MANICHAEAN PUBLICATIONS

Introducing the Holy Manichaean Faith

 MANICHAEAN PUBLICATIONS

Introducing the Holy Manichaean Faith

Information for Beginning Seekers
A modern artist’s depiction of our lord and Prophet Mani,
Apostle of Jesus Christ
 CONTENTS

A Brief Catechism 1
Our Theology 7
Major Figures 16
Scriptures 19
 A BRIEF CATECHISM

Answering basic questions about the faith

Who is Mani?
Mani was born in the region of Mesopotamia in the Parthian
empire, in the town Mardinu in the Babylonian district of Nahr
Kutha; Mani’s father Pātika was a native of Ecbatana and a
member of the Jewish-Christian sect of the Elkesaites. His
mother was descended from Parthian nobility; her name is
reported to have been Maryam. At ages 12 and 24, Mani’s life
changed forever when he had visionary experiences of a heavenly
Twin of his, calling him to leave his father’s Baptist sect and
preach the true message of Jesus in a new gospel. Mani then
travelled to India, where he studied Hinduism and its various
extant philosophies, including Buddhism. Returning in the year
242, Mani presented himself to King Shapur I, to whom he
dedicated his only work written in Persian, known as the
Shabuhragan. Shapur was not converted to Manichaeism and
remained Zoroastrian, but he was friendly to Mani's teachings,
which mixed Christianity, Buddhism and Zoroastrianism, and
took him into his court. Mani is said to have performed miracles,
including levitation, teleporting and healing, which helped him
to gain converts in the Iranian elite. He was also famed as a
painter. Shapur’s successor Hormizd I, who reigned only for one
year, continued to patronize Mani, but his successor Bahram I, a
follower of the Zoroastrian reformer Kartir, began to persecute

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the Manichaeans. He incarcerated Mani, who died in prison
within a month, in 274. According to sources, he passed his last
days comforting his visiting disciples, teaching that his death
would have no other consequence than the return of his soul to
the realm of light. Mani was crucified by Bahram I like Jesus the
Splendor; during his crucifixion a mighty storm fell on the
Persian kingdom and it is said that all those who were present at
the crucifixion converted to Mani’s teachings.
Where did Mani come from?
Mani was born on April 14th 216 AD to Elkesaite parents in
Mesopotamia near Ctesiphon. At ages 12 and 24 Mani received
visions from his Divine Twin, the Holy Spirit, telling him to
leave his parents’ sect and preach his own religion.
Who is God?
God is Zurvan, the Father of Greatness, Lord of Time and the
Great King of Light. Zurvan is all-good without anything evil
within Him, and everything good originates from Him; He
dwells in His Light-Kingdom surrounded by many different
Aeons and Angels. His opponent is the eternal King of
Darkness, who is entirely evil without any goodness within him
and is the father and creator of all evil, and dwells within his
Dark-Kingdom surrounded by many demons.
What is the Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit, also called the Living Spirit, is a Great Celestial
Being emanating from the Great King of Light. The Holy Spirit
is a manifestation of Pure Light from the very essence of Zurvan.
The Holy Spirit is referred to as the “Sustainer of the Universe”;
all goodness within creation originates from the Holy Spirit. The
Holy Spirit is referred to using female pronouns.
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What is Hell?
Hell is a place within the Kingdom of Darkness where human
souls which are so embroiled in matter and evil that they cannot
be reincarnated in the physical world have become unsaveable
and so are dragged down into Hell by demons which will remain
there for eternity and will never again be given the chance of
rejoining God.
What is Gnosis in Manichaeism?
Gnosis is the development of the Light-Nature of oneself
through the practising of the Ten Perfections, the Twelve
Virtues and the Twelve Vows, allowing the Holy Spirit to dwell
within you unhindered and becoming one with the Light and
thus escaping the fleshly prison.
What is the Manichean view of Abortion?
Abortion is a mortal sin in Manichaeism akin to murder. It is
even referenced in the Fourth Perfection: “Do not murder a
man, a woman or a child, neither abort an infant; neither
commit to unnecessary killing of any life including animals and
plants.”
What is the Manichaean view of gender equality?
Manichaeism follows Mani’s Gnostic teachings of absolute
equality between the two genders; there is no distinction
between male or female in Manichaean texts.
Charity?
Charity is one of the central, fundamental tenets of the
Manichean faith. (“So too in persecution and freedom in good
days and bad, under the eyes of the Elect or out of their sight,

