جستجوی مقالات مرتبط با کلیدواژه « مانی » در نشریات گروه « ادبیات و زبان ها »

Most scholars who do research on Manichaeism and its founder, Mani, believe that he did not possess suitable knowledge about the Buddha’s teachings, and Mani’s familiarity with Indian schools was limited to only a couple of years of his journey somewhere in the subcontinent. On this premise, those scholars argue that the information regarding Buddha and his teachings provided in the Manichaean texts, is related to the Manichaean society of Great Khorasan, who, due to their vicinity to the Buddhist cultural milieu, have included the religious terminology of Buddhism into Manichaeism. This aforementioned assessment is not acceptable for some reason proposed and discussed in this article: There is notable evidence that shows before travelling to India, Mani was acquainted with Indian schools, especially with Buddhism, so that he made a trip there to complete what he had learned about them in his homeland. Moreover, the Iranian philosophers were obviously aware of Indian knowledge and sciences, inasmuch as meetings of debate have been frequently held in the Shahs’ court between the sages of different schools. According to the spread of Indian teachings in Iran, and the documentation provided by Mani and Manichaean writings, it can be illustrated that before traveling and during the formative years of his principles and revelation, Mani made great use of Indian knowledge and schools; further, in his description of the universe and celestial bodies in Šābuhragān, he was influenced by Indian astronomy and astrology.

The Epic of Gilgamesh (2100 BC) and the Anthem of Pearls (between 50 and 70 AD) are two precious human works that seem to have many similarities, although one is a form of Epic literature and the other contains Gnostic (mystical) content. In this research, these two ancient texts, namely the Epic of Gilgamesh and the hymn Gnostic of the pearl, have been chosen for comparison. The first text belongs to Mesopotamia and the other text basically belongs to the Parthian-Iranians; But the main concept raised in these two works is the concern that has occupied the minds of all the people of the world and that is the desire for immortality. If we think about these two works, we can see that Gilgamesh makes a difficult journey for himself in order to escape death, and the prince of the pearl anthem party also goes on a very difficult journey to get the pearl (immortal soul). The same view prevails in Manichaean texts. In the belief of the Manichaeans, we face Hormazdbagh (the fate of humans) who must travel to the darkness or the land of the devil and intermingle with it to provide the means for the ultimate defeat of the devil and
 bring the immortality of the soul that is trapped by the minoy (soul) of darkness.
Among these (Epic of Gilgamesh, Anthem of Pearls and Manichaeism), there are several commonalities that connect them: the existence of the Mother Goddess, Le double, going to darkness, a misleading female, a deceptive father and daughter, rescuing sailors, awakeners and... that we try let's report these cases and thus reveal this point: Mani, who himself lived in Mesopotamia, on the one hand inherited the ancient ideas of this geography, especially Gnostic beliefs, and on the other hand, apparently through his mother, who was a Parthian princess, with Parties and their intellectual heritage are connected. So, it is obvious that his thoughts and beliefs are connected with the Epic of Gilgamshe bin al-Nahrin and with the anthem of the pearl, which basically belonged to the Parthians. We should not forget that, especially during the Arsacids era, there were very close cultural connections (religious, linguistic, commercial, art and architecture) between the Parthians and Mesopotamia (cf. Wiedengren, 2017); Therefore, it is natural for Mani, raised in the Parthian era, to be influenced by this integrated culture and benefit from it. 

In this comparative-analytical research, we will first compare two texts, one with an Epic structure, Gilgamesh, and the other, the Anthem of Pearls, which is a Gnostic (mystical) text, and we will try to find the common themes of these two texts, which are different in form; But they have similarities in content, let's describe. After that, we will find these common features in the beliefs and thoughts of the Manichaeans, paying attention to the Manichaean texts, and analyze them.

