Essenes: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

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{{Infobox political party

| name = Essenes, Essenians

| native_name = {{Script/Hebrew|אִסִּיִים}}

| colorcode = #22A0DD

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*[[Asceticism]]

*[[Communality]]

*[[~~Baptism~~Ritual washing in Judaism|Daily ~~Immersion~~Ritual Baptism]]

*[[Mysticism]]

*[[Predestination]]}}

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The '''Essenes''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|ɛ|s|iː|n|z|,_|ɛ|ˈ|s|iː|n|z}}; [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]]: {{Script/Hebrew|אִסִּיִים}}, ''Isiyim''; [[Koine Greek|Greek]]: Ἐσσηνοί, Ἐσσαῖοι, or Ὀσσαῖοι, ''Essenoi, Essaioi, Ossaioi'') or '''Essenians''' were a [[Mysticism|mystic]] [[Jews|Jewish]] [[Jewish religious movements#Sects in the Second Temple period|sect]] during the [[Second Temple period]] that flourished from the 2nd century BCE to the 1st century CE.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Cyprus)|first=Saint Epiphanius (Bishop of Constantia in|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IKyxt9kyys8C&pg=PA32|title=The Panarion of Epiphanius of Salamis: Book I (sects 1-46)|date=2009|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-17017-9|page=32|language=en}}</ref>

The Essene movement likely originated as a distinct group among Jews during [[Jonathan Apphus]]' time, driven by disputes over Jewish law and the belief that Jonathan's [[High Priest of Israel|high priesthood]] was illegitimate.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |title=T&T Clark Encyclopedia of Second Temple Judaism |date=2020 |publisher=T&T Clark |isbn=978-0-567-66144-9 |editor-last=Gurtner |editor-first=Daniel M. |series= |volume=2 |location= |pages=250–252 |chapter= |editor-last2=Stuckenbruck |editor-first2=Loren T.}}</ref> Most scholars think the Essenes seceded from the [[Zadok|Zadokite]] priests.<ref>F.F. Bruce, Second Thoughts on the Dead Sea Scrolls. Paternoster Press, 1956.</ref> They ~~saw themselves as the genuine remnant of Israel, upholding the true [[Covenant (biblical)|covenant]] with God, and~~ attributed their interpretation of the Torah to their early leader, the [[Teacher of Righteousness]], possibly a legitimate high priest. Embracing a conservative approach to Jewish law, they observed a strict hierarchy favoring priests (the [[Sons of Zadok]]) over laypeople, emphasized ritual purity, and held a [[Dualism in cosmology#Theistic dualism|dualistic worldview]].<ref name=":2" />

According to Jewish writers [[Josephus]] and [[Philo]], the Essenes numbered around four thousand, and resided in various settlements throughout [[Judaea (Roman province)|Judaea]]. Conversely, Roman writer [[Pliny the Elder]] positioned them somewhere above [[Ein Gedi]], on the west side of the Dead Sea.<ref name="Pliny1">{{Cite book |author=Pliny the Elder |url=https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/L/Roman/Texts/Pliny_the_Elder/5*.html |title=Historia Naturalis |volume=V, 17 or 29; in other editions V, (15).73 |quote=Ab occidente litora Esseni fugiunt usque qua nocent, gens sola et in toto orbe praeter ceteras mira, sine ulla femina, omni venere abdicata, sine pecunia, socia palmarum. in diem ex aequo convenarum turba renascitur, large frequentantibus quos vita fessos ad mores eorum fortuna fluctibus agit. ita per saeculorum milia—incredibile dictu—gens aeterna est, in qua nemo nascitur. tam fecunda illis aliorum vitae paenitentia est! infra hos Engada oppidum fuit, secundum ab Hierosolymis fertilitate palmetorumque nemoribus, nunc alterum bustum. inde Masada castellum in rupe, et ipsum haut procul Asphaltite. et hactenus Iudaea est.}} cf. [https://archive.org/stream/plinysnaturalhis00plinrich#page/n281/mode/2up English translation].</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Barthélemy |first1=D. |title=Qumran Cave 1 |last2=Milik |first2=J.T. |last3=de Vaux |first3=Roland |last4=Crowfoot |first4=G.M. |last5=Plenderleith |first5=Harold |last6=Harding |first6=G.L. |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |year=1997 |isbn=0-19-826301-5 |location=[[Oxford]] |page=5 |chapter=Introductory: The Discovery |author-link2=Józef Milik |author-link3=Roland de Vaux |author-link5=Harold Plenderleith |access-date=31 March 2009 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iVa8BQGO0PIC&pg=PA5 |orig-year=1955}}</ref> Pliny relates in a few lines that the Essenes possess no money, had existed for thousands of generations, and that their priestly class ("contemplatives") [[Celibacy|did not marry]]. Josephus gave a detailed account of the Essenes in ''[[The Jewish War]]'' ({{c.|75 CE|lk=no}}), with a shorter description in ''[[Antiquities of the Jews]]'' ({{c.|94 CE|lk=no}}) and ''[[The Life of Flavius Josephus]]'' ({{c.|97 CE|lk=no}}). Claiming firsthand knowledge, he lists the ''Essenoi'' as one of the three sects of Jewish [[philosophy]]<ref>[[Josephus]] ({{c.|75|lk=no}}). ''[[The Wars of the Jews]]''. 2.119.</ref> alongside the [[Pharisees]] and [[Sadducees]]. He relates the same information concerning [[piety]], celibacy; the absence of personal property and of money; the belief in [[communality]]; and commitment to a strict observance of [[Shabbat|Sabbath]]. He further adds that the Essenes [[Ritual purification|ritually immersed]] in water every morning (a practice similar to the use of the [[mikveh]] for daily immersion found among some contemporary [[Hasid|Hasidim]]), ate together after prayer, devoted themselves to [[Charity (practice)|charity]] and benevolence, forbade the expression of anger, studied the books of the elders, preserved secrets, and were very mindful of the names of the [[Angels in Judaism|angels]] kept in their sacred writings.

