants[6] nGigas nCalashire graphē ntlaice nnParthos Graphe [ ntlaice nnParthos 俱缓部（中古波斯文：kawan） 大力士经
Psalms and Prayers[6] mPsalmos + nShlel nShlel + 2Psalmos mPsalmos + nShlel nShlel 阿拂胤部（中古波斯文：āfrīn） 赞愿经

Shabuhragan

See the main article: Shabuhragan

The Shabuhragan is a special book in Manichaeism that was written by the founder, Mani. It was made for King Shapur I of Persia and was written in Middle Persian. The book explains Mani's religion, which combined ideas from Zoroastrianism, Christianity, and Buddhism. This is the only book that Mani wrote in Middle Persian, instead of Syriac.[7] The book is listed as one of the seven important books of Manichaeism in Arabic history, but it is not one of the seven listed in the Manichaean religion itself.[8]

The word "Shabuhragan" means "book of Shapur" and the Chinese call it "two sutras." In the book, Mani says that his religion is better and continues the wisdom of other religions. He also says that he is the "Sealed Prophet," chosen by God to bring his teachings to the world. Mani wrote that the apostles of God have been bringing wisdom to the world for many generations and that he is the latest apostle, after Buddha, Zoroaster, and Jesus Christ.[8]

Book of Pictures

See the main article: Arzhang

The Book of Pictures is an important book in Manichaeism that shows the idea of light and dark. Mani made the book himself to help people who couldn't read understand his religion. He believed that his religion was better than other religions because it had a book with pictures to explain it, unlike other religions that only had written teachings.[9] The Book of Pictures was second only in importance to the Seven Treatises in Manichaeism. In the Parthian language, the book is called "Ādrhang."[10][11]

Related pages

References

  1. ↑ Gardner, Iain (2018). "Kephalaia". Encyclopædia Iranica (online ed.). Encyclopædia Iranica Foundation.
  2. ↑ Pettipiece, Timothy (2009). Pentadic redaction in the Manichaean Kephalaia. Leiden: Brill. ISBN 978-90-474-2782-7. OCLC 570278329.
  3. ↑ Brian, Nicholas (2011). Manichaeism: an ancient faith rediscovered. London New York: T & T Clark. ISBN 978-0-567-03166-2. OCLC 747034339.
  4. ↑ See Mary Boyce, A Reader in Manichaean Middle Persian and Parthian, Leiden, 1975, P.29; See JPAsmussen, Manichaean Literature, New York, 1975, P.12 for English translation. Therefore, Mani decided to write his own religious works personally so that his religion will exist forever. "The Gospel" praises the Trinity of the Supreme God; <ref>Mary Boyce, "The Manichaean Literature in Middle Iranian", p. 69.
  5. ↑ "British Tibetan" (5), S.3969/3, page 224b
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 马小鹤：《光明使者：摩尼与摩尼教》（兰州：兰州大学出版社，2014）p.171-172
  7. ↑ 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 edition, written by Mani in the Syriac language."
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Chronology of Ancient Nations; ed. and trans. by A. Brinkmann; Leipzig, 1895
  9. ↑ In Iain Gardner and Samuel NC Lieu, Manichaean texts from the Roman Empire/ edited by Iain Gardner and Samuel NC Lieu. Cambridge; New York: Cambridge University Press, 2004, p.266
  10. ↑ Haloun, A. & WB Henning, "The Compendium of the Doctrines and Styles of the Teaching of Mani, the Buddha of Light", Asia Major, NS3, 1952, pp.194–195,204–210
  11. ↑ H.-J. Klimkeit, Manichaean Art and Calligraphy, Iconography of regeligions XX, Leiden, 1982, pp.1,15–17