Love Feeds More Than The Soul

What better day is there than Valentines Day to plan a special meal with the one you love. Sharing food is a way of establishing and demonstrating closeness in nearly every culture. The French often flirt by eating off one another’s plates. As part of the Malay wedding ceremony, the bride and groom sit in state and feed each other yellow rice with hands painted with henna. In the Hula society of New Guinea, feeding and sexual intimacy are both believed to achieve the transfer of nu, the vital essence. Scientists have even speculated that kissing originated with mothers feeding their babies much like birds do. After the babies were old enough to eat food, kissing was used as sign of comfort and affection. consider it the anthropology of amore.

Tagged as: love. valentine's day. valentines. sharing food. food. cultures.