I am trying to determine why I see so many references to right being good and left being bad.
We see this not only in the reference to female prisoners of war as property that, "the right hands possess", but also in "the people of the right hand" and "people of the left hand", "the angel on your right side that records good deeds" and "the angel on your left side that records bad deeds", and many other hadiths.
Was there something in the culture of the times that caused "what your right hands possess" to be an apt analogy for ownership of assets and people or would this still be perfectly applicable today? Similarly, was there something in the times making the right side better and were these concepts related?
Some have said the following: Does the right side have a higher status than the left?
However, answers like these do not feel complete given that some of my research suggests it may have been a matter of cleanliness and etiquette. This can inform whether the supremacy of the right is timeless or bound to the culture of time and place.
Ultimately, it isn't deeply important but a matter of looking deeper to understand the roots of these phrasings and preferences.
I appreciate the help of the community. Inshallah, you may bring greater wisdom and guidance to my understandings.