Grant McDuling's Blog - Posts Tagged "superstition"
How Superstitious Are You?
Like it or not, superstitions run deep in our society. They are all around us day in and day out and most times, we aren't even aware of it.
Take for instance when someone sneezes. What's the first thing you do? You say 'Bless you', don't you?
Why is this?
Think about it for a minute. Why should you have to bless that person? Because they might be suffering from a bought of hey fever? Not likely.
It all comes down to conditioning. We have been conditioned to do so. And we have been conditioned to do so due to superstition.
In times gone by, sneezing was considered an omen. If you sneezed three times before breakfast, it was thought to mean you were going to receive a present, whereas if you sneezed after a meal, you'd be in for good health. If you sneezed to the right, it was said to be a good omen in that you would be commencing a journey, whereas if you sneezed to the left, that would be very unlucky.
It was considered very unlucky if you didn't bless a person who had just sneezed.
Do you always make a point of blessing someone who has just sneezed? And if you don't, has that brought you bad luck? I'd be interested in your views. As for me, I always say, 'Bless you.'
Take for instance when someone sneezes. What's the first thing you do? You say 'Bless you', don't you?
Why is this?
Think about it for a minute. Why should you have to bless that person? Because they might be suffering from a bought of hey fever? Not likely.
It all comes down to conditioning. We have been conditioned to do so. And we have been conditioned to do so due to superstition.
In times gone by, sneezing was considered an omen. If you sneezed three times before breakfast, it was thought to mean you were going to receive a present, whereas if you sneezed after a meal, you'd be in for good health. If you sneezed to the right, it was said to be a good omen in that you would be commencing a journey, whereas if you sneezed to the left, that would be very unlucky.
It was considered very unlucky if you didn't bless a person who had just sneezed.
Do you always make a point of blessing someone who has just sneezed? And if you don't, has that brought you bad luck? I'd be interested in your views. As for me, I always say, 'Bless you.'
