5) the Cow and her Cult Written by Rainer: rainer.lehrer@yahoo.com Learn languages (via Skype): Rainer: + 36 20 549 52 97 or + 36 20 334 79 74

------------------------------

The Cow and her Cult For a long time, mankind has changed living area as nomads, even later, when it started keeping animals, it limited itself to livestock which did not affect its mobility too much, and which had rather modest needs (Animals which didn’t need a stable and not too much water). Naturally, these animals brought neither too much milk nor too much meat. This was the goat. About 4-5000 years ago, an economic revolution took place. Mankind made cattle a domestic animal. It demanded higher needs, needing a stable, along with always green grass and fresh water. But the combination of high quantities of fresh meat and milk, as well as agricultural planting made it possible for mankind to settle down. The importance of cattle as a domestic animal was so great to mankind that it worshipped it like a deity. This phenomenon can be recognized in many different cultures around the world. Starting with the ancient Egyptians, who prayed to a black bull and the Jewish people, who worshipped Baal, the golden calf while Moses received the Ten Commandments of God on Mount Sinai, through Hinduism in India, where the cattle may not be killed till this day, to Spain, where we find the last remnants of this culture in bullfighting. Bullfighting is especially interesting. It is easy to reconstruct its model. Probably 10-20 families lived in a settlement, keeping a herd of 50 cows and 2-3 bulls. Each year, there were 10 new-born calves, according to the Equilibrium Law of Nature (we know this since Darwin), only 3-4 animals were male. But a larger number of young male animals would've disturbed the harmony of the herd by the continuous struggle for domination. It was necessary to eliminate this aggressive factor and kill some of the male animals, creating a festival connected to the cult. When a youth wanted to be included into the group of grownups, he had to prove that he was ready. He had to kill a year-old bull with a knife or a lance, probably at 13-14 years of age. Later, it developed from an honourable tradition popular in ancient Rome, being the Toreador's job sharply criticized by humanists and animal rights activists today. Back to list!

-----------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------

---------------------------------------------------

Back to Hungarian portal! Back to English portal! Back to German portal! Back to Spanish portal! Back to French portal! Back to Russian portal!