Mandaeism Mandaeism (Mandaic language, Classical Mandaic: ),https://qadaha.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/nhura-dictionary-mandaic-english-mandaic.pdf sometimes also known as Nasoraeanism or Sabianism, is a Gnosticism, Gnostic, Monotheism, ...

, Manda d-Hayyi or Manda ḏ-Hiia () is an

uthra An uthra or ʿutra (, Neo-Mandaic ''oṯrɔ'', traditionally transliterated ''eutra''; plural: ʿuthrē, traditionally transliterated ''eutria'') is a "divine messenger of the light" in Mandaeism. Charles G. Häberl and James F. McGrath transl ...

(angel or guardian) sent by the Great Life (''

Hayyi Rabbi In Mandaeism, Hayyi Rabbi ( Neo-Mandaic; ), 'The Great Living God', is the supreme God from which all things emanate. Hayyi Rabbi is also known as "The First Life", since during the creation of the material world, Yushamin emanated from Hayyi ...

'', or the Transcendent God) as a messenger to

John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

. Manda d-Hayyi is considered to be the most important

, since he is the one bringing '' manda'' (knowledge or

gnosis Gnosis is the common Greek noun for knowledge ( γνῶσις, ''gnōsis'', f.). The term was used among various Hellenistic religions and philosophies in the Greco-Roman world. It is best known for its implication within Gnosticism, where ...

) to Earth (

Tibil In Mandaean cosmology, Tibil () or occasionally Arqa ḏ-Tibil (lit. "Tibil-Earth") is the Earth (World) or earthly middle realm. It is separated from the World of Light (''alma ḏ-nhūra'') above and the World of Darkness (Mandaeism), World of D ...

In Mandaean texts

Yahya Yuhana Mandi painting - World of Light

In Book 5, Chapter 4 of the ''

Right Ginza The Right Ginza () is one of the two parts of the Ginza Rabba, the longest and the most important holy scripture of Mandaeism. The other part of the Ginza Rabba is the Left Ginza. Summaries of each book (or tractate), based mostly on Häberl ( ...

'', Manda d-Hayyi appears to

as a "small boy aged three years and one day." John the Baptist baptizes the small boy, after which John is taken up to the

World of Light In Mandaeism, the World of Light or Lightworld () is the primeval, transcendental world from which Tibil and the World of Darkness emerged. Description *The Great Life ('' Hayyi Rabbi'' or Supreme God/ Monad) is the ruler of the World of Ligh ...

(see also the

Coptic Apocalypse of Paul The Coptic ''Apocalypse of Paul'' (Sahidic Coptic: ⲧⲁⲡⲟⲕⲁⲗⲩⲯⲓⲥ ⲙ̄ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ), also known as the ''Revelation of Paul'', is a Gnostic apocalyptic writing. It was originally written in Koine Greek, but the surv ...

, in which a little boy appears to

Paul the Apostle Paul, also named Saul of Tarsus, commonly known as Paul the Apostle and Saint Paul, was a Apostles in the New Testament, Christian apostle ( AD) who spread the Ministry of Jesus, teachings of Jesus in the Christianity in the 1st century, first ...

, who is then taken up to heaven). Also, in Book 8 of the ''Right Ginza'', Manda d-Hayyi warns the faithful against the dangers of

Ruha Ruha (pronounced /ˈruːhə/) is a term with spiritual connotations found across various religious traditions. In Arabic, Ruh () signifies "spirit" or "soul" and is a fundamental concept in Islam, referring to the divine breath of life.Esposito, ...

. In the ''

Mandaean Book of John In Mandaeism, the Book of John () is a Mandaean holy book in Mandaic Aramaic which Mandaeans attribute to their prophet John the Baptist. The book contains accounts of John's life and miracles, as well as a number of polemical conversations w ...

'' and Book 3 of the ''

'', Manda d-Hayyi makes a journey into the

World of Darkness ''World of Darkness'' is a series of tabletop role-playing games, originally created by Mark Rein-Hagen for White Wolf Publishing. It began as an annual line of five games in 1991–1995, with ''Vampire: The Masquerade'', ''Werewolf: The Apocaly ...

(

underworld The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underworld. ...

