Superstition, what is that? If you think that hammering a horseshoe above the door brings luck, that is superstition. If you think that you should not walk under a ladder because it will bring bad luck, that is superstition. When you have to look under your bed every night before going to sleep to see if there might be…… that’s superstition. If you can only win a match if you have drunk two glasses of coke, this is (in addition to being unhealthy) a superstition.
Contents
- Superstition is not faith
- Superstition comes from the unknown
- The horseshoe
- Shards bring luck, or not
- Do not walk under a ladder
- Four-leaf clover for luck
- Sneeze three times
- Just knock
- Fingers crossed
Superstition is not faith
Superstition is not faith, it is not religion, it is only belief in.. Well in what? For example, believing that numbers have a magical meaning. Believing that we can control the elements through our own actions, it always starts to rain when my raincoat is at home, so because of what I failed to do, it started to rain. My child was born with a cleft lip because I was startled by a loud bang. Superstition is always irrational, no one will be able to give a rational explanation for the fact that a cracked mirror is bad luck. But we do believe that. Why do people in a primarily rational society believe irrational superstition?
Superstition comes from the unknown
The prevailing view about the survival of superstition is that despite all scientific progress, we are still unable to provide answers to all of life’s major questions. In addition, superstition stems from a deep-seated fear of the unknown, of what will actually be our fate. If that was the case in ancient times, it is no different now. The real source of all superstition lies in a distant past when everything was uncertain. The world used to be dark, incomprehensible and of course full of magic, otherwise where did the floods come from? We know more, have knowledge about the origins of storms, where we come from, why daylight always comes again. Yet apparently we still need it. What do we believe?
The horseshoe
Horseshoes bring luck, especially above the front door. The open side must be facing up, otherwise the happiness will fall out. You throw a found horseshoe over your left shoulder and you can make a wish. Don’t look back! That brings bad luck and the wish will certainly not come true.
There are several explanations for the horseshoe. The horseshoe with the open side up would form a C, for Christ. The shape of the horseshoe is said to resemble a crescent moon, a symbol of good luck in many cultures. The horseshoe found was said to be from Sleipnir, the eight-legged steed of Wodan.
Shards bring luck, or not
Shards bring good luck, except for the shards of a mirror, which bring bad luck for seven years. The common shards bring luck. We throw glassware to scare the evil spirits. The noise would frighten the demons. That’s why the Greeks throw the glasses over their shoulders and the Jewish groom kicks a glass.
Breaking a mirror is bad luck. A mirror reflects the soul of a person, not just the appearance. The Romans believed that when the mirror broke, the soul broke too. In addition, a mirror is said to attract lightning. But even many centuries later, the connection between the mirror and the soul remained. In a house where a deceased person was lying in state, the mirrors were covered. The dead soul was not allowed to see his reflection, imagine if he wanted to stay! Or even worse, someone was drawn into death.
By breaking a mirror a soul could be separated from a body and that automatically meant death. Enough mischief, why seven years? The ancient Roman belief was that the body renewed itself every seven years. So the misfortune could only last seven years, after which the body was as new again.
Do not walk under a ladder
Who still happily walks under a ladder? A study was once conducted on this, 70% of the participants tried to prevent it. The ladder, the road and the wall form (with a little imagination) a triangle. The triangle represents the Holy Trinity and it is disrespectful to walk through it. In addition, the ladder is the symbol for souls ascending to heaven. Souls that you should certainly not disturb at such an important moment. To renounce all evil you had to keep your fingers crossed and spit over the left shoulder. You had to keep your fingers crossed until you came across a dog. (Still by the way)
Four-leaf clover for luck
A four-leaf clover brings luck. When you pass on the clover it even brings double luck. It is almost a universal good luck charm. It is not entirely clear why the plant has followers all over the world. Maybe it has to do with the shape, it looks a bit like a Christian cross. But they bring luck, and not just that little bit. When a girl puts a clover in her shoe, she marries the first man she meets. (Or at least with someone who has the same name) People who carried a clover could not be deceived and were clairvoyant.
There is a big but to all this luck, a four-leaf clover only brings prosperity if you have found it yourself. So ripping happiness out of the hands of another picker makes no sense.
Sneeze three times
First of all, why do we say health when someone sneezes? In the past, it was believed that the soul left the body for a brief moment during a sneeze. Every wandering demon had a momentary chance to take over the body. So the person himself had to say something to bring the soul back to the body as quickly as possible. In other stories, health is said to confuse the demons.
B ut sneezing is more. Sneezing three times makes for a sunny day. If someone sneezes on the port side of a ship, it will be a bad trip. Sneezing during a wedding ceremony is bad luck. When you sneeze once you can make a wish, sneeze twice for a kiss and sneeze three times? Think about that for yourself.
Just knock
When you talk about happiness, you have to knock it off, because imagine. Haven’t had the flu in the last few months…just knocking. It only works on untreated types of wood, knocking on a clear varnished table has no effect, at least that’s what superstition says. Trees traditionally have a magical charge, homes of the gods in Germanic culture. Touching wood, actually the tree, was a kind of tribute to the gods. If you wanted something from the gods you had to touch or even better embrace the tribe. If the gods had honored your request, you had to knock on the trunk in gratitude.
Fingers crossed
If you want to get under a ladder reasonably happily, you have to cross two fingers. The middle finger over the index finger, preferably on your right hand. But crossing your fingers will prevent a lot of disaster. The most likely explanation is that the fingers literally form a cross. The cross is a hugely positive symbol. A cross protects us from disaster and also from exposure. Crossing your fingers when lying seems to work fine.