Manichaean worship cultivated a striking visual and symbolic world in which the drama of Light and Darkness was made visible. Artworks and ritual images consistently emphasized luminous, radiant figures set against darker, more chaotic backgrounds, so that the very contrast of color and form echoed the religion’s dualistic cosmology. The Sun and Moon, often associated with the gathering and transport of light, were important cosmic emblems, and the Tree of Life could serve as a symbol of spiritual knowledge and salvation. Within this framework, the Cross of Light and other celestial motifs expressed the presence of redeeming light within a conflicted universe. Such imagery did not merely decorate; it functioned as a visual theology, teaching the faithful how to understand their place in the cosmic struggle.

Central to this iconography was the portrayal of key figures. Mani himself, revered as the Apostle of Light, could be shown as a radiant, authoritative teacher, sometimes enthroned and haloed, embodying the revelation of divine wisdom. Alongside him stood Jesus the Splendour, a luminous Christ figure associated with the suffering and liberation of imprisoned light, distinct from purely historical portrayals yet clearly salvific. The Elect, clothed in simple or white garments, appeared in scenes of teaching, ritual practice, and purification, while the Hearers were depicted in more ordinary attire, listening, serving, or presenting offerings. Together these figures mapped the spiritual hierarchy and ethical ideals of the community onto visible forms.

Manichaean art found one of its most characteristic expressions in books and portable images. Illuminated manuscripts, often richly colored and intricately detailed, narrated creation, the primordial conflict, and the ongoing battle between good and evil. The famous Arzhang, remembered as Mani’s “Book of Pictures,” exemplified this didactic use of imagery, presenting cosmology and doctrine through carefully composed scenes. Silk paintings, banners, and wall frescoes extended the same visual language into temples and meeting houses, where enthroned light-beings, cosmic diagrams, and ordered rows of Elect and Hearers shaped the devotional space. In such settings, sacred books themselves, sometimes lavishly produced, functioned as both repositories of teaching and revered objects of veneration.

Regional adaptation added further layers of meaning without dissolving the core symbolism. In Central Asia and China, Manichaean painters drew on Buddhist, Daoist, and local courtly styles, depicting Mani and other beings of light with aureoles, lotus thrones, and multi-tiered heavenly courts. In western regions, Christian and Gnostic motifs—haloed figures, cross-like symbols, and familiar sacred postures—were reinterpreted within Manichaean cosmology. Across these diverse artistic environments, geometric patterns, floral designs, and celestial imagery reinforced a sense of cosmic order and harmony grounded in the triumph of Light. The result was a visual tradition in which doctrine, ethics, and worship converged, inviting contemplation of a universe suffused with both peril and promise.