Bardaisan (11 July 154 – 222 AD; syr, ܒܪ ܕܝܨܢ, ''Bardaiṣān''), known in Arabic as Ibn Daisan (ابن ديصان)
and in Latin as Bardesanes, was a
Syriac Syriac may refer to:
*Syriac language, an ancient dialect of Middle Aramaic
*Sureth, one of the modern dialects of Syriac spoken in the Nineveh Plains region
* Syriac alphabet
** Syriac (Unicode block)
** Syriac Supplement
* Neo-Aramaic languages a ...
-speaking
Assyrian
Assyrian may refer to:
* Assyrian people, the indigenous ethnic group of Mesopotamia.
* Assyria, a major Mesopotamian kingdom and empire.
** Early Assyrian Period
** Old Assyrian Period
** Middle Assyrian Empire
** Neo-Assyrian Empire
* Assyrian ...
or
Parthia
Parthia ( peo, 𐎱𐎼𐎰𐎺 ''Parθava''; xpr, 𐭐𐭓𐭕𐭅 ''Parθaw''; pal, 𐭯𐭫𐭮𐭥𐭡𐭥 ''Pahlaw'') is a historical region located in northeastern Greater Iran. It was conquered and subjugated by the empire of the Med ...
n
[Prods Oktor Skjaervo. ''Bardesanes''. Encyclopædia Iranica. Volume III. Fasc. 7-8. .] Christian gnostic and founder of the Bardaisanites. A scientist, scholar, astrologer, philosopher,
hymnographer
A hymnwriter (or hymn writer, hymnist, hymnodist, hymnographer, etc.) is someone who writes the text, music, or both of hymns. In the Judeo-Christian tradition, the composition of hymns dates back to before the time of David, who composed many of ...
, and poet, Bardaisan was also renowned for his knowledge of
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, on which he wrote a book, now lost.
Biography
Early life and education
Bardaisan ( syr, ܒܪ ܕܝܨܢ ''bar Daiṣān'' "son of the Daiṣān") was a
Syriac Syriac may refer to:
*Syriac language, an ancient dialect of Middle Aramaic
*Sureth, one of the modern dialects of Syriac spoken in the Nineveh Plains region
* Syriac alphabet
** Syriac (Unicode block)
** Syriac Supplement
* Neo-Aramaic languages a ...
author born on 11 July 154, in
Edessa
Edessa (; grc, Ἔδεσσα, Édessa) was an ancient city (''polis'') in Upper Mesopotamia, founded during the Hellenistic period by King Seleucus I Nicator (), founder of the Seleucid Empire. It later became capital of the Kingdom of Osroene ...
,
Osroene
Osroene or Osrhoene (; grc-gre, Ὀσροηνή) was an ancient region and state in Upper Mesopotamia. The ''Kingdom of Osroene'', also known as the "Kingdom of Edessa" ( syc, ܡܠܟܘܬܐ ܕܒܝܬ ܐܘܪܗܝ / "Kingdom of Urhay"), according to ...
, which, in those days, was alternately under the influence of both the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...
and the
Parthian Empire
The Parthian Empire (), also known as the Arsacid Empire (), was a major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Iran from 247 BC to 224 AD. Its latter name comes from its founder, Arsaces I, who led the Parni tribe in conque ...
. To indicate the city of his birth, his parents called him "Son of the Daisan", the river on which Edessa was situated. He is sometimes also referred to as "the Babylonian" (by
Porphyrius); and, on account of his later important activity in Armenia, "the Armenian", (by
Hippolytus of Rome
Hippolytus of Rome (, ; c. 170 – c. 235 AD) was one of the most important second-third century Christian theologians, whose provenance, identity and corpus remain elusive to scholars and historians. Suggested communities include Rome, Palestin ...
), while
Ephrem the Syrian
Ephrem the Syrian ( syc, ܡܪܝ ܐܦܪܝܡ ܣܘܪܝܝܐ, Mār ʾAp̄rêm Sūryāyā, ; grc-koi, Ἐφραὶμ ὁ Σῦρος, Efrém o Sýros; la, Ephraem Syrus; am, ቅዱስ ኤፍሬም ሶርያዊ; ), also known as Saint Ephrem, Saint ...
calls him "philosopher of the
Arameans
The Arameans ( oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; syc, ܐܪ̈ܡܝܐ, Ārāmāyē) were an ancient Semitic-speaking people in the Near East, first recorded in historical sources from the late 12th century BCE. The Aramean ...
