2006-08-16 16:53:59 · 7 answers · asked by Mommy Dearest 5 in Society & Culture ➔ Mythology & Folklore
Right or left shoulder, in any case..Why?
2006-08-16 17:04:22 · update #1
You're supposed to throw it over your LEFT shoulder to repel any evil spirits (or Satan himself) who might be lurking there.
There are many religions that believe that salt keeps the bad spirits away.
2006-08-16 17:01:59 · answer #1 · answered by Claude 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Actually, no, it's the right shoulder. Although the left (or in Latin "sinister") side is usually associated with evil (the myth about left-handed people being witches, for example), the practice of throwing salt over the right shoulder comes from an unrelated and more recent myth, which says that a devil sits on your right shoulder and an angel sits on your left. This is often portrayed in pop culture. Salt is thought to banish the devil, or at least get in his eyes and annoy him. This same myth led to the (old-fashioned) Midwestern American phrase "He's got a deaf left ear" for someone who is mischivious.
2006-08-17 16:39:14 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Actually, I always thought it was the left shoulder because that's the side "evil" is on.
Before the advent of refrigeration, everything was perserved using salt, or other pickling methods so the waste of salt was frowned upon.
Also, in Yorkshire, the spilling of salt is seen as a bad omen towards whom it was spilled. One was to throw 3 pinches over the left shoulder to try to get rid of the misfortune.
2006-08-17 00:07:50 · answer #3 · answered by lilith4507 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
People threw salt over their left shoulder in order to ward off bad luck from accidently spilling salt.
Back in the day when these superstitions were born, salt was a rare and precious commodity and it was considered very bad luck to spill it (waste it). Evil spirits were said to lurk over your shoulder (the left one because Satan usually stood at the left of you) waiting to strike at you if you made a misstep.
Spilling salt was obviously a misstep so you threw the salt over your shoulder to ward them away. Much like blessing someone after they sneezed.
2006-08-17 02:08:33 · answer #4 · answered by slynx000 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If you spill salt it's the left shoulder.
2006-08-18 14:12:53 · answer #5 · answered by soxrcat 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Its the left shoulder ,not sure where the myth came from.
salt can be used for many things cleansing a house before you move in to it and somemany other uses .
2006-08-17 10:21:05 · answer #6 · answered by myangel_101211 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Salt is used in many eathen religions to chase away demons and bad spirits (bad luck, bad eye, etc..).
2006-08-17 00:00:53 · answer #7 · answered by digiteerx 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