Superstitions of Old and their Meanings
India is one of the oldest civilization that still exists today. So, it is quite believable that there was a set of guidelines that was setup for proper functioning of the society. However, many of those guidelines were required to change with the changing times. But, those outdated guidelines were not updated due to the resistant nature of human beings towards the change. As a result, some of the outdated rules are still being followed to this day. These outdated guiding principles are known as superstitions in these modern times.
This resistance towards the change had various unforeseen consequences, which could be clearly observed in the society. The biggest consequence is that, the youth of today, cannot find any reason behind the common believes in this modern world. As a result, they have discarded these traditional believes all together and consider them to be useless and illogical superstitions.
What is a superstition?
A superstition at its core is defined as a belief that is not backed up by science or reason. So, a superstition can be simply defined as a belief that doesn’t have a logical reason for its existence.
So, when you think logically, you will most definitely arrive to one simple conclusion. A superstition is a belief that didn’t change, after the reason of its existence, no longer existed in this world.
There are many such believes that were actually reasonable at the time of their inception. However, as scientific and technological progress took place, the reasons didn’t seem to matter much.
How to superstitions came to be?
When the society was just starting out, majority of the population was uneducated. This led to one big problem i.e. uneducated people cannot be reasoned with, as they lack the sufficient knowledge and understanding. At such a time, most of the society was driven by fear, which still seems to be the case at-least in our country.
Our ancestors were wise enough to understand, that people are primarily guided by fear due to their lack of knowledge. So, they concluded that instead of trying to reason, it would be better if certain believes were tied to fear. Any type of fear would work, may it be fear of god, bad luck or evil eye etc.
So, anything that was hard to proof was tied to fear and stories were spread around. So, people would do certain things out of fear, until they are wise enough to understand the logical reasoning.
I did some research and managed to find logical meanings of some superstitions, which are as follows:-
Hanging lemon and chillies protect from evil eye
There is a common believe that hanging lemon and chillies on the front door protects from evil eye. Eventhough, it sounds like another one of those illogical superstitions people seems to be obsessed about, it is not. It may not provide any particular protection from the evil eye but it does have a good reasoning behind it.
Lemon and chillies are arguably considered strongest disinfectants/repellents for microscopic organisms. So, hanging lemon and chillies at the front door of your home or workplace would mean less bacteriae for your immune system to deal with.
Superstitions related to sweeping after sunset
This idea came from a time before the discovery of electricity and the invention of light bulbs. The primary source of light was the sun or the oil lit lamps which couldn’t provide appropriate amount of light for most of the tasks. There are 2 different reasons for this superstitions.
- The money during those times were primarily coins minted from gold, silver or copper. The coins were small, so their weight didn’t provide much resistance and they couldn’t shine in the absence of light which make it difficult to see them. So, one could sweep them out of their homes when sweeping in the dark.
- The homes during those times were build using mud and straw which provided an ideal habitat for potential harmful insects and animals like snakes, scorpions and centipedes etc. It was extremely hard to spot such animals in the dark. A bite from such predatory animals is definitely hazardous if not life threatening.
Children stop growing if you step over them
This idea belongs to the times when there were no such things as undergarments. The idea behind this superstition is that people might get contaminated with the harmful bacteriae residing around the rectum (anus). Since there were neither any barriers in the form of undergarments nor there were strong disinfectants, it was quite an advance idea for its time.
Human are quite rigid when it comes to their believes and will refute everything that can’t be proved or seen. Since, there was no way to prove the existence of microscopic creatures back then, someone figured out it was better to do it this way, rather than trying to explain such things.
Sweeping after the departure of guests is inauspicious
Similar to the previous one, this idea comes from the similar time frame. The primary reason for its existence is :-
- When a guest leaves from your home, there is a possibility that they might forget something which could be important for them, but don’t seem important for you. When you sweep your home right after, there is a chance that you might throw it away and when they come back looking for it, they would not find it.
Not stepping over any eatables
Eating curd and sugar brings good luck
There is a popular saying in our culture, that eating curd and sugar before heading out brings good luck. Another stupid superstition, but there is a completely logical reason for this believe to exist. This idea came into existence due to the hot tropical climate of the Indian Sub-continent.
In the hot summer weather, there is a high chance of heat stroke which could result in exhaustion, dehydration and various other digestive issues.
The good bacteria present in the curd are often helpful in combating various digestive issues that may occur in the hot summer climate. The sugar mixed into the curd, provides a quick glucose boost that helps in curing exhaustion.