" ( syr, ܦܝܠܘܣܘܦܐ ܕܐܖ̈ܡܝܐ, ''Filosofā d-Arāmāyē''). Some sources refer to his high birth and wealth; according to
Michael the Syrian, Bardaisan's parents had fled Persia and
Sextus Julius Africanus
Sextus Julius Africanus (c. 160 – c. 240; Greek: Σέξτος Ἰούλιος ὁ Ἀφρικανός or ὁ Λίβυς) was a Christian traveler and historian of the late second and early third centuries. He is important chiefly because o ...
reports that he was of the
Parthia
Parthia ( peo, 𐎱𐎼𐎰𐎺 ''Parθava''; xpr, 𐭐𐭓𐭕𐭅 ''Parθaw''; pal, 𐭯𐭫𐭮𐭥𐭡𐭥 ''Pahlaw'') is a historical region located in northeastern Greater Iran. It was conquered and subjugated by the empire of the Med ...
n nobility.
His parents, Nuhama and Nah 'siram, must have been people of rank, for their son was educated with the crown-prince of Osroene at the court of
Abgar VIII
__NOTOC__
Abgar VIII of Edessa, also known as Abgar the Great or Abgar bar Ma'nu, was an Arab king of Osroene from 177-212 CE.
Abgar the Great was most remembered for his alleged conversion to Christianity in about 200 CE and the declaration of ...
. Africanus says that he saw Bardaisan, with bow and arrow, mark the outline of a boy's face with his arrows on a shield which the boy held.
Owing to political disturbances in Edessa, Bardaisan and his parents moved for a while to Hierapolis (now
Manbij
Manbij ( ar, مَنْبِج, Manbiǧ, ku, مەنبج, Minbic, tr, Münbiç, Menbic, or Menbiç) is a city in the northeast of Aleppo Governorate in northern Syria, 30 kilometers (19 mi) west of the Euphrates. In the 2004 census by the Cent ...
), a strong centre of Babylonianism. Here, the boy was brought up in the house of a priest Anuduzbar. In this school he learnt all the intricacies of
Babylonian astrology
Babylonian astrology was the first known organized system of astrology, arising in the second millennium BC.
In Babylon as well as in Assyria as a direct offshoot of Babylonian culture, astrology takes its place as one of the two chief means a ...
, a training that permanently influenced his mind and proved the bane of his later life. At the age of twenty-five he happened to hear the homilies of Hystaspes, the
Bishop of Edessa Early bishops
The following list is based on the records of the ''Chronicle of Edessa'' (to ''c''.540) and the '' Chronicle of Zuqnin''.
Jacobite (Syriac) bishops
These bishops belonged to the Syriac Orthodox Church. During the later period the ...
, received instruction, was baptized, and even admitted to the diaconate or the priesthood. "Priesthood", however, may merely imply that he ranked as one of the college of presbyters, because Bardaisen remained in the world and had a son called Harmonius, who according to
Sozomen
Salamanes Hermias Sozomenos ( grc-gre, Σαλαμάνης Ἑρμείας Σωζομενός; la, Sozomenus; c. 400 – c. 450 AD), also known as Sozomen, was a Roman lawyer and historian of the Christian Church.
Family and home
He was born arou ...
's Ecclesiastical history, was "deeply versed in Grecian erudition, and was the first to subdue his native tongue to meters and musical laws; these verses he delivered to the choirs". When Abgar IX, the friend of his youth, ascended the throne (179), Bardaisan took his place at court. While a sincere Christian, he was clearly no ascetic, but dressed in finery "with
beryl
Beryl ( ) is a mineral composed of beryllium aluminium silicate with the chemical formula Be3Al2Si6O18. Well-known varieties of beryl include emerald and aquamarine. Naturally occurring, hexagonal crystals of beryl can be up to several mete ...
ls and
caftan
A kaftan or caftan (; fa, خفتان, ) is a variant of the robe or tunic. Originating in Asia, it has been worn by a number of cultures around the world for thousands of years. In Russian usage, ''kaftan'' instead refers to a style of men's ...
", according to Ephrem, one of his critics.
