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This ring is made from iron, as iron is believed to be harmful to demons and genies, the circular snake is typical of Gnostic imagery and reflected life and rejuvenation (just like a snake sheds its skin), the circular form like the alef the “o” the first and last letter of the Mandaic alphabet is complete oneness or wholeness and again reflects the cycle of the beginning and ending of life.

What do the images of the wasp, lion and scorpion mean? Why are they bound by the snake ? No one is sure and this symbolism is a mystery. If we assume that the 3 creatures are symbolic of demons then being bound by a circled snake indicates that they may be held without means of release analogous to the purpose of the Skandola. On the other hand, the lion is symbolic for its power and strength, the king of the jungle, and this is why it takes centre stage. I do not know at this stage what the meaning of wasp and the scorpion are so the search continues.

Of all the other Mandaic cult items the Skandola is particularly Mandaic and was not ripped off from any other – the rasta dress, or elements of it, for example is a rip of Zoroastrian habit> Also, the drabsha as the name suggests is a Persian copy and is flag or banner. The drabsha is not important and in fact holds no value – you will see the drabsha on many church signs too (sometimes represented with a cloth over the cross or a squiggle of water over the cross).

The Skandola is interesting because it is so mysterious and it is an unknown, this is the only unique item that belongs to the Gnostic Mandaean, almost everything else is a rip off (a corruption of the true Gnostic nature) taken from other religions or adaptation of other customs and layered onto the pure original Gnostic system.

The Knife of Power - the Skandola

I was doing some light research about those called sabians in south-eastern Turkey (Harran). But as far as I understand, they are different from Gnostic Mandeans. Do you know about those Harrani Sabians? Who are/were they?

Also, gnostic concept of “archons” is given in the mentioned sources as “higher level STS forces.” This refers to some aliens from higher levels dimensions, especially the 4th level of being. I am not sure for gnosticism but my main sources define that there are seven levels or dimensions of existence and that the terran humanity currently is in the 3rd level but at the threshold of the 4th.

Thanks for the questions. Below are some of my responses.

The Harranian Sabians:

Are they the same ? Are they not the same as the Sabian of the Quran or the Gnostic Mandaeans.  The answer is that no one really knows. But we have clues.  Who are the Sabians? Did one group adopt the name to give it an advantage? Is it Sabian or Sabaean? The English language does not distinguish and other languages like Arabic does and there are other forms of Sabian. I under stand that this term is employed to people who convert to Islam which makes perfect sense – the Sabians are regarded as a people of the book and to my thinking they are the people who converted. In any case, Islamic scholars regard the Sabians  as a long ceased race that no longer exist – and this something that I agree with. The Mandaeans are not a people of the book and the do not believe in a single god and do not accept the Abrahamic principles and the El/Allah/Elohim or God as we know it the Western world.

As suggested privately, please refer to the Knowledge of Life by G Sanasi – I have read bits and pieces of that argument but I do not share the same conclusion of that author. I think this book is available on Google Books.

I also read that a group known as the Sabians were heretical Jewish sect that were kicked out. It is these Sabians that were the forerunners of the Gnostic Mandaeans… Mandaeans are a generic term to collectively agglomerate the various groups that banded together.

I suggest you look at the Fihrist which I have attached glossary found from the web for an explanation of the Sabians and my earlier post on the Sabians.  Here are some example of Sabians from the Fihrist Al Nadim   (Glossary http://www.kroraina.com/arab/an/an_glossary.htm)
.

