Title: Direction of Sleep
General Information about Item:
- Customary Lore, Superstition
- Language: English
- Country of Origin: India
- Informant: Rama
- Date Collected: 10-10-18
Informant Data:
- Rama is a female software engineer of Houston, TX. She was born in Tirunelveli, India in 1975. She moved to the United States, however, at the age of 21, with her first job. Besides work, she enjoys gardening and reading. Today, Rama lives with her family in a suburb just outside of Houston.
Contextual Data:
- Cultural Context: In India, bodies are often cremated. However, if a body is buried, it is always, without fail, placed with the head pointing towards the North and the feet towards the South. This is due to the belief that Yama, the God of Death, resides in the south.
- Social Context: This superstition is particularly prevalent in South India. Houses are often constructed with properly oriented bedrooms to allow for beds to fit in the “auspicious direction” (East-West).
Item:
- This superstition declares that if one sleeps with his/her head pointing towards the North, he/she will experience bad luck. This is because if one’s head is pointing North, his feet are pointing to the South, where Yama resides. On rare occasions, sleeping in this direction is believed to bring death.
Associated file (a video, audio, or image file):
Transcript:
- “If you sleep with your feet pointing towards the South, you will be plagued by bad luck. At its extreme, you may die.”
Informant’s Comments:
- According to the informant, this belief stands strong within her family. Each and every bed in her house, prior to its placement, was ensured to be facing the correct direction.
Collector’s Comments:
- This is a concrete example of a Magic Superstition, as it follows the form of “If you do A, Then B”. If one sleeps with his feet pointing towards the south, then he will face bad luck in the near future.
Collector’s Name: Sanjena Venkatesh
Tags/Keywords:
- Customary Lore
- Superstition
- Sleep