I've just finished reading Jonathan Spence's "The Memory Palace of Matteo Ricci", an inventively organized study of the life of a leading early Jesuit missionary in Ming China.
Now I want to read something substantial on the Rites Controversy.
Suggestions welcome!
#History #ReligiousHistory #ChineseHistory #China #Jesuits #RitesControversy #MatteoRicci #SocietyOfJesus #ChineseChristianity #MingDynasty
Zhengyi Tao/Dao
In pinyin: Zheng Yi Dao. It’s also known as: the Way of Orthodox Unity, Teaching of the Orthodox Unity, & Branch of the Orthodox Unity.
This is a Chinese Taoist movement that traditionally refers to the same Taoist lineage as: the Way of the Five Pecks of Rice & Way of the Celestial Masters. But in the period of the Tang Dynasty & its history thereafter.
The leader of Zhengyi Taoism is known as a Celestial Master, like in the Way of Celestial Masters (Tianshi Dao).
The term Zhengyi (Orthodox Unity) has been used since Taoism became an organized religion in 142 AD. This was when Taishang Laojun granted the Covenant with the Powers of Orthodox Unity (zhengyi mengwei) on Zhang Daoling. Zhang Daoling was a Chinese Taoist religious leader during the Eastern Han dynasty. He founded the Way of the Five Pecks of Rice millenarian movement.
Zhang’s followers called his teachings the Way of the Five Pecks of Rice, while the Six Dynasties Period. The Southern Taoists called it the Way of the Celestial Masters. The Covenant, Five Pecks of Rice, & Celestial Masters all refer to the Zhengyi branch of Taoism but in different periods.
Celestial Master communities suffered from many migrations in the late Three Kingdoms & Five Dynasties & Ten Kingdoms periods. Cao Cao resettled them in the North. Then they joined mass migrations to the South after the loss of Northern China in 317 to the Uprising of the Five Barbarians.
In the 5th century Abridged Codes for the Taoist Community, Lu Xiujing lamented that Taoist Assemblies no longer observed the proper rules & the position of libationer had become hereditary. A libationer is a religious official that’s responsible for leading pa6rishes & performing rituals.
By the Tang Dynasty, the title of Celestial Master had been degraded to where ANY prominent Taoist could claim the title. Celestial Master priests no longer figured prominently in Taoist texts.
Emperor Xuanzong (7 12-756) canonized the first Celestial Master, Zhang Daoling, during his reign. This didn’t have any effect/benefit to the original base of Celestial Masters in Sichuan. It did, however, benefit a temple in the Jiangnan area of Jiangxi Province.
This temple was located at Mount Longhu. This is claimed to be the spot where Zhang Daoling had gotten the Tao & where his descendants still lived. Recognized by the emperor as the legit descendants of Zhang Daoling, these new Celestial Masters established a new patriarchy at their base at Mount Langhu.
The importance of the Zhangyi school grew during the Song Dynasty. The Celestial Master frequently got imperial appointments. In 1239, the Southern Song Dynasty‘s Emperor Lizong commanded the 35th Zhang Keda to unite 3 schools: Lingbao School, Shangqing School, & Zhengyi Dao. The new unified school kept the Zhengyi name & stayed based in Mount Longhu.
Shortly after the schools were united, the Mongols, under Kublai Khan, conquered the Southern Song Dynasty. Kublai Khan established the Yuan Dynasty in China. Kublai Khan accepted the claim that the Celestial Master of Mount Longhu was descended from Zhang Daoling. Kublai Khan also granted the school the right to control affairs relating to Taoism in the Jinagnan area.
In 1304, as result of Zhengyi Dao‘s increased importance the Mongols, all of the Taoist schools (except the Quanzhen school) were united under the banner of the Zhengyi School, with the 38th Celestial Master, Zhang Yucai, as the spiritual leaders.
The founding of the Ming Dynasty in 1368 started at the beginning of a long decline of the power of Zhengyi Taoism. The first Ming ruler, the Hongwu Emperor (1368-98), suppressed the use of the title of “Celestial Master” among the Zhengyi School.