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Pliny locates them "on the west side of the Dead Sea, away from the coast... [above] the town of [[En Gedi|Engeda]]".<ref name=Pliny/>

Some modern scholars and [[Archaeology|archeologists]] have argued that Essenes inhabited the settlement at [[Qumran]], a [[plateau]] in the [[Judean Desert]] along the Dead Sea, citing Pliny the Elder in support and giving credence that the Dead Sea Scrolls are the product of the Essenes.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Biblical Archeology Society Staff |title=Who Were the Essenes? |url=https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/biblical-archaeology-sites/who-were-the-essenes/?mqsc=E4143878&dk=ZE2250ZF0~~&utm_source=WhatCountsEmail&utm_medium=BHDA%20Daily%20Newsletter&utm_campaign=5_9_22_Explore_Biblical_Artifacts~~ |website=Biblical Archaeology Society |publisher=Biblical Archeology Society |access-date=9 May 2022 |language=en |date=8 May 2022}}</ref> This theory, though not yet conclusively proven, has come to dominate the scholarly discussion and public perception of the Essenes.<ref name=Ellegard>[[Alvar Ellegård|Ellegård, Alvar]]; ''Jesus—One Hundred Years Before Christ: A Study in Creative Mythology'', (London 1999).</ref>

==Rules, customs, theology, and beliefs==

The accounts by Josephus and [[Philo]] show that the Essenes led a strictly communal life—often compared to later [[Christian monasticism]].<ref>The suggestion apparently goes back to [[Flinders Petrie]]'s ''Personal religion in Egypt before Christianity'' (1909), 62ff; see William Herbert Mackean, ''Christian Monasticism in Egypt to the Close of the Fourth Century'' (1920), p. 18.</ref> Many of the Essene groups appear to have been [[Celibacy|celibate]], but Josephus speaks also of another "''order'' of Essenes" that observed the practice of being engaged for three years and then becoming married.<ref>[[Josephus]] ({{c.|lk=no|75}}). ''[[The Wars of the Jews]]''. book II, chap. 8, para. 13.</ref> According to Josephus, they had customs and observances such as collective ownership,<ref>[[Josephus]] ({{c.|lk=no|75}}). ''[[The Wars of the Jews]]''. 2.122.</ref><ref>[[Josephus]] ({{c.|lk=no|94}}). ''[[Antiquities of the Jews]]''. 18.20.</ref> electing a leader to attend to the interests of the group, and obedience to the orders from their leader.<ref>[[Josephus]] ({{c.|lk=no|75}}). ''[[The Wars of the Jews]]''. 2.123, 134.</ref> Also, they were forbidden from [[Oath|swearing oaths]]<ref name="josephus-war-2.135">[[Josephus]] ({{c.|lk=no|75}}). ''[[The Wars of the Jews]]''. 2.135.</ref> and from [[animal sacrifice|sacrificing animals]].<ref>Philo, §75: ου ζωα καταθυοντες [= not sacrificing animals]</ref> They controlled their tempers and served as channels of peace,<ref name="josephus-war-2.135"/> carrying [[weapon]]s only for protection against robbers.<ref>[[Josephus]] ({{c.|lk=no|75}}). ''[[The Wars of the Jews]]''. 2.125.</ref> The Essenes chose not to possess [[slavery|slaves]] but served each other<ref>Philo of Alexandria, ''Every Good Man is Free'', 75-79.</ref> and, as a result of communal ownership, did not engage in [[trade|trading]].<ref>[[Josephus]] ({{c.|lk=no|75}}). ''[[The Wars of the Jews]]''. 2.127.</ref> Josephus and Philo provide lengthy accounts of their communal meetings, meals, and religious celebrations. This [[Religious communism|communal living]] has led some scholars to view the Essenes as a group practicing social and material egalitarianism.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Service|first=Robert|title=Comrades: A History of World Communism|publisher=Harvard University Press|year=2007|isbn=978-0674046993|location=Cambridge|pages=14–15}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://anarchyinaction.org/index.php?title=Essenes|title =Essenes|access-date=12 December 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/5867-essenes#anchor10|title=Jewish Encyclopedia - Essenes|date=1906|author=Kaufmann Kohler}}</ref>

