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.
AMBULANCE Seeing an ambulance is very unlucky unless you pinch your nose or hold your breath until you see a black or a brown dog.
Touch your toes
Touch your nose
Never go in one of those
Until you see a dog.
APPLE Think of five or six names of boys or girls you might marry, As you twist the stem of an apple, recite the names until the stem comes off. You will marry the person whose name you were saying when the stem fell off.
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.
BLARNEY STONE
The Blarney Stone is a stone set in the wall of the Blarney Castle tower in the Irish village of Blarney. Kissing the stone is supposed to bring the kisser the gift of persuasive eloquence (blarney.)
BLUE
To protect yourself from witches, wear a blue bead.
Touch blue
And your wish
Will come true.
BREAD
Before slicing a new loaf of bread, make the sign of the cross on it.
A loaf of bread should never be turned upside down after a slice has been cut from it.
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.
CANDLE
If a candle lighted as part of a ceremony blows out, it is a sign that evil spirits are nearby.
CALF If the first calf born during the winter is white, the winter will be a bad one.
CAT
If a black cat walks towards you, it brings good fortune, but if it walks away, it takes the good luck with it.
Keep cats away from babies because they "suck the breath" of the child.
A cat onboard a ship is considered to bring luck.
CHEEKS
If your cheeks suddenly feel on fire, someone is talking about you.
CHILL
If you get a chill up your back or goosebumps, it means that someone is walking over your grave.
CHIMNEY SWEEP
It's very lucky to meet a chimney sweep by chance. Make a wish when sighting one, and the wish will come true.
CIGARETTES
It is bad luck to light three cigarettes with the same match.
CIRCLE
Evil spirits can't harm you when you stand inside a circle.
CLOCK
If a clock which has not been working suddenly chimes, there will be a death in the family.
CLOVER
It's good luck to find a four-leaf clover.
Clover protects human beings and animals from the spell of magicians and the wiles of fairies, and brings good luck to those who keep it in the house.
COIN
It's bad luck to pick up a coin if it's tails side up. Good luck comes if it's heads up.
COMB
To drop a comb while you are combing your hair is a sign of a coming disappointment.
COUGH To cure a cough: take a hair from the coughing person's head, put it between two slices of buttered bread, feed it to a dog, and say, "Eat well you hound, may you be sick and I be sound."
COW Cows lifting their tails is a sure sign that rain is coming.
CRACK
Don't step on a crack on a sidewalk or walkway.
Step on a crack
Break your mother's back.
CRICKET
A cricket in the house brings good luck.
COUNTING CROWS
One's bad,
Two's luck,
Three's health,
Four's wealth,
Five's sickness,
Six is death.
DANDELION Pick a dandelion that has gone to seed. Take a deep breath and blow the seeds into the wind. Count the seeds that remain on the stem. That is the number of children you will have.
DEATH Superstitions about death
DOG
A dog howling at night when someone in the house is sick is a bad omen.
DOOR
It's bad luck to leave a house through a different door than the one used to come into it.
DREAMS
The meaning of dreams
and dream superstitions
EARS
If your right ear itches, someone is speaking well of you.
If your left ear itches, someone is speaking ill of you.
Left for love and right for spite:
Left or right, good at night.
EASTER
For good luck throughout the year, wear new clothes on Easter.
ELEPHANT Pictures of an elephant bring luck, but only if they face a door.
EYE
If your right eye twitches there will soon be a birth in the family. If the left eye twitches there will soon be a death in the family.
To cure a sty, stand at a crossroads and recite
Sty, sty, leave my eye
Take the next one coming by.
EYELASH
If an eyelash falls out, put it on the back of the hand, make a wish and throw it over your shoulder. If it flies off the hand the wish will be granted.
FINGERNAILS
It is bad luck to cut your fingernails on Friday or Sunday.
Fingernail cuttings should be saved, burned, or buried.
FISH
A fish should always be eaten from the head toward the tail.
Dream of fish: someone you know is pregnant.
FISHING Throw back the first fish you catch then you'll be lucky the whole day fishing.
If you count the number of fish you caught, you will catch no more that day.
It's bad luck to say the word "pig" while fishing at sea.
FLAG
It brings bad luck for a flag to touch the ground.
FLOWER
First Flower of Spring: The day you find the first flower of the season can be used as an omen:
Monday means good fortune,
Tuesday means greatest attempts will be successful,
Wednesday means marriage,
Thursday means warning of small profits,
Friday means wealth,
Saturday means misfortune,
Sunday means excellent luck for weeks.
