Respect

One myth that is very well known and wide spread in Indian culture is the idea that it is bad luck to step over another person. For example, if there is a student sitting in the hallway, and you step over his legs in order to get by, you would be bringing bad luck on him by doing so. It's is also considered bad to touch things with your feet, step on books, put books on the ground, or toss money around. I believe that all these myths stem from the idea that all these acts are disrespectful, and therefore, in a sense, evil. While it might seem ridiculous to many other cultures, such as American culture, it is almost law in Indian culture. This is especially true in regards to books and money, both of which symbolize knowledge and wealth, so disrespecting them is equivalent to disrespecting God. Although in some sense I do feel that these myths are ridiculous, I still respect and follow them, because that is how I was raised. Even if these are just silly superstitions, they are doing no harm, and in fact teach the people to show respect.