SUPERSTITIONS VERSUS SCIENCE

Hi everyone. Today’s topic is very thrilling "Superstitions versus Science". I think all of us would have practised certain superstitious believes. Every country, every culture and every religion have their own superstitious believes and we are practising it from a very long time. We now live in the era of technology, yet people follow these practices without knowing the reason behind it. Only a handful of people have managed to come out of these constraints but not to the fullest. So I pen-down this article to give some scientific reasoning behind such believes.

Superstitions and Science are the all-time debatable topic. Superstitions can be verbally said as believes. Believes of any kind or anything. I myself haven’t ignored the superstitions completely, for instance: I always write my tests and exams in blue coloured gel pen. I feel it is lucky for me. As a matter of fact, I have even tried writing my exams in other pens which did not show any changes in my scores. I always scored what I had expected. In My brother's case, he thinks black coloured shirt is lucky for him and wears it for all important occasions. My grand mother says not to clean house while it is dark, not to cut nails after 6, not to wash hairs putting it upside down any many other things.  Likewise there are many other superstitions which have been carried from our ancestors and practised even today.

Superstition according to me is a fear. A fear which stops us from doing things. If the superstitions are out of religious concern, then we can’t even think of denying it. Do you think we can live with such fears even if it sounds insane? Is there any ways in which we can avoid them from following? And have anyone thought of overcoming these superstitions without scientific reasons? I won’t think so. In this matter I completely rely on Adam smith’s words who says,

“Science is the great antidote to the poison of enthusiasm and superstition”.

Only science can yank out such beliefs and practices. In that case, let me tell you some of the superstitions followed in our culture; how my life is associated with that and how I justify it to people with science.

           It is believed unlucky if a cat crosses your way:

I had a very funny incident with this belief. If I remember properly, I was about 7 years old that time. Unknowingly, I moved my way after a cat crossing the road. All of a sudden I fell down and kissed the ground; once I got up I learned my first milk tooth was broken. Neighbours urged that I fell down because I continued walking as the cat had just crossed my path. I was loaded with lots of such believes right from I had milk teeth in my mouth or probably before that I do not remember.

As I started growing in science I realised it was just a myth. In olden days people used to travel all through the forests on animal go karts. Herbivores like horses, bulls and donkeys were used to carry themselves and these animals are afraid of carnivores such as jungle cats, leopards and tigers. Hence people used to pause their way until these cats cross the road without harming anyone. This practice has been retained like a stain in our culture and has been carried to domestic cats.

In the present day situations, the domestic cats move from one place to other in search of food, mate etc and may often cross our paths. Rise up guys cats are busy with their work and we would better mind ours.

Myths about fallen milk teeth:

My story didn’t stop after just losing my first tooth. My mumma said, throw the tooth on the roof top so that cats will eat your teeth and you will get a good set of well aligned teeth like them. While throwing I supposed to utter these words “let cats take my teeth and let me get their teeth in return” (In Kannada: ನನ್ನ ಹಲ್ಲು ಕೊತ್ತಿಗೆ ಕೊಡು, ಕೊತ್ತಿ ಹಲ್ಲು ನನಗೆ ಕೊಡು). Funniest part is I couldn’t pronounce cat (coṫhi) in Kannada properly and said it as kothi (ಕೋತಿ) which means monkey. As I grew older I myself know how well my teeth were aligned. 

Well, jokes apart; the reason behind doing this may be for the safer disposal. We may not find it good to see the teeth fallen here and there like a litter. There are many other practices which are similar to this and all reveals how fallen teeth are disposed. In some places teeth are buried inside the ground, some burn it up and some have the practice of preserving them and using it as an ornament. So better watch out next time when your kids come with broken teeth and think of the safest way to dispose it.

Myths about menstrual cycle:

There are lots of myths about periods which have been carried since the times of Moses (Holy Bible). As per the book of Leviticus 15:19- ‘she shall be in her menstrual impurity for seven days’. According to Hindu mythology menstruating females are forbidden from doing godly activities. They are not allowed to enter God’s premises until they stop bleeding and they are not allowed to work in kitchen and do the regular activities.

My mom never used to allow me touch Bible for some days until she realised the fact. Some customs even says that during menstrual cycles girls are not allowed to touch any sour food substances like pickles as it will become stale. Girls are not allowed to cook thinking it will get spoiled if they are having periods. Girls are not allowed to touch any plants especially edible herbs and ornamental flowering plants as it will wither off by turning yellow. One of my friend from a Tamil-Nadu village used to say that, ‘she and her sister are locked in a dark room with a separate bed and chair during their periods’. A granny next to my house used to tell me to wipe my face with my sanitary napkin so that I won’t get pimples. That sounds very awkward!

According to the science, there is nothing called impurity in our body. The menstrual flow is due to the missed pregnancy, every 28 days there will be a new ovulation cycle in our ovaries. Follicles develop within ovary and visit endometrium layer of uterus for fertilisation and implantation. If there is no fertilisation then the formed endometrium layer along with the matured follicle falls off. During this there will be breakage of blood vessels and mucus cells in the endometrium layer and hence there will be a blood flow which may lasts for 2-5 days. So the blood which is flown is not impure instead it carries a matured follicle called as Graafian follicle.  

During the periods there will be hormonal fluctuations, the estrogen level drops down and body temperature elevates, this might be the reason for milk curdling, pickling getting spoiled and plants wilting but it is not true in all the cases. Girls are not allowed to do household activities because, during blood flow there will be cramps and other uneasiness like back pain, stomach pain, pain in the inner thighs, nausea, anorexia, fatigue etc. So they need rest for some days. By doing exercises during periods give relaxation and keeps us active since there will be release of serotonin after workouts. So I would like to say that menstruating is not being unclean but this is how a female reproductive system works.

Though Moses made a law stating menstruating females are unclean, in New Testament it clearly says, ‘For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes’ (Romans 10:4). It is evident that nothing is impure in our body if we truly believe.

So that’s it for the day and I would finally conclude by saying, the superstitions are purely based on the individual perceptions. Every culture has their own beliefs; some beliefs are scientifically true well most them are not. Finally it is our belief whether or not to follow it.

 You can leave up other interesting superstitions practised in your culture and their facts in the comment box.