Preaching activity
Bardaisan is said to have converted prince Abgar IX to
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
(probably after 202, i.e. after his visit and honourable reception at Rome), and even if he did not, he had an important share in Christianizing the city. Both king and philosopher laboured to create the first Christian state. However, while he showed great literary activity against
Marcion
Marcion of Sinope (; grc, Μαρκίων ; ) was an early Christian theologian in early Christianity. Marcion preached that God had sent Jesus Christ who was an entirely new, alien god, distinct from the vengeful God of Israel who had created ...
and
Valentinus, Bardaisan himself went to create his own heterodox Christian dogma by mixing its doctrines with Babylonian astrology. Other commentators say his philosophy ended up resembling those of Valentinus, if not adhering to them completely.
Epiphanius of Salamis
Epiphanius of Salamis ( grc-gre, Ἐπιφάνιος; c. 310–320 – 403) was the bishop of Salamis, Cyprus, at the end of the 4th century. He is considered a saint and a Church Father by both the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Churches. He gai ...
and
Bar Hebraeus
Gregory Bar Hebraeus ( syc, ܓܪܝܓܘܪܝܘܣ ܒܪ ܥܒܪܝܐ, b. 1226 - d. 30 July 1286), known by his Syriac ancestral surname as Bar Ebraya or Bar Ebroyo, and also by a Latinized name Abulpharagius, was an Aramean Maphrian (regional primat ...
assert that he was first an orthodox Christian and afterwards an adept of Valentinus. As a gnostic, he certainly denied the resurrection of the body, and so far as we can judge by the obscure quotations from his hymns furnished by Ephrem he explained the origin of the world by a process of emanation from the supreme God whom he called the Father of the Living. His teachings formed the basis of the
Manichaeism
Manichaeism (;
in New Persian ; ) is a former major religionR. van den Broek, Wouter J. Hanegraaff ''Gnosis and Hermeticism from Antiquity to Modern Times''SUNY Press, 1998 p. 37 founded in the 3rd century AD by the Parthian Empire, Parthian ...
and later of the
batini sects of
Shia Islam
Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, m ...
.
Bardaisan and his movement were considered heretical by the Christians, and he was subjected to critical
polemic
Polemic () is contentious rhetoric intended to support a specific position by forthright claims and to undermine the opposing position. The practice of such argumentation is called ''polemics'', which are seen in arguments on controversial topics ...
s. Those claimed, probably falsely, that he became a Valentinian Gnostic out of disappointed ambitions in the Christian church. In particular, he was vigorously combated by
St. Ephrem
Ephrem the Syrian ( syc, ܡܪܝ ܐܦܪܝܡ ܣܘܪܝܝܐ, Mār ʾAp̄rêm Sūryāyā, ; grc-koi, Ἐφραὶμ ὁ Σῦρος, Efrém o Sýros; la, Ephraem Syrus; am, ቅዱስ ኤፍሬም ሶርያዊ; ), also known as Saint Ephrem, Saint ...
who mentioned him in his hymns:
Encounter with religious men from India
Porphyry states that on one occasion at Edessa, Bardaisan interviewed an Indian deputation of holy men ( grc, Σαρμαναίοι "
śramaṇa
''Śramaṇa'' (Sanskrit; Pali: ''𑀲𑀫𑀦'') means "one who labours, toils, or exerts themselves (for some higher or religious purpose)" or "seeker, one who performs acts of austerity, ascetic".Monier Monier-Williams, श्रमण śr ...
s") who had been sent to the
Roman emperor Elagabalus
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Sextus Varius Avitus Bassianus, 204 – 11/12 March 222), better known by his nickname "Elagabalus" (, ), was Roman emperor from 218 to 222, while he was still a teenager. His short reign was conspicuous for s ...
or another
Severan emperor, and questioned them as to the nature of Indian religion. The encounter is described in Porphyry ''De abstin.'', iv, 17 and
Stobaeus
Joannes Stobaeus (; grc-gre, Ἰωάννης ὁ Στοβαῖος; fl. 5th-century AD), from Stobi in Macedonia, was the compiler of a valuable series of extracts from Greek authors. The work was originally divided into two volumes containin ...
(''Eccles.'', iii, 56, 141):
Exile and death
Eventually, after 353 years of existence, the Osrhoenic kingdom came to an end by the Romans under
Caracalla
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname "Caracalla" () was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. He was a member of the Severan dynasty, the elder son of Emperor S ...
