Why You Can't Speak Badly About The Dead

2024 Author: Bailey Albertson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 12:53

Memento mori: why you can't talk bad about the dead

Death is sad, but it cannot be avoided. Since ancient times, people have been interested in the mystery of death: what happens after it, is there an afterlife and what it is. It is not surprising that over many millennia this topic has acquired many signs and superstitions. For example, it is believed that one cannot speak ill of the dead.

How did the conviction come about that one cannot speak ill of the dead?

The phrase forbidding to say bad things about the dead is rooted in antiquity and has nothing to do with Slavic culture. It first appeared among the Romans and sounded like "Mortuo non maledicendum" ("do not speak evil of the dead").

A little later, this prohibition sounded among the ancient Greeks. It is found in the work of Diogenes Laertius (although he himself claimed that this is only a quote from the Spartan thinker Chilo, who lived in the 6th century BC) and sounds like "De mortuis aut bene, aut nihil." The ancient dictum can be translated into Russian as follows - "about the dead it is either good, or nothing but the truth."

Over time, the phrase was shortened, and it lost its original meaning. Unlike the ancient Romans and Greeks, modern people argue that you need to say either good or nothing about the dead.

The phrase "about the dead is either good or nothing but the truth" is rooted in antiquity

Esoteric explanation of prohibition

Esotericists are sure that the world around us consists of a huge number of energy sheaths - egregor. They appear in any place where people are often, as in fact they are woven from their thoughts and emotions. The egregor is especially strong in the cemetery, because in addition to the feelings of living people, it also keeps the souls of the dead. Any negative towards the soul has a bad effect on the egregor, and he tries with all his might to protect its inhabitant, which is why illness, trouble, and in the worst cases, death fall on the offender.

The Orthodox Church has its own point of view on this issue. According to the Bible, the soul of the deceased travels for the first 40 days. She very painfully perceives parting with the body, and any evil words only cause her additional pain. In addition, if close people say nasty things, then God understands that the deceased is not worthy of a place in paradise, which means that the soul goes to hell.

The cemetery has a very strong energy field, and if someone offends the dead, it kind of protects its inhabitants

Logical explanation

Do not forget that talking badly about the dead is bad form, and in doing so, you can stumble upon condemnation of the people around you. Let's look at this from a moral point of view. If you insult a living person, he can justify himself and fight you back if he wishes. The deceased cannot do this, which means that he remains defenseless. This is precisely what society condemns.

The ban on slander about the dead appeared in ancient times, however, at first the meaning of this phrase was different. Today it is believed that speaking badly about the dead, you deprive him of his place in paradise, and also attract troubles to yourself. Do not forget that this is not accepted in society.