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the pious Hearer is constant in charity and faith.” – GPM:
Greatness of the Hearer 43:1)
What is the Great Calamity?
The Great Calamity was the prophecy made by the first
Manichaean church that has come to pass, that when the church
would cease to exist and the Manichaean texts would be lost,
they would be found later and spread once again. The prophecy
is this:
A thousand books will be preserved ... they will come
into the hand of the just and the faithful [the] Gospel
and the Treasury of Life, the Pragmateia and the Book of
Mysteries, the Book of Giants and the Epistles, the Psalms
and [the] Prayers of my lord, his Icon and his
Revelations, his Parables and his Mysteries ... How many
will be lost? How many will be destroyed? A thousand
lost, another thousand recovered; for they will find them
at the end. They will kiss them, and say: “O Wisdom of
Greatness, O Armor of the Apostle of Light! When you
were lost ... where did they find you?” ... And you shall
find them reading them aloud, uttering the name [of
each book] among them: the name of its lord .. and the
name of those who gave all [for it to be written] and the
name of the scribe who wrote it... and of the one who
punctuated it....
What are the Manichean Holy Books?
Mani wrote many books and letters, but sadly due to the Great
Calamity many parts of his holy works were lost. However,
much of what remains today is compiled in The Great Kephalia
and the Book of Hymns.

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What are the ‘Three Ages?’
The Three Ages, also referred to as the three creations, are stages
in the history of the war and creations of the Light and
Darkness.
First Age:
In the beginning the Spiritual World of Light and the Material
World of Darkness were separate.
Second Age:
Disciples of Mani believe humanity currently exists in the
Second Age which is characterised by the mixing of Light and
Darkness. Manichaeans believe Light has been trapped in a
physical body which was designed by the forces of the World of
Darkness. According to divine revelatory texts, it is during the
latter part of the Second Age that a Messenger will appear in the
world of mankind to help bring a message of hope to the world.
Manichaeans believe that his teaching will help individuals
realise their true origin and liberate the Light within from the
darkness.
Third Age:
The Third Age is the future. The religion teaches that this age
will bring about the division of Light and Darkness once again.
The Light that is trapped in the physical body will be separated
and be returned to God in the Celestial Kingdom of Light.
Is God omnipotent?
The answer to this question is different based on how you
would define the term ‘omnipotent’, because God is all-
powerful and all-knowing within His own Nature and
Kingdom, but the King of Darkness is likewise omnipotent
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within his own nature and Kingdom, and both Gods have equal
power when it comes to the physical world, for both Light and
Darkness are present in the physical world (and it is up to us to
choose between them). God is not omnipotent by the
definitions of omnipotence you may know from Christianity or
Islam however; the two Gods of Manichaeism are both
omnipotent and thus locked in an eternal struggle with one
another.
Who are the main Prophets of Manichaeism?
The four main Prophets are Zoroaster, Siddhartha Gautama
(Buddha), Jesus and Mani.
Are there any sects within Manichaeism?
No, there are no sects within Manichaeism; the only real
difference between eastern and western Manichaeism are the
cultural appearances, words and phrases. For example, western
Manicheans usually refer to God as Yahweh or Zurvan, the
Chinese Manicheans refer to God as Shangdi or Ming Zun and
the terms ‘Buddha’ and ‘Prophet’ are often used
interchangeably.
How does one convert to Manichaeism?
Becoming a Manichaean involves acknowledging one’s faith in
the Prophethood of Mani and professing the Ten Perfections
and the Twelve Virtues publicly to an Elect.

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 OUR THEOLOGY

Answering theological questions

1. How did this Universe come into existence?
It has always existed on the subtler planes: Two Realms, one of
Light ruled by God, and one of Darkness ruled by the Evil Spirit.
When Evil invaded the Light-Realm, the physical universe was
designed for their gradual separation.
2. What are the ‘Two Sources?’
All existing things derive from one of these two: the infinite
Light of spiritual Goodness, and the bottomless Darkness of evil
Matter, coexistent and totally opposed to one another.
3. What is God?
The infinite and ineffable beneficent King of the Light,
manifesting Himself in vast cosmic Powers or Emanations to
overthrow the aggression of evil Darkness on His spiritual
Realm, and also immanent throughout the universe.
4. Does the physical world have any real existence?
Certainly it is real, but it exists only until its purpose is achieved
by the separation of the Light and Darkness. Compared with the
eternity of the Light-World, it is only a fleeting shadow
dissipated by the dawn.
5. Is it Good or Evil?