3-1. The fullness of the role of the mother: a short review in the Epic of Gilgamesh, the anthem of pearls and Manichaean texts will show us that "mother" has an impressive and outstanding role in these texts. Rishat, Gilgamesh's mother, is the one who gives Gilgamesh the good news of Enkidu's arrival. Also, he ensures the safety of Gilgamesh and Enkidu before they both go to the Cedar Forest. He asks the Titan to protect Gilgamesh. In the anthem of pearl, before the prince goes to Egypt, his mother (Queen of the East) sends him away. In Manichaean texts, before the first human being (Hormazdebagh) goes to the land of darkness, the mother of life/umm-e-hayat/Bahjat (Mādar ī zīndagān) puts her hand on his head and sends him to war.
3.2. The anthropomorphism of the princes: Gilgamesh, the prince, is a hero like a god, which is only one-third of his being is suitable for humans; But it is this small part of humanity that prevents Gilgamesh from reaching immortality. Just when Utnapishtim asks him not to sleep for six days and six nights, he puts him to sleep. Even after they give him the plant of immortality, he is unable to keep it. He sees a "piece of earth" just when he should be protecting the life-giving plant. There, he indulges in pleasure and immersion in water, and the snake, steals the plant that gives immortality. The Parthian prince of the anthem of the pearl, is also similar to the gods. Like Gilgamesh, he is a human god. Partian prince can be compared to Gilgamesh, who both fall into sleep, drunkenness and forgetfulness and forget their godly origin. In manichaeism, there is also talk about the soul in the prison of a person, which is reminiscent of Gilgamesh and the Prince of Parthia. This trapped spirit in the Manichaean texts, like those two, is a prince who falls into darkness. He is a representation of a human being who, despite his precious soul, is trapped in the body and the world.
3.3. The outstanding role of le double: One of the similar aspects of Le double in the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Anthem of Pearls is the presence of Le double, which attracts attention in Manichaeism. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, we see that Enkidu appears next to Gilgamesh as a twin and helps him. The Parthian prince also speaks of a "great-grandson" who is his "own" and has joined him. It seems that he is the twin who keeps the prince away from the material world and the impure people in the world. Mani also claims that at the age of twelve, an angel named At-taûm, which in Aramaic means companion and comrade, was sent to him for the first time, and after he appeared to Mani at the age of twenty-four He has fought with greed and devil. It is obvious that after getting to know and meeting his le double, Mani basically undergoes a transformation in his life that makes him different from before.
3.4. Rushing to the land of darkness: After meeting Enkidu, the first thing Gilgamesh does, is rush to the cedar forest, where Enlil, the god of the soil and the land, has placed Khumbaba, a scary demon, as a guard. Gilgamesh and Enkidu attack the land of demonic Khumbaba and after enduring many sufferings, they finally kill Khumbaba. The Parthian prince also goes from the east (the place of light) to the west (the land of darkness). In Manichaean, Hormazdbagh with his five children (Forohar, Wind, Roshni, Water, Fire) rushes towards Shahriar of darkness.
3.5. Devil dragon like lion: In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Khumbaba is the embodiment of evil; Thus, a demonic image of him is presented: “They saw Khumbaba coming. He had paws like a lion, his body was covered with bronze scaley. His legs were the claws of a vulture. On his head were the horns of a wild bull. The tail and his combination organ  ended with the head of the snake" (Gilgamesh, 2012: 48). In the anthem of the pearl, it is only mentioned about the dragon that took the pearl of the soul. The possession of the pearl by the dragon is reminiscent of the abduction of the life-giving plant by the snake in the Gilgamesh Epic; The Shahriar of the dark world (dragon/serpent/matter), steals the soul. In Manichaeism, "the Shahriar of the world of darkness is the dragon"; But in some places of the Manichaean texts, the face of Devil is drawn more precisely, which is close to what we see from Khumbaba's face; A combination of lion, snake, fish, eagle/vulture.
3.6. Shahriar off the war clothes and putting the crown on his head: Gilgamesh, after returning from the war with Khumbaba and killing him, while washing himself and his war tools and combing his hair, "threw his dirty clothes on the ground and put on clean clothes" (Gilgamesh, 2012). : 51). According to Rosenberg's narrative, he also wears a crown (Epic of Gilgamesh, 1389: 59). In the Anthem of Pearls, when the parents of Parthian prince want to send him to Egypt, they take off his clothes (a sign of physicality).  Also in the Manichaean texts, The Manichaeans use interpretations about Mani's death that are very similar to what we saw about Gilgamesh and the Prince of Parthia. The Manichaeans compare him To Shahriar, who has taken off his dirty war clothes and is wearing a royal robe and wearing a crown.
3.7. Seductive female: It should be mentioned the presence of Ishtar, who was constantly in his temple before Gilgamesh met Enkidu (Le double) (Gilgamesh, 2012: 27). Just before confronting Enkidu, we see him in a bed that was spread for Ishtar to sleep with (r.k. ibid.: 31). Ishtar constantly calls Gilgamesh to her. In the anthem of the pearl, we do not see any mention of the seductive woman, and it seems that she has given her place to the delicious stews that the prince of the party is seduced by. In Manichaean, the feminine gender is not a desirable element and  the Manichaeans are constantly called to stay away from women, along with meat and wine; But it seems that these worldly desires are also tools for liberation.
3.8 Father and daughter: In Gilgamesh Epic, which is about daughter and father; Ishtar, the goddess of love and her father, Anu, after Gilgamesh does not respond to Ishtar's request for love, Ishtar asks Anu to punish him. Ano also fulfills his daughter's wish. In Manichaeism, we also see a father and a daughter: Murdiyānag and Ašaqlūn. This daughter and father have demonic behavior against humanity; Just as Anu and Ishtar are trying against Gilgamesh and of course the people.
3.9. The boatmen and reaching the anchorage of salvation: Gilgamesh, guided by Sidori Sabito, to reach Utnapishtim, "the blessed one who found life" and destroy the "demons of death" and lock the gate of death that those demons own(p..K: Gilgamesh, 2012: 90), in search of Orshanabi, the boatman of Utnapishtim, comes "to take him safely through the sea and the waters of death" (ibid.: 84). In the anthem of the pearl, the prince of Parthia does not use a ship or a boat to reach the pearl that is in the hands of the dragon in the sea, or maybe it is not mentioned in the text; However, in the Manichaean texts, there is a lot of talk about "escaping from the sea of ​​this world and reaching the anchorage of salvation" (cf. Klimkait, 2014: 60). What Orshanabi does to save Gilgamesh (bringing him to utnapishtim by crossing the deadly waters and then obtaining the life-giving plant), according to a Manichaean text, Mehraizd reaches it for the "men of the true religion". Obviously, in the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Manichaean text, we see the existence of a savior (Orshanabi and Mehrizad), the sea and water, a ship, an anchor of salvation (the land of peace/bright heaven) and a saving plant.
3-10. Awakeners: In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Utnapishtim informs Gilgamesh of his being a man-god, his combinational existence between spirit and matter. In the anthem of pearl, the "letter" that takes the form of an eagle plays a role in awakening the prince; But in Manichaeam, this role is entrusted to the shining Jesus.
3.11. The Titans: Gilgamesh at the end of the Epic, is a Shahriar who shines like the sun in the "shining hall of the palace". The prince of Parthia, like the sun, goes from the east to the west (Egypt). In one of the Manichaean psalms, Mani is called "the sun" and the Manichaeans are asked to honor him.
3.12. Not harming animals: In the Epic of Gilgamesh, we see in Enkidu's actions a way of guarding animals. He tries to keep the hunter from harming the animals. In Manichaeism, he is ordered to avoid harming and killing living beings, even those that are predatory and poisonous. Considering the similarities we have seen before between the Epic of Gilgamesh and the beliefs of Manichaeism, in The case of not harming animals can also be said that Manichaean was probably influenced by the Epic of Gilgamesh.

