Manichaean
Good versus evil
Manichaean refers to Manichaeism, an ancient religion founded in Persia that viewed the universe as a cosmic struggle between light and darkness, good and evil.
The term now typically describes any worldview that divides things into stark moral opposites with no middle ground: His Manichaean view of politics left no room for compromise.
The spelling Manichean is also common.
Salvation through hidden wisdom
- ZoroastrianismAncient dualistic Persian religion
- syncretismFusion of different beliefs
- cosmologyStudy of universal structure
- scriptureSacred religious writings
prophet · heresy · doctrine · eschatology · asceticism · fasting · rituals · elect
Satisfactory in quality
- evilProfound moral wickedness
- lightVisible electromagnetic radiation
- darknessTotal absence of light
- dualityTwofold nature
binary · cosmic struggle · spirit · matter · soul · flesh · purity · corruption
Iran's former name
- BabylonAncient Mesopotamian capital
- AugustineFourth-century church father
- UighurTurkic ethnic group
- Roman EmpireAncient state from Augustus onward
Silk Road · papyrus · Coptic · Aramaic · elect · hearers · persecution · suppression
Without color gradations
- simplisticExcessively basic, ignoring complexity
- absolutistOne allowing no exceptions
- polarizedSplit into opposing factions
- either-orPresenting two alternatives
reductive · oversimplified · stark · uncompromising · rigid · extreme · worldview · thinking
Gnosticism
Salvation through hidden wisdom
- ZoroastrianismAncient dualistic Persian religion
- syncretismFusion of different beliefs
- cosmologyStudy of universal structure
scripture · prophet · heresy · doctrine · eschatology · asceticism · fasting · rituals · elect · salvation
good
Satisfactory in quality
duality · binary · cosmic struggle · spirit · matter · soul · flesh · purity · corruption · salvation
Persia
Iran's former name
Roman Empire · Silk Road · papyrus · Coptic · Aramaic · elect · hearers · persecution · suppression · spread
black-and-white
Without color gradations
- simplisticExcessively basic, ignoring complexity
- absolutistOne allowing no exceptions
- polarizedSplit into opposing factions
either-or · reductive · oversimplified · stark · uncompromising · rigid · extreme · worldview · thinking · morality