~~After~~Despite their prohibition on swearing oaths, after a three-year [[Probation (workplace)|probationary]] period,<ref>[[Josephus]] ({{c.|lk=no|75}}). ''[[The Wars of the Jews]]''. 2.137–138. Josephus' mention of the three-year duration of the Essene probation may be compared with the phased character of the entrance procedure in the Qumran Rule of the Community [1QS; at least two years plus an indeterminate initial catechetical phase, 1QS VI]. The provisional surrender of property required at the beginning of the last year of the novitiate derives from actual social experience of the difficulties of sharing property in a fully communitarian setting, cf. Brian J. Capper, 'The Interpretation of Acts 5.4', Journal for the Study of the New Testament 19 (1983) pp. 117–131; idem, '"In der Hand des Ananias." Erwägungen zu 1QS VI,20 und der urchristlichen Gütergemeinschaft', ''Revue de Qumran'' 12(1986) 223–236; Eyal Regev, "Comparing Sectarian Practice and Organization: The Qumran Sect in Light of the Regulations of the [[Shakers]], [[Hutterites]], [[Mennonites]] and [[Amish]]", ''Numen'' 51 (2004), pp. 146–181.</ref> new members would take an oath that included a commitment to practice piety to God and righteousness toward humanity; maintain a pure lifestyle; abstain from criminal and immoral activities; transmit their rules uncorrupted; and preserve the books of the Essenes and the names of the angels.<ref>[[Josephus]] ({{c.|lk=no|75}}). ''[[The Wars of the Jews]]''. 2.139–142.</ref> Their theology included belief in the immortality of the [[Soul (spirit)|soul]] and that they would receive their souls back after death.<ref name="ReferenceB"/><ref>[[Josephus]] ({{c.|lk=no|75}}). ''[[The Wars of the Jews]]''. 2.153–158.</ref> Part of their activities included purification by [[Mikveh|water rituals]] which was supported by rainwater catchment and storage. According to the [[Community Rule]], [[repentance]] was a prerequisite to water purification.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Furstenberg |first1=Yair |title=Initiation and the Ritual Purification from Sin: Between Qumran and the Apostolic Tradition |journal=Dead Sea Discoveries |date=8 November 2016 |volume=23 |issue=3 |pages=365–394 |doi=10.1163/15685179-12341409}}</ref>

Ritual purification was a common practice among the peoples of Judea during this period and was thus not specific to the Essenes. A ritual bath or [[mikveh]] was found near many synagogues of the period continuing into modern times.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Kittle|first=Gerhardt |title=Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, Volume 7|page=814, note 99}}</ref> Purity and cleanliness was considered so important to the Essenes that they would refrain from [[defecation]] on the Sabbath.<ref name="google2">{{Cite book|title=The Shabbat Elevator and other Sabbath Subterfuges: An Unorthodox Essay on Circumventing Custom and Jewish Character|author=Dundes, A.|date=2002|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers|isbn=9781461645603|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_a4hAQAAQBAJ|page=109|access-date=27 October 2014}}</ref>

