Eternal divine manifestation of good in Manichaeism
Father of Greatness
God of Light, King of Realm of Light
Father of Greatness sitting on a pedestal in the centre in the Realm of Light. Top section of the Manichaean Diagram of the Universe.
Other names
Zurwān[1]
Abode
Realm of Light
Symbol
Light
Offspring
Jesus the Splendour
Equivalents
Zoroastrian equivalent
Zurvan
Gnostic equivalent
Monad[2]
Mandaean equivalent
Hayyi Rabbi
Under Central Asian influence, the "four-fold Father of Greatness" was split up (from left) into the Hindu deities Ganesha, Vishnu, Brahma, and Shiva.[3] Leaf from a Manichaean book MIK III 4979, 8th–9th century, discovered in Karakhoja.
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The Father of Greatness (Middle Aramaic transl. abbā ḏ-rabbūṯā;[4] Chinese: 明尊; pinyin: Míngzūn; lit. 'Radiant Lord') is the eternal divine manifestation of good in Manichaeism,[2] a four-fold deity, embracing divinity, light, power and goodness. His throne is surrounded by at least 156 peaceful entities: 12 aeons, aeons of the aeons, and angels.[5][2]
When the Prince of Darkness assaulted the Realm of Light, he invoked entities of light to ward off the invaders. These entities mingled with the demons and gave existence to the earthly beings, thus humans carry consubstantial light particles of the Father of Greatness, but are unaware of them until they awaken from their sleep by remembering their divine origin. The Father of Greatness responds by creating a series of entities to prepare a rescue for light particles.
^Nugteren, Albertina (2019). Religion, Ritual and Ritualistic Objects. Basel: MDPI. p. 132. ISBN 9783038977520.
^ abcWillis Barnstone, Marvin Meyer. The Gnostic Bible: Revised and Expanded Edition, Shambhala Publications, 2009, ISBN 978-0-834-82414-0, pages 4, 595, 827
^Van den Berg, Jacob Albert; Kotzé, Annemaré; Nicklas, Tobias; Scopello, Madeleine, eds. (2010). In Search of Truth: Augustine, Manichaeism and other Gnosticism — Studies for Johannes van Oort at Sixty. "Nag Hammadi and Manichaean Studies" series. Vol. 74. Leiden: Brill Publishers. p. 305. ISBN 9789004195790.
^Char Yar. "Zurvan - A Historical Name of God in Manichaeism". academia.edu. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
^H. J. Klimkeit Manichaean Art and Calligraphy 1982 ISBN 9789004064782 p. 9
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