On Friday 29 Aug 2008 3:20:17 pm Gautam John wrote: > Reminds me of something else I once read. Apparently the > toothpick-left-hanging-in-mouth thing has its origins in signifying > that the person in question is wealthy enough to eat meat. And hence > the requirement for a toothpick...
I used to hear a kid's story (as a boy) of a man who needed to show that he was wealthy. In this case the sign of wealth would be the fact that he ate rice - and not just rice - but rice and yogurt which means wealthy. He would ask for one grain of cooked rice to be mixed with yogurt and placed on his moustache every day so everyone would know. One day he forgot and the story ends with a servant rushing in while the man was meeting important people and asking if he did not want a grain of rice and yogurt on his moustache that day. shiv
