Archive for the ‘superstition’ Tag
Would you consider yourself a superstitious person? Most people don’t think they are but when questioned further the truth always comes out. Superstition comes in a number of forms but today I want to talk about the number 13. We are a technological people creating devices and accomplishments that boggle the mind. Why is it that there are no buildings in this country with a 13th floor. That fact is absolutely ridiculous for a modern country leading the world in so many areas. Here are some other examples of how stupid and superstitious we really are.
- The fear of the number 13 or “triskaidekaphobia” seems to have been around a long time. Viking mythology claims thirteen guests were seated at Loki’s Valhalla feast. Also, there were thirteen attendees at the Last Supper.
- Friday is also considered an unlucky because it was day of the crucifixion. It is claimed that Adam and Eve also ate the forbidden fruit on a Friday. That would surely make Friday the 13th a double whammy.
- Winston Churchill, former British prime minister, never traveled on a Friday the 13th unless absolutely necessary.
- Graham Chapman of Monty Python fame arranged to be buried on the 13th hour of Friday, October 13th, 1989.
- Benny Goodman and former vice-president Hubert Humphrey died on Friday the 13th.
- Months that begin on a Sunday will always have a Friday the 13th.
- On March 13, 1992, a violent earthquake in Turkey killed more than a thousand people.
- In 1972 on a Friday, a plane crashed in the Andes without food and water compelling the survivors to turn to cannibalism to stay alive.
- On Friday, October 13, 1307, King Philip IV of France ordered the arrest and torture of all members of the Knights Templar on charges of heresy.
- German bombs hit Buckingham Palace on Friday, September 13th, 1940, during World War II.
🐈⬛🐈⬛🐈⬛
T.G.I.F.
SUPERSTITION IS THE POETRY OF LIFE, SO THAT IT
DOES NOT INJURE THE POET TO BE SUPERSTITIOUS.
(Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe)
BED SUPERSTITIONS
- It is said one should never sleep with their feet towards the door, because only corpses lie like that.
- Some believe it is very unlucky to get out of bed backwards.
- In Scotland, there is the belief that it is unlucky to leave the bed while making it. If the bed making is interrupted, the occupant of the bed will pass a sleepless night, or some much worse evil will befall him or her.
- Some believe that if three people take part in making a bed, there is sure to be a death in the household with in the year.
CELEB SUPERSTITIONS
- Lionel, Ethel, and John Barrymore always gave each other an apple on the night of a show’s premiere.
- Jimmy Connors wouldn’t compete in a tennis match without a little note from his grandma tucked into his sock.
- The late actor Jack Lemmon always whispered “magic time” as filming started on a new movie.
- American inventor Thomas Edison carried a staurolite, a stone that forms naturally in the shape of a cross. Legend has it that when fairies heard of Christ’s crucifixion, their tears fell as these little “ferry cross” stones.
- Actress Gretta Garbo always wore a lucky string of pearls.
- Mario Andretti the famous racecar driver would not sign autographs with a green pen.
- Actor John Wayne always considered it extremely lucky to be in a movie with fellow actor Ward Bond.
- Baseball pitcher Randy Johnson always ate pancakes before a game.
“SUPERSTITION BRINGS THE GOD’S INTO
EVEN THE SMALLEST MATTERS.”
(Titus Livy)
I thought I’d step back from my comfort zone a little for today’s post. I’m not a big believer in the occult and all things mysterious but you may find them interesting. Some folks live for this kind of craziness which apparently helps them deal with their fears and phobias. Here are a few superstitions on varied subjects which should convince you without a doubt that most human beings are nuts. Believe them or not.
- If you see a white horse, put the little finger of your right hand against your chin just under your lips. Then, spit vigorously over your finger. You will soon find a bundle of money and your worries will be over. I guess the real trick today is to try and find a white horse.
- If a man has a mole on his nose, it means he is going to be rich. Moles generally mean good luck unlike warts, which signify bad luck. A mole on a man’s nose was a sign of good luck and material wealth. A mole on a woman’s nose, or anywhere else on her face, meant she was beautiful but not necessarily wealthy. My advice, look for a wartless women with a mole on her cheek and also one her nose, “Problem Solved”.
