# Asrestar

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{{Short description|Class of demons in Manichaeism}}
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'''Asrestar''' is a class of [demon](/source/demon)s in [Manichaeism](/source/Manichaeism). They appear prominently in the Manichaean [creation myth](/source/creation_myth), especially the creation of mankind. Accordingly, [Az](/source/Az_(demon)) decided to create humans in the image of the [Third Messenger](/source/Jesus_the_Splendour) and mingled the demonic asrestar with the light particles, that is basically the [soul](/source/soul).<ref>[http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/asrestar-in-middle-persian-manichean-texts-a-kind-of-demons-often-associated-with-the-mazans ĀSRĒŠTĀR] Encyclopaedia Iranica</ref> Although most asrestar are indistinguishable, an eminent demon called [Šaklūn](/source/Ialdabaoth), features as [demiurgic demon](/source/Demiurge) entrapping humans in the material world during the [Adam and Eve narration](/source/Adam_and_Eve). Human's urges for evil, such as lying, are remaining parts of the asrestar within the body.<ref>International Association of Manichaean Studies. International Symposium ''Augustine and Manichaeism in the Latin West: Proceedings of the Fribourg-Utrecht International Symposium of the International Association of Manichaean Studies (IAMS)'' BRILL, 2001  {{ISBN|978-9-004-11423-4}} p. 19 (German)</ref>

==Manichaean Demonology==
The demonology of the Asrestar integrates itself within [Manichaean cosmology](/source/Manichaeism), which reflects a [dualistic](/source/Dualism_in_cosmology) metaphysical structure, wherein these entities serve as remnants of the primal darkness and are integrally tied to human composition and behavior. The Asrestar originate from the dark realm led by the [Prince of Darkness](/source/Prince_of_Darkness_(Manichaeism)) and were incorporated into the material and psychic constitution of humanity during the creation act intended as a trap by the demonic forces.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Zarrinkoob |first=Roozbeh |last2=Hosseini |first2=Toufiq |date=2020-06-21 |title=Gnostic Roots of the Myth of Creation in Manichaeism beliefs |url=https://irhj.sbu.ac.ir/article_95966.html |journal=Journal of Iran History |language=fa |volume=13 |issue=1 |pages=1–27 |doi=10.52547/irhj.13.1.1 |issn=2588-6916}}</ref> According to Manichaean scripture, Az, the demonic artificer, mixed particles of light—divine soul fragments—with the Asrestar, thus fashioning humans as beings of dual nature, prone to internal conflict.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=شکری فومشی |first=محمد |date=August 2022 |title=پاداش کردار نیک و فرشتگان دَهِش بر دروازه بهشت رهیافتی متن‌شناسانه به فرشتگان روانِ پارسایان در کیش مانوی |url=https://doi.org/10.22034/jrr.2021.294272.1888 |journal=پژوهش های ادیانی |volume=10 |issue=19 |doi=10.22034/jrr.2021.294272.1888}}</ref>

The demon Šaklūn, identified as a [demiurgic](/source/Demiurge) figure, played a central role in the entrapment of these light particles within corporeality, positioning him as analogous to a false creator god who forges material existence as a prison.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=BeDuhn |first=Jason David |title=Manichaean Body: In Discipline and Ritual |date=2002 |publisher=The Johns Hopkins University Press |isbn=978-0-8018-7461-1 |location=Baltimore}}</ref> While most Asrestar are indistinct and represent generalized evil traits, Šaklūn emerges as a specific antagonist during the [Adam and Eve](/source/Adam_and_Eve) episode in the Manichaean retelling, symbolizing the perversion of divine light through desire and deception.<ref>{{Cite book |title=The Kephalaia of the Teacher: the edited Coptic Manichaean texts in translation with commentary |date=1995 |publisher=E.J. Brill |isbn=978-90-04-10248-4 |editor-last=Gardner |editor-first=Iain |series=Nag Hammadi and Manichaean studies |location=Leiden; New York}}</ref> Thus the Asrestar are not just demons external to humanity but are embedded in the very essence of the human condition within, giving rise to tendencies such as lying, lust, and anger.<ref name=":1" />

The Asrestar, however, are not portrayed as independent moral agent, but as elemental forces or psychic residues of darkness left unpurified during creation. In post-creation cosmology, these beings continue to exert influence through the planetary rulers (archontic demons), who manage the cycles of rebirth and the imprisonment of light in the flesh.<ref>Henning, W. B. (1943). ''The Book of the Giants''. Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies.</ref> Their influence persists in dreams, impulses, and passions that obscure spiritual awakening and delay liberation of the light-soul from material constraints.<ref>Shakuri Fumshi, M. (2017). ''Demonic Figures in Manichaean Iconography''. Tehran University Press.</ref>

==See also==
*[Ur (Mandaeism)](/source/Ur_(Mandaeism))

==References==
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Category:Manichaeism
Category:Demons in Gnosticism

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Asrestar](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asrestar) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asrestar?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.