Is it foolish to believe in superstitions?
A degree of superstition is built into the history of very race. The few remaining peoples living simple and remote lives still govern their actions by superstitions. Many African tribes live by a double standard. They adopt Western Attitudes for the most part, but the witch-doctor still wields great power. One wealthy example claimed that he could not only predict the winners of the World Cup but also, for due payment, prevent any participating team from winning, and all this from his native village. Some people believe him.
More sophisticated people tend to adopt a superior attitude to superstition. Yet despite themselves they sometimes find that they behave as though they believed in it.
Superstitions have varying origins. Most are based in some kind of religious belief, ranging from animism to the monotheism of the Muslim and Christian religions. In animism, all natural phenomena are held to be governed by different spirits, and care must be taken both to please and to propitiate. For example, fishermen have beach ceremonies to ensure favor i.e a good catch. These customs are understandable, but life lived in this way can become over-restrictive. Development is hampered.
In the case of the Christian Faith, the Roman Catholics have always laid great store by the efficacy of relics of the saints, or someplace previously hallowed by virtue, such as Lourdes, in respect of healing the sick. On occasion, these superstitions are efficacious, though it is hard o say how much of this healing is due to the patient’s own faith. Any why should some be healed and not others ? At any rate, superstition of this kind cannot easily be dismissed. Veneration of images, the use of holy water etc come into this category.
Science and sophistication have done much to eradicate superstition from Western and Westernized society. Adam Smith wrote “science is the antidote to superstition”, meaning that people’s actions should be governed by rational thought. Most people today would deny that superstition plays any part in their lives. Yet ironically British people for example still observe certain taboos, of which the following examples are typical; it is bad luck to bring certain plants into the house, such as lilac; if you fear had luck you touch wood, originally to appease the powerful wood spirit; if you spill salt at table you throw a pinch over your left shoulder. This gets into the eyes of the devil and thwarts his evil intentions. For some reason you do not walk under a ladder, perhaps because the painter above may drop his pot on your head !
Logically, most superstitions can be dismissed as having their origins in ignorance. Yet there is a hard core of superstition which seems to work without any rational explanation. in the end, superstition may die out completely, but that time is far ahead.