. Taking advantage of the anti-Christian faction in Edessa, the Romans captured Abgar IX and sent him in chains to Rome. Though he was urged by a friend of Caracalla to apostatize, Bardaisan stood firm, saying that he feared not death, as he would in any event have to undergo it, even though he should now submit to the emperor. At the age of sixty-three he was forced to take refuge in the fortress of
Ani
Ani ( hy, Անի; grc-gre, Ἄνιον, ''Ánion''; la, Abnicum; tr, Ani) is a ruined medieval Armenian city now situated in Turkey's province of Kars, next to the closed border with Armenia.
Between 961 and 1045, it was the capital of the ...
in
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
and tried to preach there, but with little success. He also composed a history of the Armenian kings. He died at the age of sixty-eight, either at Ani or at Edessa. According to
Michael the Syrian, Bardaisan had besides Harmonius two other sons, called Abgarun and Hasdu.
Bardaisanite school
The followers of Bardaisan (the Bardaisanites) continued his teachings in a
sect
A sect is a subgroup of a religious, political, or philosophical belief system, usually an offshoot of a larger group. Although the term was originally a classification for religious separated groups, it can now refer to any organization that b ...
of the 2nd century deemed
heretical
Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...
by later Christians. Bardaisan's son, Harmonius, is considered to have strayed farther from the path of orthodoxy. Educated at Athens, he added to the
Babylonian astrology
Babylonian astrology was the first known organized system of astrology, arising in the second millennium BC.
In Babylon as well as in Assyria as a direct offshoot of Babylonian culture, astrology takes its place as one of the two chief means a ...
of his father Greek ideas concerning the soul, the birth and destruction of bodies and a sort of
metempsychosis
Metempsychosis ( grc-gre, μετεμψύχωσις), in philosophy, is the transmigration of the soul, especially its reincarnation after death. The term is derived from ancient Greek philosophy, and has been recontextualised by modern philoso ...
.
A certain Marinus, a follower of Bardaisan and a
dualist
Dualism most commonly refers to:
* Mind–body dualism, a philosophical view which holds that mental phenomena are, at least in certain respects, not physical phenomena, or that the mind and the body are distinct and separable from one another
** ...
, who is addressed in the "Dialogue of Adamantius", held the doctrine of a twofold primeval being; for the devil, according to him is not created by God. He was also a
Docetist
In the history of Christianity, docetism (from the grc-koi, δοκεῖν/δόκησις ''dokeĩn'' "to seem", ''dókēsis'' "apparition, phantom") is the heterodox doctrine that the phenomenon of Jesus, his historical and bodily existence, an ...
, as he denied Christ's birth of a woman. Bardaisan's form of gnosticism influenced
Manichaeism
Manichaeism (;
in New Persian ; ) is a former major religionR. van den Broek, Wouter J. Hanegraaff ''Gnosis and Hermeticism from Antiquity to Modern Times''SUNY Press, 1998 p. 37 founded in the 3rd century AD by the Parthian Empire, Parthian ...
.
St. Ephrem's zealous efforts to suppress this powerful heresy were not entirely successful. Rabbula,
Bishop of Edessa Early bishops
The following list is based on the records of the ''Chronicle of Edessa'' (to ''c''.540) and the '' Chronicle of Zuqnin''.
Jacobite (Syriac) bishops
These bishops belonged to the Syriac Orthodox Church. During the later period the ...
in 431–432, found it flourishing everywhere. Its existence in the seventh century is attested by
Jacob of Edessa
Jacob of Edessa (or James of Edessa) ( syr, ܝܥܩܘܒ ܐܘܪܗܝܐ, Yaʿqub Urhoyo) (c. 640 – 5 June 708) was Bishop of Edessa and prominent Syriac Christian writer in Classical Syriac language, also known as one of earliest Syriac grammaria ...
; in the eighth by
George, Bishop of the Arabs
George (Syriac ''Giwargi''; died 724) was the Syriac Orthodox bishop of the Arabs around Aleppo and the upper Euphrates from 686 or 687 until his death. A polymath steeped in ancient Greek philosophy, his writings are an important source for Syr ...
; in the tenth by the historian
Masudi
Al-Mas'udi ( ar, أَبُو ٱلْحَسَن عَلِيّ ٱبْن ٱلْحُسَيْن ٱبْن عَلِيّ ٱلْمَسْعُودِيّ, '; –956) was an Arab historian, geographer and traveler. He is sometimes referred to as the "Herodot ...
