2.2. Leviticus and Dietary Restrictions

Now, these Leviticus to the Israeli people they are saying hey, no pork on my fork, you cannot eat pork okay, no pork on my fork so, Mary Douglas was curious why Israeli people are restricted not to have pork, why they cannot eat pork, what is the reason, why they seen it is a kind of risky pollution.

Leviticus is an important book in the Jewish tradition that provides guidelines on rituals, ethics, and dietary laws. One of the well-known dietary restrictions is against eating pork. Mary Douglas, an anthropologist, explored the reasons behind this restriction, questioning why pork was considered impure. Her inquiry leads to a broader understanding of how cultural practices shape our perceptions of risk and purity.

Imagine a school where certain foods are banned for health reasons. For instance, if candy is prohibited to keep students healthy, students might begin to see candy as 'bad.' This reflects how cultural or institutional rules shape our understanding of what is safe or dangerous.

(...) somebody argued that the pork it carries some kind of parasites so, if you are eating, consuming pork you will be affected by parasites, your body will be affect, consuming also parasites; Trichinella spiralis.

One scientific explanation for the prohibition of pork is the risk of parasites like Trichinella spiralis, which can cause illness. Eating infected pork can lead to health problems, which is why some cultures warn against it. However, Mary Douglas challenges this view, suggesting that the restriction might not solely be about health risks but also tied to broader cultural beliefs about purity.

Think about how some people avoid certain foods, like raw eggs, due to potential health risks. It's not just about the bacteria; there's a cultural perception of what is safe and what is not, guiding people’s dietary choices.

Douglas was, of course, arguing that such concerns are not unique to the Israelis but thrive today in support of social structure or many other tribal societies.

Mary Douglas argues that dietary restrictions and concerns about purity are common across cultures, not just in Judaism. These concerns reflect a society's values and structures. Different cultures have different views on which foods are acceptable or taboo, which shapes their identity and communal beliefs.

In a vegetarian family, meat might be seen as wrong both morally and culturally. This shapes their family gatherings, rituals, and even how they view themselves in relation to others who consume meat.

Mary Douglas found that according to the Leviticus, according to the Jews Israeli, people cannot eat pigs because pig is; pigs are anomalies, like pigs have cloven hooves like cow or horse but they do not chew the cud like other cloven hooves as land animals generally do like horse or cow.

Douglas introduces the concept of 'taxonomic anomalies' — the idea that certain animals are classified in ways that make them seem impure or inappropriate for consumption. For example, pigs are cloven-hooved like cows but do not chew cud, which presents a classification problem and a reason for their exclusion from the diet in Levitical law.

Consider a rule at a zoo: some animals cannot be kept together because they are considered incompatible based on their nature. This classification helps maintain order and safety, similar to dietary rules in cultures that categorize food according to perceived purity.

(...) even within the Hindu practices, the reason could be different but we can see that many foods are considered to be polluted, dangerous and many people are vegetarian.

Douglas notes that dietary restrictions are present in other cultures, such as Hinduism, where cows are sacred and pork is avoided. This indicates broader patterns of how societies establish food classifications as either pure or polluted, which influences dietary choices.

In many cultures, the cow is revered and often not eaten, similar to how some cultures have a taboo against eating dogs. These cultural beliefs help shape people's identities and their views on what constitutes appropriate food.

So, risk according to that way, it’s not the external stimulus that determined but risk is basically, culturally constructed, we are culturally biased.

Douglas argues that perceptions of risk are heavily influenced by culture. What one society views as dangerous, another might find acceptable. This highlights how cultural background significantly shapes an individual's or community's understanding of risk.

In one culture, eating insects is seen as a protein-rich snack, while in another, it might be considered taboo or disgusting. This demonstrates how risk is culturally relative — it's not just about danger, but also about what societies accept.

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