According to [[Joseph Lightfoot]], the [[Church Fathers|Church Father]] [[Epiphanius of Salamis|Epiphanius]] (writing in the 4th century CE) seems to make a distinction between two main groups within the Essenes:<ref name=lightfoot1875/> "Of those that came before his [Elxai, an Ossaean prophet] time and during it, the Ossaeans and the [[Nazarene (sect)#Nasoraean Mandaeans|Nasaraeans]]." [https://web.archive.org/web/20150906041916/http://www.masseiana.org/panarion_bk1.htm#18 Part 18]<ref name="panarion1-19">[[Epiphanius of Salamis]] ({{c.|lk=no|378}}). ''[[Panarion]]''. 1:19.</ref> Epiphanius describes each group as following:

{{Blockquote|The Nasaraean—they were Jews by nationality—originally from Gileaditis, Bashanitis and the Transjordan... They acknowledged Moses and believed that he had received laws—not this law, however, but some other. And so, they were Jews who kept all the Jewish observances, but they would not offer sacrifice or eat meat. They considered it unlawful to eat meat or make sacrifices with it. They claim that these Books are fictions, and that none of these customs were instituted by the fathers. This was the difference between the Nasaraean and the others...<ref>[[Epiphanius of Salamis]] ({{c.|lk=no|378}}). ''[[Panarion]]''. 1:18.</ref>}}

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The Essenes were unique for their time for being against the practice of slave-ownership, and slavery, which they regarded as unjust and ungodly, regarding all men as having been born equal.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Essenes in Judaean Society: The sectarians of the Dead Sea Scrolls|last=Lim |first=Timothy |date=2021 |publisher=Oxford University Press's Academic Insights for the Thinking World}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://blog.oup.com/2021/01/essenes-in-judaean-society-the-sectarians-of-the-dead-sea-scrolls/ | title=Essenes in Judaean Society: The sectarians of the Dead Sea Scrolls | date=17 January 2021 }}</ref>

===Calendar===

''The Dead Sea Scrolls Uncovered'', a translation by [[Robert Eisenman]] and Michael Wise, reveals the [[Essenes|Essene]] calendar as celebrating the Sabbath commencing on the 4th day of Abib (Nisan) page 192 3 days after the new moon of the Passover month then celebrated on the 11th, 18th and 25th. The second Essene month reveals a Sabbath on the second day exactly 7 days from the 25th of Abib Sabbath witnessing a solar calendar continuation. Page 193 of the same translation reveals a second recalibration commencing at the 2nd equinox where at the beginning of the 7th Month of The Feast of Trumpets the Sabbath commences again on the 4th day 3 days after the New Moon. The Essenes did it this way because in Genesis it reads God made the moon on the 4th day and rested 3 days later. The New Moon is the first day of the Hebrew month.

== Involvement in the First Jewish–Roman War ==

At the outset of the [[First Jewish–Roman War]] in 66 CE, as Roman advances were anticipated, command over parts of western Judea was assigned to John the Essene (or Essaean), who was placed in charge of the [[Toparches|toparchy]] of [[Khirbet Tibnah|Thamna]]. This region encompassed [[Lod|Lydda]], [[Jaffa|Joppa]], and [[Emmaus]].<ref name=":6">{{Cite book |last=Rogers |first=Guy MacLean |title=For the Freedom of Zion: the Great Revolt of Jews against Romans, 66-74 CE |date=2021 |publisher=Yale University Press |isbn=978-0-300-24813-5 |location=New Haven |pages=186}}</ref>

== Scholarly discussion ==

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=== Christianity ===

[[File:Saint John ~~The~~the Baptist Preaching Inin ~~The~~the Wilderness by Anton Raphael.png|thumb|John the Baptist was possibly an Essene.<ref name=":0" />|190x190px]]

Rituals of the Essenes and [[Christianity]] have much in common; the Dead Sea Scrolls describe a meal of bread and wine that will be instituted by the [[messiah]], both the Essenes and Christians were eschatological communities, where judgement on the world would come at any time.<ref name="jpost.com">{{Cite news |title=The Essenes and the origins of Christianity |url=https://www.jpost.com/jerusalem-report/the-essenes-and-the-origins-of-christianity-562442 |access-date=2022-04-12 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post | Jpost.com |language=en-US}}</ref> The New Testament also possibly quotes writings used by the Qumran community. Luke 1:31-35 states ''" And now you will conceive in your womb and bear a son and you will name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the son of the Most High...the son of God"'' which seems to echo [[4Q246|4Q 246]], stating: ''"He will be called great and he will be called Son of God, and they will call him Son of the Most High...He will judge the earth in righteousness...and every nation will bow down to him".''<ref name="jpost.com"/>