- The yolk of an egg, yellow like the sun, had the power to cast out the evil eye. Egg worshiping cults existed in many cultures throughout history. Ancient Egyptians believed the one supreme life was in an egg. This belief was expressed in the hieroglyphs for their sun god, Ra. I guess, this explains my absolute love of eggs. No one has ever successfully given me the scary Evil Eye.”
I guess all of these quirky superstitions come to us from generations of foolish beliefs of foolish people. It just further convinces me that people really are nuts and that we unfortunately come by it honestly. Here is one final one item that I particularly liked:
- If you inadvertently walk through a spider’s web, you will soon receive a letter with good news. If you try to do it intentionally, you’ll be cursed, screwed, with all manner of bad things sure to happen. Most of my letters must have been lost in the mail. I’m still looking for all that money.
FIND A LADDER – WALK UNDER IT. I DARE YOU.
I’ve been writing this blog for more than 10 years and if you’ve read any of my postings you know that I’m a bit pragmatic in my beliefs. I’m not someone who believes in the mystical, superstitious, and nonsensical beliefs that exist with certain groups. Strangely enough there is a large portion of the population that does. I may not believe in these things, but I do read about them with the hope that someone can convince me otherwise.
I was recently reading a book titled The Book of Bizarre Truths. There’s a lot of information in that book concerning “curses” (both good and evil). I found this story interesting, funny, and sports related. Here it is . . .
This is called “Da Billy Goat Curse”. In 1945, William “Billy Goat” Sianis brought his pet goat, Murphy, to Wrigley Field to see the fourth game of the 1945 World Series between the Chicago Cubs and the Detroit Tigers. Sianis and his goat were later ejected from the game, and Sianis reportedly put a curse on the team that day. After that, the Cubs had legendary bad luck. Over the years, Cubs fans experienced agony in repeated late season collapses when victory seemed imminent. Even those who didn’t consider themselves Cubs fans blamed the curse for the weird and almost comical losses year after year. Finally, in 2016, the Cubs broke the curse, winning the World Series for the first time since 1908.
Again, I don’t believe in curses or blessings but let me tell you a short and bizarre story. Many years ago, after I left the police department I started and ran a private investigation company. One dark and rainy night I met a client in the town of McKees Rocks in Pennsylvania at her home. This Romanian woman hired me to determine who her married lover was seeing on the side. I know it sounds a little weird but if you run a private investigation business “weird” is the operative word. Before she would officially hire me, she sat me in the center of the room on a chair, sprinkled some kind of weird and foul-smelling powder in my hair, all the while chanting quietly to herself in Romanian as she walked in circles around me. She assured me her blessing would guarantee my success and believe it or not she was right. I made the case two nights later, took my check, and got the hell out of there. I still don’t believe in blessings or curses, but it is interesting (and her check cleared as well).
DO YOU KNOW ANYONE YOU’D LIKE TO CURSE ?
Over the years I’ve voiced my opinions concerning people obsessed with the supernatural and occult. Unfortunately, I haven’t always been kind in my criticisms and opinions about them. I’ve never been a believer of these superstitions like black cats walking in front of me or walking under a ladder. I always thought them silly, without basis in fact, just superstitious nonsense passed down from generations who apparently didn’t have a clue either. I hate to admit it, but I may have to eat my words.
While I totally scoff at almost everything superstitious, I discovered quite by accident that I’ve been paying closer attention to one superstition over the years and didn’t realize it. My obsession is and has been the number three. For most of my life I considered that my lucky number and if something occurred where I had to make choices and the number three was involved, I always picked number three. I don’t know why, it wasn’t planned, and I really didn’t realize the extent of the human races’ obsession with that number until now. So, I decided to do a little more research which opened my eyes even further. Here’s my homage to the number 3.
THE GENIE GAVE ME THREE WISHES
Three is the average number of seconds visitors to an Art gallery spent in front of each painting. Triceratops means three horned faces. Three goals are a hat trick. A triathlon is a three-part swim, run, and cycle competition. Any national flag made of three bands of color is a tricolor. The Three Musketeers in the novel by Alexander Dumas’s are Athos, Porthos, and Aramis. Dante’s Divine Comedy is structured around the number three, alluding to the holy Trinity. That book has three parts; Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso – each divided into 33 cantos in terza rima (three-line stanzas).
