![Yahya Yuhana Mandi 04](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1c/Yahya_Yuhana_Mandi_04.png)
In
Mandaeism
Mandaeism (Classical Mandaic: ࡌࡀࡍࡃࡀࡉࡉࡀ ; Arabic: المندائيّة ), sometimes also known as Nasoraeanism or Sabianism, is a Gnostic, monotheistic and ethnic religion. Its adherents, the Mandaeans, revere Adam, Abel, S ...
, rishama (rišama) is a daily
ablution
Ablution is the act of washing oneself. It may refer to:
* Ablution as hygiene
* Ablution as ritual purification
** Ablution in Islam:
*** Wudu, daily wash
*** Ghusl, bathing ablution
*** Tayammum, waterless ablution
** Ablution in Christianity
* ...
ritual. Unlike the
masbuta
Maṣbuta ( myz, ࡌࡀࡑࡁࡅࡕࡀ) is the ritual of immersion in water in the Mandaean religion.
Overview
Mandaeans revere John the Baptist and practice frequent baptism (''masbuta'') as a ritual of purification, not of initiation. They ar ...
, it does not require the assistance of a priest.
''Rishama'' (signing) is performed before prayers and involves washing the face and limbs while reciting specific prayers such as the
rushma
The rushma ( myz, ࡓࡅࡔࡌࡀ, translit=rušma, lit= sign) is one of the most commonly recited prayers in Mandaeism. It is a "signing" prayer recited during daily ablutions (rishama). The same word can also be used to refer to the ritual signin ...
. It is performed daily, before sunrise, with hair covered and after evacuation of bowels, or before religious ceremonies.
Tamasha
Tamasha ( mr, तमाशा) is a traditional form of Marathi theatre, often with singing and dancing, widely performed by local or travelling theatre groups within the state of Maharashtra, India."Tamasha", in James R. Brandon and Martin Banham ...
(ṭamaša) is another type of ablution performed by Mandaeans in which the entire body is fully immersed three times in water.
Parallels
The ablution is comparable to
wudu
Wuḍūʾ ( ar, الوضوء ' ) is the Islamic procedure for cleansing parts of the body, a type of ritual purification, or ablution. The 4 Fardh (Mandatory) acts of ''Wudu'' consists of washing the face, arms, then wiping the head and the feet ...
in Islam.
John D. Turner
John D. Turner (15 July 1938 in Glen Ridge - 26 October 2019) was the Cotner Professor of Religious Studies and Charles J. Mach University Professor of Classics and History Classics & Religious Studies at the University of Nebraska.
He was well ...
and other scholars have noted that in
Sethianism
The Sethians were one of the main currents of Gnosticism during the 2nd and 3rd century CE, along with Valentinianism and Basilideanism. According to John D. Turner, it originated in the 2nd century CE as a fusion of two distinct Hellenistic ...
, rituals reminiscent of Mandaean ablutions (i.e., the rishama and tamasha) are mentioned in
Nag Hammadi texts
The Nag Hammadi library (also known as the " Chenoboskion Manuscripts" and the "Gnostic Gospels") is a collection of early Christian and Gnostic texts discovered near the Upper Egyptian town of Nag Hammadi in 1945.
Thirteen leather-bound papyrus ...
such as the ''
Trimorphic Protennoia
The ''Trimorphic Protennoia'' is a Sethian Gnostic text from the New Testament apocrypha. The only surviving copy comes from the Nag Hammadi library ( Codex XIII).
I mthe Thought of the Father, Protennoia, that is, Barbelo, the perfect Gl ...
'', since they involve triple immersion in water, signing, and other similar features.
See also
*
Rushma
The rushma ( myz, ࡓࡅࡔࡌࡀ, translit=rušma, lit= sign) is one of the most commonly recited prayers in Mandaeism. It is a "signing" prayer recited during daily ablutions (rishama). The same word can also be used to refer to the ritual signin ...
*
Ablution in Christianity
In Christianity, ablution is a prescribed washing of part or all of the body or possessions, such as clothing or ceremonial objects, with the intent of purification or dedication. In Christianity, both baptism and footwashing are forms of abluti ...
*
Ritual washing in Judaism
In Judaism, ritual washing, or ablution, takes two main forms. ''Tevilah'' (טְבִילָה) is a full body immersion in a mikveh, and ''netilat yadayim'' is the washing of the hands with a cup (see Handwashing in Judaism).
References to rit ...
*
Wudu
Wuḍūʾ ( ar, الوضوء ' ) is the Islamic procedure for cleansing parts of the body, a type of ritual purification, or ablution. The 4 Fardh (Mandatory) acts of ''Wudu'' consists of washing the face, arms, then wiping the head and the feet ...
in Islam
References
External links
The Worlds of Mandaean Priests(University of Exeter)
Rishama (Ablution)Brakha and Rishama instructional videoAfternoon brakha and ablution in Amarah, Iraq
Mandaic words and phrases
Mandaean rituals
Ritual purification
Water and religion
{{Mandaeism-stub