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[[File:Genesis apocryphon.jpg|thumb|The [[Genesis Apocryphon]], part of the [[Dead Sea Scrolls]]]]

The [[Haran Gawaita]] uses the name [[Nazarene (sect)#Nasoraean Mandaeans|Nasoraeans]] for the [[Mandaeans]] arriving from Jerusalem, meaning guardians or possessors of secret rites and knowledge.<ref name=RudolphEI>{{cite encyclopedia|last=Rudolph|first=Kurt|url=https://iranicaonline.org/articles/mandaeans-2-religion |title=Mandaeans ii. The Mandaean Religion |access-date=3 January 2022|encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Iranica|date=7 April 2008}}</ref> Scholars such as [[Kurt Rudolph]], [[Rudolf Macúch]], [[Mark Lidzbarski]] and [[E. S. Drower|Ethel S. Drower]] connect the Mandaeans with the [[Essenes#Rules, customs, theology, and beliefs|Nasaraeans]] described by [[Epiphanius of Salamis|Epiphanius]], a group within the Essenes according to [[Joseph Lightfoot]].<ref>Lidzbarski, Mark, Ginza, der Schatz, oder das Grosse Buch der Mandaer, Leipzig,

1925</ref><ref name=Drower1960>{{Cite book | last =Drower | first =Ethel Stephana | author-link =E. S. Drower | date =1960 | title =The secret Adam, a study of Nasoraean gnosis | location =London UK | publisher =Clarendon Press | no-pp =true| url=http://holybooks.lichtenbergpress.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/The-Secret-Adam-A-Study-of-Nasoraen-Gnosis.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140306132110/http://holybooks.lichtenbergpress.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/The-Secret-Adam-A-Study-of-Nasoraen-Gnosis.pdf|archive-date=6 March 2014|url-status=live}}</ref>{{rp|xiv}}{{sfn|Rudolph|1977|p=4}}<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Thomas |first1=Richard |title=The Israelite Origins of the Mandaean People |journal=Studia Antiqua |date=29 January 2016 |volume=5 |issue=2 |url=https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/studiaantiqua/vol5/iss2/4/ }}</ref><ref>Macuch, Rudolf A Mandaic Dictionary (with E. S. Drower). Oxford: Clarendon Press 1963.</ref><ref>R. Macuch, "Anfänge der Mandäer. Versuch eines geschichtliches Bildes bis zur früh-islamischen Zeit", chap. 6 of F. Altheim and R. Stiehl, ''Die Araber in der alten Welt II: Bis zur Reichstrennung'', Berlin, 1965.</ref><ref name=lightfoot1875/> Epiphanius ~~says~~ (29:6) says that they existed before Jesus. That is questioned by some, but others accept the pre-Christian origin of the Nasaraeans.<ref name=Drower1960/>{{rp|xiv}}<ref>The Panarion of Epiphanius of Salamis, Book I (Sects 1–46) Frank Williams, translator, 1987 (E.J. Brill, Leiden) ISBN 90-04-07926-2</ref>

