![]() With elders or superiors, the nod is deeper and the hands are raised so your nose touches your thumbs and your forefingers rest between your eyebrows, and with monks, the hands are even higher – your thumbs should be between your eyebrows and your index fingers should touch the forehead – and there’s a slight bow involved as well. In settings involving friends, acquaintances, and people of the same social standing, a brief nod in which your thumbs touch your chin and your nose touches the tips of your index fingers will do the trick, though for people your own age, the nod alone should be sufficient. It’s a gesture used for multiple purposes – to say hello or goodbye, apologize or thank someone – and also differs from case to case, based mainly on the age and status of the person being addressed. In its modern incarnation, however, the bow is often omitted and the word “namaste” is uttered on its own – except when addressing people held in high esteem, like elders or VIPs, in which case the bow adds an extra level of deference.Īnother variation on the theme is the Thai wâi, a show of respect in which the hands are placed together prayer-style at chest level, with palms and fingers touching, elbows tucked in, and the head inclined downward. The word translates directly from the Sanskrit to “I bow to you,” and when it’s executed in the traditional fashion, with hands pressed together in front of your heart as if in prayer, a bow is indeed involved. Similarly, the Hindu namaste is used to indicate respect and gratitude in countries like India, Nepal, and Bangladesh. The traditional namaste comes with a bow © stockpexel/ ![]() "There will always be a place in Māori society for the hongi," the minister for Māori-Crown relations, Kelvin Davis, said. But in December, when one politician voiced concerns about the custom’s eventual return in light of the coronavirus, others sprang to its defense. It’s not exactly a pandemic-friendly practice, and indeed, hongi was discouraged by New Zealand’s prime minister and officially restricted by at least one local iwi, or tribe, as cases surged last spring. Angus Hikairo Macfarlane, professor of Māori research at the University of Canterbury, explained to Stuff. This sharing of breath is “a symbolic show of unity between two people,” Dr. A ritual with spiritual elements rooted in mythology, the hongi sees two people clasp hands, press noses and foreheads together, and inhale each other’s breath, much like the god Tāne-nui-a-Rangi is said to have breathed life into the first woman. Hongi, the traditional greeting of New Zealand’s Māori people, is often mistaken for a simple nose rub, but there’s more to it than that. ![]() The Māori hongi has been temporarily restricted during the pandemic, ©Frans Lemmens/Getty Images ![]()
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