Mani (Syrian: ܡܐܢܝ ܚܝܐ M ā N ī， From April 14, 216 to February 26, 274, he was the founder of Manichaeism. He was born in Madinou, northern Babylon during the Parthian Empire of the Persian Empire (now on the banks of the Tigris River in Iraq), but his death dates can be traced back to 274, 276, and 277. Her mother Manyan seems to be a relative of the Parthian royal family, and her father, Emperor Ba, originally lived in Hamadan and belonged to a small denomination of Christianity characterized by abstinence and baptism (Elchasaites, which may have several translations and may be a branch of a heretical sect of Jewish Christians known as the Nostrian sect). Mani claimed to have been inspired by angels since he was young, and at the age of 24, he received the most important revelation from God (Syzygos). He claimed to have been inspired by God and was sent to the world as a "messenger of light". He broke away from that sect (if it weren't for his father's protection, he might have been killed) and began preaching. [2]
At first, Mani had only two followers. Mani taught his teachings to his father and family members, and his father also converted to his religion. Later, Mani and a small number of followers preached in northern Persia and then arrived in India by sea. During Manichaeism in India, King Duran converted to Manichaeism. After returning to Persia from India, Mani won the friendship of the brother of King Shapur I of the Sassanid dynasty in Persia and the governor of Khorasan, Belus, through whom he was able to meet Shapur. Mani wrote the book "Shapragan" in Middle Persian, summarizing the teachings of Manichaeism and dedicating it to Shapur. Shapur allowed him and his followers to perform and preach throughout the entire Sassanian Empire. At the grand ceremony of King Shapur I's accession, Manichaeism officially began preaching to the whole country and sent apostles to Rome and the East to preach. Manichaeism quickly spread and developed into a global religion.
Mani made it to the list of 100 people who have influenced the course of human history, ranking 83rd.

Mani (216.4.14-274.26) was the founder of Manichaeism. My mother Maryam is related to the Arsacids royal family in Persia.
Mani was born in Madinu, located in the northern part of Babylon. Father Patek, originally from Hamadan, participated in the Jewish Christian sect of Elchasaites, which was characterized by abstinence and the implementation of tedious baptism rituals. Mani was brought to live in this sect by his father since the age of four.

Mani claimed to have been inspired by angels since childhood. At the age of twenty-four (April 19, 240 AD), he received the most important revelation from God Syzygos, which covered the main basic teachings of Manichaeism in the future.
He then broke away from the Erkese faction and could have been killed without his father's protection. Mani left this sect and came to Ctesiphon with only two followers. Later, his father also converted to his religion.
Mani and a few of his followers once preached in northern Persia, and later traveled by sea to India to convert King Turan (in present-day Balochistan) to Manichaeism.
After returning from India, Mani won the friendship of Peroz, the brother of Shapur, the king of the Sassanid dynasty in Persia, and the governor of Khurasan. Through him, he was able to meet Shapur. Mani wrote the book "Sabuhragan" in Middle Persian, summarizing the teachings of Manichaeism and dedicating it to Sabur. Shabir gave Mani a written document allowing him and his followers to travel and preach anywhere within the empire. The Manichaean apostles Adda and Patrig, who followed the teachings of the law, preached within the Roman Empire, while Mar Ammo and others preached to the East. Manichaeism has developed into a global religion in a short period of time.

After Bahram I (273-276) succeeded to the throne, he was influenced by the Zoroastrian leader Kirdir and changed his policy of tolerance towards Manichaeism. Mani wanted to go to the Kushan region in the east but was not allowed. He received a summons from Bahram I to go to the court of Bet Laphat. Mani was aware of the misfortunes, but his care for his followers remained the same. Along the way, he also visited the Manichaean community in his hometown of Gaukhai. He arrived at the court on January 21, 274, and when he met with Bahram I, he was accused by the king. Mani defended himself and was thrown into prison. He died in prison on February 26 (some say he was crucified).

The prophet Mani of the third century was the founder of Manichaeism. Although this religion has disappeared today, it had a large number of followers during its heyday. Manichaeism originated in the Middle East and flows westward
It has a history of over a thousand years, spreading to the Atlantic and eastward to the Pacific.
The religion founded by Mani is an interesting synthesis of early religious ideas. Mani acknowledged that Zoroaster, Buddha, and Jesus were true prophets, but claimed that he later received a more comprehensive revelation than any of them.

