Superstitions....

Friday the 13th. I imagine all you friggatriskaidekaphobics ( those afraid of Friday the 13th ) are hiding under your blankies, but as for the rest of us, let's take a look at some of the superstitions around the world!

There is no shortage of superstitions in this world. Some may have a basis in science, others in witchcraft and wives' tales. To me, they are all quite silly.

• "Find a penny, pick it up. And all day long you'll have good luck." I must admit, that on the occasion I pick a penny off the ground, I generally recite this. Not because I believe it, but because it's such an old little ditty that I've heard since childhood. I have read that this may have come from another rhyme " See a pin, pick it up. And all day long you'll have good luck. See a pin, let it lay, and your luck will pass on by."




• Don't walk under a ladder! There are 3 thoughts, that I have found, as to why this became popular. 1. Just the logic of it- Who wants to knock someone off a ladder? 2. From a Christian perspective - A ladder leaned against a wall forms a triangle which is representative of the Trinity and one would not want to break the triangle. 3. The ladder resembles medieval gallows.




• Black cats crossing your path. This is most probably a result of the lore of witches and their familiars which is said to be black cats. I would most certainly be in trouble if this superstition were true as I have 2 all black cats in my home.




• Watch out for that mirror! According to folklore, breaking a mirror is a surefire way to doom yourself to seven years of bad luck. The superstition seems to arise from the belief that mirrors don't just reflect your image; they hold bits of your soul. That belief led people in the old days of the American South to cover mirrors in a house when someone died, lest their soul be trapped inside. Like the number three, the number seven is often associated with luck. Seven years is a long time to be unlucky, which may be why people have come up with counter-measures to free themselves after breaking a mirror. These include touching a piece of the broken mirror to a tombstone or grinding the mirror shards into powder.




• No umbrellas indoors...And not just because you'll poke someones eye out. Opening an umbrella indoors is supposed to bring bad luck, though the origins of this belief are murky. Legends abound, from a story of an ancient Roman woman who happened to have opened her umbrella moments before her house collapsed, to the tale of a British prince who accepted two umbrellas from a visiting king and died within months. Like the "don't walk under a ladder" superstition, this seems to be a case of a myth arising to keep people from doing something that is slightly dangerous in the first place.




• In Poland, they believe it is bad luck to place a handbag ( purse ) on the floor as this will keep you broke.




• In Indonesia, it is believed that if you are pregnant and mock someone with a handicap, your child will be born disabled.




• In Mexico it is believed that wearing pearls on your wedding way will bring bad luck and tears throughout your marriage.




• Fishermen have many superstitions. It is good luck to put a coin on a float and throwing back the first fish of the catch. It is unlucky to: Changing rods during fishing, have a female stepping over your fishing rod, Baiting a hook using your left hand, Sitting on an upturned bucket, Casting without spitting on the bait.




• When it comes to brooms there are several superstitions too. It's lucky to bring a new broom into a new house when you move. It is, however, unlucky to lend a broom, borrow a broom, have a broom fall over near you or stand a broom on it's bristles.




• More on black cats! It's considered lucky to: own a black cat, touch a black cat, have a black cat enter your home or greet you at someone else's door and seeing three black cats in succession.

There are soooo many superstitions! Just do a search for "Superstitions around the world", and you'll be amazed at what all you find!