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It is a mixture of Good and Evil, Spirit and Matter, Light and
Darkness. Thus it will dissolve when these eternal opposites are
separated from each other, the Light having been cleansed of all
contaminating shadows.
6. Why was it created, and by whom?
The Divine Mind, or ‘Living Spirit’ fashioned it as a means of
liberating Soul from Matter, the Light-Sparks of God from the
enslaving Darkness, through the practice of the Twelve Virtues
and the loving intercessions of the Luminaries and Saviours.
7. What is Man?
Man is a divine Spirit imprisoned in a body of flesh created by
the demons to ensnare his divinity in their world of darkness.
8. What is the Individual Soul?
The Soul is a Spark of God's Light, a part of His very Being,
separated from Him to be absorbed into the darkness of Matter
and gradually to refine and purify as much of it as possible.
Divine in source and end, its powers are limited while held
captive in the body.
9. What brought the body into being?
Charmed by the spiritual beauty of the Light, the demons of the
Darkness tried to capture it for themselves; so they made the
body, to draw the Soul’s attention away from God, its full
perfection, to the lower pleasures of the flesh.
10. What is Sin?
Sin is the Soul's disloyal turning from God to Matter, accepting
the sensual delights in place of spiritual ecstasy. Certain acts

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which follow this pattern have been listed as sins, such as
violence, sexual lust, and possessiveness.
11. How did Sin come into existence?
Intoxicated by the Light of God, the Evil Spirit rebelled against
Him and sought it for himself. This arrogant act of pride was the
origin of all Sin.
12. Is Matter eternal?
Yes, it has existed from before time, and will survive time itself.
But it is only now that it is in revolt; it will at last be vanquished
by the Spirit, bound forever in the Abyss, its Powers totally
destroyed.
13. What are the ‘Three Moments?’
The Past, wherein Evil and Good were wholly separate from
each other; the Present, wherein the former’s aggression has
caused a mingling and confusion of the two; the Future, wherein
they shall again be separated — the Light in eternal peace and
bliss, the Darkness in the ruin of perpetual captivity.
14. Why did God create the Individual Soul?
To cooperate with Him in freeing all Light or Spirit from its
slavery to Matter, herself the first, by warring ceaselessly with
spiritual weapons on Evil everywhere, and by helping to refine
and uplift all beings — human, animal, plant and even mineral
— through intimacy with the holiness of Saints. This, then, is
our duty on earth.
15. How was Soul imprisoned in the flesh?
Sent forth by God to enter and subdue rebellious matter from
within, the Soul is caught and swallowed up by the evil powers
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of Darkness and forgets its real nature and its mission. Thus it
becomes a miserable and helpless slave.
16. How can it become free?
By uprooting the desires those evil powers personify, and by
gradually refining and spiritualising itself from all that is gross
and material, it will at last be freed.
17. Can it do this unaided?
Possibly, but in fact the Soul is helped at every stage by God's
grace and the assistance of His Saints.
18. How does God help it to be free?
Manifesting as Intuition in the Soul, as the light of Conscience
and of Grace, He works from within, eliminating the vices and
dark desires, and planting the fragrant flowers of every virtue in
the heart.
19. What disciplines should the Soul follow?
The mortifying of the flesh by chastity, prayer and fasting, the
observance of total harmlessness, and a life of humility and
loving kindness, with purity of thought and diet.
20. How does the Evil Spirit gain control of a man?
When his mind is off its guard, evil thoughts and desires enter in
through some weak point in his nature, opened by some sense-
impression; then they encroach gradually until everything has
been corrupted.
21. How is the Divine Mind freed from that control?
Entering the heart through the spoken word of God’s
Messenger, it replaces all downward with upward tendencies, all
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vices with the opposite virtues, until the whole nature
