In popular media depictions, whenever blood is required for a ritual, pact, or spell, the “donor“ always seems to slice themselves across the palm of the hand.
When it comes to living life AFTER the ritual, this would seem an extremely inconvenient place to suffer a wound – but it’s nearly universal.
My question: are there historical/cultural models for this choice, or is it purely for dramatic “Hollywood” effect?
I have a related question, not sure if that's allowed here - if not I apologize. But as a follow-up to OP: How common were blood rituals? Were they ever actually an important part of any culture or religion, especially in terms of self-harming for it?
Followup question/clarification: Is this phenomenon at all related to the popular depiction of Jesus's crucifiction involving stakes being driven through his hands?