By the Daoguang period (1821-50) of the Qing Dynasty, relations between the court & the Celestial Masters came to an end. The activities became more localized to regions in which the school was particularly important.
Even though their court association was over the Celestial Master themselves still had a great deal of prestige, & importance, among Taoists throughout China. This importance, that arose from the belief that they were descended from Zhang Daoling, was evident when the Celestial Master traveled & attracted crowds of people wherever they went.
Unlike prior incarnations of the Celestial Masters, like the school based at Louguan, the Zhengyi Taoists didn’t venerate Laozi as a god. They viewed him as the ancestor of the school’s teaching.
There are 2 main types of rituals performed by the Zhengyi Taoists: the jiao (offering) & zhai (retreat) rituals. The zhai rituals are performed as a way to gain benefits through purification & abstinence. They usually take place immediately after the jiao ritual.
In performing a ritual, the participant recites a litany of repentance first. Then notify the deities of the merits gained through repentance by submitting a document to Heaven. When the zhai ritual is done, the jiao ritual begins in which deities are given offerings & are thanked.
The jian ritual is usually performed over 3 days. A lot of the ritual is performed by priests in a temple. But can also involve religious processions through the city, musical performances & a mass offering in front of the temple.
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Discover the elegance of China's imperial hierarchy with the intricate Rank Badge. This masterpiece reflects loyalty to the emperor and symbolizes themes of longevity and peace. What stories do you think these vibrant weavings could tell?
#ClevelandArt #ArtHistory #RankBadge #MingDynasty #QingDynasty
https://clevelandart.org/art/1948.70
Mandate of Heaven
This is called tianming in Chinese, literally Heaven’s command.
This is a philosophical concept & political justification used in ancient China & Imperial China to legitimize the rule of kings/emperors of China.
According to this idea, Heaven/Shangdi/Tian gives its mandate on a virtuous ruler or that a ruler’s authority comes from a divine ruler. This ruler is called the Son of Heaven, who’s the supreme universal monarch will rule over the earth (or Tianxia, “all under Heaven”). This mandate isn’t permanent right but it’s conditional upon the ruler’s virtue, morality, & ability to govern justly.
A ruler who’s benevolent & looks after the welfare of their people maintains the Mandate. But 1 who becomes tyrannical, unjust, or neglects his/their can lose the Mandate. If a ruler is overthrown, this was interpreted as an indication that the ruler & his/their dynasty were unworthy & had lost the Mandate.
It was also a common belief that natural disasters such as famine & flood were divine retributions bearing signs of Heaven’s displeasure with the ruler. So there would be often revolts following major disasters as the people saw the calamities as signs that the Mandate had been withdrawn.
The Mandate of Heaven is a concept with a few central tenets:
The concept of the Mandate of Heaven originated during the Zhou dynasty, which was used to overthrow the previous Shang dynasty, the Zhou rulers claimed that the Shang had become corrupt & that Heaven had given the Mandate to them instead.
It’s been used throughout the history of China to legitimize the successful overthrowing & installation of new dynasties, including by non-Han dynasties such as the Qing dynasty. The Mandate has been called the Zhou dynasty’s most important contribution to Chinese political thought. But it coexisted & interfaced with other theories of sovereign legitimacy. This includes abdication to the worthy.
The Mandate of Heaven provided a powerful moral & religious framework for political change & stability in Chinese society for over 2 millennia. The Mandate wasn’t a formal legal document. But a moral & philosophical one.
Because of China’s influence in medieval times, the concept of the Mandate of Heaven spread to other East Asian countries as a justification for rule by divine political legitimacy. In Korea, the kingdom of Goguryeo (one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea) adopted China’s concept of tianxia.
However, in Goguryeo, it was changed to be based on divine ancestry. In the Goguryeo story, Jumong was born to Hye Moss, the son of the Emperor, & Yu Hwa, the daughter of Habaek, the god of water.
When Yuhwa was pregnant, she entrusted her body to the king of Buyeo & laid an egg. The person who came out of the egg was Jumong. When Jumong grew up & performed arious strange tricks, the sons of King Buyeo became jealous.
Jumong eventually fled from Buyeo & built a country called Goguryeo. This is a case in which Goguryeo claimed the legitimacy of expelling Buyeo under the command of Heaven by setting him as the son of God.