FOOT If the bottom of your right foot itches, you are going to take a trip.
FORK
To drop a fork means a man is coming to visit.
FRIDAY
A bed changed on Friday will bring bad dreams.
Any ship that sails on Friday will have bad luck.
You should never start a trip on Friday or you will meet misfortune.
Never start to make a garment on Friday unless you can finish it the same day.
FRIDAY THE 13TH - how did Friday the thirteenth become such an unlucky day?
fear of Friday the 13th is rooted in ancient, separate bad-luck associations with the number 13 and the day Friday. The two unlucky entities combine to make one super unlucky day.
There is a Norse myth about 12 gods having a dinner party at Valhalla, their heaven. In walked the uninvited 13th guest, the mischievous Loki. Once there, Loki arranged for Hoder, the blind god of darkness, to shoot Balder the Beautiful, the god of joy and gladness, with a mistletoe-tipped arrow. Balder died and the Earth got dark. The whole Earth mourned.
There is a Biblical reference to the unlucky number 13. Judas, the apostle who betrayed Jesus, was the 13th guest to the Last Supper.
A particularly bad Friday the 13th occurred in the middle ages. On a Friday the 13th in 1306, King Philip of France arrested the revered Knights Templar and began torturing them, marking the occasion as a day of evil.
In ancient Rome, witches reportedly gathered in groups of 12. The 13th was believed to be the devil.
Both Friday and the number 13 were once closely associated with capital punishment. In British tradition, Friday was the conventional day for public hangings, and there were supposedly 13 steps leading up to the noose.
It is traditionally believed that Eve tempted Adam with the apple on a Friday. Tradition also has it that the Flood in the Bible, the confusion at the Tower of Babel, and the death of Jesus Christ all took place on Friday.
Numerologists consider 12 a "complete" number. There are 12 months in a year, 12 signs of the zodiac, 12 gods of Olympus, 12 labors of Hercules, 12 tribes of Israel, and 12 apostles of Jesus. In exceeding 12 by 1, 13's association with bad luck has to do with just being a little beyond completeness.
FRIDAY THE 13TH - how is fear of the number thirteen demonstarted?
More than 80 percent of high-rises lack a 13th floor.
Many airports skip the 13th gate.
Airplanes have no 13th aisle.
Hospitals and hotels regularly have no room number 13.
Italians omit the number 13 from their national lottery.
On streets in Florence, Italy, the house between number 12 and 14 is addressed as 12 and a half.
Many cities do not have a 13th Street or a 13th Avenue
In France, socialites known as the quatorziens (fourteeners) once made themselves available as 14th guests to keep a dinner party from an unlucky fate.
Many triskaidekaphobes, as those who fear the unlucky integer are known, point to the ill-fated mission to the moon, Apollo 13.
If you have 13 letters in your name, you will have the devil's luck . Jack the Ripper, Charles Manson, Jeffrey Dahmer, Theodore Bundy and Albert De Salvo all have 13 letters in their names.
FROG
A frog brings good luck to the house it enters.
The dried body of a frog worn in a silk bag around the neck averts epilepsy and other fits.
GOOD FRIDAY
(The Friday before Easter)
A child born on Good Friday and baptized on Easter Sunday has a gift of healing. If a boy, he should go into the ministry.
Cut your hair on Good Friday to prevent headaches in the year to come
A person who dies on Good Friday will go right to heaven.
Shed no blood on Good Friday, work no wood, hammer no nail.
HAIR Pulling out a gray or white hair will cause ten more to grow in its place.
HAND
If the palm of your right hand itches it means you will soon be getting money.
If the palm of your left hand itches it means you will soon be paying out money.
HORSESHOE
A horseshoe, hung above the doorway, will bring good luck to a home. In most of Europe protective horseshoes are placed in a downward facing position, but in some parts of Ireland and Britain people believe that the shoes must be turned upward or "the luck will run out."
A horseshoe hung in the bedroom will keep nightmares away.
ITCH
If your nose itches you will soon be kissed by a fool.
If your nose itches
Your mouth is in danger.
You'll kiss a fool,
And meet a stranger.
Rub an itch to wood
It will come to good.
IVY
Ivy growing on a house protects the inhabitants from witchcraft and evil.
KNIFE
A knife as a gift from a lover means that the love will soon end.
