THE REAL DR STRANGE Manichaeism and the Iranian (Aryan) prophet Mani , birth of Cathars Paulicians Bogomil BabunisteemCreated with Sketch.

in #reading6 years ago

When I read something of interests or perhaps a word I am not familiar with, it takes me down the rabbit hole …and here is the quote that set off this little bit of research time for me this morning:

"For the globalists, the world breaks down into Manichean struggle between the nationalists, Trump and Putin, and the globalists, Xi and Merkel. Globalists may be playing a two-sided game of nationalists versus globalists, but they need to widen the lens to see that the world today is really a three-party game."
By James Rickards, April 11, 2018 in his article entitled "Russia’s Real Endgame"

My focus word: Manichean

In Manichaeism, to know one’s self /soul is to embrace the nature of God within transcendent world. To come to the reality of this is to realize that even though you walk in the material world, one never ceases to remain united to the transcendent world. (Think Dr Strange’s Wake Up call)

Thus, the never ending search for knowledge to get back to this transcendent world is the only way to salvation.

Manichaeism stemmed from a Persian (Iranian ) “prophet” I had never heard of: his name is Mani, born in 216 CE near Ctesiphon (capital of the Sassanian Empire).

Mani’s parents are believed to have been members of the Elcesaites (Jewish-Christian) (2) Mani grew up in a Mesopotamia, which was at the time a meca of multi-faith structures thriving. Mani went to study as many faiths as he could through missionary works, and spoke of his findings, thus coming in to favor in the Court of Sassanian King Shapur. Mani sought to reconcile all the faiths he had studied and create a true ecumenical /universal religion that would integrate into itself all truths found in Zoroaster, Buddha, and Jesus (Esu) /Christianity. Manichaeism also draws from Indian and Asian religions.

(My internal Internal Dialogue: YES!)

Manichaeism doctrine: this world had been created by a Satanic demiurge. It is similar to that of Gnostic Master Marcion of Sinope belief, where he uses the depictions of the New and Old Testimate “God” as an example that they are not one and the same:

"The god of the old testament is not the God of the new testament. They are two different gods. The first is a god who applies the law and punishes, whereas the other is a God of love who always forgives. The two are irreconcilable" (4)

The gist of the Gnostic teachings (which I have always felt instinctively) was that he Old Testimate written by the Hebrews is an Alien God that was inconsistent, jealous, wrathful and genocidal. (3) (4)

Thus, Manichaeism (Like Buddhism, Taoism) beliefs are that all material existence leads to evil. Salvation only comes from a complete break/liberation from material existence (I.E. lust, greed, vice, etc and even the body). Mani was not without help in discovering this truth he shared with the world. Like the Christian claim of God's only begotten son or other prophets and chosen people receiving enlightenment after speaking to Angels, It is claimed that Mani was enlightened by his “Twin Spirit” (aka heavenly twin) that came to him when he was 12 and again at 24.

(This term was not unfamiliar to me through American Indian tolerance of Homosexuality/ Gender fluidity)

This Twin Spirit told Mani that we are all “particles of light” (ethereal beings ) from the “Kingdom of Light” had been trapped here in material form. We too just have to learn how to phone home.

Manichaeism felt that the institution of marriage and the birth of children was a never ending cycle where evil of the birthing /entrapping “particles of light” into material existence. It was a sin to do that to light particles, and thus Mani’s views of marriage and children were the anathema to doctrines of the Catholic Church and Zoroastrianism.

The Manichaean way of enlightenment were through prayers, service/almsgiving, and fasting to get to the body receptive to lift the veil to get closer to the transcendent world. (Buddhism/Taoism)

Mani was in a sense the harbinger of an international religion; one that was meant not just for Persia/Iran, but for all of humanity. He too suffered from a self-adulation, claiming to be the “final seal of the prophets” (Jesus (Esu) "I am the way", Judaism, The Chosen People and Prophet Muhammad of Islam, The Messenger), and was imprisoned (and died while incarcerated) after he “lost” a theological debate with the Zoroastrian Magi in the royal court of Sassanian King, Bahram, son of Shapur.

Yet, Manichaeism and variants therein continued on centuries later in Iran and in other countries, as listed below:

Rome
Emperor Theodosius I (379-395 CE issued a harsh edict ordering Manichean monks to be put to death. Manichaeism apparently gave rise to a number of “heresies” from state mandated religions, one of these having been the later Cathars of southern France. (9) (6)

France
Cathars settled in southern half of the French regions of Languedoc (Land of Lancelot of King Arthur) and Midi-Pyrénées. Persecutions of the Cathars began from 1184, and shortly after they were condemned as heretics by Pope Innocent III (papacy: 1198-1216). The Cathars were completely crushed by the 1260s. (2)

Armenia
Another Manichaeism influenced sect were the Paulicians. This began as a Christian breakaway sect in Armenia and the eastern parts of Byzantine Empire (650-844 CE). The movement was founded by an Armenian named Constantine, who hailed from Paytakaran. The movement was named after a Bishop of Antioch, Paul of Samosata. The first official Paulician church sprung in Kibossa, Armenia in 660 CE. Constantine’s studies of the Gospels and the Epistles, resulted in him combining dualistic and Christian beliefs. He believed that the contemporary Church misled the people. (2)