With a short pause in what we have left behind, we come to the point that Gilgamesh's Epic seems to be the first work that many years before the spread of Gnostic ideas, reflects these beliefs (which later had many fans in Mesopotamia, such that Mani and his family also influences it in Babylon); Because everything that comes from these thoughts in this work was given in the Anthem of the Pearl and later, the Manichaean texts. The main similarities of these three are: 1) the existence of a mother goddess who plays a prominent role in the upliftment of the child. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Rishat, and in the anthem of the pearl, nameless mother and in the manicheaem, the mother of life; 2) In all three, we see a human-god with the title of Shahriar and prince who is trapped in a piece of land (Egypt/West) and forgets his supreme gem and then sink in the depth of the sea (the world) in search of a pearl/rejuvenating plant (spirit) and Finally, he has found it; 3) in all three, we see the existence of a le double(Enkidu, the twin of Gilgamesh, a good-looking chivalrous with the prince of Parthian, and Narjamig, the le double of Mani) whose physical life has been transformed into a spiritual life after the hero's encounter with him; 4) Gilgamesh in the Mesopotamian Epic, the Parthian prince in the Anthem of Pearls and the living soul in Manichaeaism, all three descend to the land of darkness (Cedar forest, Egypt and Devil's Abyss or the same body and world); Because reaching the light passes through the path of darkness; 5) in all three, an evil being tries to take possession of the hero's soul; In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Khumbaba and later the snake who steals the immortality plant from Gilgamesh, in the anthem of the pearl, the dragon, he holds it in his hand, and in Manichaean, Devil dragon like lion; 6) In all three, the hero covers the soul with a garment and after going through the treading, frees the soul from that garment and wears the royal crown of the soul; 7) The presence of a misleading female or forgettable good food, causes the hero to go astray. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, we see Ishtar and later Sidori Sabito, and in the anthem of pearls, the delicious food of the Egyptians. In Manichaeasim, woman is not a desirable element; But it is a secret of the world that in order to refine and exalt the light/soul, one must go through that darkness;8) The presence of an evil father and daughter, who harm the hero. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Ishtar and Anu seek revenge against Gilgamesh, and in Manichaeism, Mordianag and Ashkelon seek to deceive Gehmord and hurt him; 9) We also see the existence of rescue boatmen. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Orshanabi and in Manichaeismh, sometimes Mehrizad and sometimes the first man or Mani and Jesus have the duty to bring people to the bright paradise or the anchorage of peace; 10) In all three, there are awakeners who make the hero aware of the truth of the essence of their existence. In the Epic of Gilgamesh utnapishtim, in the anthem of the Pearl, the letter which takes the form of an eagle, and in Manichaeism, the shining Jesus;
11) The hero in all three is associated with the sun. Shamash,the Titan, is the supporter of Gilgamesh, the prince of Parthia, as the sun goes from east to west, and Mani is considered the sun. The sun is a symbol of the soul and immortality; 12) We see not harming animals in Enkidu's character; The same thing that the Manichaeans have emphasized a lot.Keywords: the epic of Gilgamesh, the Pearl's Song, Mani, Manichaean