A knife placed under the bed during childbirth will ease the pain of labor.
If a friend gives you a knife, you should give him a coin, or your friendship will soon be broken.
It will cause a quarrel if knives are crossed at the table.
It is bad luck to close a pocket knife unless you were the one who opened it.
Knife falls, gentleman calls;
Fork falls, lady calls;
Spoon falls, baby calls.
KNITTING It's bad luck to leave a project unfinished. The intended recepient will get bad luck from the unfinished item.
Stabbing your needles though your yarn balls brings bad luck to anyone who wears something made from that yarn.
Don't knit a pair of socks for your boyfriend or he'll walk away from you.
If you knit one of your own hairs into a garment, it will bind the recipient to you.
Knitting for children you may have in the future, but before you are pregnant, is bad luck (it may prevent one from getting pregnant, or bring ill health to the baby).
LADDER
It is bad luck to walk under a ladder.
LADYBUG
If a young girl catches a ladybug and then releases it, the direction in which it flies away will be the direction from which her future husband will come.
It is bad luck to kill a ladybug.
Ladybug, ladybug, fly away home.
Your house is on fire,
Your children all roam.
LEAF
If you catch a falling leaf on the first day of autumn you will not catch a cold all winter.
LETTUCE
Lettuce is believed to have magical and healing properties, including the power to arouse love and counteract the effects of wine.
Lettuce promotes child bearing if eaten by young women, and certain types of salad can bring on labor in pregnant women.
LIE
Cross my heart and hope to die,
Cut my throat if I tell a lie.
LIZARD
To dream of a lizard is a sign that you have a secret enemy.
MANDRAKE
Mandrake is a mysterious plant believed to have powers of preventing sterility in men and animals, causing barren women to bear children, and compelling love.
Mandrake is thought to have aphrodisiac and fertilizing properties.
Clairvoyants use mandrake to increase their visions to enable them to see strange and wonderful things.
MARRIAGE Wediing superstitions
MILK It's bad luck to let milk boil over.
MIRROR
To break a mirror means 7 years bad luck.
It is unlucky to see your face in a mirror by candlelight.
A mirror should be covered during a thunderstorm because it attracts lightning.
If a mirror in the house falls and breaks by itself, someone in the house will die soon.
MISTLETOE
Mistletoe in the house protects it from thunder and lightning. It also cures many diseases, is an antidote to poison and brings good luck and fertility.
A girl standing under a mistletoe cannot refuse to be kissed by anyone who claims the privilege.
MOTH
A white moth inside the house or trying to enter the house means death.
NOSE
If your nose itches, someone is coming to see you. If it's the right nostril, the visitor will be a female, left nostril, male.
NUMBERS See each individual number alphabetically.
ONION
An onion cut in half and placed under the bed of a sick person will draw off fever and poisons.
A wish will come true if you make it while burning onions.
OPAL
Unless you were born in October, it's unlucky to wear opals.
OWL
It is bad luck to see an owl in the sunlight.
PENCIL
If you use the same pencil to take a test that you used for studying for the test, the pencil will remember the answers.
PEPPER
If you spill pepper you will have a serious argument with your best friend.
PHOTOGRAPH
If 3 people are photographed together, the one in the middle will die first.
RABBIT'S FOOT A rabbit's foot will bring luck and protect the owner from evil spirits if carried in the pocket.
RAINBOW
A rainbow in the Eastern sky,
The morrow will be fine and dry.
A rainbow in the West that gleams,
Rain tomorrow falls in streams.
RAVEN
To kill a raven is to harm the spirit of King Arthur who visits the world in the form of a raven.
RED
A red ribbon should be placed on a child who has been sick to keep the illness from returning.
ROBIN
A wish made upon seeing the first robin in spring will come true - but only if you complete the wish before the robin flies away.
ROCKING CHAIR
If you leave a rocking chair rocking when empty, it invites evil spirits to come into your house to sit in the rocking chair.
ROSEMARY
Rosemary planted by the doorstep will keep witches away.
SALT
Bad luck will follow the spilling of salt unless a pinch is thrown over the left shoulder into the face of the devil waiting there.
Put salt on the doorstep of a new house and no evil can enter.
Salty soup is a sign that the cook is in love.
SCISSORS
If you drop scissors, it means your lover is being unfaithful to you.
SEA GULL
Three seagulls flying together, directly overhead, are a warning of death soon to come.