• “The Ṣābians of Ḥarrān used the word al-ijtimā‘ to signify the simultaneous setting of the moon and rising of the sun.
  See Bīrūnī, Chronologie orientalischer Volker, p. 319, I.2.”
• Mughtasilah (Ṣābat alBaṭā’iḥ). See Ṣābians.
• Ṣābians.  The following unrelated peoples were known as “Ṣābians”:
  (1) The great tribal nation of southern Arabia, whose kingdom existed from about 950 to
  115 B.C. The name is usually written Sabaeans, and the first letter is a sīn rather than a ṣad.
  See Hitti, Arabs, pp. 54–61.
  (2) The Ṣābians of the marshlands of southern ‘Irāq. They were called Ṣābat al Batā’iḥ, or
  the Mughtasilah, and were the forerunners of the Mandaeans. The first letter of their name
  was a ṣād. They were almost certainly the Ṣābians mentioned in the Qur’ān 2:62, 5: 72,
  22:17. See “al Ṣābi’a,” Enc. Islam, IV, 21; Rudolph, Die Mandäer; Pallis, Mandaean Studies;
  Drower, Mandaeans of Iraq and Iran and Secret Adam.
  (3) A group of pagans in the old city of Ḥarrān, in northern Mesopotamia, called Haran in
  Gen. 11:31–32. It was the city to which Abraham migrated from Ur. These people were called
  al Ḥarrānīyah, corrupted in vernacular usage to al Ḥarnānīyah. When the Caliph al Ma’mūn
  threatened to massacre them unless they gave up their paganism, they adopted the name
  “Ṣābian,” as the Ṣābians were regarded as a sect authorized by the Qur’ān. Here also the first
  letter of the name is a ṣād. They were often called Ḥarrānian or Chaldaean Ṣābians to
  distinguish them from the true Ṣābians or Mughtasilah of southern ‘Irāq.For this strange sect, see Chwolsohn, Die Ssabier, Vols. I and II; Goeje in Actes du sixième
  congrès international des orientalistes, Part 2, pp. 283–366; Shahrastānī (Haarbrücker), Part
  2, pp. 4–61; Mas‘ūdī, IV, 61–71; Dimashqī, Kitāb Dukhbat alDahr, Part 1, sect. 10; Bīrūnī,
  Chronology, pp. 70, 314–20, and Chronologie orientalischer Volker, pp. 318 23; Dodge in
  Sarrūf, American University of Beirut Festival Book, pp. 60–85.There are various theories about the origin of the name Ṣābian. These theories are explained
  in the references given above, but it is not properly understood who the original Ṣābians were.
  Professor Harald Ingholt of Yale has recorded an additional item, which has not been
  mentioned by other authorities. The Danish archaeologists at Ḥama on the Orontes
  discovered graffiti scratched by soldiers from Arabia who fought with the coalition against
  Irkhuleni in 850 B.C. Twelve times the word ṣaba was scratched, interpreted by the archaeologists as the word for soldier,
  but very likely signifying something different

Now Harran was also the city that the Mandaeans claimed to have fled to before moving to the south of Iraq. In Harran they met their brothers – what ever that means? So they may have adopted the name Sabian from there. But importantly, this claimed exodus from Israel to Iraq retraces Abrahams trip backwards, does this have some significance a connection with the Bible retracing that famous trip? or was this a known trading route that caravans and travellers took? Who knows.

Most importantly, Ibn Al Nadim in 1100 AD or so, refers to them as the Mughtasilah and not either the Sabians or the Mandaeans. So that means these people are not the Sabians of the Quran or the Mandaeans (perhaps and likely that that label hadn’t even been created by that time). Ibn Al Nadim would have been very well versed and knowledgable in the Quran and the environment – that was the hay day of the Islamic era and he travelled far and wide and noted the various sects and hence it is unlikely for him to mis-diagnose or mis-identify the Sabians of the Quran with someone else – the Mughtasilah, those who wash themselves is a very very accurate description of the baptism performed. So in my mind the Mughtasilah are not connected with the Sabian of the Quran.

There is so much in the texts/customs and traditions that was adopted (stolen is a better word) and modified and reworked and adapted and it becomes inherent in the whole scheme of things (this is the onion layers that I speak about and that I want to strip away). The Sabians of the Harran were regarded as excellent astronomers, mathematicians and  scientists and some excelled the Caliphate courts of the time – why not jump on the back of that good image then? Ride on their coat tails so to speak.

My gutt feel remains that the Sabians were the Jewish heretical sect (as were the Nazorenes, Masboteans and other water cults) and these formed the back bone of the Gnostic Mandaean movement.

More interestingly, at one point Buddists were also called Sabians - so this tells me that the term Sabian changed over the centuries according to the train of thought of the day. The Sabian was most likely regarded as any person who is not a Muslim, Christian or Jewish – someone who didn’t believe in god! This makes perfect sense to me. So the term referring to the Ṣābat al Batā’iḥ, the Sabians of the Marshes of Southern Iraq — which means the non-believers of the marshes (note these people are not the Ma’dan or the Arabs of the Marshes). I also question the fact the they actually dwelt in the marshes – there is no reason for them to dwell in the marshes, water was plentiful and all they needed was access to the river and not to the marsh. More over, their trade and employment required them to trade and contact with locals and hence it makes no sense to be isolated in marshes but rather live in cities or towns close to rivers.

I think that is lots of information for the Sabians and I leave it at that for a moment to be revisited again.

The Second Question refers to the seven levels or dimensions of existence:

I think this is an Islamic concept where there are 7 levels below and 7 levels above. I have not really explored it and not really versed on the matter. I also think, although not certain, that the Mandaic texts also refer to various levels – I think they are called purification stages. This is something that plausibly exists in the Gnostic system (not sure if this was adapted/adopted though) but I cannot give definitive information as I have not really followed it in detail.