In some Manichaean hymns, the Father of Greatness, Mihr Yazd and Narisaf Yazd are praised with an epic style and a literary approach that relies more on epithets. Among them, the hymns to Third Messenger (Narisaf Yazd) in the Parthian texts, described as Miϑra, and some of the epithets attributed to him are Miϑra’s that we can see them in Mihr Yašt and Pahlavi sources. Among the hymns to Narisaf Yazd, in the manuscripts in Turfan collection that are kept in the Museum of Berlin, there are two hymns with the M 67 and M 77 signatures that they have references to the Sassanid Zoroastrian community and the Parthian community more than the others. This research primarily focuses on the role of Miϑra and Nariyosang in shaping the character of Narisaf Yazd, and then the literary influences of Avesta, Mihr Yašt and Pahlavi sources on these two Parthian hymns are studied.

The idea of Manichaean and Mazdakian Affected on later ideas. Except for rituals hostility to oppression is one of the most important of some sects of Mysticism and Sufism. In this research it was studied the Zoroastrian and Manichean and Islamic literature and unfolded the origin of jar of some Sufism discoursesagainst to oppression is the Manichaean and Mazdakian ideas, this study based on the theory of discourse of Laclau and mouffe (1985). After the study of sources, we will understand the Manichaeans and Mazdakians Were a pattern for the dissidents of the Abbasids.Often the Abbasid Caliphate attributed the dissidents to the Manichaean and Mazdakian (The heretics in the Sassanid period) and they are suppressed by the Abbasids. for the simulation of Mystics to the rioters in the Sassanid period the style of suppression to them (Mystics) very simulated to the hanging of the followers of Mazdak and Mani. Thus, the nodal point of the opponents of Sassanian empire and Abbasid Caliphate was the moral corruption but the nodal point of them was the justice.

Mani is among the philosophers and mystic scholars who had left the most profound effects on the theoretical grounds of Gnosticism which flourished in Iran after them. His beliefs about the divine or ancient human being, his fight against Iblis, his belief in the two bases of being (Spentä Mainyu and Angra Mainyu in the Zoroastrian religion or Ahmad and Iblis as meant by Halaj, Ahmad Ghazali, and Ayn al-Quzat), separating the soul from the body, mystical manifestation and exemplification were transformed exactly or with slight differences to the realms of ancient Iranian Sufism of which Ayn al-Quzat is a notable inheritor. The basic goal of the present study is to determine, explain, and analyze the degree to which Gnostic thoughts of Ayn al-Quzat Hamadani and Mani agree in the mentioned fields. The research hypothesis comprises the tracing of the mediated influence of Mani on Ayn al-Quzat Hamadani in the field of the two bases and also the unmediated effects of Mani on him in the field of mystical manifestation, exemplification, and the separation of the spirit from the body. This influence has been to such an extent that it can be said that Ayn al-Quzat’s Gnosticism is affected by Mani’s Gnosticism in the three different areas. The results of the study are as follows: Mani and Ayn al-Quzat both agree that every creature in the universe has exemplified alternative in the heavenly world (the Malakot), while Ayn al-Quzat believes that each action that human beings do has a good or bad exemplified reflection in the Malakot. In this research project, a descriptive-analytical method is applied to the common grounds in the mystical thoughts of Mani and Ayn al-Quzat.

