Happy Friday the 13th!
For centuries Friday 13th has been recognized as a day filled with bad omens and superstitions. I thought I’d give you a bit of background information on where some of these superstitions came from. ENJOY!
Friday the 13th itself has many superstitions related to it making it what it is believed to be today. From Adam and Eve to the Knights of Templar there are more superstitions relating to Friday the 13th than any other superstition. I’ll let you choose which you prefer to believe and move on to some of the other most common superstitions of today.
Spilling Salt – Spilling salt is believed to be bad luck. But you are supposed to be able to reverse the bad luck by throwing salt over your left shoulder. The reason that people throw salt over their left shoulder after spilling it is because it was believed that an evil spirit stood behind you to your left. If you threw it over your left shoulder, it would get in his eyes and hopefully scare him off!
Knock on Wood – Knocking on wood is said to ward off the punishment for bragging. People once believed that evil spirits would become jealous if their good fortune was pointed out to them, and would relieve the bragger of that good fortune. Evil spirits were said to be scared away by the noise of knocking on wood three times, and would not hear of the good fortune.
Bless You – During Roman times when people believed that a sneeze could release your soul to the world.
Watch out for that ladder! – This came from the early Christian belief that a leaning ladder formed a triangle with the wall and ground. You must never violate the Holy Trinity by walking through a triangle, lest you be considered in league with the devil.
Breaking Mirrors – Everyone knows that if you break a mirror … you’ll have 7 years bad luck. Some time ago people believed that reflections were actually glimpses of the viewers soul, so breaking that reflection would bring bad luck to that person.
Umbrellas – When umbrellas first began using the spring mechanism that we take for granted today, they were very unpredictable. The person opening the umbrella never knew if the spring would work properly, and a lot of fingers were squished between the spring and the top of the umbrella frame. On top of this, people were never sure how big the umbrella would be once unfurled. As a result, there were a lot of accidents within the house when the user opened the umbrella, only to realize too late that the umbrella was too big for the room. When such a mishap occurred, people used to exclaim that the umbrella user was unlucky. (found on squidoo)
Cracks -Step on a crack and you’ll break your mother’s back! The legend behind the saying stems from the fear that the crack is the entry point to the grave.
Enjoy your day and remember that each day is what YOU make it to be. Make today and every day a great one!
Many Blessings,
Angel Guide
Chasing the Rainbow 