Adam Kadmon - in Manichaeism

In Manichaeism

A portion of these Gnostic teachings, or what the church fathers maintain Mani received from Terebinthus, or, "Buddas" during the time of the Apostles, when combined with Persian and old Babylonian mythology, furnished Mani with his particular doctrine of the original man. He even retains the Jewish designations "Insan Kadim" and "Iblis Kadim", as may be seen in the Fihrist. But, according to Mani, the original man is fundamentally distinct from the first father of the human race. He is a creation of the King of Light, and is therefore endowed with five elements of the kingdom of light; whereas Adam really owes his existence to the kingdom of darkness, and only escapes belonging altogether to the number of demons through the fact that he bears the likeness of the original man in the elements of light concentered in him. The Gnostic doctrine of the identity of Adam, as the original man, with the Messiah appears in Mani in his teaching of the "Redeeming Christ," who has His abode in the sun and moon, but is identical with the original man. It also appears in this theory that Adam was the first of the sevenfold series of true prophets, comprising Adam, Seth, Noah, Abraham, Zoroaster, Buddha, and Jesus. The stepping-stone from the Gnostic original man to Manichaeism was probably the older Mandaean conception, which may have exercised great influence. Of this conception, however, there remains in the later Mandaean writings little more than the expression "Gabra Ḳadmaya" (Adam Ḳadmon).

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