He who spits in the air gets it back in the face — actions taken against others rebound on the person who initiated them. Aggression, slander, and malice return to their source.
This vivid and slightly crude proverb has the directness that characterises Piedmontese popular wisdom. It makes its point with physical clarity: defy the laws of gravity and the consequences are immediate and personal. In the mountainous communities of the Cuneese and the Valsesia, where communities were small and reputations durable, the person who spread slander about a neighbour, who cheated a business partner, or who tried to damage a rival usually found the consequences returning at speed. The proverb is one of several in the Piedmontese tradition that express this karmic certainty — the certainty that the world is a closed system in which energy returns to its source. It is used to discourage both malice and imprudence.
Piedmontese proverb. The directness and physical vividness of the image is characteristic of mountain community wisdom, where actions and their consequences were immediate and visible.
A Piedmontese employer warned about treating workers badly
— Li pago il minimo e non do permessi. — Chi sputa in aria, al torna an facia. I lavoratori migliori se ne andranno e resterai con i peggiori.
— I pay them the minimum and give no leave. — He who spits in the air gets it back in the face. The best workers will leave and you will be left with the worst.
A Turin gossip who spread false rumours
Aveva sparso in giro che il fornitore era disonesto. Era una bugia. Chi sputa in aria, al torna an facia — adesso nessuno le compra più niente.
She had spread around that the supplier was dishonest. It was a lie. He who spits in the air gets it back in the face — now nobody buys anything from her.
A mother warning her son against provoking a stronger opponent
Non provocare quello lì — è più grande e più furbo di te. Chi sputa in aria, al torna an facia.
Do not provoke that one — he is bigger and cleverer than you. He who spits in the air gets it back in the face.
A Cuneo farmer on the result of a legal dispute he started
Ha fatto causa al vicino per un metro di confine. Ha perso e ha pagato anche le spese legali dell'altro. Chi sputa in aria, al torna an facia.
He sued the neighbour over a metre of boundary. He lost and paid the other's legal costs too. He who spits in the air gets it back in the face.