), where he meets

Gaf Gaf (; ), is the name of different Perso-Arabic alphabet, Perso-Arabic letters, all representing . They are all derived from the letter Kaph, kāf, with additional diacritics, such as dots and lines. In name and shape, it is a variant of ''kaph ...

and other demons and triumphs against them. Manda d-Hayyi is sometimes portrayed as harbouring a grudge against

Yushamin In Mandaeism, Yushamin () and also known as the 'Second Life', is the primal uthra (angel or guardian) and a subservient emanation who was created by the Mandaean God 'The Great Life' (''Hayyi Rabbi'' or 'The First Life'), hence beginning the cre ...

. In the eighth chapter of the Book of John, Manda d-Hayyi opposes a petition to the King of Light for forgiveness for Yushamin brought by Yushamin's son Nṣab Ziwa (), and is rebuked by the King of Light for hating Yushamin due to Yushamin having refused him a wife from his family. In some Mandaean texts, he is also referred to as ''Yuzaṭaq Manda d-Hayyi''. E. S. Drower (1960) suggests that "male Holy Spirit" is a probable meaning for ''Yuzaṭaq''. Mark J. Lofts (2010) proposes a connection with

Yessedekeus In Sethian Gnostic texts, Yesseus Mazareus Yessedekeus is the personification of the Living Water. He is mentioned in the Nag Hammadi tractates of the ''Holy Book of the Great Invisible Spirit'', ''Zostrianos'', and ''Apocalypse of Adam''. Etymo ...

Sethianism The Sethians (Greek language, Greek: Σηθιανοί) were one of the main currents of Gnosticism during the 2nd and 3rd century AD, along with Valentinianism and Basilideans, Basilideanism. According to John D. Turner, it originated in the 2n ...

Relationship to Hibil

E. S. Drower notes in an appendix to her translation of the ''

Scroll of Abatur The ''Diwan Abatur'' (; "Scroll of Abatur"; Modern Mandaic: ''Diwān Abāthor'') is a Mandaean religious text. It is a large illustrated scroll that is over 20 ft. (6.1 m) long. A similar illustrated Mandaean scroll is the '' Diwan Nahraw ...

'' that Manda d-Hayyi and

Hibil In Mandaeism, Hibil () and/or Hibil Ziwa () and sometimes pronounced Hīwel is referred to an uthra ("excellency", an angel or guardian) from the World of Light or the son of Adam (then; only referred as Hibil). Hibil, the man, is considered to b ...

are sometimes identified with one another, although they are considered separate figures in the ''Diwan Abatur''. Manda d-Hayyi is sometimes named as Hibil's father; elsewhere,

is. The ritual passages in ''

The Baptism of Hibil Ziwa ''The Baptism of Hibil Ziwa'' or ''Diwan Maṣbuta ḏ-Hibil Ziwa'' (, "Scroll of the Baptism of Hibil Ziwa") is a Mandaean illustrated scroll. It describes the soteriological descent of Hibil Ziwa to the World of Darkness, and his baptisms bef ...

'' describe Hibil as Manda d-Hayyi's son and include Manda d-Hayyi amongst those officiating in Hibil's baptism. However, the same scroll's account of Hibil's descent to the World of Darkness refers to "Hibil-Ziwa" when he is being commanded to descend, switches to referring to "Manda" or "Manda-ḏ-Hiia" while he is in the World of Darkness, and back to referring to "Hibil-Ziwa" when he is seeking to be able to ascend back to the World of Light; furthermore, Manda d-Hayyi is then summoned within the World of Light to send a letter of Kushta to his son Hibil to aid the latter's ascent. Drower notes "read "Hibil" for "Manda"" in a footnote in her translation, and inserts "''(Hibil-Ziwa son of)''" as a differentiated inline annotation where appropriate.

Weapons

According to the ''

'', the weapons of Manda d-Hayyi are: #Radiance and Light (''

Ziwa Ziwa is an archaeological site in Nyanga District, Zimbabwe, containing the remains of a vast late Iron Age agricultural settlement dated to the 15th century. It is one of many sites that compose the Nyanga Iron Age ruins. Ziwa was declared a N ...

u Nhūra'') #a great attire #the ''

margna The margna () is a ritual olive wooden staff carried by Mandaean priests. A Mandaean priest always carries his margna during baptismal (masbuta) rituals. According to the ''Right Ginza'', the ''margna'' (staff) of Living Water (''Mia Hayya'') i ...

'' (staff) of

Living Water Living water (; ) is a biblical term which appears in both the Old and New Testaments. In and , the prophet describes God as "the spring of living water", who has been forsaken by his chosen people Israel. Later, the prophet Zechariah describ ...