SEVEN To break a mirror brings seven years of bad luck. The cure: to bury the pieces, or run them in a stream.
The seventh son of a seventh son has magic powers, according to Irish folklore, but is a vampire in Romanian legend.
SHOES
Do not place shoes upon a table, for this will bring bad luck for the day, cause trouble with your mate and you might even lose your job as a result.
It's bad luck to leave shoes upside down.
SINGING If you sing before seven, you will cry before eleven.
SLEEP
You sleep best with your head to the north and your feet to the south.
SNEEZE
Place a hand in front of your mouth when sneezing. Your soul may escape otherwise.
The devil can enter your body when you sneeze. Having someone say, "God bless you," drives the devil away.
If you sneeze on a Monday, you sneeze for danger;
Sneeze on a Tuesday, kiss a stranger;
Sneeze on a Wednesday, sneeze for a letter;
Sneeze on a Thursday, something better;
Sneeze on a Friday, sneeze for sorrow;
Sneeze on a Saturday, see your sweetheart tomorrow.
Sneeze on a Sunday, and the devil will have domination over you all week.
One for sorrow
Two for joy
Three for a letter
Four for a boy.
Five for silver
Six for gold
Seven for a secret, never to be told
SPARROW
Sparrows carry the souls of the dead, it's unlucky to kill one.
SPIDER Seeing a spider run down a web in the afternoon means you'll take a trip.
A spider is a repellent against plague when worn around the neck in a walnut shell.
STARS
All wishes on shooting stars come true.
Star light, star bright
First star I see tonight,
I wish I may, I wish I might
Have the wish I wish tonight.
SWAN
A swan's feather, sewed into the husband's pillow, will ensure fidelity.
THIRTEEN
If 13 people sit down at a table to eat, one of them will die before the year is over.
FRIDAY THE 13TH - how is fear of the number thirteen demonstarted?
More than 80 percent of high-rises lack a 13th floor.
Many airports skip the 13th gate.
Airplanes have no 13th aisle.
Hospitals and hotels regularly have no room number 13.
Italians omit the number 13 from their national lottery.
On streets in Florence, Italy, the house between number 12 and 14 is addressed as 12 and a half.
Many cities do not have a 13th Street or a 13th Avenue
In France, socialites known as the quatorziens (fourteeners) once made themselves available as 14th guests to keep a dinner party from an unlucky fate.
Many triskaidekaphobes, as those who fear the unlucky integer are known, point to the ill-fated mission to the moon, Apollo 13.
If you have 13 letters in your name, you will have the devil's luck . Jack the Ripper, Charles Manson, Jeffrey Dahmer, Theodore Bundy and Albert De Salvo all have 13 letters in their names.
TONGUE
If you bite your tongue while eating, it is because you have recently told a lie.
UMBRELLA
Dropping an umbrella on the floor means that there will be a murder in the house.
It's bad luck to open an umbrella inside the house, especially if you put it over your head.
VALENTINE'S
DAY If a woman sees a robin flying overhead on Valentine's Day, it means she will marry a sailor. If she sees a sparrow, she will marry a poor man and be very happy. If she sees a goldfinch, she will marry a millionaire.
VEIL
A bride's veil protects her from evil spirits who are jealous of happy people.
WATERMELON
A watermelon will grow in your stomach if you swallow a watermelon seed.
WEATHER
Red sky at night,
Sailor's delight.
Red sky at morning
Sailors take warning
Rain, rain, go away,
Come again another day.
Rain on the green grass
Rain on the hillside,
But not on me.
WEDDING Wedding superstitions
WOOD
Knock three times on wood after mentioning good fortune so evil spirits won't ruin it.
WINDOW
All windows should be opened at the moment of death so that the soul can leave.
WISH
If you make a wish while throwing a coin into a well or fountain, the wish will come true.
Wish I may,
Wish I might
Have the wish I wish tonight.
If you tell someone your wish, it won't come true.
WISHBONE
Two people pull apart the dried breastbone of a chicken or turkey until it cracks and breaks, each one making a wish while doing so. The person who gets the long half of the wishbone will have his or her wish come true.
X
The number of Xs in the palm of your right hand is the number of children you will have.
YAWN
A yawn is a sign that danger is near.
Cover your mouth when you yawn, or your soul can go out of your body along with the yawn.
Superstitions about Death
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.
CANDLE
Light candles on the night after November 1. One for each deceased relative should be placed in the window in the room where death occurred.
