10 Common Superstitions From Around the World

To define superstition via Merriam-Webster Dictionary would be, ‘a belief or way of behaving on fear of the unknown and faith in magic or luck’. In simpler terms, to believe what your grandmother said.

Given the mystery and curiosity enveloping superstitions, I have put forward a post which lists some of the common superstitions from around the world.

Some people believe that it is only the ‘black cat’ which brings bad luck while some others insist that any cat (crossing the road) will bring impending doom. Say you are, driving down a road and you see a cat dashing across that road (probably because it saw a mouse), you need to take a step back, and spit on the road.

You have all probably heard about the unluckiness of the number ‘13’. So what happens to people whose birthday falls on the 13^th? Who lives on the 13^th floor of the apartment? Who has the number 13 as their house no? I think they live fairly normal lives. So I suppose this is not very well-founded. But there are plenty of reasons why 13 is considered to be unlucky.

Check out this link: http://mentalfloss.com/article/23266/13-reasons-people-think-number-13-unlucky

This is, I believe, more in the Indian context. But yes, it is said that if you wear new clothes on Saturday, you would not only experience bad luck, but chances are, that your brand new clothes would end up getting damaged (in the near future).

This we can thank the Romans for starting it. But some even say that the mirror superstition existed way before the Romans came in and tagged the ‘seven years’ bad luck to it. Seven, they say, is because according to ancient Roman belief, it took seven years for life to renew itself.

An itchy palm is said to signify the incoming of lots of money. Haha-if only this were true because right now my palm is itching so badly that I can’t type straight. If, in case, it does work for me, I’ll be back to let you know.

Another superstition that probably started in India where there are so many myna birds that people obviously had to spin out something about their existence. If you see one myna bird, then it said to bring bad, like really bad luck. While two or more is said to bring good luck. Not to worry much because seldom will you see a lone myna bird, and if in case, you do see one, its partner is probably hopping nearby.

Since we are pretty sure that vampires don’t exist, and not very sure about ghosts, so this superstition, even though is a ‘superstition’, is somewhat soothing. Knowing that all it takes is a garlic to keep the spectres at bay is great, but not so great, if it doesn’t work. And I don’t know whether or not it works.

This is good news to some people. Refusing a kiss under mistletoe is said to bring bad luck. And we don’t want bad luck during Christmas, do we? So next time, if someone does refuse to kiss you, wait till Christmas, and then lure him/her under mistletoe and kiss him/her. And if they still refuse, then you know what to say.

Yet another mundane thing that we keep doing all the time. Do you know that to open an umbrella inside a house is bad luck? I keep doing it all the time, and so far, I can’t quite attribute my bouts of bad luck to opening an umbrella inside the house.

I don’t think anyone ever tried this except William the Conqueror during the Battle of Hastings. He said that this was a good omen. I am not so sure about this except that it would be a fashion faux pas.