SNEEZING

Evening Star, Issue 21319, 25 January 1933, Page 10

SNEEZING

AH OLD AKD WORLD-WIDE SUPERSTITION There is something queer about sneezing. Every race of people in the world but the English has regarded a sneeze with superstitious awe since the dim, red dawn of man. So did we English up to Cromwell’s time, when the Puritans knocked the nonsense out of us, as they considered, by making things hot for anyone who celebrated a sneeze in the conventional manner. Millions of people in modern Europe, from Italy to Lapland, and from Belgium to Russia, • automatically remark: “God be with you,” or “ May your health be good,” when a companion sneezes. The formula varies slightly. In Germany, for example, it is “ Gute gesundheit! ” or just “ Gesundheit! ” In France and French-speaking Belgium it is “ Sante! ” or “ Dieu vous benisse! ” In the poorer quarters of Rome and other Italian cities it may be the somewhat startling “ Figi misehi!” which means “ May you have male cihldren." This is simply explained, contemptuously remark the guossers. , They will say "that it dates from the time of the GreaF Plague, when you feared that a fellow might be sickening for it if he sneezed, the early symptoms having some resemblance to those of a chill. But that explanation will not do. All over the world, among the remotest races as well as the Europeans, to-day, and back through the ancient civilisations of Rome, Greece, Judea, and India, a sneeze was a signal for some superstitious remark or act. Detachments of head-hunting aboriginal tribes in the jungles of Formosa halt or suddenly change direction for a while, .when out on long treks, at the sound of a few sneezes from their party. Sometimes they even .abandon the journey and return. A Japanese poem of A.m. 905 reveals that at that time you postponed ■ a journey if you heard a sneeze at its start.. The modern Tonga Islanders, out in the South Seas, do the same. Among the Fijians, Samoans, and certain other South Sea islanders, one often hears the comment: “ May you live!” or “Bless you!” on a sneeze. When they sneeze, the Kaffirs are wont to call down a blessing on themselves, as do some other African races. In modern Bengal a gesture of salaam, in ancient Mexico an invoked blessing greeted the sneezer. In ancient Rome a “ Salve ” GOOD AND BAD OMENS. Japanese and Chinese in the old days regarded sneezing as a sign that someone was affectionately calling the sneezer to mind; but in China the omens of sneezing varied according to the circumstances. In India a Hindu chancing to sneeze while washing in the Ganges on a fresh morning makes a sort of sign of the cross; having touched his forehead, nose, chin, and cheeks with his fingertips, lie recommences his prayers. He does this after every sneeze. In France, a century ago, a writer on etiquette told you that, having sneezed, yoii ought to-in-voke a blessing on your comrade if he heard you sneeze and omitted to invoke a blessing on you. An Italian child’s primer, dated 1553, gives among the duties of a good child ; youth, or man to society: “ Abstaining from scratching your head, putting your lingers in your mouth, crossing one knee over the other in sitting . . . and being prompt in saluting anyone who may sneeze, and in ' returning thanks to anyone who on such an occasion may have wished , you well.” (You were also never to blow your nose in company!) There is an amusing old yarn, which may well be true, about a black tribal king in Africa who expected anyone after sneezing, to repeat it to the next man within earshot. The result was that within about a couple of minutes or less of the royal sneeze, the entire capital was echoing- to a clamour of shouted blessings. The Jews have an interesting and well-authenti-cated legend—well-authenticated, I mean, in the sense that it was taught for centuries by medieval rabbis in various parts of Europe—to the effect that until the time of Jacob you promptly died from shock if you sneezed. This doom was revoked in response to an intercession by Jacob, who undertook that in all nations a sneeze should be hallowed by saying the words: “ God bless you! ” In ancient Hindustan bystanders said: “ May you live! ” when you sneezed, to which you replied: “ Long life to you!” References to sneezing customs in the Gagga Jataka, one of the books of the Buddhist Scriptures, are to be found, dating from long before the Christian era.

IN ANCIENT GREECE.

Now, a glance at ancient Greece. 1 find that Ammainus has an epigram about a person whose nose was so, long that he never heard it sneeze, and hence never said: “ God bless.” Homer tells of Penelope rejoicing at tho sneeze of her son, Telemachns. But in old Greece “it depended.” There wore various omens. If a person sneezed between midnight and the following noon it was lucky, but if between noon and midnight unlucky. If a man sneezed at table while food was being cleared away, or if your left-hand neighbour at table sneezed, it was an unlucky man. If the sneeze came from your • right-hand neighbour the omen was lucky. If, in the undertaking of business, two or four sneezes happened, it was a lucky omen. If more than four the omen was non-committal. If one or three, unlucky. If two men, fixing up a business deal, sneezed together, the affair would be to the advantage of both of them.

Aii interesting sneezing episode is to lie found in Xenophon’s ‘ Anabasis, Lib. Hl.,’ cap. 2. At the council of Greek generals held after the death of Cryus, Xenophon rose and made a speech. He set before his comrades the treachery of their late associate Arisons, the serious difficulties attendant, upon the position of the Greeks, and the necessity for immediate and vigorous action._ Just as he had alluded to the probability of a tough fight and had invoked the aid of the gods, one of the company sneezed. He paused for a moment in his harangue and everyone present did reverence to Jupiter. The incident seemed to hearten everyone. Xenophon added: “ Even now, my comrades, while we wore talking of safety, Zeus, the Saviour, has sent us an omen; an I think it would become us to offer to the god a sacrifice of thanksgiving for our preservation.” He then asked for a show of hands. Each officer put up his hand, and all made their vows and sang the pecan before the council of’Jwar proceeded.