Concept in Definition ABC

Manichaeism is a religious philosophical doctrine that was founded by the Persian-born philosopher Mani or Manes during the 3rd century AD.

Last envoy of God. Two opposing maxims: good and evil

Manes said of himself that he was the last prophet that God sent to humanity, that is, he called himself a direct envoy of God and that is how he presented himself. Meanwhile, among his most important postulates is the proposal of the existence of two absolute maxims, opposed and eternal such as good and evil, which are constantly in conflict and associated with the concepts of light and darkness.

Great diffusion between the third and seventeenth century

Between the third century that emerged and until the seventeenth century when it began to lose its presence, Manichaeism knew how to be a proposal that spread throughout the Roman empire, in the East and the Islamic universe, being especially strong in China.

The elect and the listeners

Within Manichaeism two components were distinguished, the elect and the listeners. The first practiced celibacy like the priests of Christianity, did not eat meat and spent their hours in prayer. While the latter had the task of serving the elect, they could marry but were advised not to have children. They practiced fasting every week and after their death they tried to reincarnate in some chosen one.

Only for the elect was the kingdom of light destined.

Universalist religion

We must emphasize that Manichaeism is considered as a religion universalist, that is, a religion that is closed to no one but quite the opposite. is open to all human beings who want take part of the same, without differentiating between geographical origin, ethnic origin, ideologypolitics, level cultural, among others.

Attitude that manifests an extreme position and without a middle point

On the other hand, and as a consequence of the original reference, another use of the concept was generated and so it is that in the languagecolloquial the word is also used to refer to any attitude that manifests an extreme position and without a middle point, that is, it does not accept gray, or at one extreme or the other.
Then, when a person expresses some extreme idea about a subject it is usually called a Manichean.

Photo: iStock - muratemre

Topics in Manichaeism