Mostly Unusual Superstitions A - B Two Dozen to Keep You Wondering how they Came to Be

Mostly Unusual Superstitions A – B Two Dozen to Keep You Wondering how they Came to Be

There are many superstitions regarding all sorts of things. Thousands of superstitions can be found. On this page are just a few superstitions.

ACORN An acorn should be carried to bring luck and ensure a long life.
An acorn at the window will keep lightning out.

AMBER Amber beads, worn as a necklace, can protect against illness or cure colds.

APPLE An apple a day Keeps the doctor away.
If you cut an apple in half and count how many seeds are inside, you will also know how many children you will have.
BABY To predict the sex of a baby: Suspend a wedding band held by a piece of thread over the palm of the pregnant girl. If the ring swings in an oval or circular motion the baby will be a girl. If the ring swings in a straight line the baby will be a boy.

BASEBALL BAT Spit on a new bat before using it for the first time to make it lucky

BED It’s bad luck to put a hat on a bed.
If you make a bedspread, or a quilt, be sure to finish it or marriage will never come to you
Placing a bed facing north and south brings misfortune.
You must get out of bed on the same side that you get in or you will have bad luck.
When making the bed, don’t interrupt your work, or you will spend a restless night in it.

BEE If a bee enters your home, it’s a sign that you will soon have a visitor. If you kill the bee, you will have bad luck, or the visitor will be unpleasant.
A swarm of bees settling on a roof is an omen that the house will burn down.

BELL The sound of bells drives away demons because they’re afraid of the loud noise.
When a bell rings, a new angel has received his wings.

BIRD A bird in the house is a sign of a death.
If a robin flies into a room through a window, death will shortly follow.

BIRTH Monday’s child is fair of face;
Tuesday’s child is full of grace;
Wednesday’s child is full of woe;
Thursday’s child has far to go;
Friday’s child is loving and giving;
Saturday’s child works hard for a living.
But the child that is born on the Sabbath day is fair and wise, good and gay.

BIRTHDAY CAKE If you blow out all the candles on your birthday cake with the first puff you will get your wish.

BLUE To protect yourself from witches, wear a blue bead.
Touch blue And your wish Will come true.

BRIDE Bridal & wedding superstitions

BRIDGE If you say good-bye to a friend on a bridge, you will never see each other again.

BROOM Do not lean a broom against a bed. The evil spirits in the broom will cast a spell on the bed.
If you sweep trash out the door after dark, it will bring a stranger to visit.
If someone is sweeping the floor and sweeps over your feet, you’ll never get married.
Never take a broom along when you move. Throw it out and buy a new one.
To prevent an unwelcome guest from returning, sweep out the room they stayed in immediately after they leave.

BUTTERFLY If the first butterfly you see in the year is white, you will have good luck all year.
Three butterflies together mean good luck.

Questions about Superstitions

Susan asks…

superstitions about demons and candles?

she said that she was in a room with some friends and felt a demond and there was a small white night stand with three big white candles on it. so she had something like lighter fluid and she made a perfect circle on the night stand around the candles and lit it. and it caught fire immediately but the night stand didn’t burn and the candles stayed unlit. and then she made her friends get down and pray with her, she kept repeating the Our Father over and over, and the demon just disappeared. then in the dream it was the day after and she was telling her grandmother about it and the grandmother said that you shouldn’t have lit the fire, it lets the demons in. she also told her that next time she should set the bottom of a big white candle in a bowl of cold water and then light the wick.

so we were wondering is there any actual superstitions or rituals involving candles and cold water? and what could all of this mean?

Suzi Q answers:

In the summertime of old Japan, when the oppressive heat and humidity rendered daylight activity all but unbearable, people longed for the night and the scant relief brought by the setting sun. There, amidst a chorus of frogs and insects serenading the coming Obon, the people would play Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai (百物語怪談会), or A Gathering of 100 Ghostly Tales, and silently the spirits would return.

100 candles would be placed in a circle, and the players would each tell a ghoulish tale, often a story from their local village, or perhaps a more personal experience. As each tale ended, the storyteller would douse a single candle, the light slowly fading as the tension rose. The game was said to be a ritual of evocation, the expiration of each story and each candle summoning more spiritual energy, transforming the room into a beacon for the dead. With the vanishing of the final light, someone or something terrible would be waiting in the darkness.

We haven’t the space to play a full game of Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai, but perhaps, reading all these stories together, we can summon up enough ghostly substance to call forth an apparition to keep us company through the night. With that in mind, let the sun sink behind the mountains, cut the electricity, and light exactly four candles – the Japanese number for death, one for each tale of ghostly Japan.

Ruth asks…

What is this superstition, i believe it is a superstition?

