It is said that a visitor once came to the home of Nobel Prize–winning physicist Niels Bohr and, having noticed a horseshoe hung above the entrance, asked incredulously if the professor believed horseshoes brought good luck. “No,” Bohr replied, “but I am told that they bring luck even to those who do not believe in them.”
As a scientist I am keenly aware both that the placebo effect is known to be effective even when the subject is aware that the stimulus is a placebo, and that connection to my cultural community has a profound effect on my mental health. I'll be keeping my evil eye ward and birth sign charms, tysm.
for me, reviving some of the practices from my cultural community even though i don't believe in the symbolism nor religious adaptations to it anymore makes me feel like i have some sort of connection and it makes me happy.
it's also makes me momentary relive some of the happy memories of beloved people who have been gone for decades in a really efficient and celebratory manner that keeps any sort of sadness about it at a distance while keeping their memories alive.