Haran Gawaita
Encyclopedia
The Haran Gawaita or Inner Haran is a Mandaean text which purports to tell the history of the Mandaeans and their arrival in Iraq as Nasoreans from Jerusalem.
was baptized, initiated
, and educated by the patron of the Nasirutha ("secret knowledge"), Anuš (אנושׁ) or Anuš-ʼuthra, the hierophant
of the sect. This research was conducted by the Oxford scholar and specialist on the Nasoraeans, E. S. Drower
, who concedes that John’s name may have been inserted at a later date (it appears as Yahia, which is Arabic, not Aramaic). Drower also asserts that the Church Fathers Hippolytus and Eusebius describe Simon Magus
, the Samaritan sorcerer of biblical fame (Acts 8:9ff), as a Nasoraean and a disciple of John the Baptist. The author of the pseudo-Clementine Homilies (Bk. II, xxiii-xxiv), also describes Simon Magus as a disciple of John the Baptist and a Nasoraean. The Homilies also state that the immediate successor to John was another Samaritan named Dositheus, elected as leader because Simon happened to be in Egypt
at the time of the martyrdom of John the Baptist. Homily (Bk II, xxiv) recounts that when Simon returned from Egypt, the two quarreled. Simon’s authority was proved by miracles and Dositheus ceded his position as head of the sect
and became Simon’s pupil.
As a result of efforts to bring the sect back into the folds of Judaism
they also disparaged the Christian
books as fiction, regarding Jesus as the literary invention (mšiha kdaba "false prophet") of Paul of Tarsus
, but eventually they emerged towards the end of the 1st century as the Mandaeans although others actually managed to shape the anti-Torah development of Pauline Christianities
like Marcionism
.
The term Mandaii itself may be the Aramaic/Mandaean equivalent of the Greek gnosis
("knowledge"). Besides the Mandaeans, they have been frequently been connected with groups known as Naaseni, Naasenians, Naassenes.
According to Drower, the Mandaeans were one of the earliest key Gnostic sects
. Drower surmises that the Nasoraean "hatred for Jews" originated during a period in which they were in close contact with orthodox Jewry, and when the latter was able to exercise authority over them.
Many of the original Nasoraeans became Christians and in Modern Israeli Hebrew the term Notzrim has come to simply mean Christians.
, Lady Drower, Kurt Rudolph, and Edmondo Lupieri, argue for an origin of Mandaeanism in Palestine or environs, but pre-Christian origins are now generally rejected.
Content
According to the Haran Gawaita, John the BaptistJohn the Baptist
John the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...
was baptized, initiated
Initiation
Initiation is a rite of passage ceremony marking entrance or acceptance into a group or society. It could also be a formal admission to adulthood in a community or one of its formal components...
, and educated by the patron of the Nasirutha ("secret knowledge"), Anuš (אנושׁ) or Anuš-ʼuthra, the hierophant
Hierophant
A hierophant is a person who brings religious congregants into the presence of that which is deemed holy. The word comes from Ancient Greece, where it was constructed from the combination of ta hiera, "the holy," and phainein, "to show." In Attica it was the title of the chief priest at the...
of the sect. This research was conducted by the Oxford scholar and specialist on the Nasoraeans, E. S. Drower
E. S. Drower
Ethel Stefana Drower née Stevens was a British anthropologist who studied the Middle East and its cultures. She was considered the primary specialist on the Mandaeans, and the chief collector of Mandaean manuscripts....
, who concedes that John’s name may have been inserted at a later date (it appears as Yahia, which is Arabic, not Aramaic). Drower also asserts that the Church Fathers Hippolytus and Eusebius describe Simon Magus
Simon Magus
Simon the Sorcerer or Simon the Magician, in Latin Simon Magus, was a Samaritan magus or religious figure and a convert to Christianity, baptised by Philip the Apostle, whose later confrontation with Peter is recorded in . The sin of simony, or paying for position and influence in the church, is...
, the Samaritan sorcerer of biblical fame (Acts 8:9ff), as a Nasoraean and a disciple of John the Baptist. The author of the pseudo-Clementine Homilies (Bk. II, xxiii-xxiv), also describes Simon Magus as a disciple of John the Baptist and a Nasoraean. The Homilies also state that the immediate successor to John was another Samaritan named Dositheus, elected as leader because Simon happened to be in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
at the time of the martyrdom of John the Baptist. Homily (Bk II, xxiv) recounts that when Simon returned from Egypt, the two quarreled. Simon’s authority was proved by miracles and Dositheus ceded his position as head of the sect
Sect
A sect is a group with distinctive religious, political or philosophical beliefs. Although in past it was mostly used to refer to religious groups, it has since expanded and in modern culture can refer to any organization that breaks away from a larger one to follow a different set of rules and...
and became Simon’s pupil.
As a result of efforts to bring the sect back into the folds of Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
they also disparaged the Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
books as fiction, regarding Jesus as the literary invention (mšiha kdaba "false prophet") of Paul of Tarsus
Paul of Tarsus
Paul the Apostle , also known as Saul of Tarsus, is described in the Christian New Testament as one of the most influential early Christian missionaries, with the writings ascribed to him by the church forming a considerable portion of the New Testament...
, but eventually they emerged towards the end of the 1st century as the Mandaeans although others actually managed to shape the anti-Torah development of Pauline Christianities
Paul of Tarsus and Judaism
The relationship between Paul of Tarsus and Second Temple Judaism continues to be the subject of much scholarly research, as it is thought that Paul played an important role in the relationship between Christianity and Judaism as a whole...
like Marcionism
Marcionism
Marcionism was an Early Christian dualist belief system that originated in the teachings of Marcion of Sinope at Rome around the year 144; see also Christianity in the 2nd century....
.
The term Mandaii itself may be the Aramaic/Mandaean equivalent of the Greek gnosis
Gnosis
Gnosis is the common Greek noun for knowledge . In the context of the English language gnosis generally refers to the word's meaning within the spheres of Christian mysticism, Mystery religions and Gnosticism where it signifies 'spiritual knowledge' in the sense of mystical enlightenment.-Related...
("knowledge"). Besides the Mandaeans, they have been frequently been connected with groups known as Naaseni, Naasenians, Naassenes.
According to Drower, the Mandaeans were one of the earliest key Gnostic sects
Gnosticism
Gnosticism is a scholarly term for a set of religious beliefs and spiritual practices common to early Christianity, Hellenistic Judaism, Greco-Roman mystery religions, Zoroastrianism , and Neoplatonism.A common characteristic of some of these groups was the teaching that the realisation of Gnosis...
. Drower surmises that the Nasoraean "hatred for Jews" originated during a period in which they were in close contact with orthodox Jewry, and when the latter was able to exercise authority over them.
Many of the original Nasoraeans became Christians and in Modern Israeli Hebrew the term Notzrim has come to simply mean Christians.
Modern scholarship
Many preeminent specialists in Mandaean studies, including Rudolf MacúchRudolf Macúch
Rudolf Macúch was a Slovak Protestant theologian and expert on Mandaean language and Samaritan language. From 1963–1988 he taught semitic and Arabic languages at the Institut für Semitistik und Arabistik, Frei Universität, Berlin.-References:...
, Lady Drower, Kurt Rudolph, and Edmondo Lupieri, argue for an origin of Mandaeanism in Palestine or environs, but pre-Christian origins are now generally rejected.
Further reading
- The Haran Gawaita and the Baptism of Hibil-Ziwa: the Mandaic text, E. S. Drower
- Diwan Maṣbuta Hibil Ziwa, 1953