Ma·ni (mä?n?) also Ma·nes (m??n?z) ad 216?-276? Persian prophet and founder of Manichaeism. His religious movement, a rival to early Christianity, professed that the world is a fusion of the equal but opposite forces of good and evil.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.Mani (?m??n?) n (Biography) ?216??276 ad, Persian prophet who founded Manichaeism. Also: Manes or Manichaeus Collins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014