Early religious concepts and terminologies recur in the [[Dead Sea Scrolls]], and ''[[yardna|Yardena]]'' [[River Jordan|(Jordan)]] has been the name of every baptismal water in [[Mandaeism]].<ref>{{Cite book|chapter-url={{google books |plainurl=y |id=chWcZcYcyeQC}}|title=Iconography of Religions: An Introduction|editor-last=Moore|editor-first=Albert C.|date=1977|publisher=Chris Robertson|isbn=9780800604882|last=Rudolph|first=Kurt|author-link=Kurt Rudolph|chapter=Mandaeism|volume=21|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/iconographyofrel0000moor}}</ref>{{rp|5}} ''Mara ḏ-Rabuta'' ([[Mandaic language|Mandaic]] for 'Lord of Greatness', which is One of the names for the Mandaean God ''[[Hayyi Rabbi]]~~'', ''Mara d-Rabuta'' (Lord of Greatness~~) is found in the [[Genesis Apocryphon]] II, 4.<ref name="Rudolph 1964">{{cite journal|last=Rudolph|first=Kurt|title=War Der Verfasser Der Oden Salomos Ein "Qumran-Christ"? Ein Beitrag zur Diskussion um die Anfänge der Gnosis|journal=Revue de Qumrân|date=April 1964|volume=4|number=16|pages=523–555|publisher=Peeters}}</ref>{{RP|552-553}} Another early self-appellation is ''~~bhiri~~bhiria zidqa'', meaning 'elect of righteousness' or 'the chosen righteous', a term found in the [[Book of Enoch]] and [[Genesis Apocryphon]] II, 4.<ref name="Rudolph 1964"/>{{RP|552-553}}<ref name=RudolphEI/><ref name="Aldihisi 2008">{{cite thesis|url=https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1444088/|last=Aldihisi|first=Sabah|year=2008|title=The story of creation in the Mandaean holy book in the Ginza Rba|type=PhD|publisher=University College London}}</ref>{{rp|18}}<ref>{{cite journal|last=Coughenour|first=Robert A.|title=The Wisdom Stance of Enoch's Redactor|publisher=Brill|page=52}}Journal for the Study of Judaism in the Persian, Hellenistic, and Roman Period▼

Vol. 13, No. 1/2 (DECEMBER 1982), pp. 47-55</ref> As Nasoraeans, Mandaeans believe that they constitute the true congregation of ''~~bnai~~bnia nhura'', meaning 'Sons of Light', a term used by the Essenes.<ref name=BSN>{{cite web|author=Brikhah S. Nasoraia|title=Sacred Text and Esoteric Praxis in Sabian Mandaean Religion|year=2012|url=http://isamveri.org/pdfdrg/D201813/2012_I/2012_I_NASORAIAB.pdf}}</ref>{{rp|50}}<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-War-of-the-Sons-of-Light-Against-the-Sons-of-Darkness|title=The War of the Sons of Light Against the Sons of Darkness|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=4 March 2022}}</ref> Mandaean scripture affirms that the Mandaeans descend directly from [[John the Baptist]]'s original Nasoraean Mandaean disciples in Jerusalem.<ref name=HG>{{cite book|last=Drower|first=Ethel Stefana|title=The Haran Gawaita and the Baptism of Hibil-Ziwa|publisher=Biblioteca Apostolica ~~Vatican~~Vaticana|year=1953}}</ref>{{rp|vi, ix}} Similar to the Essenes, it is forbidden for a Mandaean to reveal the names of the angels to a gentile.<ref name="auto2">{{cite book|last=Drower|first=Ethel Stefana|title=The Mandaeans of Iraq and Iran|publisher=Oxford at the Clarendon Press|year=1937}}</ref>{{rp|94}} Essene graves are oriented north–south<ref>{{cite book|last=Hachlili|first=Rachel|title=Ancient Jewish Art and Archaeology in the Land of Israel|publisher=E. J. Brill|place=Leiden, The Netherlands|year=1988|page=101|isbn=9004081151|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JswUAAAAIAAJ&dq=essene+burial&pg=PA101}}</ref> and a Mandaean's grave must also be in the north–south direction so that if the dead Mandaean were stood upright, they would face north.<ref name="auto2"/>{{rp|184}} Mandaeans have an oral tradition that some were originally vegetarian<ref name=Drower1960/>{{rp|32}} and also similar to the Essenes, they are [[pacifist]]s.<ref>{{cite book|last=Newman|first=Hillel|title=Proximity to Power and Jewish Sectarian Groups of the Ancient Period|date=2006|publisher=Koninklijke Brill NV|isbn=9789047408352 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mhJYEAAAQBAJ&q=Proximity+to+Power+and+Jewish+Sectarian+Groups+of+the+Ancient+Period}}</ref>{{rp|47}}<ref name="DEUTSCH2">{{cite web|last=Deutsch|first=Nathaniel|date=6 October 2007|title=Save the Gnostics|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/06/opinion/06deutsch.html|website=The New York Times|access-date=13 May 2022}}</ref>▼

