Preview

SUPERSTITION BELIEFS IN INDIA

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1899 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
SUPERSTITION BELIEFS IN INDIA
SUPERSTITION BELIEFS IN INDIA

INTRODUCTION Superstition in India is considered a widespread social problem. Superstition refers to any belief or practice which is explained by supernatural causality, and is in contradiction to modern science. Some beliefs and practices, which are considered superstitious by some, may not be considered so by others. The gap, between what is superstitious and what is not, widens even more when considering the opinions of the general public and scientists

CAUSES OF SUPERSTITION An ignorant man cannot understand the cause of lighting and thunder. He invents an imaginary explanation for the happening. He thinks that some unseen power is behind these natural events. There are people who believe in ghosts and spirits. They also believe in witch-craft. They think that the power of mantras controls everything. So ignorance is the cause of superstition. Most of us are superstitious in some way or the other. It, sometimes, survives even in scholars and learned persons. An internationally reputed Hindu philosopher may staunchly object to his daughter’s marriage with fine specimen of a boy who belongs to the opposite community. People are not able to overcome the traditional snag of the past.

OVERVIEW Superstitions are usually attributed to the lack of education But, in India educated people have also been observed following beliefs that may be considered superstitious. The literacy rate of India, according to the 2011 census is at 74%.The beliefs and practices vary from region to region, with many regions having their own specific beliefs. The practices may range from harmless lemon-and-chilli totems for warding off evil eye to serious concerns like witch-burning. Some of these beliefs and practices are centuries old and are considered part of the tradition and religion, as a result introduction of new prohibitory laws often face opposition

ASTROLOGY AND FORTUNE

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    There are many examples of superstition in the novel, Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twian. One of the examples is when Huck kills the spider by flicking it into the fire. Killing the spider to Huck was considered very bad luck. Another example is when they had used a hair ball to tell fortunes. The last one is when Huck runs out of tobacco and he goes to the Craven to get some and he finds a rattlesnake. He then kills it and then puts it on the end of Jim’s bed then when Jim went to lay down the snake got him.…

    • 361 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Danyella Foster’s night turns from mundane to monstrous when the man from her nightmares walks into her bar. No joke. Unfortunately for Ella, the punchline is her independence. She’s swept into a world she thought only existed in her Gran’s superstitions—a world of dreams, danger, and demons. He calls himself a V’alkara, but Ella knows what he really is, even if he doesn’t sparkle in sunlight or hiss at holy water. Surrender might be easy … if it didn’t cost her sister, her will, and the life she’s always known.…

    • 197 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    20 Medieval Superstitions

    • 629 Words
    • 3 Pages

    2. Another superstition was that they thought horses repelled witches; therefore, witches rode brooms or pitchforks instead.…

    • 629 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Are Superstitions Hurtful

    • 479 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Superstitions have been said to be both helpful and hurtful, but according to the articles “Why Are Humans So Superstitious?” by Marc Lallanilla and “Is magical thinking hurting or helping you?” by Sarah Albert, they are far more hurtful than helpful. Superstitions are hurtful because they can be very unhealthy, they can make people lose confidence, and they can cause anxiety.…

    • 479 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    In Victorian times there was a lot of controversy between the theories of superstition and science. There was a very public argument between the two, both enforcing different ideas about different aspects of life. The reason for this was because Charles Darwin had come up with the theory of evolution and had gone against all beliefs in religion and in God. Many people disagreed with his theories and idea’s and still chose to believe God created the world and everything on it.…

    • 894 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    It’s like a saying some say, dress well test well. Some just have superstitions that they have to stick too. For instance, in my life during post season of softball, we always wear the exact same uniform. We wore black even though it was ninety degrees outside in June. The example in Grey’s Anatomy is when every time someone dies in surgery Addison Montgomery Shepard gave the surgeons who were involved a cup of hot chocolate and that was her juju, you had to drink it. If you did not accept it like Meredith Grey did once, then your next patient was going to die as well until you drank it all. Meredith Grey had a surgery with Addison and their patient sadly did not make it. Addison always heard two other surgeons were not having such good days and their patients died. Addison went around and got everyone hot chocolate who was involved in those surgeries, meaning she gave one to Meredith Grey. Grey did not accept it because Addison was with Derek and she thought she was maybe trying to poison her or something, she threw it away. Merediths very next patient died because she dissed the juju. So everyone relies on weird and different superstitions because we do not always have an answer for every little thing in life. Life works in mysterious ways some times, so it makes us think that we can not diss on the…

