A Glimpse of the individual eschatology in Gnostic and Manichaean Beliefs

Gnostic religions have been widely expanded in various parts of the ancientMesopotamian lands, also in northern Syria. This distribution of thoughts,according to many scholars, influenced the great religions such as Jewishand Christian. Manichaeanism is one of the most important religions in theancient world that developed in Mesopotamia; hence, many of Mani'sthoughts are combined with Gnostic ideas. One of the intricate andmysterious Manichaean beliefs is the universal eschatology and the story oflife after death. Studying and comparing Gnostic thoughts of individualeschatology, leads to the idea that the Gnostic beliefs affected the formationof the eschatological beliefs of Manichaeanism. This paper mainly studiesthe presence of Gnostic thoughts in Manichaeanism; and throughdescriptive-analytical approach, examines gnostic thoughts and beliefs ofthe individual's eschatology in religious texts. Finally, by analyzing andcomparing Mani's thoughts, the influence of Gnosticism on Manicheanthought is rebuilded.

کلیدواژه ها:

Gnostische Religionen ، Manichäismus ، eschatologische Überzeugungen ، individuell Eschatologie ، universelle Eschatologie