In M2 II, a fragment of Manichaean Turfan texts, equivalent to the text “ac” according to the subject-matter partition created by Boyce, there are two powers named by Mani as “the Power of Light”, and “the Power of Darkness”. By giving some notes, Andreas and Henning interpreted the Power of Light as an active Power who will gain the eternal salvation, and a passive one that have to stay bogged down in Darkness forever. Though the scholar translations of the text are based on Andreas and Henning’s, they are either quiet about the Powers or some indefinite allusions are just mentioned by them. With making unnecessary changes to the scribe’s paragraphs on the one hand, and paying not much attention to the Parthian syntax rules on the other, the scholars who translated this text did suggest different translations which seem in some cases to be obscure. In this essay these items will be discussed: The idea of the active and passive Powers of Light is in the air; the scholars did not pay attention to the distinct topical divisions appeared in the scribe’s writing system; the scholar’s negative attitude to some syntactical structures is rather responsible for those obscurity.

This research deals with the study of the relationship between the ancient Persian epic tradition and Mani’s Book of Giants. The epic mythological narrative and the well known stories of the past regarding the origin of the world and man’s origin to a certain extent is incorporated in Mani’s myth and those myths propagated by Manichean missionaries were also intertwined with mythological traditions in connection with biblical accounts regarding Giants and flood. Mani had transformed Iranian mythologies in such a way to create harmony between the old mythological traditions and his own narrative version of origin of the world. All literary pieces come down to us from Mani encompass references to Persian epic tradition and for easy access they are presented in this paper.

As most of Manichean researchers have asserted, Mani has been influenced by Gnostic thoughts, and the study of Manichean and Gnostic texts and beliefs reveals the common characteristics between the Manicheans and the Gnostics. In the present Study, one of these common characteristic, i.e., the similar position of Mary Magdalene in Gnostic texts (the Gospels of Thomas, Philip, Truth, Mary, etc.) and Manichean texts, has been investigated relying on the Parthian Text M6281+M6246. Finally, it has been found that that as Gnostics glorify Mary and know her as the true successor of Jesus Christ and his first visitor after the resurrection. Likewise, in Manichean text, Mary is the first person who meets Jesus after her rising from the dead, and she unfolds the mystery of the world for the Apostles, especially for the saint Peter, who is considered as the successor of Jesus Christ in Orthodox sect. In this text Mary is found as the master of the Apostles as well as the successor of Jesus Christ

Assimilation-purification is an argument has permanently been considered by theologians. Purification is to purify God from all human characteristics and assimilation is to attach human adjectives to God. In order to purify God, Ferdowsi has called God as 'the God of name' of which the name is only remained and in place of assimilation has called him as 'the God of place' which is the place where creation forms and the signs of God's names and adjectives come into being and God turns to be explicable. As some Zarathustra texts show, God, before creation, was only a name, but after creation changes to the owner of place which makes him identifiable. Ferdowsi, also, in the line ' he is beyond name, signs, and guesse's has had purification in his mind, but in the other line: 'the writer of selected substance' points at assimilation and calls God as a painter. This is how he accompanies assimilation with purification.

There are many damaged texts among the Manichean texts gained from Tourfan. There have not remained from these texts but a few words. It is obvious that these damages prevent us to understand the meanings and concepts of the texts; however, their possible meanings and connotations can be understood through careful examination of the same remaining words in other texts and understanding their functions. One of these damaged texts with the code of categorization 4970 exists in the Asian Art Museum in Germany. There are some words such asaxšēndān, šādčanīgā, Srōšahrāy Xwadāy, meh and xwar in this text whose functions in other texts have been examined in this study and it is concluded that the text is speaking about princes (human beings freed from the limitation of material world and body) whose freed light elements have ascended the pillars of joyful light, have reached the sun and the moon, have turned into the absolute spirit after purification, and have reached the high position of the new paradise and the light paradise of the great father.

