TheMagharians (Arabic:Al-Maghariyyah, 'people of the caves')^[1] orMaghāriya were, according toJacob Qirqisani, aJewish sect founded in the1st century BCE.

The group apparently earned its name because it stored its books in caves, including the writings of an individual known as "the Alexandrinian" and a later work calledSefer Yadu'a. It possessed peculiar commentaries on the Bible and, in contrast to theSadducees, rejected allanthropomorphic representations of God. The Magharians believed that God, being too sublime to interact with matter directly, created the world through an intermediary power—an angel who acted as God's representative (seedemiurge andPtahil). The sect attributed all anthropomorphic expressions about God found in the Bible to this angel, including communications to prophets.

Abraham Harkavy and others identify the Magharians with theEssenes, and the author referred to as the "Alexandrinian" withPhilo (whose affinity for the Essenes is well-known), based on the following evidence:^[1][2]

1. The sect's name, which, in his view, does not refer to its books but to its followers who lived in caves or desert areas—an established Essene lifestyle;
2. The sect's founding date coinciding with that of the Essenes;
3. The angelic theory aligning with Essene beliefs, as well as Philo's concept of theLogos;
4. Qirqisani's omission of the Essenes from his list of Jewish sects, which can be explained if he considered the Magharians to be synonymous with the Essenes.

Harkavy and others sometimes identify them with theTherapeutae.^[3][4][5]

• Bana'im, another minor Jewish sect
• Hypsistarians
• Hemerobaptists, another minor Jewish sect

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Singer, Isidore; Broydé, Isaac (1904)."Maghariyyah, Al-". InSinger, Isidore; et al. (eds.).The Jewish Encyclopedia. Vol. 8. New York: Funk & Wagnalls. p. 254–255.

• 1st-century BCE Judaism
• Cave dwellings
• Apocalyptic groups
• Jewish asceticism
• Judaism-related controversies
• Messianism
• Mandaeism
• Mandaeans
• Israelites
• Extinct Jewish sects

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• Articles containing Arabic-language text
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