Why do people say "God bless you" or "bless you" when someone sneezes?

Question

Why do people say "God bless you" or "bless you" when someone sneezes?

Answer 1

Sneezing was one of the first signs of being infected by the Black Death or Black Plague.  As it was an incurable disease, people would bless your soul in advance of your death hoping to help your passage to heaven.

Answer 2

haha thats a good question i dont really know?

x

Answer 3

Because its an old superstition that people believe if you sneeze then an Angel gets its wings.

Answer 4

We did a paper on myths in college and answered this very question. Apparently, people used to believe that when you sneezed, you were releasing evil spirits and protecting the soul. Lol! i'm pretty sure we got this one from www.snopes.com.

Answer 5

because you are dead for a split second

Answer 6

During that time, when someone sneezed it could mean the beginning of the end and it happened very quickly. From the first sneeze to death might only be a matter of hours so if someone sneezed you gave them a blessing because they might be dead soon. Certainly it reduced your chances of ever seeing them again. Death was everywhere then.



Saying "God bless you" is literally asking for God's blessing on their soul. It wasn't always a glib social comment.

Answer 7

Because, once upon a time, people believed it was your soul escaping from your body.

Saying bless you makes it go back in.

Answer 8

Because way back when people believed that when you sneezed it was your soul trying to escape or the devil trying to steal your soul.

I think the Germans make more sense.  They say "gesundheit" which means good health.

Answer 9

because your heart actually skips a beat when you sneeze and ppl say that so you "wont die " or w.e  

Answer 10

Several different superstitions.

Answer 11

Apparently back in the plaque days, if you sneezed you probably had the plague and were gonna die soon. Hence, God bless you. And covering a yawn comes from WAY back, people thought it was their soul trying to escape.

Answer 12

"Back in the day" when a person sneezed, it was believed a demon was escaping from them! So, the blessing kept them safe.

Some say, "salute", or "a sante" ("to your health").

Answer 13

Its because of  the plague that swept through Europe in the mid 14th century that killed 1000s of people.  That's what the  childrens nursery rhyme Ring a ring of roses a pocket full of posies atishoo atishoo we all fall down  was written about .The God bless you was if you sneezed you may have the plague and they were saying may God help you.

Answer 14

Cause it usually means your sick, so they are blessing you to get better!

Answer 15

Because your heart actually does stop beating during that sneeze. This is true.

Answer 16

It used to be believed that sneezes were a sign that the devil was trying to enter your body.  When you sneeze, you are completely open to threat because your eyes are closed, your mouth is open and you lose control of your body.  People say 'bless you' because you need as much of a blessing as you can get when the devil is on the attack.

Now we say it because we're conditioned to do so.

Answer 17

I think it goes back to the times of the Black and Bubonic plagues. The first indications of the disease was sneezing.

Answer 18

This can be traced back to the Plague, at least, that's the story I've heard.  Nonetheless it's interesting to listen to and tell.

Back then when the plague was going around, people were scared and put their trust into God.  Sneezing was a common first symptom of the Plague, and if you did sneeze or cough another person would go, "God bless you".  It's kind of tragic, really.

Answer 19

i dont know but when my little niece sneezes i say bless you cos i find it cute

Answer 20

idk wen but way back wen someone sneezed people thought that evil spirits were entering your body so they would say bless u to get rid of them

Answer 21

The saying "God bless you" is thought to have first started as early as 77AD. But it is more likely to have started around 590AD during the time of The Black Plague/The Black Death.

"The Plague" was the Bubonic Plague, a really nasty bacterium, widely thought to be Yersinia pestis. It was easily the worst pandemic in human history.

Gregory I became Pope in 590 as an outbreak of the bubonic plague was reaching Rome. In hopes of fighting off the disease, he ordered unending prayer and parades of chanters through the streets. At the time, sneezing was thought to be an early symptom of the plague. The blessing "God bless you!" became a common effort to halt the disease.

In other cultures, people believe that sneezing can "spit" your spirit out, and/or that demons/devils/bad spirits can inhabit your body at the small window of "weakness". "God bless you" was used at times like these to bless your body, and to ward off evil spirits.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God_bless_y...

Answer 22

They don't want to say Gesundheit.

Answer 23

It's a superstition.

Good Luck: Saying God Bless You When Somebody Sneezes. When the great plague swept Europe., sufferers began sneezing violently which was a sign of death. The Pope therefore passed a law requiring people to bless the sneezer. At the same time, it was expected that anybody sneezing would cover their mouth with a cloth or their hand. This was obviously to stop the spreading of the disease, but many believed that it was to keep the soul intact. Sneezing 'into the air' would allow the soul to escape and death would be imminent. Up until this time, the opposite was true. Those who sneezed were congratulated, as it was believed that a violent sneeze would expel evil from their bodies.

Answer 24

because ur heart stops pumping while u sneeze.

Answer 25

I learned in school a few years ago that in the USA in the 1920's there was a serious illness going around (i can't quite remember the name) and they beleived if you sneezed then you had contracted the illness and were going to pass away. They said god bless you which was basically saying god bless your sould before you pass.

Answer 26

because they say you ward of evil spirits when you sneeze, so they "bless" you for it

Answer 27

Well, I believe it derives from an old tale of sneezing opens your soul to the devil? Something like that. But if someone said 'God Bless You', you were safe from possession.  

Answer 28

because it was a sign of the plague

back in the day. &nd obviously it was

very deadly so if you had any sign

of catching it you needed gods blessings

to keep you from catching it.

thats why people that don't believe in

god normally say "gasuntight" [sp.]

hope i helped. :]

Answer 29

It comes from old beliefs that sneezing is the body fighting the devil. The sneeze is evil spirits coming out, hence God bless you for fighting the good fight