The ''~~beit~~bit manda'' ([[beth manda]]) is described as ''biniana ~~rab~~rba ḏ-~~srara~~šrara'' ("the Great building of Truth") and ''bit tušlima'' ("house of Perfection") in [[Mandaean texts]] such as the ''[[~~Qolasta~~Qulasta]]'', ''[[Ginza Rabba]]'', and the ''[[Mandaean Book of John]]''. The only known literary parallels are in Essene texts from [[Qumran]] such as the ''[[Community Rule]]'', which has similar phrases such as the "house of Perfection and Truth in Israel" (''Community Rule'' 1QS VIII 9) and "house of Truth in Israel."<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://poj.peeters-leuven.be/secure/POJ/downloadpdf.php?ticket_id=607cb5ef1eb49|title=About the Links between the Dead Sea Scrolls and Mandaean Liturgy|last=Hamidović|first=David|journal=ARAM Periodical|volume=22|year=2010|pages=441–451|doi=10.2143/ARAM.22.0.2131048}}</ref>▼

▲Early religious concepts and terminologies recur in the [[Dead Sea Scrolls]], and ''[[yardna|Yardena]]'' [[River Jordan|(Jordan)]] has been the name of every baptismal water in [[Mandaeism]].<ref>{{Cite book|chapter-url={{google books |plainurl=y |id=chWcZcYcyeQC}}|title=Iconography of Religions: An Introduction|editor-last=Moore|editor-first=Albert C.|date=1977|publisher=Chris Robertson|isbn=9780800604882|last=Rudolph|first=Kurt|author-link=Kurt Rudolph|chapter=Mandaeism|volume=21|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/iconographyofrel0000moor}}</ref>{{rp|5}} One of the names for the Mandaean God ''[[Hayyi Rabbi]]'', ''Mara d-Rabuta'' (Lord of Greatness) is found in the [[Genesis Apocryphon]] II, 4.<ref name="Rudolph 1964">{{cite journal|last=Rudolph|first=Kurt|title=War Der Verfasser Der Oden Salomos Ein "Qumran-Christ"? Ein Beitrag zur Diskussion um die Anfänge der Gnosis|journal=Revue de Qumrân|date=April 1964|volume=4|number=16|pages=523–555|publisher=Peeters}}</ref>{{RP|552-553}} Another early self-appellation is ''bhiri zidqa'' meaning 'elect of righteousness' or 'the chosen righteous', a term found in the [[Book of Enoch]] and [[Genesis Apocryphon]] II, 4.<ref name="Rudolph 1964"/>{{RP|552-553}}<ref name=RudolphEI/><ref name="Aldihisi 2008">{{cite thesis|url=https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1444088/|last=Aldihisi|first=Sabah|year=2008|title=The story of creation in the Mandaean holy book in the Ginza Rba|type=PhD|publisher=University College London}}</ref>{{rp|18}}<ref>{{cite journal|last=Coughenour|first=Robert A.|title=The Wisdom Stance of Enoch's Redactor|publisher=Brill|page=52}}Journal for the Study of Judaism in the Persian, Hellenistic, and Roman Period

▲Vol. 13, No. 1/2 (DECEMBER 1982), pp. 47-55</ref> As Nasoraeans, Mandaeans believe that they constitute the true congregation of ''bnai nhura'' meaning 'Sons of Light', a term used by the Essenes.<ref name=BSN>{{cite web|author=Brikhah S. Nasoraia|title=Sacred Text and Esoteric Praxis in Sabian Mandaean Religion|year=2012|url=http://isamveri.org/pdfdrg/D201813/2012_I/2012_I_NASORAIAB.pdf}}</ref>{{rp|50}}<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-War-of-the-Sons-of-Light-Against-the-Sons-of-Darkness|title=The War of the Sons of Light Against the Sons of Darkness|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=4 March 2022}}</ref> Mandaean scripture affirms that the Mandaeans descend directly from [[John the Baptist]]'s original Nasoraean Mandaean disciples in Jerusalem.<ref name=HG>{{cite book|last=Drower|first=Ethel Stefana|title=The Haran Gawaita and the Baptism of Hibil-Ziwa|publisher=Biblioteca Apostolica Vatican|year=1953}}</ref>{{rp|vi, ix}} Similar to the Essenes, it is forbidden for a Mandaean to reveal the names of the angels to a gentile.<ref name="auto2">{{cite book|last=Drower|first=Ethel Stefana|title=The Mandaeans of Iraq and Iran|publisher=Oxford at the Clarendon Press|year=1937}}</ref>{{rp|94}} Essene graves are oriented north–south<ref>{{cite book|last=Hachlili|first=Rachel|title=Ancient Jewish Art and Archaeology in the Land of Israel|publisher=E. J. Brill|place=Leiden, The Netherlands|year=1988|page=101|isbn=9004081151|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JswUAAAAIAAJ&dq=essene+burial&pg=PA101}}</ref> and a Mandaean's grave must also be in the north–south direction so that if the dead Mandaean were stood upright, they would face north.<ref name="auto2"/>{{rp|184}} Mandaeans have an oral tradition that some were originally vegetarian<ref name=Drower1960/>{{rp|32}} and also similar to the Essenes, they are [[pacifist]]s.<ref>{{cite book|last=Newman|first=Hillel|title=Proximity to Power and Jewish Sectarian Groups of the Ancient Period|date=2006|publisher=Koninklijke Brill NV|isbn=9789047408352 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mhJYEAAAQBAJ&q=Proximity+to+Power+and+Jewish+Sectarian+Groups+of+the+Ancient+Period}}</ref>{{rp|47}}<ref name="DEUTSCH2">{{cite web|last=Deutsch|first=Nathaniel|date=6 October 2007|title=Save the Gnostics|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/06/opinion/06deutsch.html|website=The New York Times|access-date=13 May 2022}}</ref>

