For many people, eating with their hands is a rude, execrable gesture and a sign of great bad manners.
For many others, however, it is not only a very normal practice but one with profound connotations and meanings. religious And cultural.
The first evidence of people eating with their hands dates back to the ancient civilizations of Middle East, of Egypt and ChinaIn these cultures, food was often consumed without the use of utensils, directly with the hands.
This method was not only practical but also imbued with profound symbolism, representing a direct and intimate connection with nourishment, and it persisted throughout antiquity.
In one of the most famous meals in history we find the Redeemer breaking bread with his hands and distributing it to his Apostles, just as we witness the traitor Judas dipping the same bread into the Master’s plate.
In the Islamic world, it is still good religious practice to eat with your hands, strictly using the right hand, since the left is considered impure.
According to tradition, desert demons and djinn always use the left hand to commit their misdeeds, and furthermore, the “less noble” limb is usually used for ablutions and daily toilette after having performed one’s bodily needs.
So the left hand absolutely cannot be used to pick up the precious food and bring it to the mouth.
The number of fingers used is also important, there must be at least three, taking food with only two fingers is frowned upon.
The habit of eating with the right hand is also widespread among various populations of India, Asia in general and Africa.
For all these people, eating with their hands is seen as an act of sharing and community.
The meal is often considered a moment of family and social union, where food is shared in large communal dishes and consumed with the hands, promoting a sense of mutual belonging.
In the West, the habit of eating with a fork and knife began to spread in the late Middle Ages and from Renaissancewith the advent and diffusion of manuals of good table manners, such as the famous one by Monsignor of the House.
It is now such an established practice that not using cutlery during meals is truly frowned upon.
But with some due exceptions and some “returns to the origins”.
For example, bread is always eaten with the hands, using a fork would seem strange even to our eyes.
For pizza, it is an ancient custom to eat it even without cutting it, perhaps folded on itself, like a wallet.
Even chicken and ribs are tolerated to be eaten with the hands, following an ancient custom that has never disappeared.
Not only that.
Some food trends have made us rediscover in some cases the pleasure of eating with our hands without being criticized, as with hamburgers and the many street foods that have become popular again in recent years.
A true return to the past, without social conventions and just for the pleasure of tasting good food.