Recently, China historians have noted that the ruler’s Mandate of Heaven had a more local equivalent. This applied to county magistrates & prefects in Ming times. They were called the “Minor Mandate.”
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#AncientChina #Buyeo #China #Chinese #DivineAncestry #DivineApproval #Dynasties #EastAsia #Emperors #Goguryeo #Habaek #HanDynasty #Heaven #HunDynasty #HyeMoss #ImperialChina #Jumong #KingBuyeo #Kings #Korea #MandateOfHeaven #Medieval #Ming #MingDynasty #MinorMandate #QingDynasty #RightToRebel #ShangDynasty #Shangdi #SonOfHeaven #ThreeKingdomsOfKorea #Tian #Tianming #Tianxia #YuHwa #Yuhwa #ZhouDynasty
Apotheosis
This is also called divinization or deification. It’s from the Latin deificato, meaning “making divine.” This is the glorification of a subject to divine levels & commonly, the treatment of a human being, any other living thing, or an abstract idea in the likeness of a deity.
The original sense of apotheosis relates to religion & is the subject of many works of art. Figuratively “apotheosis” may be used in almost any context for “the deification, glorification, or exaltation of a principle, practice, etc.” So normally attached to an abstraction of some sort.
In religion, apotheosis was a feature of many religions in the ancient world. Some that are active today. It requires a belief that there’s a possibility of newly created God’s, so a polytheistic belief system.
The Abrahamic religions of Christianity, Islam, & Judaism don’t allow this. Though many recognize minor sacred categories such as saints. They’re created by a process called canonization. In Christian theology, there’s a concept of the faithful becoming god-like, called divinization or in Eastern Christianity theosis.
In Hinduism, there’s some range for new deities. A human may be deified by becoming regarded as an avatar of an established deity, usually a major one, or by being regarded as a new, independent deity (usually a minor one), or a mix of the 2.
In art, an apotheosis scene usually shows the subject in the Heavens or rising towards them. They’re often partnered by a number of angels, putti, personifications of virtues, or similar figures.
Especially from Baroque art onwards apotheosis scenes may show rulers, generals, or artists purely as an honorific symbol. In many cases, the “religious” context is classical Greco-Roman pagan religion, like The Apotheosis of Voltaire, which features Apollo. The Apotheosis of Washington (1865) sits high in the dome of the United States of America Capitol Building is another example. Personification of places or abstractions are also shown receiving an apotheosis. The classic composition was suited for artistic placement on ceilings or inside domes.
Before the Hellenistic period, imperial cults were known in ancient Egypt (pharaohs) & Mesopotamia (from Naran-Sin through Hammurabi). In the New Kingdom of Egypt, all deceased pharaohs were deified as the god Osiris, having been identified as Horus while on the throne. They were sometimes referred to as the “son” of other various deities.
The architect Imhotep was defied after his passing away. Though the process seems to have been gradual. This took over 1,000 years, by which time he had become associated with medicine. About a dozen non-royal ancient Egyptians became regarded as deities.
Ancient Greek & Roman religions have many characters who were born as humans but became gods. Like Disney’s Hercules. They’re usually made divine by 1 of the main deities, the 12 Olympians. In the Roman story of Cupid & Psyche, Zeus gave the ambrosia of the gods to the mortal Psyche. This transformed her into a goddess herself.
In the case of the Hellenistic queen Berenice II of Egypt was deified like other rulers of the Ptolemaic dynasty. The court dispersed a myth that her hair, that was cut off to fulfill a vow, had its own apotheosis before becoming the Coma Berenices, a group of stars that still bear her name.
In the Greek world, the 1st leader who granted himself diving honors was Philip II of Macedon. At the wedding to his 6th wife, Philip’s enthroned image was carried in procession among the Olympian gods. Such Hellenistic state leaders might be raised to a status equal to the gods before death, like Alexander the Great, or afterwards, like members of the Ptolemaic dynasty.
A heroic cult status that’s similar to apotheosis was also an honor given to a few reversed artists of the distant past, such as Homer.