The current paper deals with representing religious symbols in ancient artwork (based on the myth of creation in Zoroastrianism, Zarvani, Mani and Mazdak). Autobiographical myths and sacred right which occurred in eternal time and in such a symbolic and imaginary existence and annihilation how to start it. Peoples beliefs, as well as social, economic and political power in the ancient civilization led to the creation myth in Iran before Islam is a spiritual connotation and cultural shows. Therefore, in this study, after providing a brief description of Ancient explores the concept of myth in the religion of Zoroaster, Zarvani, Mani and Mazdak will. It is worth noting that the content of this article is through library research is descriptive analysis method.

One of ancient sects of Persia which once spread its realms outside Iran is the Manichean sect. Towards the end of Ashkanians’ reign in Babylonian Mardinu Mani was born and claimed himself a prophet but according to Shahnameh, he is a skilled painter who came from China to Iran during the Shapur Zolaktaf’s era. This information is not only incorrect but also according to the remarks attributed to Mani in a debate and provided by a certain Zoroaster priest about which Ferdowsi gives its account his statements do not agree with the Manichean beliefs. The priest introduces Mani as a believer in a God out of which light and darkness emerged from its core. This belief which the priest condemns Mani for belongs to Zorvanism and Manicheans themselves are hostile towards it. According to the Manavi text, they believe that if we accept Urmazd and Ahriman to be emerged from one entity and as the Zorvanists think a demon taught Urmazd to run the world, that is to say that good and evil are intermingled and neither part is absolute good or evil, nor conscious or unconscious and this necessitates nothingness since the law of causality no longer is applicable.. The priest continues his reproach and tells Mani that if Ahriman is a twin of Urmazd, then one can regard night, a symbol of Ahriman as day, a symbol of day therefore one cannot distinguish between truthfulness and untruthfulness. The priest’s account about Mani’s beliefs and his criticism is the same criticism that followers of Mani tell about Zorvanism.

Mani was born from the Persian parents in Babylonia، which was a part of the province of Asoristan in the Parthian empire. According to the Historical evidences، Iranians have been eloquent people، and Mesopotamia was consideredas the confluence of the various ideas، thoughts and myths. Being in an Iranian family and training in Babylonia caused to improve mani''s thought and art Undoubtedly، we can find in his poetry، an aspect of pre-Islamic Iranian rhetoric which is survived in middle Persian and parthian hymns. Part of Iranians'' attainments in the field of poetical imagination are displayed in these hymns. In this article two hymns، attributed to mani، one in the middle Persian and the other in the Parthian language، have been studied from aestethical point of view. The rhetorical speeches used in these two hymns such as، simile، metaphor، metonymy، kenning، repetition، taxis، synesthesia، amphiboly and opacity can display a kind of excellent achievement in poetic imagination that is very important in the history of Persian literature in Iran. In these hymns، literary and rhetorical features have been applied to express Mani’s thoughts that، if necessary، have been explained too.

Mirsa al-Ibad is a mystical work and is regarded as one of the major prose works in the Persian Literature and its like is almost rare among Sufi works. According to Razi during the first and second writing of this work he has been wondering for thirty years in Asia Minor, Egypt, and Rome where according to historians and scholars were the cradle of Gnostic and Manichaean thoughts and mythology therefore it is not surprising that Razi was acquainted with their mythology in this environment as he repeatedly refers to his acquaintance with the following sects such as Isma’ilis, Ebahieh, Molahedeh, and Tanasokhieh. Therefore, according to the evidence found in Mirsa al-Ibad this article is concerned with pointing out similarity in frameworks of some stories of Mirsad al-Ibad with Gnostic and Manichaean mythology.

Mani was born in Mesopotamia towards the end of the Parthian empire. When he was 12 an angel descended to him and ordered him to publicize his religion. At first Mani called his father and his relatives to his new religion but could not get man followers among local peaple. After that he traveled to central Asian countries. During these travels he became familiar with Buddhism and later he blended his religion with Zoroastrian Christian and Buddhist ideas. Then he returned to Iran and went to the Sasanide Imperial court as a doctor. He became one of the attendants of Shapur the first. During the kingdom of Shapur he propagated Manichaeism freely and easily but after Shapur’s death he faced many oppositions and finally he was killed by the opponents who had influence in Bahram’s court. The narration of Mani’s appearance and his entering the Sasanian court comes in the historical part of Shahname. But it has many differences from historical researches. In this article we show all the similarities and differences of Ferdowsi’s narration and the real historical studies.

In Manichaean Myth of Creation، the figure 1486 is the year of the Fire at the End of the Universe. This figure، which was found out by Mani from the astrological information، is possibly equal to a Sun Period.