; and even in the twelfth by
Shashrastani. Bardaisanism seems to have merged first into
Valentinianism
Valentinianism was one of the major Gnostic Christian movements. Founded by Valentinus in the 2nd century AD, its influence spread widely, not just within Rome but also from Northwest Africa to Egypt through to Asia Minor and Syria in the East. ...
and then into common
Manichaeism
Manichaeism (;
in New Persian ; ) is a former major religionR. van den Broek, Wouter J. Hanegraaff ''Gnosis and Hermeticism from Antiquity to Modern Times''SUNY Press, 1998 p. 37 founded in the 3rd century AD by the Parthian Empire, Parthian ...
.
Doctrine
Various opinions have been formed as to the real doctrine of Bardesanes. As early as
Hippolytus (Philosoph., VI, 50) his doctrine was described as a variety of
Valentinianism
Valentinianism was one of the major Gnostic Christian movements. Founded by Valentinus in the 2nd century AD, its influence spread widely, not just within Rome but also from Northwest Africa to Egypt through to Asia Minor and Syria in the East. ...
, the most popular form of
Gnosticism
Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people ...
.
Adolf Hilgenfeld
Adolf Bernhard Christoph Hilgenfeld (2 June 182312 January 1907) was a German Protestant theologian.
Biography
He was born at Stappenbeck near Salzwedel in the Province of Saxony.
He studied at the Friedrich Wilhelm University in Berlin a ...
in 1864 defended this view, based mainly on extracts from
St. Ephrem
Ephrem the Syrian ( syc, ܡܪܝ ܐܦܪܝܡ ܣܘܪܝܝܐ, Mār ʾAp̄rêm Sūryāyā, ; grc-koi, Ἐφραὶμ ὁ Σῦρος, Efrém o Sýros; la, Ephraem Syrus; am, ቅዱስ ኤፍሬም ሶርያዊ; ), also known as Saint Ephrem, Saint ...
, who devoted his life to combating Bardaisanism in Edessa. However, it has been argued that the strong and fervent expressions of St. Ephrem against the Bardaisanites of his day are not a fair criterion of the doctrine of their master. The extraordinary veneration of his own countrymen, the very reserved and half-respectful allusion to him in the early Fathers, and above all the "Book of the Laws of the Countries" suggest a milder view of Bardaisan's aberrations.
Like the Early Christians, Bardaisan believed in an Almighty God, Creator of heaven and earth, whose will is absolute, and to whom all things are subject. God endowed man with freedom of will to work out his salvation and allowed the world to be a mixture of good and evil, light and darkness. All things, even those we now consider inanimate, have a measure of liberty. In all of them the light has to overcome the darkness.
Shashrastani states: "The followers of Daisan believe in two elements, light and darkness. The light causes the good, deliberately and with free will; the darkness causes the evil, but by force of nature and necessity. They believe that light is a living thing, possessing knowledge, might, perception and understanding; and from it movement and life take their source; but that darkness is dead, ignorant, feeble, rigid and soulless, without activity and discrimination; and they hold that the evil within them is the outcome of their nature and is done without their co-operation".
He apparently denied the resurrection of the body, although he believed Christ's body was endowed with incorruptibility as with a special gift. Bardaisan postulated that after six thousand years this Earth would have an end, and a world without evil would take its place.
Bardaisan also thought the sun, moon and planets were living beings, to whom, under God, the government of this world was largely entrusted; and though man was free, he was strongly influenced for good or for evil by the constellations. According to St. Ephrem, Sun and Moon were considered male and female principles, and the ideas of heaven amongst the Bardaisanites were not without an admixture of sensuality (or "obscenities"). Led by the fact that "spirit" is feminine in Syriac, Bardaisan might have held unorthodox views on the Trinity.
Bardaisan's cosmology and commentary on it only survives in much later sources, but can be outlined as follows. The world began with the four pure and uncreated elements of light, wind, fire, water, respectively located in East, West, South, North (and are each able to move throughout their own, individual regions). Above the plane on which these four pure elements rest is the Lord, and below is the darkness. At one time and by chance, the four pure elements exceeded their boundaries and began to mix. Taking up the opportune chance, darkness also mixed with them. Distressed, the elements appeal to God to separate the darkness from them, but God is only partially successful in this procedure. The Lord uses the mix to create the world, but the remaining darkness in the mix acts as the cause of evil in the world since then and until today. The world is allotted a period of 6,000 years to exist. Purifications through conception and birth take place, but at the end of the allotted period for the Earth, a definitive purification will take place that will expunge darkness from the world.