    • 1183 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Prejudice and superstition can lead to injustice. A good example of this is basically the whole story of To Kill a Mockingbird. Tom Robinson is prejudiced against because he is black and so even though he didn’t commit the crime he was accused of he was still sentenced for it. Even with the evidence they had supporting that Tom didn’t do it.…

    • 364 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth Superstition

    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages

    I believe that superstitions are, for the most part, a method of man to control the uncontrollable parts of life. In relativity to humans, animals act on mostly impulses. Animals seem to be doing just fine without the concept of time, reality, religion, superstitions, currency, and advancement beyond ourselves.…

    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Superstitions can seem innocent, and of no consequence at first, such as when a sports…

    • 1024 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Appeal to tradition has occurred in society since the birth of mankind. The claims made by…

    • 857 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Full Moon Phenomenon

    • 2849 Words
    • 12 Pages

    A black cat crosses the road and it is bad luck, you aren’t supposed to open an umbrella inside of the house or a building, or break a mirror. These are all superstitions are that people believe in, it starts as early as age eighteen months when children start to exhibit a form of magical thinking when they begin to create imaginary worlds while playing. One superstition I grew up thinking was true and until recently I still did was that crazy things happen when a full moon is out. Not only did I grow up thinking this, but so did my grandma. She grew up on a farm in Excelsior Springs, Missouri with average, not overly suspicious parents. When I asked her about this theory and where she got it from she said , “ I remember my dad keeping more of a close eye of the cattle and horses, keeping them in the front pastures instead of the back ones on the nights of a full moon. I never recall anything happening on those nights, it was just something his dad has told him when he was growing up.” This myth or thought has been instilled in my grandmother’s thoughts as well; I know this because she also checks up on the horses on the nights of a full moon. One time in particular I remember being at their house, and hearing her get up in the middle of the night with a flashlight to check on them, when I asked her about it she simply said “it’s a full moon honey, gotta check on the girls.” She also came in that night with no report of anything suspicious happening just the quiet night with the horses sound asleep, just as her dad always had. There are tons and tons of things people say supposedly happen because of the full moon. Some people decide to go gambling and believe it will give them luck. People do odd things, turn into werewolves, and the injury rates in hospitals supposedly go up. The belief stretches as far as women going into labor because of the full moon!…

    • 2849 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Between 1000 BCE and 600 CE, there were many changes and continuities in the belief systems of South Asia. In 1000 BCE, Greece had their polytheistic religion with gods and goddesses. Persia’s religion included magi and the beginning of Zoroastrianism. Also during this time period, Indian religion included Krishna and Veda. In the span from 500 BCE to 4 BCE, there were many changes along with continuities in the religions of this region. Persian religion still included magi and Zoroastrianism. Greek religion included sacrifice and temples for their gods. Roman religion included pax deorum and Chinese religion included the belief that divinity resides with nature. Daoism Confuciam and Buddhism were practice…

    • 911 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Satire in Huckleberry Finn

    • 1809 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Superstition is an issue that has been around forever, and will probably be around forever. A psychologist, B. F. Skinner, discovered that any animal will develop superstitions, we are all just wired that way. For example, if one makes a bad grade on a test Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and it rains Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, one may start to believe that the rain is the reason why they have bad test grades just because of the correlation . Because of this, they may never want to take tests when it rains. Today, superstitions are less abundant because of widespread knowledge of science and reasoning, but it can still be observed in sports and religion where people do things really without a reason or don't really understand why. They just do it because they've always done it. Superstition today does not really harm society but honestly makes it more interesting.…

    • 1809 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    In conclusion, many people follow the old cultural myths without any convincing reason that explain why the follow them. Cultural myths could affect people’s behaviors. culture myth is the main contributor in how people form country to another think and behave. Also people will not stop following the old generation’s strange methods because they think old people were right in their lives. Finally, no one can change why people (culture) follow the old cultural…

    • 646 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    I Sell My Dreams

    • 499 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Time wise there are two distinct areas, the war and post war eras. During the war, Frau stayed with a Viennese family who appeared quite superstitious; not too uncommon for a family in the war whose life could depend on weather they went out that day. The two main geographical locations, Latin America and France, are both superstition-bred countries. The initial setting of Cuba can also relate to superstition through the Spaniards view of the island as one of death during its discovery.…

    • 499 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics