Why do people say Bless you after you sneeze?

Answer 1

SneezeAfter all, we have no such custom for people when they cough or hiccup. In ancient times, it was believed that the soul left your body when you sneezed and that evil spirits could then enter. Blessing you was supposed to prevent this.

Pope Gregory the Great (540-604 AD) ascended to the Papacy just in time for the start of the plague. Gregory (who also invented the Gregorian chant) called for litanies, processions and unceasing prayer for intercession. Columns marched
through the streets chanting, "Kyrie Eleison" (Greek for "Lord have mercy"). When someone sneezed, they were immediately blessed in the hope that they would not subsequently develop the plague. All that prayer apparently worked, judging by how
quickly the plague of 590 AD diminished.

The connection of sneezing to the plague is not the first association of sneezing with death. In the Dark Ages, it was believed that your heart stopped momentarily when you sneezed. You were, in effect, dead for an instant and had to be blessed. Many cultures, even some in Europe, believe that sneezing expels the soul — the "breath of life"— from the body.
That doesn't seem too far-fetched when you realize that sneezing can send tiny particles speeding out of your nose at up to 100 miles per hour!

Answer 2

quoting here for you.. use the link to see the entire article

Some questions, no matter how simple, don't have one knowable answer. Though a number of "explanations" exist for this custom, nothing points to any one of them being its origin.

Common among these explanations are:


At one time people believed a man's soul could be inadvertently thrust from his body by an explosive sneeze, thus "Bless you!" was a protective oath uttered to safeguard the temporarily expelled and vulnerable soul from being snatched up by Satan (who was always lurking nearby). The purpose of the oath was to cast a temporary shield over the flung-out soul which would protect it just long enough to regain the protection of the corporeal body.

Conversely, the sneeze itself was the expulsion of a demon or evil spirit which had taken up residence in a person. Therefore, although the "Bless you!" was again a protective charm meant to protect the sneezer from evil, in this version it was meant to ward off the re-entry of an evil spirit which a tormented soul had just rid itself of.

The heart was believed to momentarily stop during a sneeze (it doesn't), thus the "Bless you!" was uttered either as a supplication for life to return or as a congratulation upon its successful restart.

Others claim an association of the practice with particular dire diseases (most often the bubonic plague, or "Black Death," as it is sometimes known). They say an infected person's sneeze was sure sign he'd soon be pushing up daisies, thus the "Bless you!" was intended as a benediction to the nearly-departed, a way of commending his soul to the care of God now that he was beyond the help of anything in the mortal world.

Yet other folks echo the theme of other superstitions about sneezes, that these expulsions are either in themselves lucky or foretell good fortune coming the sneezer's way. For them, the "Bless you!" is a recognition of incoming good luck, possibly even an attempt on the blesser's part to attract a bit of it to himself.

Finally, some see the sneeze as a blessing bestowed by the sneezer upon the sneezed-upon. Answering a sneeze with "Bless you!" is seen as nothing more remarkable than replying "Good morning!" to the person who had just greeted you with the same phrase.
So many explanations -- each deeply believed -- for such a simple and often unquestioned practice. And we'll never know which one is right.

Answer 3

A long time ago people thought that every time u sneeze, ur heart skips a beat. So they would say bless u to bless u

Answer 4

the flu epidemic was 1918-19 not 1818-19. The 'bless you' custom comes from the bubonic plague - a sneeze often immediately preceding the death of those inflicted. It was a quick 'last rites'. What's all this heart-skips-a-beat nonsense? Why should that be a reason to say 'bless you'?

Answer 5

One traditional explanation for the custom is that it began literally as a blessing. Pope Gregory I the Great (AD 540-604) ascended to the Papacy just in time for the start of the bubonic plague in AD 590 (his successor succumbed to it). To combat the plague, Gregory ordered litanies, processions and unceasing prayer for God's blessing. When someone sneezed (seen as the initial onset of the plague), they were immediately blessed ("God bless you!") in the hope that they would not actually develop the disease.

Answer 6

Ring a ring of roses

A pocket full of posies

Atishoo Atishoo

We all fall down

Rhyme dating from the time of the black death. Anyone sneezing was a death sentence for you as well.

BTW : During the flu epidemic of 1818-19, it was illegal to sneeze on the streets. Though the chances were that you were dead before the cops run you in.

Answer 7

I remember reading in a book a long time ago on folklore and myths that when a person sneezes and their mouth is open, saying "God Bless You", doesn't allow evil spirts to enter.

Answer 8

because way way back in the day people could actually die from catching the common cold due to no medical help for pneumonia..so when you would sneeze they would say bless you as a way to actually bless you to keep you from illness..and I watch too much history channel I know.

Answer 9

simple...
when u sneeze ur heart skips a beat and this "shortens your life" so people say bless you for this reason

Answer 10

It's more common in the area where I am now for people to say that---must be of Catholic origin. I asked them why they said it, and they say it's because your heart skips a beat and a demon could enter. For them to be so religious, they sure do end up with a lot of possessed people too.