▲The ''beit manda'' ([[beth manda]]) is described as ''biniana rab ḏ-srara'' ("the Great building of Truth") and ''bit tušlima'' ("house of Perfection") in [[Mandaean texts]] such as the ''[[Qolasta]]'', ''[[Ginza Rabba]]'', and the ''[[Mandaean Book of John]]''. The only known literary parallels are in Essene texts from [[Qumran]] such as the ''[[Community Rule]]'', which has similar phrases such as the "house of Perfection and Truth in Israel" (''Community Rule'' 1QS VIII 9) and "house of Truth in Israel."<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://poj.peeters-leuven.be/secure/POJ/downloadpdf.php?ticket_id=607cb5ef1eb49|title=About the Links between the Dead Sea Scrolls and Mandaean Liturgy|last=Hamidović|first=David|journal=ARAM Periodical|volume=22|year=2010|pages=441–451|doi=10.2143/ARAM.22.0.2131048}}</ref>

===Magarites===

The Magharians or [[Magarites]] ({{Lang-ar|Al-Maghariyyah}}, 'people of the caves')<ref name=dss>{{Cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/|isbn=978-0-19-508450-4|encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of the Dead Sea Scrolls|title=Magharians|year=2000|publisher=Oxford University Press|editor-first=Lawrence H.|editor-last=Schiffman|editor2-first=James C.|editor2-last=VanderKam}}</ref> were, according to [[Jacob Qirqisani]], a [[Judaism|Jewish]] sect founded in the [[1st century BC|1st century BCE]].

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* {{Cite book|first=Harvey Spencer |last=Lewis |author-link=Harvey Spencer Lewis |title=Mystical Life of Jesus |publisher=[[Ancient Mystical Order Rosae Crucis]] |location=[[San Jose, California]] |year=1997 |orig-year=1929 |isbn=0-912057-46-7 |oclc=43629126}}

* {{Cite book|first=Helmut |last=Koester |author-link=Helmut Koester |chapter=The Theological Aspects of Primitive Christian Heresy |editor=James McConkey Robinson |year=1971 |title=The Future of our religious past: essays in honour of Rudolf Bultmann |oclc=246558 |publisher=[[Harper & Row]] |location=New York City}}

* {{Cite book|first=Hans|last=Kosmala | title= Hebräer-Essener-Christen: Studien zur Vorgeschichte der frühchristlichen Verkündigung. |publisher= [[Brill Publishers|Brill]] |year=1959 |isbn= 978-90-04-02135-8}}

* {{Cite book|first=Martin Alfred |last=Larson |author-link=Martin A. Larson |title=The story of Christian origins: or, The sources and establishment of Western religion |publisher=J.J. Binns |location=Washington |year=1977 |isbn=0-88331-090-2 |oclc=2810217}}

* {{Cite book|first=Martin Alfred |last=Larson |author-link=Martin A. Larson |title=The Essene heritage: or, The teacher of the scrolls and the gospel Christ |publisher=Philosophical Library |location=New York City |year=1967 |oclc=712416}}

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[[Category:Apocalyptic groups]]

[[Category:Esoteric schools of thought]]

~~[[Category:Ascetics]]~~

[[Category:Jewish asceticism]]

[[Category:Jewish religious movements]]