Here is another thing that was probably influenced by Christianity: German folklore constantly harps on about how cursed those people are who mess around with other people’s field boundary markers. They not only inevitably return as ghosts as punishment for their crimes, but frequently as ghosts _set on fire!_
I suspect that this is directly derived from Deuteronomy 27:17:
“Cursed is anyone who moves their neighbor’s boundary stone.”
I suspect that cultures that _don’t_ have Christianity’s obsession with clearly marked lots of land don’t have such legends, either. And I gather that many cultures have a more communal approach to land ownership.
@juergen_hubert@raymccarthy That’s a keen observation, the original people of Malaysia the Orang Asli have a communal caretaking approach to the land. For communities that stopped being nomadic, many farm cooperatively to manage water resources, combat pests & get better prices for their produce.
@juergen_hubert @raymccarthy @germany @folklore Ooh, that sounds like the influence of the organized religion. And sadly that never seems to gel with what Nature needs.
@Ellirahim @raymccarthy
Here is another thing that was probably influenced by Christianity: German folklore constantly harps on about how cursed those people are who mess around with other people’s field boundary markers. They not only inevitably return as ghosts as punishment for their crimes, but frequently as ghosts _set on fire!_
I suspect that this is directly derived from Deuteronomy 27:17:
“Cursed is anyone who moves their neighbor’s boundary stone.”
I suspect that cultures that _don’t_ have Christianity’s obsession with clearly marked lots of land don’t have such legends, either. And I gather that many cultures have a more communal approach to land ownership.
@juergen_hubert @raymccarthy That’s a keen observation, the original people of Malaysia the Orang Asli have a communal caretaking approach to the land. For communities that stopped being nomadic, many farm cooperatively to manage water resources, combat pests & get better prices for their produce.