Prolegomena to a History of Islamicate Manichaeism
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NEW IN PAPERBACK EDITION PUBLISHED SEPTEMBER 2013
Prolegomena to a History of Islamicate Manichaeism provides an annotated anthology of primary sources highlighting Manichaeism, a dualist religion emerging in Mesopotamia in the third century and which spread rapidly throughout the Roman and Sasanian empires until it was violently suppressed by both polities. It nevertheless continued to flourish – largely clandestinely – in the Near East, Central Asia, and China until it finally disappeared at the beginning of the seventeenth century. This book translates and assesses the importance of a number of Arabic, Persian, Syriac, and even Hebrew language testimonies for a better understanding of the cultural importance of what many scholars characterize as the first ‘world religion’.
Published: Nov 1, 2011
Series
| Section | Chapter | Authors |
|---|---|---|
| Prelims | ||
| Preface | John C. Reeves | |
| Abbreviations and Conventions | John C. Reeves | |
| 1 | ||
| Introduction | John C. Reeves | |
| 2 | ||
| Biographical Testimonia about Mani | John C. Reeves | |
| 3 | ||
| Fragments of Manichaean Scripture: A Classified Collection of Islamicate Testimonia | John C. Reeves | |
| 4 | ||
| Testimonia about Manichaean Teachings | John C. Reeves | |
| 5 | ||
| ‘Historical’ Testimonia about Manichaeism and Manichaeans | John C. Reeves | |
| Chronological Arrangement of Authorities | ||
| Chronological Arrangement of Authorities | John C. Reeves | |
| Bibliography | ||
| Bibliography | John C. Reeves | |
| Indices | ||
| Index of Citations of Primary Sources | John C. Reeves | |
| Index of Ancient and Medieval Authors, Tradents, and Personages | John C. Reeves | |
| Index of Scriptural and Parascriptural Characters | John C. Reeves | |
| Index of Manichaeans and of Individuals Suspected or Accused of Zandaqa | John C. Reeves | |
| Index of Modern Authors | John C. Reeves | |
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Reviews
Reeves is a superb scholar who has meticulously researched the literature relevant to this project. His extensive learning is manifest throughout. Nothing like this anthology exists in English for the Islamicate testimonia on Manichaeism, and therefore it fills an extremely important gap.
Michael A. Williams, Professor of Comparative Religion and Near Eastern Languages and Civilization, Jackson School of International Studies, University of Washington
At long last, after waiting three decades, we now have a work in English on the history of the religion of the Mani based on the rich original sources in Arabic by a scholar who is eminently qualified to undertake the task. This work is likely to remain a standard in its field for a long time to come.
Journal of Semitic Studies, 2013
An important source book.
Vigiliae Christianae
These Prolegomena build strong foundations for the future work that will take decades; John C. Reeves made a great service to the scholars by assembling and annotating the scattered sources under one roof.
Islam