Blood has always aroused increased interest in people. If you read the plots of Russian fairy tales collected by Vladimir Propp, you can understand that people attached special importance to blood. Noting that cannibalism in Russian fairy tales is condemned, Propp, however, asserts: “But in Russian fairy tales, the hacked and lively one gives the hero to drink human blood. This blood is a source of extraordinary power.
"Give him strength!" - He took a bottle of blood out of his ribs, gave it to him and said: “If you feel a lot of strength in yourself, leave it to me, do not drink everything.” Vanya drank this bottle and felt an exorbitant strength in himself; (Niskol did not leave the hero)"
Blood has carried an element of sacredness since ancient times. Much older than the times when statehood began to form. Numerous rituals associated with the cult of blood preserved in the tribes leading primitive life, eloquently testify to this.
There was an interest in blood in every era. In art, he was unchanged. Blood on paintings, poetry and novels is associated with passion, often with insanity, with crime and incest. The rhyme "blood-love", which entered Russian poetry as one of the first cliches, nevertheless very clearly reflects the perception of blood, its connection with the fundamental principles.
A whole layer of literature, the so-called "vampire novel", is built on blood. This cult still generates profits for publishing houses and film companies.
Blood has always been of paramount importance in the religious system. For the Aztecs, blood was a kind of equivalent of God's grace. The blood of over 20,000 people was shed annually to appease the sun god. Blood is essential in Christianity as well. Communion with the blood of Christ is part of the sacrament of the Eucharist. Nails from the crucifix and the spear of Longinus, also stained with the blood of Christ, are also considered objects of religious worship.
The importance of blood in religion is so great that it is blood that often becomes a factor in initiation into a particular faith. The tradition of baptizing newborn babies (bloodlines) in the faith of their fathers continues today. Back in the 19th century in Russia, it was difficult to imagine that different religions were practiced in a family. There were also such unions, but this was the exception to the rule.
Bloodletting is not necessarily a sign of the Middle Ages. Yes, the numerous engravings in which doctors with lancets open people's veins are based on real events, but even today, bloodletting is used, if not everywhere, then very often.
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One example is hirudotherapy. In Islamic culture, however, there is a bloodletting procedure called "hijama". The word comes from the root al-hajm, which means "absorption."
This method of cleansing the body was commanded by the Prophet Muhammad. A study conducted at Damascus Medical University showed that in patients undergoing hijama, blood pressure stabilized, blood sugar levels dropped, red blood cell counts increased, and cholesterol dropped.
We are not urging you to go and bleed now. Any treatment requires prior consultation with a doctor. It can be reliably said that bloodletting can really normalize blood pressure, especially if it is high, and also has a slight hypoxic effect on the brain, which is also beneficial for the body in moderate doses.
Public attitudes toward incest have not always been negative. In the Abrahamic tradition, incest was considered a necessary measure for the line of the first people to continue. But that doesn't mean incest was encouraged. On the contrary, it was condemned and was acceptable only for the continuation of the dynasty. However, such alliances rarely yielded good results. Because of "incestuous fear" Heinrich Tudor divorced from his wife Catherine of Aragon.
Incest is also strictly prohibited in Islam. Even marriage between a man and a woman who had the same wet nurse is considered incest, but marriages between cousins are not condemned.
In Judaism, marriage is permitted with the wife of a deceased brother, but marriage is prohibited, for example, simultaneously with her sister, as well as with the wife's mother.
According to WHO statistics, in modern society, incestuous unions between fathers and daughters are more frequent than others, in second place - between brothers and sisters. The most rare form of incest today is the unions between mothers and children. According to the same statistics, in the overwhelming majority of such unions there are psychological perversions.
Another example of “blood” relationships enshrined in society is blood brotherhood. Widely developed in medieval society, it has not lost its relevance. They "fraternize" and swear on blood even today.
Do not forget about blood feud.