(''Mia Hiia'') #the wreath of the Living Flame (''ʿŠata Haita'') #the armor of the Great Ones #a mace (club) #a veil (or a net?) #a robe of the Great Ones

Syriac parallels

The Syriac phrase () is attested in the

Peshitta The Peshitta ( ''or'' ') is the standard Syriac edition of the Bible for Syriac Christian churches and traditions that follow the liturgies of the Syriac Rites. The Peshitta is originally and traditionally written in the Classical Syriac d ...

text of

Luke 1 Luke 1 is the first chapter of the Gospel of Luke in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. With 80 verses, it is one of the longest chapters in the New Testament. This chapter describes the birth of John the Baptist and the events leading up ...

:77, a passage from the Song of Zechariah. In the passage, Zechariah praises his son

, saying that his son will "give ''knowledge of life'' to his he Lord'speople." It is the only place where this phrase is mentioned in the Peshitta New Testament. However, in most other Bible versions and translations, the phrase "knowledge of salvation" () is used instead of "knowledge of life." Below is an excerpt of Luke 1:76–77 from the Lamsa Bible.

Kabbalah parallels

Manda d-Hayyi can also be compared to the angel

Raziel Raziel, ( ''Rāzīʾēl,'' "God is my Mystery") also known as Gallitsur ( Hebrew: גַּלִּיצוּר ''Gallīṣūr'') is an angel within the teachings of Jewish mysticism (of the Kabbalah of Judaism) who is the "Angel of Secrets" and the "An ...

in the Jewish tradition. Raziel is mentioned in Kabbalistic texts such as ''

Sefer Raziel HaMalakh ''Sefer Raziel HaMalakh'' (, "the book of Raziel the angel") is a grimoire of Practical Kabbalah from the Middle Ages written primarily in Hebrew and Aramaic. ''Liber Razielis Archangeli'', its 13th-century Latin translation produced under Alf ...

''. Both are described as intermediaries who convey divine knowledge to humans, especially Adam. In

Jewish mysticism Academic study of Jewish mysticism, especially since Gershom Scholem's ''Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism'' (1941), draws distinctions between different forms of mysticism which were practiced in different eras of Jewish history. Of these, Kabbal ...

, Raziel delivers the "''Sefer Raziel''" to Adam, containing esoteric secrets about the universe and divine mysteries, while in Mandaeism, Manda d-Hayyi instructs Adam about the mysteries of life and creation. In

, after the creation of the material world, Adam Kasia (

Adam Kadmon In Kabbalah, Adam Kadmon (, ''ʾāḏām qaḏmōn'', "Primordial Man") also called Adam Elyon (, ''ʾāḏām ʿelyōn'', "Most High Man"), or Adam Ila'ah (, ''ʾāḏām ʿīllāʾā'' "Most High Adam" in Aramaic), sometimes abbreviated as A ...

in the Mandaean tradition) asks

Abatur Abatur (, sometimes called Abathur; Yawar, ; and the Ancient of Days and also pronounced Awāthur) is an Uthra and the second of three subservient emanations created by the Mandaean God ''Hayyi Rabbi'' (, “The Great Living God”) in the Mand ...

(

Ancient of Days Ancient of Days is a name for God in the Book of Daniel. The title "Ancient of Days" has been used as a source of inspiration in art and music, denoting the creator's aspects of eternity combined with perfection. William Blake's watercolour and ...

Metatron Metatron (Mishnaic Hebrew: ''Meṭāṭrōn''), or Matatron (), is an angel in Judaism, Gnosticism, and Islam. Metatron is mentioned three times in the Talmud, in a few brief passages in the Aggadah, the Targum, and in mystical kabbalah, Kabba ...

/ Hanokh/ "Yeshua" in the Mandaean tradition. The

Merkabah Merkabah () or Merkavah mysticism (lit. Chariot mysticism) is a school of History of Judaism, early Jewish mysticism (), centered on vision (spirituality), visions such as those found in Ezekiel 1 or in the hekhalot literature ("palaces" literat ...

text Re' uyot Yehezkel identifies the Ancient of Days as

) what he will do when he goes to

(

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...

Malkuth Malkuth (; "kingdom"; Ashkenazi: ''Malkhus'' ), Malkhut, Malkhuth, or Malchus, is the tenth of the sefirot in the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. Description In the ''Zohar'', an important Kabbalistic text from late al-Andalus, Malkuth sits at th ...

). Abatur responds that Adam will be helped by Manda d-Hayyi, who instructs humans with sacred knowledge and protects them.

References