Incomplete scripture of Manichaeism
| Incomplete scripture of Manichaeism | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Material | paper |
| Size | 639 × 27 cm |
| Writing | Middle Chinese |
| Created | Tang Dynasty |
| Discovered | 1907 in Dunhuang Mogao Grotto Buddhist scripture cave |
| Present location | Beijing National Library of China |
| Identification | BD00256 |
The Incomplete scripture of Manichaeism was discovered by British archaeologist Aurel Stein in Mogao Caves. It is a Manichaean scripture, but it is missing parts. It is one of the three Manichaeism Dunhuang Chinese Documents. They are now held in the collection of National Library of China, number BD00256.[1][2]
Overview
[change | change source]Luo Zhenyu didn't know which Persian religion the scriptures belonged to in 1911. He decided to publish the recorded text in the second volume of the "Guoxue Series". He named it "Incomplete Persian Scripture". In the same year, French Sinologists Shawan and Perch translated the scripture into French. They considered it as Manichaean scripture.[2] The manuscript is on scrolls and has an incomplete beginning. It currently has 345 lines and about 7,000 characters. It is the only Chinese Manichean classic in China. The writing is similar to a scripture. The content uses a question and answer format between the leader Mani and the apostle Mar Adda. It explains Manichaeism's doctrine of the coexistence of light and dark..[1][3]
References
[change | change source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Tang Manuscript "Mani敎经》" (PDF). nlc.cn (in Simplified Chinese). 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2020-11-04. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lin Shitian (2011). "National Library Collection The literature value of "Mani Sutra"" (PDF). nlc.cn (in Simplified Chinese). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2020-11-04. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
- ↑ Lin Wushu (2004). "Chinese Mani Sutra and Jing Chi Sutra and their macro comparison" (PDF). repository.kulib.kyoto-u.ac.jp (in Simplified Chinese). p. 133. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
Other websites
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