Mango cult

The mango cult (Chinese: 芒果崇拜; pinyin: Mángguǒ Chóngbài) was the veneration or worship of mangoes in Mainland China during the Cultural Revolution period. On August 5, 1968, Mao Zedong gave a box of Sindhri mangoes, given to him by the Pakistani Foreign Minister Mian Arshad Hussain, to the Worker-Peasant Mao Zedong Thought Propaganda Team stationed at Tsinghua University.

After this, mangoes became a symbol of Mao's affection. Instead of being eaten, the mangoes were preserved in formaldehyde, or sealed in wax for veneration. Mao's gift of mangoes to the workers and the rise of the mango cult coincided with a turn in the Cultural Revolution, as the working class began to lead it.