As a branch off of Etiquette from Around The World, I decided to do a superstitions one as well (but in another section as I didn't think this was domesticated material per say), due to our conversation about sneezing and coughing and covering your mouth, etc...

The point of the topic is to share with us superstitions both from your hometown or elsewhere, and if possible, share the origins of the superstition.

This can include folklore as well!

So here are a couple I know:

Mirror:

It is unlucky to break a mirror and if you do it will cause 7 years bad luck. I was watching a program that said that the reason for this was because when mirrors first came out, they were very expense so if you broke one it could take roughly 7 years to save up enough money to buy a new one. Not sure how true that is though...

I actually have a book of superstitions at my grandmother's house which is really interesting. Obviously I haven't spent much time reading or retaining the information. I'll have to get it back and look through it and see if I can find some really good ones!

Pictures (Camera):

Some people refuse to have their picture taken because they feel that the photo steals their soul.

So, do you have any superstitions to share?

-Midi
The Soulless One

black cat... if a black cat crosses your way it's bad luck. (descends from the malleus malleficarum where priests wrote that the black cat was one of the devil's forms, which is also why it's said that witches' cats are black)

purple... wearing purple is bad luck (also a christian origin. The 40 days before easter the priest wears purple during mass, and since those 40 days all theaters and shops were not making business owing to people repenting sin, actors and shopkeepers considered the colour purple bad luck. Some stories even tell that during that time of the year they were not allowed to make business and their strongboxes were covered with a violet cloth by the church that would be removed only at easter)

To add to Calliopes post- the colour purple used to be the most expensive dye to produce and it was reserved stricly for royalty and the clergy, so myths have grown up about it. It was the last colour to be synthetically produced, I htink it was only in this century that we were able to do it....someone wrote a whole book about it about 12 years ago.....

I used to be really into folklore, I used to know loads of stories - B*ggered if I can remember them off-hand now though.

-Cat jumping over the coffin- thought to reanimate corpses
-Cover mirrors and windows during morning as they were thought to trap the spirit of the deceased
- Spilt salt thrown over the shoulder to ward off deamons - left shoulder?

I broke a mirror the other day... then got a run of REALLY bad luck....hmmm

I actually remember the one about covering the mirrors when someone dies so that the soul doesn't get trapped. I also heard you should open all the windows so that the spirit doesn't get lost and can leave the home safely.

We never covered mirror but I remember getting severley told off for opening my bedroom curtains on the morning of my nans funeral- they said it was about respect for the dead (and what would the neighbours think?) but i learnt where it started from only later in life.

I've never heard of that before. Do you remember its origins?

I do actually- it's in a book I have - it's something about stopping the moon shining on the coffin- reannimation and all that. its a really good book. It's for kids but its really graphic and very scary. I just bought it again actually off Amazon- an old copy. Its called 'vampires, werewolves and demons usbourne supernatural guide by Lynn Myring. i got the othet two books in the series too.

I'll have to look into that, Thanks Tish! I forgot the name of my superstitions book. I'll have to find out when I get it back.

Dont put new shoes on the table. Its bad luck.
I have no idea where this came from but Id like to know if anyone has an idea
Salute the first magpie you see each day.
Again no idea where this came from.
Walking over three manhole covers/drains is bad luck. This is susposedly due to a series od grates collaspsing in the East end of London.

Some very old religious customs have their origins in superstition. Here are a couple:

In Judaism, if you fall seriously ill and prayers need to be said on your behalf, then your name is given along with your mother's name. (All other times in Judaism, your name is followed by your father's name – on marriage contracts, being called to Torah, etc.)

The custom of using one's mother's name for prayers for one's recovery goes back many centuries, and one reason given for it is because the Zohar states that such appeals to preternatural beings (angels of healing, invoked in medieval Judaism and Kabbalah) must be made in the name of one's mother – not one's father. Because your soul (and Jewish heritage) comes directly to you through your mother, rather than your father.

Another custom/superstition involves the naming of newborn children. Among the older generation of Ashkenazic Jews, it is believed that if you name a newborn child after a living person, it will rob that child of a full life. (Some say that the Angel of Death may confuse the child with the adult, and take the child instead of the adult when it's the adult's time to go.) Children therefore were usually named after a deceased family member. (No juniors.)

-- Nephele

I salute every magpie I see, I say either good morning Mr Magpie, or good afternoon or good evening, depending on the time of day.

In the UK seeing a black cat or having it cross your path is good luck, and if you pluck a pure white hair from an otherwise black cat without it scratching you that's extremely good luck. A strange cat visiting your house is a sign of prosperity, and a lady who owns a black cat will have many suitors.

http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=34666

Lots of stuff here. White seems to be the colour of death, except for dogs and foxes (black)

If you die with your shoes on the table your soul will try to slip into them feet first and fall into hell.

Russia: Never light three cigarettes with one match. Especially if there are any snipers around.

I've encountered that one here, too. It reportedly dates back to the First World War.