Mani

Mani ibn Fattaq, the son of Babak ibn Abi Barzam, of the Hasakaniyya. Ibn al-Nadim gives the fullest Arabic account of his life. ²

Ibn al-Nadim relates that his father's origin was in Hamadhan, and that he moved to Babylon and settled in al-Mada'in. There a voice called to him from the house of idols that he should eat no meat and drink no wine. He then joined a people known as the Mughtasila, while his wife was pregnant with Mani. ²

According to Ibn al-Nadim, the Manichaeans say that he received the revelation at the age of twelve from "the king of the Realm of Light", and was then ordered to go out with his mission at twenty-four. He went out on the day of the coronation of Shapur ibn Ardashir. ²

Ibn al-Nadim says that he claimed to be the Paraclete whom Jesus announced, and that he drew his doctrine from Mazdaism and Christianity. He called India, China and Khurasan. Firuz, brother of Shapur, answered his call. ²

He was killed in the reign of Bahram ibn Shapur, and crucified in two halves on two gates of the city of Jundishapur. There is disagreement in the source: some say he died in prison, and others that the crucifixion is beyond doubt. ³

Ibn al-Nadim lists seven of his books: one in Persian and six in Syriac, among them The Book of Mysteries and The Book of the Giants. ³

This is Ibn al-Nadim's account of the Manichaeans. The academic view and other reports need an additional source.