By continuing you agree to eChinacities's Privacy Policy .
Sign up with Google
Sign up with Facebook
Q: Do Chinese superstitions have any pragmatic background?
Opening an umbrella indoors will bring bad luck - because you might smash the light...
Walking under a ladder is bad luck - because something might get dropped on you from the guy overhead...
Don't eat pork - it's bad for you... because (IIRC) pork and human dna is similar, so any disease that affects pigs is more likely to affect a human, than from other animals...
I did just read one Chinese superstition that made sense to me - white is a 'summer' colour, not winter... because, if you get lost in the snow, it's a lot harder to find you!
Do any other Chinese superstitions have some sort of pragmatic origin???
If you drink cold water or eat cold food, you will die horribly. They tend to put too fine a point on it, but overcooking food and boiling water does help to kill bacteria and such.
There's a certain type of Chinese medicine that's supposed to clear a muddled brain. In fact, it's basically just the extract of about fifty types of fruit. They explain its efficiency in terms of Qi and body temperature and such but, really, it probably works because it is chock full of vitamins, and balancing out nutritional needs does clear your head.
You want an apartment facing south because it alows the sun to shine through your window all day, in the northern hemisphere, especially nice when drying clothes. But most Chinese just say it's lucky.
GuilinRaf:
Not only do south facing doors let the sunshine in, they are also facing the right direction when those pesky Mongolian Hords led by the latest Khan swarm into town from the North!
nevermind:
No wonder they took over so easy, everyone was looking at the view
GuilinRaf:
Hmmm, good point. I guess taking time to sniff the roses and take in the view may not always be a good thing...
