Mazdakism

At the end of the V century, there appeared in Iran a movement called Mazdakism, named after its founder, Mazdak, whose religious teachings incorporated the dualism and Gnosis of Manichaeism. But Mazdakism is better known as an economic and social movement than for its religious doctrines. At a period of serious social unrest, the message of Mazdak, who defended the lower classes and preached the sharing in common of lands and women, captured the attention of the very poor. For Mazdak, all men were born equal, and the evil in the world stemmed from hate and social differences. Like Manichaeans, Mazdakites were persecuted and the movement lost its religious character and became more revolutionary. As a result of excesses committed by adherents, such as the capture and sacking of castles and kidnapping, the ruler Kavadh I (488-531) was faced with the prospect of serious social upheaval. In 528 he ordered the massacre of the Mazdakites. The sect went underground and was still in existence during the Islamic period.