henceforward is a pure throne for Christ to reign upon over his
life.
22. Does Man have power to choose the Good?
His power is limited only by the effects of his own past choices,
which set up a habit only the utmost effort can break. This effort
is made possible by the awakening call of God’s Messenger ㅡ
Mani, Jesus, or another.
23. Is there such a thing as ‘Fate?’
Fate or Destiny results from the Individual Soul’s past choices,
and it binds someone until those actions have been undone by
other actions. It is therefore ultimately under our own control.
24. What causes unstable moods?
The Soul is sometimes nearer to Spirit, at times to Matter,
according to the prevailing planetary aspects in its horoscope,
and to the purity or coarseness of the foods it allows the body to
consume.
25. What is the reward for righteousness?
The purifying of the Individual Soul from all defilement, and its
victorious entry into eternal life in the blissful Land of Light
with God and all the Angels and happy Souls.
26. What happens to the wicked?
Those who deliberately prefer Evil to Good make the freeing of
the Soul from Matter impossible for themselves. Then they take
birth after wretched birth in Matter, until they have become so
grossly material that there is no escape. And that is Hell.
27. So Manichaeism teaches Reincarnation?
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Yes, as a Hell, or as a purgatorial suffering involved in being
attached to the fleshly body and its delights. Love for the body
necessarily causes its reproduction age after age.
28. How do rebirths come to an end?
When the Soul turns from bodily desires toward cultivating the
Spirit, from worldly pleasures to devotion for God, His
Messengers and His Church, it can no longer be born on a
material plane, nor even wish to be.
29. What is Death?
Death is the temporary or final release of the Spirit from its
material prison. When the Light-Spark is purified, death leads to
its eternal bliss and glory in God’s Realm of Light.
30. What happens to the Soul at death?
The good, pure and righteous Soul is adorned by the Angels in
its robes, crowns and garlands of light, and led into the Light-
Kingdom; ordinary Souls are driven back on the paths to rebirth
in the physical world; evil Souls are dragged by the demons into
their hells of darkness, fire and misery.
31. How does God prevent a victory of Evil?
He Himself comes forth in some Divine Emanation to war upon
and overthrow the Evil, or He sends a Messenger of the Light to
encourage and strengthen men in resisting it.
32. Can true Knowledge be given by another?
The Saint or Messenger of God comes to enlighten men with the
Teaching and the Ethics, the ‘Wisdom’ and the ‘Righteousness’
which lead to freedom. But only those in whom the Intuition or
‘Light-Mind’ is awake will welcome or benefit from his Message.
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33. What, then, is the Teacher’s part?
To awaken the Soul to its own latent divinity, to guide it on the
path of purity, to carry it through the liberating door of death
into the endless glory of the Spirit.
34. What are the qualifications for this Path?
The knowledge that one is the Soul and not the body, a firm
resolve to live only for spiritual aims, devotion to God and His
Church which keeps that resolve alive, loving humility and
gentleness to all, and persevering effort for self-purification.
35. Is it necessary to renounce the world?
Yes, for its attractions must be overcome and ultimately its
standards and ways of living abandoned; but no, in the sense
that it is here and in the world that the Church, and each Soul
which is part of it, must labour for God’s plan of liberation until
its purity has set it free forever.
36. Is there only one code of life for all Manichaeans?
The ordinary moral and religious law is binding on everyone,
but the ‘Elect,’ who have resolved to tread the Path more
rigorously, have voluntarily embraced for themselves a code of
higher standards.
37. How does man find God?
Awakened by God's Messenger from the drunken sleep of fleshly
ignorance, he realises his identity with Spirit and his temporary
bondage to the body; then he resolves to be free and patiently
works at his own liberation by refining his thoughts and
practising all spiritual virtues until he is pure enough to
encounter God in the hour of death.

