| Man·i·chae·ism
Audio Help (mān'ĭ-kē'ĭz'əm) Pronunciation Key
n.
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
Manichaeism
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| © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |
Manichaeism
1556, "the religion of the Manichees," (c.1380) a Gnostic Christian sect named for its founder, Mani (L. Manichæus), c.215-275, Syriac-speaking apostle from a Jesus cult in Mesopotamia in 240s, who taught a universal religion. Vegetarian and visionary, they saw "particles of light and goodness" trapped in evil matter and regarded Satan as co-eternal with God. The universe was a scene of struggle between good and evil. The sect was characterized by dualism and a double-standard of perfectionist "elects" and a larger group of fellow travelers who would require several reincarnations before their particles of light would be liberated.
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
| manichaeism | |
noun | |
| a religion founded by Manes in the third century; a synthesis of Zoroastrian dualism between light and dark and Babylonian folklore and Buddhist ethics and superficial elements of Christianity; spread widely in the Roman Empire but had largely died out by 1000 |
| WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University. |
Manichaeism
Man"i*ch[ae]*ism\, Manicheism \Man"i*che*ism\, n. [Cf. F. manich['e]isme.] The doctrines taught, or system of principles maintained, by the Manich[ae]ans.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
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