Writings
Bardaisan apparently was a voluminous author. Though nearly all his works have perished, we find notices of the following:
* Dialogues against
Marcion
Marcion of Sinope (; grc, Μαρκίων ; ) was an early Christian theologian in early Christianity. Marcion preached that God had sent Jesus Christ who was an entirely new, alien god, distinct from the vengeful God of Israel who had created ...
and
Valentinus.
* Dialogue "Against Fate" addressed to an Antoninus. Whether this Antoninus is merely a friend of Bardaisan or a Roman emperor and, in the latter case, which of the
Antonines is meant, is a matter of controversy. It is also uncertain whether this dialogue is identical with "The Book of the Laws of the Countries", of which later on.
* A "Book of Psalms", 150 in number, in imitation of
David's Psalter
''David's Psalter'' (original Polish title: ''Psalterz Dawidow'')The form ''Dawidow'' here is not a genitive plural, as it would be in standard modern Polish, but the masculine singular nominative form of a possessive adjective, meaning "of David ...
. These psalms became famous in the history of Edessa; their words and melodies lived for generations on the lips of the people. Only when St. Ephrem composed hymns in the same pentasyllabic metre and had them sung to the same tunes as the psalms of Bardaisan, did the latter gradually lose favour. We probably possess a few of Bardaisan's hymns in the Gnostic ''
Acts of Thomas
''Acts of Thomas'' is an early 3rd-century text, one of the New Testament apocrypha within the Acts of the Apostles subgenre. References to the work by Epiphanius of Salamis show that it was in circulation in the 4th century. The complete ver ...
''; the
Hymn of the Pearl
The Hymn of the Pearl (also Hymn of the Soul, Hymn of the Robe of Glory or Hymn of Judas Thomas the Apostle) is a passage of the apocryphal ''Acts of Thomas''. In that work, originally written in Syriac, the Apostle Thomas sings the hymn while p ...
(or "Hymn on the Soul"); the "Espousals of Wisdom"; the consecratory prayer at Baptism and at Holy Communion. Of these only the "Hymn of the Pearl" is generally acknowledged to be by Bardesanes, the authorship of the others is doubtful. Though marred by many obscurities, the beauty of this hymn on the soul is striking. The soul is sent from its heavenly home to the earth, symbolized by Egypt, to obtain the pearl of great price. In Egypt it forgets for a while its royal parentage and glorious destiny. It is reminded thereof by a letter from home, succeeds in snatching a raiment of light, it returns to receive its rank and glory in the kingdom of its father.
* Astrologico-theological treatises, in which his peculiar tenets were expounded. They are referred to by St. Ephrem, and amongst them was a treatise on light and darkness. A fragment of an astronomical work by Bardaisan was preserved by George, Bishop of the Arab tribes, and republished by Nau.
* A "History of Armenia".
Moses of Chorene
Movses Khorenatsi (ca. 410–490s AD; hy, Մովսէս Խորենացի, , also written as ''Movses Xorenac‘i'' and Moses of Khoren, Moses of Chorene, and Moses Chorenensis in Latin sources) was a prominent Armenian historian from the late an ...
states that Bardaisan, "having taken refuge in the fortress of Ani, read there the temple records in which also the deeds of kings were chronicled; to these he added the events of his own time. He wrote all in
Syriac Syriac may refer to:
*Syriac language, an ancient dialect of Middle Aramaic
*Sureth, one of the modern dialects of Syriac spoken in the Nineveh Plains region
* Syriac alphabet
** Syriac (Unicode block)
** Syriac Supplement
* Neo-Aramaic languages a ...
, but his book was afterwards translated into Greek". Though the correctness of this statement is not quite above suspicion, it probably has a foundation in fact.
* "An Account of India". Bardaisan obtained his information from the Indian
śramaṇa
''Śramaṇa'' (Sanskrit; Pali: ''𑀲𑀫𑀦'') means "one who labours, toils, or exerts themselves (for some higher or religious purpose)" or "seeker, one who performs acts of austerity, ascetic".Monier Monier-Williams, श्रमण śr ...
s (wandering ascetic) ambassadors to the Roman Emperor
Elagabalus
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Sextus Varius Avitus Bassianus, 204 – 11/12 March 222), better known by his nickname "Elagabalus" (, ), was Roman emperor from 218 to 222, while he was still a teenager. His short reign was conspicuous for s ...
