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‘Cult of Mao’ designates the personal cult or veneration (→ Veneration of Persons/Personality Cult) of revolutionary fighter and Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party Mao Zedong (Mao Tse-tung; 1893–1976). This cult can be divided into two phases: the one practiced during Mao's lifetime, and the one that developed after his death.
1. Originally, the word ‘orientation’ meant directing someone or something in the direction of ‘sunrise.’ (The Latin root of the word is [sol] oriens, ‘rising [sun],’ ‘morning.’) Hence the further meaning of ‘East’ as an area of the earth. The chief types of orientation are (1) astronomical orientation: the laying out of cultic installations for example, according to the chief directions of the compass; (2) environmental orientation: as the erection of churches and chapels at the highest point of an area (hill, mountain); (3) anthropocentric orientation, that takes the human body as its point of departure: thus, the higher dignity is accorded the right side of the body in many (but not all) cultures; (4) cultural orientation: for example, the layout of buildings in such a way that they will ‘point’ toward religious centers, as Rome, Jerusalem, or Mecca.
1. ‘Veneration of persons,’ or ‘personality cult,’ indicates reverence for a special personality. This reverence can go so far, in certain cultures, that the venerated persons are actually ascribed divinity. As a result, the designation, which has not yet established itself in religious studies, is often applied polemically, as a ‘counter-concept’ to reverence for God. Originally, ‘veneration of persons’ was a ‘buzz phrase,’ with a negative connotation. It was coined by Nikita Khrushchev in 1956 at the Twentieth Convention of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, as a criticism of the Stalinist brand of leadership. In a system of collective leadership, veneration—or ‘cult’—of persons denoted the amassing of power and authority in a single person, and his/her exaggerated veneration. The concept, with a background in political history which is mostly forgotten today, is nevertheless the earmark of a broader spectrum of religious phenomena. A basic distinction must be made as to whether it is living persons who are venerated in cult, or whether the veneration occurs posthumously.
Abstract
Intra-species killing occurs in all known human societies as well as among chimpanzees as wars between different groups. This parallel may be the product of a common evolution as both species are the closest biological relatives. Unlike apes, however, human beings not only compete for territories but also for power in general, goods, etc. As the product of mankind's further evolution, religions legitimate this inter-group violence.