Up to the end of the Roman Republic, the god Quirinus was the only 1 the Romans accepted as having undergone apotheosis, for his identification/syncretism with Romulus. Syncretism is the practice of meshing together different beliefs & various schools of thought. Eventually apotheosis in Ancient Rome was a process whereby a deceased ruler was recognized as divine by their successors. This was usually done by a decree of the Senate & popular consent.
The 1st of these cases was the posthumous deification of the last Roman dictator Julius Caesar in 42 BC by his adopted son, the triumvir Caesar Octavian. In addition to showing respect, the present ruler often deified a popular predecessor to legitimize himself & gain popularity himself & gain popularity with the people.
A vote in the Roman Senate, in the later Empire confirming an imperial decree, was the normal official process. But this sometimes followed a period with the unofficial use of deific language or imagery for the individual. This was often done rather discreetly within the imperial circle.
There was then a public ceremony, called a consecratio, including the release of an eagle which flew high. This represents the ascent of the deified person’s soul to Heaven. Imagery featuring the ascent, sometimes using a chariot, was common on coins & in other art.
The largest & most famous example in art in a relief on the base of the Column of Antoninus Pius, showing the emperor & his wife, Faustina the Elder, being carried up by a much larger winged figure, described as representing “Eternity,” as the personifications of “Roma” & the Campus Martius sit below, & eagles fly above. The imperial couple are represented as Jupiter & Juno (or Zeus & Hera).
The historian Dio Cassius, who said he was present, gives a detailed description of the large, & lavish, public consecratio of Perinax, emperor for 3 months in 193, ordered by Septimius Severus.
At the height of the imperial cult during the Roman Empire, sometimes the emperor’s deceased loved ones (heirs, empresses, or lovers) like Hadrian’s Antinous were deified as well.
Deified people were posthumously given the title ‘Divus’ for men & ‘Diva’ for women to their names to signify their divinity. Traditional Roman religion distinguished between a deus (god) & divus (a mortal who became divine or deified), though not consistently. Temple & columns were erected to provide a space for worship.
The imperial cult was mainly popular in the provinces. Especially in the Eastern Empire, where many cultures were well used to deified rulers, & less popular in Rome itself, & among traditionalists & intellectuals.
Some privately, & cautiously, ridiculed the apotheosis of inept & feeble emperors, as in the satire The Pumkinification of (the Divine) Claudius. This is usually attributed to Seneca.
Numerous mortals have been deified into the Taoist pantheon. Examples are Guan Yi, Iron-crutch Li, & Fan Kuai. Song dynasty general Yue Fei was deified during the Ming dynasty. He’s considered by some practitioners to be 1 of the 3 highest-ranking heavenly generals. The Ming dynasty epic Investiture of the Gods deals heavily with deification legends.
In the complicated, & variable, conceptions of deity in Buddhism, the achievement of Buddhahood may be regarded as an achievable goal for the faithful. Many significant deities are considered to have begun as normal people, from Gautama Buddha (the original Buddha & the creator of Buddhism) downwards. Most of these are seen as avatars or re-births of earlier figures.
Some significant Hindu deities, in particular Rama, were also born as humans. He’s seen as an avatar of Vishnu. In more modern times, Swaminarayan is an undoubted & well-documented historical figure, who’s regarded by some Hindus as an avatar of Vishnu, or as being a still more elevated deity. Bharat Mata (Mother India) began as a national personification devised by a group of Bengali intellectuals in the late 19th century. But now it receives some worship.
Various Hindu & Buddhist rulers in the past have been represented as deities, especially after death, from India to Indonesia. Jayavarman VII, King of the Khmer Empire the 1st Buddhist king of Cambodia, had his own features used for the many statues of Buddha/Avalokitevara he erected.
The extreme personality cult instituted by the founder of North Korea, Kim Il-Sung, has been to represent a deification. And continues to this day with the current leader. Even the nation is admittedly atheist.
In Christian theology, instead of the word “apotheosis,” they use the words “deification” or “divinization” or the Greek word “theosis.” Pre-Reformation, & mainstream theology, in both East & West, views Jesus Christ as the preexisting God who undertook mortal existence. Not as a mortal being who attained divinity. A view known as adoptionism. Adoptionism is an early Christian non-Trinitarian doctrine that holds that Jesus was born a mere human being. But Jesus was later adopted by God as His son, usually at Jesus’ baptism or resurrection, rather than being divine from eternity.