. A few extracts are preserved by Porphyry and
Stobaeus
Joannes Stobaeus (; grc-gre, Ἰωάννης ὁ Στοβαῖος; fl. 5th-century AD), from Stobi in Macedonia, was the compiler of a valuable series of extracts from Greek authors. The work was originally divided into two volumes containin ...
.
*"Book of the Laws of the Countries". This famous dialogue, the oldest remnant not only of Bardaisanite learning, but even of Syriac literature, if we except the version of Holy Writ, is not by Bardaisan himself, but by a certain Philip, his disciple. The main speaker, however, in the dialogue is Bardaisan, and we have no reason to doubt that what is put in his mouth correctly represents his teaching. Excerpts of this work are extant in Greek in Eusebius and in Caesarius; in Latin in the "Recognitions" of Pseudo-Clement
[ cites IX, 19sqq.] A complete Syriac text was first published from a sixth- or seventh-century manuscript in the British Museum by
William Cureton
William Cureton (180817 June 1864) was an English Orientalist.
Life
He was born in Westbury, Shropshire. After being educated at the Adams' Grammar School in Newport, Shropshire and at Christ Church, Oxford, he took orders in 1832, became chapl ...
, in his ''Spicilegium Syriacum'' (London, 1855), and by Nau. It is disputed whether the original was in Syriac or in Greek; Nau is decided in favour of the former. Against a questioning disciple called Abida, Bardaisan seeks to show that man's actions are not entirely necessitated by Fate, as the outcome of stellar combinations. From the fact that the same laws, customs and manners often prevail amongst all persons living in a certain district, or through locally scattered living under the same traditions, Bardaisan endeavours to show that the position of the stars at the birth of individuals can have but little to do with their subsequent conduct, hence the title "Book of the Laws of the Countries".
See also
*
Gnosticism
Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people ...
*
History of Gnosticism
*
List of Gnostic sects
The following is a list of sects involved in Gnosticism:
Ancient Proto-Gnosticism
* Maghāriya
* Thomasines
Judean-Israelite Gnosticism
* Elkesaites
* Mandaeism
* Samaritan Baptist sects Syrian-Egyptic Gnosticism
* Bardesanites
* Basilidians
* ...
References
Sources
*
* Sebastian Brock, ''Bardaisan'', in Sebastian Brock et al. (eds.), ''Gorgias Encyclopedic Dictionary of Syriac Heritage'', Piscataway, Gorgias Press, 2011
* H.J.W. Drijvers, ''Bardaisan of Edessa'', Van Assen, Gorcum, 1966 (reprint: Piscataway, Gorgias Press, 2014, with a new introduction by Jan Willem Drijvers and an updated bibliography)
*
*
*
*
*
Ilaria Ramelli
Ilaria L. E. Ramelli (born 1973) is an Italian-born historian, academic author, and university professor who specializes in ancient, late antique, and early mediaeval philosophy and theology.
Academic appointments
After being Professor of Roman ...
, ''Bardaisan of Edessa: A Reassessment of the Evidence and a New Interpretation'', Piscataway, Gorgias Press, 2009
*
External links
An hymn against Bar Daisan*
* One of the chapters of
Mani
Mani may refer to:
Geography
* Maní, Casanare, a town and municipality in Casanare Department, Colombia
* Mani, Chad, a town and sub-prefecture in Chad
* Mani, Evros, a village in northeastern Greece
* Mani, Karnataka, a village in Dakshi ...
's lost ''Book of Secrets'' concerned Bar Daisan, according to the list of its contents given by the tenth-century Islamic writer
Ibn al-Nadim
Abū al-Faraj Muḥammad ibn Isḥāq al-Nadīm ( ar, ابو الفرج محمد بن إسحاق النديم), also ibn Abī Ya'qūb Isḥāq ibn Muḥammad ibn Isḥāq al-Warrāq, and commonly known by the ''nasab'' (patronymic) Ibn al-Nadīm ...
in his
Encyclopedia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bardaisan
154 births
222 deaths
Gnostics
Syrian philosophers
Syriac writers
2nd-century Christian theologians
3rd-century Christian theologians
Christianity in Syria
2nd-century people
3rd-century people