The Lost Gnostics: The Mandeans

Explore the mysterious world of the Mandaeans in "The Lost Gnostics: The Mandeans." Discover the ancient secrets and teachings of one of the last surviving Gnostic sects through Andrew Phillip Smith's approachable work, "John the Baptist and the Last Gnostics: The Secret History of the Mandeans."
In this intriguing episode of Beyond the Book, we look at the Mandeans, a group renowned for its resilience through the ages and its distinctive spiritual practices. This episode unveils their deep connection to John the Baptist, whom they revere not just as a prophet but as their final great teacher. We uncover the Mandeans' ritualistic baptisms, their unique perspective on biblical figures, and their complex relationship with both the material and spiritual worlds. The discussion also highlights the challenges they face today, especially in light of recent geopolitical events. Join us as we explore the rich history, beliefs, and the ongoing spiritual journey of the Mandaeans.
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Timestamps
00:00 - Introduction
00:57 - Andrew Philip Smith & the Subject
01:55 - Who are the Gnostics?
06:10 - An Opportunity to Find Your Own Way
07:44 - A Melting Pot of Spirituality
09:08 - Rituals & Dogma
10:08 - Exiled in Darkness & a Trust in Magic
12:03 - Keep It Secret
13:33 - Where Did They Come From?
#Mandeans #Gnosticism #JohnTheBaptist #SpiritualJourney #Abrahamic #Mysticism

[@demo3456]

The amount of Gnostic secs is wild to me. I enjoy learning about them because my thoughts line up with them a lot but I always ask the question why?

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

Gnosticism captivates me a bit purely in looking at how hard the mainstream Christian church and affiliated government worked to extinguish anything remotely related to Gnosticism And then you add to the mixture a mystical tradition and the potential fall of an old divinity and rise of something more light and it’s just an amazing story If the Mandaeans hadn’t been semi-protected by Islam as “people of the book” we’d probably have seen them wiped away from history as well by the Christian effort to obliterate gnostic tradition

[@demo3456]

@@PeaceOnYourJourney I'm with you there.. Look at what they did to the Valentinians as well. They choose death over giving up there spirituality

[@Draezeth]

This is interesting. I have a friend who was raised Mandaean, but left for Christianity.

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

It's not a religion I was at all familiar with until about two and a half years ago. It's been really a joy learning about their history and path through the centuries. Given how secretive they've been and how much knowledge is held just with the priests and not the lay person, I can imagine they will have great difficulty sustaining as they spread throughout this modern world. Thank you for sharing!

[@_YourHigherSelf]

Such a great video brother. Thank you. John the Baptist is so underrated.

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

Thank you 🙏 so much for the kind feedback Def was one of the more interesting episodes to make so far ☺️

[@_YourHigherSelf]

@@PeaceOnYourJourney you nailed it for me at 11:42, how do we take it with us and better yet for us as YT creators how do we properly share it. Last night I read the Book of John because of this video :) Keep it up brother. I will add you to our channels recommendations :)

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

@@_YourHigherSelf checked out your channel and it’s beautiful and I love the art and look of it. Def sub’d and will be back ✨🙏🧘‍♀️

[@user-gx8nf8cf9s]

Thank You 💕

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

Thank you ☺️ for watching

[@salawda6310]

Thank you for taking an interest in my culture

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

Def appreciate you watching and thank you 🙏 so much for the feedback I have tremendous respect for your history and it’s been a joy learning about part of it

[@theulfhednar3915]

Jew believes originated from gnosis, then christianity originated from jewish traditions. There is no archeological evidence of jesus, or moises exodus, there is no mix in the culture of egiptians with jews, but it perfectly continue the one of the caananites. Basically jew were cananites murder their neighboors, then they worship demiurgos as god, then they changed again with christianity, they they murder the true religion gnosis to worship the devil.

[@FryedSaw]

Greetings and Salutations 😊

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

And to you as well 🧘‍♀️✨🙏

[@GypseaMusic]

Thank you for making this! Just subscribed ❤

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

We always appreciate feedback and really treasure the kind words 🙏☺️ Thank you for watching and for the sub 💗🍃

[@monicaballyurban5786]

Something created our amazing Universe. I am grateful for this,, and show it everyday by treating with love living and non-living things on our beautiful planet Earth.. I find peace of mind and complete joy by doing one thing: believing in myself. It's all you need. ❤

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

I feel this as well and thank you so much for sharing. It is all we need 🥰

[@methodmuse]

Great topic! Very interesting 👏💯

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

Thank you ☺️ so much!!

[@joselitogonzales1063]

I love water 🌷

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

💯

[@DMT4Dinner]

Why would somebody who believes that we are trapped spiritual beings in a material and physical dungeon reproduce and forced new people to experience something so unpleasant?

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

This is a reasonable question and a worthwhile discussion I think 💭 It seems possible they don’t view their situation through such a dire lens. That they don’t always or even often see life as unpleasant Maybe we look at it a bit more esoterically and this idea of the battle or struggle between light and dark is represented in so many religions and spiritual philosophies around the world. It might just strike us differently when we see it here in this instance

[@gabrielleangelica1977]

We still can love and learn.