It holds that he has made it possible for human beings to be raised to the level of sharing the divine nature as II Peter 1:4 states that he became human to make humans “partakers of the divine nature.”
In John 10:34, Jesus referenced Psalm 82:6 when he stated: “Is it not written in your Law, I have said you are gods?” Other authors stated: “For this is why the Word became man, & the Son of God became the Son of man: so that Man, by entering into communion with the Word & thus receiving divine sonship, might be made God.” Accusations of self deification to some degree may have been placed on heretical such as the Waldensians.
The language of II Peter is taken up by St. Irenaeus, in his famous phrase, “if the Word has been made man, it is so that men may be made gods.” It becomes the standard in Greek theology. In the 14th century, St. Athanasius repeats Irenaeus almost word for word. In the 5th century, St. Cyril of Alexandria says that we shall become sons “by participation” (Greek methexis). Methexis is “group sharing,” where the audience actively participates in the performance.
Deification is the central idea in the spirituality of St. Maximus the Confessor. For whom the doctrine is the result of the Incarnation: “Deification, briefly, is the encompassion & fulfillment of all times and ages.”
The Roman Catholic Church doesn’t use the term “apotheosis” in its theology. This is equivalent to the Greek word theosis are Latin-derived words “divinization” & deification” used in the Latin tradition of the Catholic Church.
The concept has been given less prominence in Western theology than in that of the Eastern Catholic Churches. But is present in the Latin Church’s liturgical prayer.
Despite the theological differences, in the Catholic church art depictions of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in art & the Ascension of Jesus in Christian art do share many similarities in composition to apotheosis subjects. As there are many images of saints being raised into Heaven.
Anthropolatry is the deification & worship of humans. It was practiced in ancient Japan towards their emperors. Followers of Socinianism were later accused of practicing anthropolatry.
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#1865 #193 #42BC #4thCentury #5thCentury #AbrahamicReligions #Adoptionism #AlexanderTheGreat #Ambrosia #AncientRome #Angels #Anthropolatry #Antinous #Apollo #Apotheosis #AscensionOfJesus #AssumptionOfTheVirginMary #Atheist #Avalokiteshvara #Avatar #Avatars #BaroqueArt #bengali #BereniceIIOfEgypt #BharatMata #Buddha #BuddhaGautama #Buddhahood #Buddhism #CaesarOctavian #Cambodia #CampusMartius #canonization #CatholicChurch #Christianity #ColumnOfAntoninusPius #ComaBerenices #Consecratio #Cupid #Deification #Deity #Deus #DioCassius #Disney #DIva #Divinization #Divus #EasternCatholicChurch #EasternChristianity #EasternEmpire #Egypt #Egyptians #Emperors #FanKuai #FaustinaTheElder #GrecoRoman #Greek #GuanYi #Hadrian #Hammurabi #Heaven #Hellenistic #Hera #Hercules #Hindu #Hinduism #Homer #Horus #IIPeter14 #Imhotep #ImperialCults #India #Indonesia #InvestitureOfTheGods #IronCrutchLi #Islam #Japan #JayavarmanVII #Jesus #John1034 #Judaism #JuliusCaesar #Juno #Jupiter #KhmerEmpire #KimIlSung #Krishna #Late19thCentury #Latin #LatinChurch #Mesopotamia #Methexis #MingDynasty #NaramSin #NewKingdom #NorthKorea #Olympians #Osiris #pagan #Pertinax #Pharaohs #PhilipIIOfMacedon #polytheistic #Psalm826 #Psyche #PtolemaicDynasty #Putti #Rama #Reformation #Roman #RomanCatholicChurch #RomanRepublic #RomanSenate #Romans #Romulus #Saints #Senate #Seneca #SeptimiusSeverus #Socinianism #StAthanasius #StCyrilOfAlexandria #StIrenaeus #StMaximusTheConfessor #Swaminarayan #Syncretism #Taoist #TaoistPantheon #Temple #ThePumpkinificationOfTheDivineClaudius #Theosis #Triumvir #USCapitolBuilding #Vishnu #Waldensians #YueFei #Zeus
This stunning Ming dynasty side table from #ClevelandMuseumofArt embodies the elegance of Chinese woodworking. Its exquisite cloud-collar spandrels and rich camphor wood echo a legacy of craftsmanship. How does this piece reflect your idea of harmony in design?