Although Manichaeism contains elements of Buddhism and Christianity, it is clearly derived from Zoroastrian dualism, at least in the eyes of Westerners. Mani taught that the world is not ruled by one god, but rather a place of constant struggle between two forces. One of them is the evil forces, identified by darkness and matter, and the other is the kind forces, identified by light and spirit. On the surface, this seems a bit like the Christian concept of God and the Demon King. Manichaeism believes that the forces of kindness and evil are equally powerful. Due to this belief, philosophical paradoxes about the existence of sin have caused many troubles for Christian and Jewish philosophers, but there is no problem in Manichaean philosophy.
Due to space limitations, I do not intend to provide a detailed introduction to Manichaean theology here, but one point must be mentioned. Due to Manichaeisms using the power of kindness to identify the soul and the power of sin to identify the body, they believe that all sexual relationships - even for the purpose of reproduction - should be prohibited, and eating meat and drinking alcohol should also be considered prohibited.
At first glance, such a doctrine may seem unlikely to attract a large number of followers, but the entire ban is not applicable to ordinary members of the Manichaean Church, but only to a few members known as the "chosen ones of God.". Regular members - "bystanders" are allowed to have wives (or lovers), raise families, eat meat, drink alcohol, and so on. However, there are many religious rituals that "observers" must abide by, and they must support God's chosen people. However, the moral laws imposed on them are not difficult to follow (of course, other religions also require priests and monks rather than the general public to live alone). The soul of God's chosen one ascends directly into heaven after death, while the path to heaven for the audience is farther away. But some Manichaeisms, such as the Cathars, believe that listeners can easily enter heaven just as easily as God's elect, and are granted great privileges while alive.

Mani was born in Mesopotamia in 216 AD, which was then ruled by the Parthian Empire and was part of the Persian Empire. Mani himself has Persian ancestry and is related to the rulers of the Assyrians. Most Persians support a certain sect of Zoroastrianism, while Mani grew up under a religious influence deeply influenced by Christianity. He had religious insight and imagination at the age of twelve, and began preaching his Protestantism at the age of twenty-four. At first, he didn't make much progress in his own country, so he wandered to the northwest of India and successfully converted a small monarch to his Protestantism.
In 242, he returned to Persia and won a group of listeners there, including King Shapol I. Although Shapol did not convert to his Protestantism, he had a good impression of Mani and allowed him to preach his Protestantism throughout the entire Persian Empire. Around 266 AD, this Persian Empire established a new dynasty, sometimes referred to as the Sassanid Empire.
In the following thirty years, under the leadership of Shapol I and Homitz I, Mani was able to preach freely and won a large number of converts. Missionary groups were also sent abroad. But Mani's success aroused hostility from the priests of Zoroastrianism, which became the state religion of Persia during the Sassanid dynasty. Around 276 AD, the new king Balam I ascended to the pole, and Mani became a prisoner under the ranks. After 26 days of cruel divine judgment, he was tortured to death.
Zizhi Tongjian, Volume 237 In the first year of the Yuanhe reign of Emperor Wuda Shengzhi Shenxiao of the Tang Dynasty, when the Uyghurs paid tribute, Manikai was appointed to establish a temple in China. Its method is to eat meat instead of cheese. The Uyghurs believed in it, and the Khanates may discuss state affairs.

Mani wrote several books throughout his life, one in Persian and the rest in Syrian (Semitic was closely related to Aramaic during the time of Jesus), which became the canon of Manichaeism. After the extinction of Manichaeism, its scriptures were also lost and scattered, but some were rediscovered in the 20th century.

Manichaeism was dedicated to the conversion of religion with a vibrant momentum from the beginning. During the prophet's lifetime, his religion won followers from India to Europe and continued to develop after his death, eventually spreading westward to Spain and eastward to China. In the fourth century, it reached its peak in the West and became a dangerous rival of Christianity at that time (Saint Augustine was a Manichaean believer for nine years). But after Christianity became the state religion of the Roman Empire, Manichaeism suffered severe persecution and was largely extinct in the West by around 600 years.
But its influence in Mesopotamia and Iran remains strong. It was introduced to Central Asia and western China from there. In the late 8th century, it became the official religion of the Uyghur people, who controlled a considerable area in western China and Mongolia. It also spread to mainland China, even to coastal areas, and from there it spread to Taiwan Island. But in the seventh century, the emergence of Islam ultimately led to the decline of Manichaeism. Starting from the 8th century, the Abbasid caliphate in Baghdad severely persecuted Manichaeism, and after a period of time, it gradually disappeared in Mesopotamia and Iran. Since the 9th century, it has also begun to decline in Central Asia, and the invasion of Mongolia in the 13th century has actually eliminated it. But Marco Polo met a Manichaean group in western China around 1300.

At the same time, Manichaeism has spawned various different denominations in Europe. The Paul faction began to appear in the Byzantine Empire in the 7th century, while the Bagrille faction appeared around the 10th century and was very powerful in the Balkan countries. But among these European factions, the most famous is the Caterism (better known as the Albigs because it was named after the French city of Albigh, which is one of their fortresses). In the 12th century, the Cathars gained a large number of followers in Europe, especially in the southern regions of France. Although the teachings of the Albigists are more similar to those of Manichaeism, they still consider themselves Christians, and the orthodox church says they are cultists. In the end, Pope Innocent III, the most powerful and least measured Pope of the Middle Ages, launched a campaign against them. This campaign began in 1209 and was a terrible massacre. A large area of southern France suffered an unprecedented catastrophe, and the Albigists were completely shattered. But it wasn't until the 15th century that the Albigists became extinct in Italy.
Any religion has a significant impact on the life of its loyal followers. Therefore, even the founder of a smaller religion is often a person with significant influence. Although Manichaeism is now extinct, it was once a major religion, making Manichaeism a very influential figure (Manichaeism claims to have brought an unfortunate but undeniable consequence - other religions launched many persecution movements to crush Manichaeism).