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38. Where then is God?
As eternal King of the spiritual Light-Realm, He dwells
transcendent over everything; as manifest in the Powers of the
Light, He wars for its total liberation from the aggression of
Darkness; as immanent in every atom of Matter everywhere, He
awaits that liberation which He alone can bring about.
39. Where is the Temple of God?
He is immanent in everything and manifested there to the seeing
eye; therefore God's Temple is the universe and every particle
within it, sacramentally, but more especially is it within the
Saints who long for Him.
40. What are the Gods and Angels?
They are Emanations or Expressions of the nature of the One
God, the King of Light and Father of all, coming forth from
Him to bring about His final victory over Evil.
41. What is our relationship with them?
They aid our struggle to escape the darkness of Matter, and we
must revere, love and worship them as our Champions,
Protectors and Friends.
42. Who are the ‘Messengers of the Light?’
Saints and Prophets sent by God in every age to teach men the
truths of life and how they can attain to Him in whom alone all
happiness is found.
43. What is the Church?
It is the organised assembly of the faithful Souls called by God
and His Messenger to choose the Light, and to labour for its

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freedom everywhere from the Darkness. It is a wonderful Unity
in Him, based on Love and Wisdom fully shared.
44. What happens when the Soul is freed?
The physical worlds created for its freeing cease to exist, the
Light becomes supreme, while the Darkness and all Evil,
together with those who have chosen it, are forever subdued,
sunk into oblivion.
45. What is the final goal of all life?
The freeing of the Soul from all defilement, so that it shines with
God's pure glory and can live eternally in the bliss of His realised
Presence and a sort of mystical unity with Him.
46. Is this a dualist religion?
Most certainly it is, in the fullest possible sense, for Good and
Evil, Spirit and Matter, Light and Darkness are eternally
independent and opposite Forces, and every Individual Soul
must choose between these two.
47. Can you sum up this Religion in a few words?
It is the teaching of God’s Prophets which awakens the Soul to a
knowledge of its spiritual nature, so that it strives under its
guidance to purify and free itself from the defilements of
material darkness and ignorance.

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 MAJOR FIGURES

Important disciples and followers of Mani

Mar Ammo
Mar Ammo was a 3rd-century Manichaean disciple of the
prophet Mani. He spread Manichaeism eastward into Sogdiana
during the time period when Mani was living. Mar Ammo is
well known as the apostle of the east in Manichaean literature.
On his way to eastern Iran, Mar Ammo was accompanied by the
Parthian prince Ardavan. When he reached the river Oxus on
the Sogdian frontier the spirit who guarded it denied Mar
Ammo entry across it. Mar Ammo fasted and prayed for two
days and had a vision of Mani who told him to read a chapter
from his book The Treasury of Life. When the spirit returned
she asked why he was on a journey. He responded that he wished
to teach fasting and abstinence from wine, flesh and women.
The spirit responded that there were similar men in her lands.
However, when Mar Ammo read from one of Mani’s books she
realized he was a bringer of the “true religion” and allowed him
to pass. Mani also spent the last hours of his life with Mar
Ammo whom he called “his dearest son.” Following the death of
Mani in 276 CE, at the command of the Sassanid King Bahram
I, Sogdiana became home to a large Manichaean Community.
Mar Zaku
Mar Zaku was an early disciple of Mani, and was sent by him to
preach in the Western Sassanid Empire. He was a military

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veteran (“veteranus”). Mar Zaku was the first to bring
Manichaeism to Eleutheropolis in Palestine.
Abū Hilāl al-Dayhūri
Abū Hilāl al-Dayhūri was a Manichaean leader. Of North
African origin, he served as Archegos, the traditional leader of
the Manichaean sect seated in Seleucia-Ctesiphon during the
eighth century. Al-Dayhūri hailed from North Africa, once a
major center of Manichaean activity. During the reign (754-775)
of the second Abbasid caliph, Al-Mansur, al-Dayhūri attained
the status of Archegos, the traditional seat of the supreme head
of the Manichaean church in Seleucia-Ctesiphon. He is most
important for temporarily resolving a major rift in the sect
between the followers of two previous Archegoses, those of the
orthodox-minded Miqlās (the “Miqlāsijja”) and those of the
more compromising Mihr (the “Mihrijja”).
Amr ibn Adi
Amr ibn Adi was the first Lakhmid king of al-Hira. Amr was the
most prominent patron of Manichaeism, and he gave shelter to
the religion and managed to convince Narseh to put an end to
the persecution of the Manichaeans. However, the persecution
of the Manichaeans was resumed after the death of Narseh and
the Lakhmid kingdom resumed its support of the Manichaeans.
Bögü Qaghan
Bögü Qaghan was the third Khagan of Uyghurs. He was the
younger son of Bayanchur Khagan. He is known for being the
most powerful monarch of the Uyghur Khaganate, converting
to Manichaeism in 763 and founding Por-Bazhyn Palace. Bögü
met four Manichaean priests, including a certain Ruix in
Luoyang who was interested in their religion. He took them to
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Ordu-Baliq and converted to Manichaeism and declared it a
state religion in 763. Using his influence, he posed as the
protector of Manichaeans and asked Daizong to reopen
Manichaean temples in the empire in 768. The emperor did not
sympathize with the Manichaeans, but was forced to give
permission in 771.

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 SCRIPTURE

Our holy books

The Great Kephalaia
The Great Kephalaia is a compilation of the writings, teachings
and revelations of Mani and his apostles that survived the Great
Calamity. The Great Kephalaia contains the teachings of Mani
about Life, Good and evil, Charity, Cosmology and Conduct.
The Book of Hymns
The Book of Hymns is a compilation of the hymns and
devotional work that survived the Great Calamity. It contains
devotional hymns written by Mani and Mar Ammo themselves,
together with hymns written by other apostles and disciples of
Mani.

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