#ChineseArt #MingDynasty #ClevelandArt
https://clevelandart.org/art/1955.42
Explore the enchanting elegance of the Daoist immortals depicted on Yohei III's nesting bowls. Each piece is a testament to the fusion of Japanese and Ming dynasty artistry, rich in symbolism and tradition. Which immortal intrigues you the most?
#ClevelandArt #Ceramics #ArtHistory #MingDynasty
https://clevelandart.org/art/2022.185.3
On this day in 1363, the Battle of Lake Poyang began—one of the largest naval battles in history.
Zhu Yuanzhang’s fire ships faced off against Chen Youliang’s massive fleet on China’s largest freshwater lake.
It wasn’t just a battle.
It was the beginning of the end for the Yuan dynasty—
and the rise of the Ming.
🔗 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Lake_Poyang
#History #OnThisDay #MingDynasty #NavalWarfare #ChinaHistory #AncientBattles
Admire the exquisite details on these Ming-inspired nesting bowls by Yohei III, featuring Daoist immortals and auspicious symbols. How do you think these motifs reflect the cultural intersections of Japan and China during this era?
#ClevelandArt #MingDynasty #Ceramics #ArtHistory
https://clevelandart.org/art/2022.185.1
The Jar with Dragon Design at #ClevelandMuseumofArt captivates with its cobalt blue hues and intricate details. This exquisite piece encapsulates the majesty of dragons in East Asian culture. What story do you think lies behind its creation?
#ArtHistory #MingDynasty #ClevelandArt
https://clevelandart.org/art/1986.85
Clouds Visiting a Mountain Retreat captures the essence of serenity through ink and wash, illustrating a harmonious bond between nature and humanity. It's a testament to the literati style, echoing Tao Hong's spirit amid turmoil. How does this work resonate with you?
#ClevelandArt #MingDynasty #LiteratiArt
https://clevelandart.org/art/1971.19
#ZhengHe (also romanized Cheng Ho; 1371–1433/1435) was a Chinese eunuch, admiral and diplomat from the early #Mingdynasty,[2] who is
![#ZhengHe (also romanized Cheng Ho; 1371–1433/1435) was a Chinese eunuch, admiral and diplomat from the early #Mingdynasty,[2] who is](https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/114/978/498/626/288/820/original/be946de7b525d4d8.jpeg)
#ZhengHe (also romanized Cheng Ho; 1371–1433/1435) was a Chinese eunuch, admiral and diplomat from the early #Mingdynasty,[2] who is often regarded as the greatest admiral in Chinese
![#ZhengHe (also romanized Cheng Ho; 1371–1433/1435) was a Chinese eunuch, admiral and diplomat from the early #Mingdynasty,[2] who is often regarded as the greatest admiral in Chinese](https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/114/950/861/588/778/634/original/8edf782dd73e7331.jpg)
Listening to the Beyond Huaxia episode on Zheng He! https://beyondhuaxia.podbean.com/e/episode-21-zheng-he-and-the-maritime-world/ It’s the host’s favourite topic in this lecture series and you can tell.
Immerse yourself in the exquisite detail of the "Procession of Daoist Deities." This Ming dynasty masterpiece beautifully captures spiritual narratives through masterful craftsmanship. Which section intrigues you the most: Daoist divinity or Buddhist retribution?
#ClevelandArt #MingDynasty #ArtHistory
https://clevelandart.org/art/2004.1.2
Discover the captivating artistry of the "Album of Daoist and Buddhist Themes." Each leaf reveals the intricate balance between spiritual authority and moral instruction. Which scene resonates with you most: the Daoist pantheon or the Ten Kings of Hell?