I have heard if your left ear burns, someone is either talking good or talking bad about you. Or, if your right ear burns. Also i have heard if your left eye burns, someone is either looking at you in spite or in an admiring eye. Have you heard of this? If so, what way is it? Thank you for your answers!

Suzi Q answers:

I heard that if your left palm itches, – you’ll be spending money. If the right, – then you’ll get some money.

But if someone asks you if your ears were burning, – then they’re suggesting that they KNOW that someone was talking about you.

Charles asks…

SUPERSTITION? crying from 1 eye?

So I was just wondering if there is a superstition about only crying from one eye. let me tell you what happened. Yesterday I had some truth that immediately ran me hot… i think my blood was boiling and then right behind it was my emotions were going wild.. and see I’m not a crier and I have unattached emotions and am emotionless most of the time.. but anyway this got me and I guess I became so over whelmed with the anger and emotions that the tears were inevitable… and as bad as i didn’t want to they just poured out my eye.. but only my left one… my face was straight but the tears just kept coming… so is there any superstition about crying from one eye and what does it mean?

I knew some one was gonna say something about seeing a doctor… but I really feel like this is not a doctor matter and I feel like my eyes work right and my tear ducts are fine…. the other eye filled with tear and a few came down.. but I don’t like to cry and so I suck it all up and then when my emotions and anger got the best of me before I even knew it I was crying and it was just coming out my left eye like nothing…. so I simply just want to know is there a superstition about this or not and if so what does it mean??????????????/

Suzi Q answers:

Its something u should c a doctor for Love

Ken asks…

What were some superstitions that the ancient Greeks had?

For a school project I have to research superstitions. So I’m just wondering about any special superstitions that they might have had. I know that they were mostly Xenophobes so probably some superstitions about foreign people there. Specific examples would be great.

Suzi Q answers:

The Evil Eye: The belief that a person can hurt you, your children, your livestock, your plants by just looking at them with envy and praising them. Garlic is supposed to ward off the evil eye. And a blue (blue is supposed to be protective) eye hanging around your neck is also meant to ward off the evil eye. This superstition started in the 6th century BC, and spread all the way through the Mediterranean. It is still a big part of Greek culture, and you can buy Evil Eye necklaces wherever you go.

Bread: Bread was considered a gift from God, and it had to be blessed before eating it. This is after Christianity spread to Greece, and the Greek Gods were considered devils.

Piase kokkino: When someone says the exact same thing as another, they say “piase kokkino”. It means red touch, and the two then have to touch something red near them. It is believed to be an omen and it prevents the two people from getting in a fight.

Spit: Spitting is supposed to chase the devil and misfortune away. When someone says something about bad news, then everyone else spits three times and says “ftou”.

Knives: If someone asks for a knife, they don’t hand it to them, because it is believed they will get in an argument if they do. Instead, they set it on a table so the person can get it themselves.

Cactus: It’s meant to ward off the evil eye.

Tuesday the 13th: instead of Friday the 13th.

Sneeze: If you sneeze, someone is talking about you. To find out who, ask someone a three digit number. Then count each number in the alphabet (ie: a=1, b=2, c=3,d=4) and those are the initials of the person talking about you.

Upside down shoes: If your shoes are upside down, you will have very bad luck and could even die. To prevent this, turn the shoes right side up, and say “Skorda”. Which means garlic.

Steven asks…

What are some superstitions we have today that 100 years from now would look ridiculous?

100 years ago people thought leeches sucking out blood would heal, and people thought racism was ok. Now we know better.

What about now? What ideas do we have that will turn out to be superstitions?

Suzi Q answers:

Other than religion?

The belief that people can be “cured” from addiction (alcohol, food, drugs) just by going to a support group and being a good person. I believe in the future that we will find that people with addiction suffer from a physical ailment which can be treated with a pill or surgery.

Susan asks…

What Superstitions people believe in today, started in Egypt?

I have some homework on Egypt, and I need to do somethings on Superstitions. I need to know some that started in Egypt, that people still hear about today. Or if you know anything on Egypt Superstitions.

Suzi Q answers:

Here is my answer after alot of searching and alot of effort:

– When they are afraid of envy, they touch the wood or knock on it.
2- When they are afraid of envy, they put their hands on sheep’s blood and then put their hands on the wall or the car to make hands shape.
3- When they are afraid of envy you will fined some people put blue bead or horseshoe on the door or the house walls or inside cars or wear an eye as a nickles.
3- They afraid of chough and donkey sounds, they think it is a bad luck or bring evils.
4- They are afraid when they laugh a lot and out loud, they say “Kheer Allah Omag3alo Kheer” they think something bad going to happen after they laugh.
5- They think when someone got a female baby, he going to have a lot of money soon.
6- They think when they drop the Coffee, it is a good thing and something good going to happen soon.
7- And a lot of things like reading your future from your hand or from you cup of Coffee when you finish it.

Even More Superstitions