Mani and Manichaeism
A prophet sets out to found a deliberately universal religion, and is flayed for it.
- When
- —
- Duration
- 260 years
- Known to
- ± 20 years
- Era
- Classical, Holocene
Mani begins preaching in Persia around 240 CE a dualist system of light against darkness, explicitly designed to supersede and incorporate Zoroastrianism, Christianity and Buddhism — he wrote his own scriptures rather than leaving it to disciples, precisely so the message would not be corrupted. It spreads from Spain to China and survives in Central Asia for a thousand years. Augustine was a Manichaean for nine years before converting.