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

@@gabrielleangelica1977 Yes! Always loving and always learning!!

[@MarshalMHVHZRHL]

Khassias on the scene

[@user-mp8cc7cb5z]

No religion was started by Abraham. Abraham obeyed the Creator and HE called Abraham HIS friend.

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

It’s great each of us can have our own unique views on religion, spirituality and the divine 🙏

[@adamroberts4633]

Geez i have this on 2x speed and still.seems slow

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

Cool 😎

[@MarshalMHVHZRHL]

HU changing 110 to 111

[@opaljha8914]

They're literally Hindu bruh.

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

Thank you 🙏 for the feedback I believe we mention the connection to the Zoroastrians and even potential ties to ancient India I’m def open to the idea they are some mix of ancient Sumerian / Levantine culture combined with a more eastern influence One of the interesting things about the Mandaeans is how debated their origins are

[@sss5040]

Most definitely not Hindu- coming from a Mandean lol

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

@@sss5040 thank you 🙏 so much for sharing! It’s always amazing to hear directly from the source

[@nevermindthebull0cks]

They are like the Amish.

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

Interesting take What do you think is the biggest similarity

[@nevermindthebull0cks]

@@PeaceOnYourJourney A society frozen in time by choice. Then keeps living that way as the worlds moves on and off of different tech and though processes. Seems like there are a lot of jumping off the world merry go round points. So to speak. If you want to live in a hunter gather subsistence tribe, it's out there right now. If you want to live on a space station, go to school, get smart, because NASA is real as well.

[@SmooveClipsss]

Calling them gnostics is a stretch…

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

Thank you so much for bringing this up! There were a couple of different points reading this book and even making the video where I had a similar thought pop in my head The more I've looked that them, the more I've felt like they are not strictly Gnostic, but more Gnostic ish. The dualism is in line with Gnosticism, as is their premium on gnosis / knowledge. They are also quite mysterious and mystical and I think that plays a role. I think the mythology and cosmology are kind of in line as well What really interests me as you posted this and we talk about it is that this conversation itself is actually very.....Mandaean-like because isn't this what happens with these interesting people kind of often. They are a series of sometimes contradiction and mystery when it comes to who and exactly what they are?

[@youthestar]

PRONOUNCED A-DAM-IC.. NOT ADAM-A-IC.. WHERE YOU EDUCATED?

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

Thank you 🙏 so much for helping me be a better person. Aways trying to learn more. I appreciate your grace ☺️

[@animula6908]

“What’s a universal truth for you might not be a universal truth for me” 😂 my dude doesn’t know what universal means, or what truth means. Made me laugh out loud, though, so thanks for that.

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

Thank you 🙏 for the feedback Honestly for me, I think each of us may see the universe differently and that’s more of what I mean when I say universal truth. Could be a Self truth or divine truth or natural truth or consciousness or conscious truth Either way, it’s all up to what empowers the individual on their own unique path and journey. Thank you again for your perspective ☺️

[@animula6908]

@@PeaceOnYourJourney here’s the real definition, just so you can see how funny it was if you had this definition in mind as I did “including or covering all or a whole collectively or distributively without limit or exception” from Merriam-Webster

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

@@animula6908 I guy I knew and respected a lot in Afghanistan used to say “words mean things” and I always found it a great statement. It’s interesting how the definition of things changes based on the person using them and their own context and ideas. I feel like it’s particularly a fluid thing when it comes to metaphysics, philosophy, spirituality and religion. Thank you ☺️ for the follow-up

[@SamSnoekBrown]

@@PeaceOnYourJourney Engligh and humanities (religion) professor and professional word-nerd here: Words DO mean things, but Merriam-Webster is not the sole arbiter of what words mean. I think the commenter here is right to note the paradox of a personal universal (and I do love a good paradox), but because I know that each person's lexicon is their own and language and grammar are malleable and relative and subjective, I agree with you that the very idea of a "universal truth" depends on one's perspective.

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

@@SamSnoekBrown Thank you so much for the perspective. And it's a bonus given your background. I also love a good paradox and paradoxically have sometimes found we can see some pretty cool things at the fault lines of contradictions. Def appreciate you checking out the episode ☺

[@yazenmethaq5475]

I am very sorry I am a mandean my self and most of the stuff you said is not right.

[@PeaceOnYourJourney]

Def nothing to be sorry for and we really appreciate your feedback. We've gotten some positive comments from a couple of other people from the religion This was mostly covering a book written about Mandeans along with some information taken from available resources I could find You say most of the stuff we said isn't right. Could you expand on the specifics of what was wrong and then let us know the correct perspective? We are def imperfect and always trying to learn more and are open to figuring out better answers Thank you so much!

[@koririetveld4369]

​@@PeaceOnYourJourney it seems that this person is lying or being shadow ban. I started into this gnostic stuff for the fact that they did all they could to wipe them out.