Belief,
Taboo & Superstition
Geloof,
taboe en bijgeloof • Glauben, Tabu und Aberglauben
 ouching
wood, wearing charm bracelets, fear of breaking mirrors and pointing
fingers, hoping to find four-leaved clover … Beneath layers
of formal religion, scientific knowledge and “rational” thought most of our
minds contain layers of folk belief. We are rarely fully conscious of
them. Yet they influence our perceptions,
emotions, thoughts and actions. Among them, obvious
superstitions may seem “a bit silly” even to ourselves. Yet we hang on
to them. There’s something reassuring about them. “You never know …” “Better safe than sorry. Right?” They were instilled in us early in life, before
“proper” beliefs and knowledge moved in and pushed into
the underground anything that was at odds with them. Many of these folk
beliefs are older than our formal religions. Together with
the customs and taboos that are based on them they constitute a colorful
part
of our
local and ethnic heritage.
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