The sugar and curd mixture, thus provide some much needed protection while working in the hot tropical climate. That is why, it is often considered a symbol of good luck.
Not cutting nails after the sunset
The idea of not cutting nails after the sunset also comes from the same time frame as the previous two. The primary reason being the lack of light and availability of safe tools.
The primary bright source of light was the sun, therefore there was a considerable lack of light for doing precision tasks like cutting nails. There were also no safe tools like the nail clippers and knifes were used to cut nail back in those days. So, it is not so hard to imagine that one could easily chop off a finger tip while trying to cut nail in the absence of light.
Image of the Killer gets displayed in the Eyes of a Snake
This is one of the most interesting superstition that anyone might
have ever heard. After considering that snakes have so poor eyesight
that they can’t even see their prey, it even sounds funny.
Even though, the statement is 100% wrong, the reason behind this superstition might have saved the lives of countless people.
Snakes are classified as ectotherms, which are cold blooded animals with extremely slow metabolism. Thus, snakes don’t need much oxygen and their severed head can stay alive for hours after decapitation. If someone comes too close to the head, it can still bite and release poison, thus killing its target.
Now, if you look at it with this knowledge, you will realize that this superstition was set in place to encourage the destruction of the severed head in order to protect human lives from being lost.
Bathing after a funeral ritual
In the Hindu Culture, the funeral ceremony usually involves burning the body of the dead on a funeral pyre. There is a believe in our culture, that one should take a bath after attending a funeral ritual. It is a widely accepted purification ritual prevalent in our society since ancient times and is still followed to this day.
This idea is just another proof that our ancestors knew about the existence of microscopic organisms. This idea comes from the fact that when a person dies, their bodies becomes host to various microscopic organisms. The body starts to decompose and more and more organisms colonize as time passes.
Later, when the dead body is burned during the funeral ritual, most of the organisms get destroyed but there are some that gets airborne and can find other live hosts nearby.
That is why, it is really important to take a bath in order to get rid of those harmful airborne organisms.
Not washing hair on certain days of the week
This definitely appears to be the worst of all the superstitions. Because what bad can happen by washing your hair frequently. It’s just a hygenic practice to wash and clean hair, so what bad it could possible do. Right?
Wrong, because when you wash your hair, you also remove essential oils that your scalp naturally produces to maintain the health of scalp skin, hair follicles and hairs.
Devoid of the natural nourishment the skin becomes flaky and crumbles, which is also known as dandruff. Same natural oils are also responsible for the health of your hair. In absence of those oils, the hair become brittle and are more prone to breakage, thus initiating hair fall.
Due to the poor health of your scalp, new hair doesn’t grow which leads to premature balding. All this could be easily avoided if you reduce the frequency of washing your hair and give your scalp some time to repair itself.
Ghosts live on Peepal Tree
When we talk about superstitions, this superstition takes the cake. Because why would ghosts (who doesn’t even exist) choose a tree to live on. But there is quite an interesting reason behind this one as well.
This superstition exist in order to prevent people from cutting down peepal tree and using it as firewood. Because what actually what does a peepal tree provide, other than oxygen, wood and bark. It doesn’t provide any fruits which could be eaten. It doesn’t provide wood that is good enough for commercial use and is only suitable for burning as firewood.
The only thing of value it provides is oxygen. In fact, it provides oxygen round the clock and doesn’t release carbon dioxide even during the night, unlike other plant species. For this reason, it is worshiped in the Indian Sub-continent, particularly in the Hindu Culture.
So, this believe was spread in order to protect the peepal trees. Since no one would risk dying at the hands of Ghosts just for a pile of wood, when there is huge amount of firewood available from nearby forests.
Do not chew Tulsi Leaves
According to the Ayurveda, it is a healthy practice to eat about 5 tulsi leaves in the morning due to many health benefits it provides. However, there is one problem with this practice.
The Tulsi plant contains mercury in its natural form which, in small quantity provides several health benefits. But exposure to mercury also causes tooth decay. Therefore, you should consume the leaves without chewing and just swallow them directly, so that you can enjoy health benefits without risking your tooth health.
Adding one rupee to gift/shagun
This is one of the few ideas that is still relevant today. The intent behind this idea is to make the amount odd so it’s indivisible by 2. Shagun is primarily related to marriage rituals and not to any other form of ceremonies.
In the Hindu Culture, a married couple is not actually considered as 2 individuals, but as one functioning unit. The Shagun is usually offered in odd sum, so as it is cannot be equally divided and the couple accepts is as “One”.
Good piece of knowledge.