In Greek mythology, the three Fates control birth, life, and death; the three Furies upheld sacred laws; and the three Graces bestowed beauty and charm. The ancient Egyptians, Babylonians, Greeks, and Romans all had Trinity’s of God’s. Jupiter’s symbol is a three-forked bolt of lightning, Neptune’s a three-pronged trident, and Pluto’s, a three headed dog. Hindus worship the trinity of Brahma, the Creator; Vishnu, the Perseverer; and Shiva, the Destroyer.
In Christianity, Christ represents one third of the Holy Trinity (Father, Son, Holy Ghost); he was visited by three wiseman at his birth; 33 years later, after Judas betrayed him for 30 pieces of silver and Peter denied him three times, he was crucified at 3 PM and rose from the dead three days later.
Time is threefold: past, present, and future. Pythagoras called three the perfect number, denoting beginning, middle, and end. The strongest shape is a triangle. The three states of matter are solid, liquid, and gas. Earth is the third planet from the sun. White light is made from three primary colors: red, blue, and green. The three primary colors of pigment are red, yellow, and blue, whose totality is black.
I suspect that all of the number three’s I listed above are only a small sampling of the use of the number three. Over the course of my existence, I’ve been subconsciously pelted with the number three in virtually every phase of my life. How could I not have three as my favorite number? Brainwashing at its absolute best.
REMEMBER THOSE “THREE LITTLE WORDS” TOO!
For most of my life I’ve had older people telling me things that I had a hard time believing. Growing up in western Pennsylvania put me in contact with many people with their genealogical roots in eastern Europe. I wasn’t more than seven or eight when a elderly neighbor lady who spoke broken English told me to wear cloves of garlic around my neck to ward off evil spirits. It wasn’t until many years later that I discovered she was an immigrant from Romania where they have a history of evil beings and Vlad the Impaler.
Old wives tales are present in every society it seems and have been passed down through the generations as being the gospel truth. When I lived in Korea I found out the best way to insure a safe pregnancy was to hang a strand of charcoal pieces over the doorway to your home. I thought it was nonsense but after a group of elderly Korean ladies threatened me with bodily harm, I just smiled and got out of their way. They put the charcoal in place and there was once again peace in the valley.
Here’s an interesting collection of “Old Wives Tales” for you women out there. I can’t verify that they’re true or that they actually work but I can guarantee that somewhere out there are a few Old Wives who believe it.
-
If you happen to step on a man’s toes, whether dancing or in a crowd, it is the man you’ll marry. So the next time you step on a man’s toes, take a real good look at him, you just might be looking The One.
-
Eve didn’t have any choice as to who she gave the apple to. But before you give your apple away, try this. Cut it in half and put all the seeds in a pan on the stove. Name each seed after a man you know. Then quickly heat the pan. The first seed to pop will reveal the name of the man for you.
-
A woman who puts on a bridal veil and holds orange blossoms on any occasion, but not her own wedding, will never marry.
-
If you are young woman make a pie. While trimming the pie crust, if it falls over your hand, that is a sign you will marry young.
-
If a woman braids her hair and leaves out a strand, it is a sign she will marry within the year.
-
If there are many men in your life and you wonder which one you’ll marry, take 12 slips of paper and write on each slip the name of one of the men. Place the 12 slips into an envelope and sleep with it under your pillow. Each morning draw one slip from the envelope at random. Rip it up and toss it away. The last slip of paper in the envelope is the name of the man you will marry.
-
If you have a man in your life and you want him to remain interested in you and to pop the big question, never let him carry your comb in his pocket.
-
A woman who makes a good looking bed will have a good looking husband. And a woman who has an unkempt bed will have someone else’s husband.
-
If you haven’t met Mr. Right yet, but want to see his face, follow these steps. Find a well. Make sure it’s not covered so that you can actually look down into it and see the water. On the night of the full moon, toss a penny into the well. The face you see at the bottom of the well is the man you’ll marry.
Unfortunately ladies most of you will one day be an Old Wife. I’m supplying you with these tales so you’ll have something to pass along to your daughters. It’s your motherly responsibility to keep this tradition alive. Every generation has the right to hear this nonsense and then to pass it along to their daughters. It keeps life interesting.
everyuselessthing.com 