Turkey
Byzantine Emperor Basil I (867–886) abolished the Paulician state of Tephrike in 871 CE, forcing its survivors to flee to Syria and Armenia. (2)

Romainia
Pockets of Paulician communities survived in Eastern Europe as late as the 1870s, notably in Bulgaria, Serbia and Romania. After Russia conquered the Caucasus from Iran (finalized by the Treat of Turkmenchai 1828), Russian troops entering Armenia discovered numbers of Paulicians still practicing their faith in the region. (2)

Bulgaria
The Bogomil movement is generally traced to the time of Peter I of Bulgaria (927-969). . (The Bogomils were also, in a sense, “anarchists” in that they opposed established government and church, making them somewhat like modern-day anarchists.) The Bogomils themselves are generally described as a Gnostic movement which arose as a reaction against the state-clerical repression of the Byzantine Church. While Northern Slavonics embraced Bogomils in sacred doctrines, it was the resistance of the movement to the West that pieced together Bogomil doctrines as Manichean. The Western Slavonics created imposes fines and penalties to practice such heresy. (2) (7)

Serbia
The Bogomils also spread westward from Bulgaria into the royal courts of Serbia, especially in 12th century, where they became known as the Babuni. Serbia too had created heresy laws and fines were to squash the followers of such a faith. (7)

As I realized I am three hours into all this reading and still could go on, I have to stop myself. What I noted was there was alot of countries listed above have had their fair share of religious countenance and there were amazing amounts of individual who died because of it. Each of these countries had seen terrible suffering (Like the Saami of Finland) because they fought the status quo of the engrained, socially established belief form of the day; Manichaeism was the sacrificial lamb of Religious freedom.

Manichaeism, from what I have read thus far, did not seek to suppress others in differing faiths, with violence and laws, but rather to impress upon others there was another way of self-actualization through example and teaching. It was the other religious “systems” in place that did the damage. Catholics, Islam, and Judaism all have secret doctrines that drew on elitisms, causing separatism and sorrow . All of the Big Three have their sacrificial lambs in the name of heresy, and lest we forget the other religions have cause pain and strife in the name of God.

So, I find this term Manichaeism/ Manichaean that started me on this journey, was ill-used by James Rickard’s article in the above quote as well as this blog post below:

“Trump, the Man in the High Tower, and his wrecking crew will be busy, attempting to break and then remake America in their own image, as they lay the groundwork, if Pompeo and Bannon are to be believed, for their version of the next Crusades, their attempt to regenerate a 21st Century Aryan Christendom in Capitalist Garb.”
Dion Dennis, From The Man in the High Tower: “Make America Manichaean Again” (10)

Manichaean beliefs and the world's Big Threes' intolerance therein of this faith and of those that practiced it was not used in proper context here guys!

Aryan is not the “German term” everyone had been lead to believe; it stems from Iran! Guess what, the founder of Manichaean is Aryan!

Why you have to do your research folks...
Too many people throwing terms around they may not truly understand.

Research, while you still can...the window is closing fast these days...
Hope its helped you today.

TERMS
Aryan
A term meaning "noble", which was used as a self-designation by Indo-Iranian people

Demiurge
The figure depicted in art for fashioning and maintaining the physical universe.

Manichaeism
Dualistic religious movement founded in Persia in the 3rd century AD by Mani (q.v.), who was known as the “Apostle of Light” and supreme “Illuminator.”

Zoroaster
Persian prophet who offered answers to questions of suffering (war, famine and conquest)

Zoroastrianism
world= a battleground bc of good and evil, each person must take part

CITES

(1) https://www.britannica.com/topic/Manichaeism
(2) http://kavehfarrokh.com/sassanians/mani-forgotten-prophet-of-ancient-persia/
(3) http://www.gnostic-jesus.com/gnostic-jesus/Early-gnostics/Marcionism.html
(4) http://www.theforbiddenreligion.com/the-great-conspiracy.htm
(5) Russia of the Russians, By Harold Williams
(6) The History Of The Decline And Fall Of The Roman Empire, By Edward Gibbon Volume 5
(7) The Medieval Manichee: A Study of the Christian Dualist Heresy, By Steven Runciman
(8) http://faculty.arts.ubc.ca/sechard/512digms.htm
(9) https://theonomyresources.blogspot.com/2014/02/emperor-theodosius-ends-pagan-olympics.html
(10)http://ctheory.net/ctheory_wp/from-the-man-in-the-high-tower-make-america-manichaean-again/

ABOUT DR. KAVEH FARROKH
Dr. Kaveh Farrokh is dedicated to the Advancement of Ancient Iranian and Classical Studies

Original intellectual property (lest that cited) was produced for Steemit by me.

Besos

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The Tree of Life, or Etz haChayim (עץ החיים) has upvoted you with divine emanations of G-ds creation itself ex nihilo. We reveal Light by transforming our Desire to Receive for Ourselves to a Desire to Receive for Others. I am part of the Curators Guild (Sephiroth), through which Ein Sof (The Infinite) reveals Itself!

Well said!! Well done!!

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