In religion, a precursor, also known as forerunner, predecessor, harbinger or herald, is a holy person who announced the approaching appearance of a central figure of the religion or who identified a central figure of the religion during the latter’s childhood.
List of precursors
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Asita
Asita or Kaladevala or Kanhasiri was a hermit ascetic depicted in Buddhist sources as having lived in ancient India. He was a teacher and advisor of Suddhodana, the father of the Buddha, and is best known for having predicted that prince Siddha ...
in Buddhism
[Kohn, Sherab Chodzin (2009). ]
A Life of the Buddha
'. Shambhala Publications. . pp. 5-6.
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John the Baptist
John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...
in Christianity
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Bahira
Bahira ( ar, بَحِيرَىٰ, syc, ܒܚܝܪܐ) was an Assyrian, likely Nestorian monk from the tribe of Abd al-Qays who, according to Islamic religion, foretold to the adolescent Muhammad his future as a prophet.Abel, A.Baḥīrā. ''Encyc ...
or Sergius in Islam
[Abel, A.]
Baḥīrā
. '' Encyclopaedia of Islam''. Brill. Brill Online, 2007
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Shaykh Ahmad
Sheikh (pronounced or ; ar, شيخ ' , mostly pronounced , plural ' )—also transliterated sheekh, sheyikh, shaykh, shayk, shekh, shaik and Shaikh, shak—is an honorific title in the Arabic language. It commonly designates a chief of a ...
, forerunner of Bábism (in the Bábí-Bahá'í view)
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Sayyid Kazim Rashti, forerunner of Bábism (in the Bábí-Bahá'í view)
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Báb
The Báb (b. ʿAlí Muḥammad; 20 October 1819 – 9 July 1850), was the messianic founder of Bábism, and one of the central figures of the Baháʼí Faith. He was a merchant from Shiraz in Qajar Iran who, in 1844 at the age of 25, claimed ...
, forerunner and herald of the Bahá'í Faith (in the Bahá'í view)
See also
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List of founders of religious traditions
These are historical figures credited with founding religions or religious philosophies, or who codified older known religious traditions. The list includes those who have founded a specific major denomination within a larger religion.
Legend ...
References
{{Precursors in religion