#ClevelandArt #MingDynasty #ArtHistory
https://clevelandart.org/art/2004.1.31
Royalty, Administration, and Antimemetics
I was all of 15 when defenestration was forever implanted in my mind. It means to throw someone out the window. It happened in Prague, 1618. Some important people were defenestrated, fell 70 feet, landed in dung. This led to the thirty years war and the coining of the word ‘defenestration’. Defenestrating happened to important, visible, people held responsible for mismanagement leading to widespread discontent. While the defenestrated may represent the idea, surely we can’t imagine that it was that specific person who was going around causing the suffering. No, they had minions. Here we explore a bit of their story.
Horned owl (Hoornuil) (1915) print in high resolution by Samuel Jessurun de Mesquita. Original from The Rijksmuseum. Digitally enhanced by rawpixel.Royalty is meant to be seen. They were either chosen by or were the local gods to lead the people. They were the head of everything and if something were to go wrong it was their responsibility. Royalty also means creating good memes. Whether the Alhambra, Taj Mahal, or Beijing projecting power through architectural memes was the standard.
Administration and bureaucratic structures is the silent clockwork that powers the projection. These guys, are antimemetic. The antimeme is a recent invention and denotes ideas that have high impact but are hard to spread. This is important because when the tax burden gets too high you want the peasants to go for the king not the local tax collector.
The Mughal emperors were the head of the administrative machinery with final say over all important matters. The administration itself was antimemetic in nature. The provincial officials such as the bakhshi, sadr as-sudr, and finance minister reported directly to the central government rather than the subahdar (provincial governor). Matrix organization, I hear you thinking. This complex, multi-layered reporting structure, while designed for central control, also diffused responsibility and made the precise locus of decision-making less transparent to external observers and even to other officials.
In the Ming dynasty, the Hongwu Emperor abolished the Central Secretariat to assume personal control. However, the volume of letters got so high that he soon appointed a few grand secretaries. They never held a high rank and always merely “recorded imperial decisions”. If merely were a boxer he would be a heavyweight. Can’t blame that guy with the pen if he’s just doing what the king asks him to.
From the al-Andalus through the Ottomans, Safavids, and Mughals the the ulama shaped legal systems and molded public morality. Of course the monarchs decrees but the ulama interpreted them and applied them as law into daily life. This interpretive authority, operating subtly within the legal and religious bureaucracy, allowed for continuous adaptation and influence without the visible, attributable acts of formal legislation, making it profoundly antimemetic.
Let me end with the quote from the wonderful, and joyfully mimetic, Yes, Minister:
“Hacker: Humphrey, did you know that 20% of all honours go to civil servants?
Sir Humphrey: A fitting tribute to their devotion to duty, Minister.
Hacker: No, their duty is what they get paid for. The rest of the population has to do something extra to get an honour. Something special. They work for 27 years with mentally handicapped children six nights a week to get an MBE. Your knighthoods simply come up with the rations.
Sir Humphrey: Minister, her Majesty’s civil servants spend their lives working for a modest wage and at the end, they retire into obscurity. Honours are a small reward for a lifetime of loyal, self-effacing discretion and devoted service to Her Majesty, and to the nation.
Hacker: “A modest wage”, did you say?
Sir Humphrey: Alas, yes.
Hacker: Humphrey, you get over £30,000 a year! That’s £7,000 more than I get.
Sir Humphrey: Yes, but still relatively the modest wage.
Hacker: Relative to whom?
Sir Humphrey: Well, Elizabeth Taylor, for example.
Hacker: Humphrey, you are not relative to Elizabeth Taylor. There are important differences.
Sir Humphrey: Indeed, yes. She didn’t get a first at Oxford.
Hacker: And you do not retire into obscurity?! You take a massive index-linked pension and go off to become directors of oil companies and banks.
Sir Humphrey: Oh, yes, but very obscure directors, Minister.
Hacker: You’re in no danger of the sack. In industry if you screw things up, you get the boot. In the civil service, if you screw things up, I get the boot.
Sir Humphrey: Very droll, Minister, now if you’ve approved the list…”
[Series Two (1981) Episode Two: Doing the Honours]
Sources
Much of the reading and sourcing of material for this was done across books from the Contraptions Book Club and some deep research help.
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