Although

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 ...

has historically been a fairly unified religion, it has had some schisms over its history. These schisms occurred from the sixth century AD until at least the 10th century AD. In the sixth century, there was a schism among Manichaeans between the Denawars and the see of Babylon, in response to persecution in

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the F ...

. The see of Babylon was the predominant sect of

Babylonia Babylonia (; Akkadian: , ''māt Akkadī'') was an ancient Akkadian-speaking state and cultural area based in the city of Babylon in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq and parts of Syria). It emerged as an Amorite-ruled state c. ...

and the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

, while the Denawars were prevalent in

Sogdia Sogdia (Sogdian language, Sogdian: ) or Sogdiana was an ancient Iranian peoples, Iranian civilization between the Amu Darya and the Syr Darya, and in present-day Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. Sogdiana was also ...

na and founded by

Shad Ohrmazd Although Manichaeism has historically been a fairly unified religion, it has had some schisms over its history. These schisms occurred from the sixth century AD until at least the 10th century AD. In the sixth century, there was a schism among M ...

;H. J. Klimkeit. ''Manichaeism and Nestorian Christianity'' in: History of Civilizations of Central Asia, Vol. IV, Part 2. Motilal Banarsidass, 2003. . however, they viewed

Mar Ammo Mar Ammo was a 3rd-century Manichean disciple of the prophet Mani. According to Manichaen tradition he spread Manichaeism eastward into Sogdiana during the time period when Mani was living. Mar Ammo is well known as the apostle of the east in Ma ...

as their founder since he established Manichaeism in the region. The rift between the eastern and western Manichaeans was not caused by any doctrinal matters. The seat of the Archegos remained in Seleucia-Ctesiphon, but the influence on Manichaeism mostly came from

Transoxiana Transoxiana or Transoxania (Land beyond the Oxus) is the Latin name for a region and civilization located in lower Central Asia roughly corresponding to modern-day eastern Uzbekistan, western Tajikistan, parts of southern Kazakhstan, parts of Tu ...

. After the Arab victory at the

Battle of al-Qadisiyyah The Battle of al-Qadisiyyah ( ar, مَعْرَكَة ٱلْقَادِسِيَّة, Maʿrakah al-Qādisīyah; fa, نبرد قادسیه, Nabard-e Qâdisiyeh) was an armed conflict which took place in 636 CE between the Rashidun Caliphate and the ...

, the Manichaeans had a brief respite from persecution. As a result some returned to Mesopotamia from

Khorasan Khorasan may refer to: * Greater Khorasan, a historical region which lies mostly in modern-day northern/northwestern Afghanistan, northeastern Iran, southern Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan * Khorasan Province, a pre-2004 province of Ira ...

. The capital of the Denawars by the eighth century was centered in Qocho on the northern

Silk Road The Silk Road () was a network of Eurasian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles), it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and reli ...

. At the time it was active from at least

Samarkand fa, سمرقند , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from the top:Registan square, Shah-i-Zinda necropolis, Bibi-Khanym Mosque, view inside Shah-i-Zinda, ...

Chang'an Chang'an (; ) is the traditional name of Xi'an. The site had been settled since Neolithic times, during which the Yangshao culture was established in Banpo, in the city's suburbs. Furthermore, in the northern vicinity of modern Xi'an, Qin Shi ...

. The schism between the eastern and western churches was worked out and ended by the beginning of the eighth century. At the end of the seventh century, Mihr was Archegos and the schism was reconciled. Mihr had relaxed many rules of Manichaeism regarding social relationship (Arabic wisallat).Lieu, Samuel N.C
''Manichaeism in the Later Roman Empire and Medieval China: a Historical Survey.''
Pages 83, 85. Manchester University Press, 1985. Mihr was succeeded by Zad Hurmuz, who in turn was succeeded by Miqlās. Miqlās attempted to restrict these rules once again, and this resulted in the development of a new schism between the Miqlāsiyya, who wanted the rules to be strict, and the Mihriyya, who wanted them to be loose. The rise of the

Abbasid Caliphate The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib ...

brought increased persecution in 750. Due to this persecution, the center of Manichaeism permanently shifted to Khorasan. Letters from Khorasan show the Miqlāsiyya-Mihriyya schism was still strong in 880. Manichaeism, following its introduction into Sogdiana, would be spread in part by Sogdians eastward into the

Tarim Basin The Tarim Basin is an endorheic basin in Northwest China occupying an area of about and one of the largest basins in Northwest China.Chen, Yaning, et al. "Regional climate change and its effects on river runoff in the Tarim Basin, China." Hydr ...

and China. Manichaeism continues to be practiced despite a long history of persecution in China, though it became increasingly syncretic, and confined to southeastern China after the 14th century.

Notes

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Schisms A schism ( , , or, less commonly, ) is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization, movement, or religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a split in what had previously been a single religious body, suc ...

Religious schisms