Why did Edmund Burke believe inherited prejudices could contain social wisdom?

Edmund Burke argued that inherited prejudices contain social wisdom because they represent the accumulated experience of generations, which he believed was far more reliable than the "feeble reason" of any single individual.1

Rather than relying on abstract, untested theories—which he feared would lead to social destruction and dictatorship—Burke advocated for trusting the "latent wisdom" of tradition. He viewed society as a partnership between the dead, the living, and those yet to be born. Because human beings are inherently flawed, Burke believed it was safer to rely on these time-tested morals, manners, and institutions than to "put men to live and trade each on his own private stock of reason".12

For Burke, these prejudices were not irrational biases but essential, socially necessary frameworks that provide stability and continuity, allowing for evolutionary improvement while preserving the foundational fabric of a commonwealth.12