CEMETERY
You must hold your breath while going past a cemetery or you will breathe in the spirit of someone who has recently died.
CLOCK
If a clock which has not been working suddenly chimes, there will be a death in the family.
You will have bad luck if you do not stop the clock in the room where someone dies.
CORPSE
If a woman is buried in black, she will return to haunt the family.
If a dead person's eyes are left open, he'll find someone to take with him.
Mirrors in a house with a corpse should be covered or the person who sees himself will die next.
DOG
Dogs howling in the dark of night,
Howl for death before daylight.
DREAMS
If you dream of death it's a sign of a birth, if you dream of birth, it's a sign of death.
If you touch a loved one who has died, you won't have dreams about them
DYING
A person who dies on Good Friday will go right to heaven.
A person who dies at midnight on Christmas Eve will go straight to heaven because the gates of heaven are open at that time.
All windows should be opened at the moment of death so that the soul can leave.
The soul of a dying person can't escape the body and go to heaven if any locks are locked in the house.
EYE
If the left eye twitches there will soon be a death in the family.
If a dead person's eyes are left open, he'll find someone to take with him.
FUNERAL
Funerals on Friday portend another death in the family during the year.
It's bad luck to count the cars in a funeral cortege.
It's bad luck to meet a funeral procession head on.
Thunder following a funeral means that the dead person's soul has reached heaven.
Nothing new should be worn to a funeral, especially new shoes.
Pointing at a funeral procession will cause you to die within the month
Pregnant women should not attend funerals.
GRAVE
If the person buried lived a good life, flowers will grow on the grave. If the person was evil, weeds will grow.
MIRROR
If a mirror in the house falls and breaks by itself, someone in the house will die soon.
MOTH
A white moth inside the house or trying to enter the house means death.
PHOTOGRAPH
If 3 people are photographed together, the one in the middle will die first.
THIRTEEN
If 13 people sit down at a table to eat, one of them will die before the year is over.
UMBRELLA
Dropping an umbrella on the floor means that there will be a murder in the house.
Superstitions about Weddings
Wedding Day Superstitions and Traditions
BRIDAL SHOWER The first gift the bride opens should be the first gift she uses.
Everything the bride says as she opens her gifts will be repeated on her wedding night. Somone should be assigned to write down these comments during the shower.
The person who gives the third gift to be opened will soon have a baby.
Save the ribbons from the shower gifts to make a mock bouquet to be used at the wedding rehearsal.
WEDDING DAY
Certain days of the week, and certain months of the year are better than others for a wedding.
Monday for health,
Tuesday for wealth,
Wednesday best of all,
Thursday for losses,
Friday for crosses,
Saturday for no luck at all
Married when the year is new, he'll be loving, kind & true,
When February birds do mate, You wed nor dread your fate.
If you wed when March winds blow, joy and sorrow both you'll know.
Marry in April when you can, Joy for Maiden & for Man.
Marry in the month of May, and you'll surely rue the day.
Marry when June roses grow, over land and sea you'll go.
Those who in July do wed, must labour for their daily bred.
Whoever wed in August be, many a change is sure to see
Marry in September's shrine, your living will be rich and fine.
If in October you do marry, love will come but riches tarry.
If you wed in bleak November, only joys will come, remember.
When December snows fall fast, marry and true love will last.
FOR A LUCKY BRIDE
Something old,
Something new,
Something borrowed,
Something blue,
And a lucky sixpence
In her shoe.
Married in White, you have chosen right
Married in Grey, you will go far away,
Married in Black, you will wish yourself back,
Married in Red, you will wish yourself dead,
Married in Green, ashamed to be seen,
Married in Blue, you will always be true,
Married in Pearl, you will live in a whirl,
Married in Yellow, ashamed of your fellow,
Married in Brown, you will live in the town,
Married in Pink, you spirit will sink.
WEDDING DAY
Good Omens:
seeing a rainbow
having the sun shine
meeting a black cat
meeting a chimney sweep
WEDDING DAY
Bad Omens:
a pig, hare, or lizard running across the road
seeing an open grave
meeting a nun or a monk foretell barrenness
OTHER BELIEFS
If the groom drops the wedding band during the ceremony, the marriage is doomed.
The new bride must enter her home by the main door, and must not trip or fall - hence the custom of carrying the bride over the threshold.
The spouse who goes to sleep first on the wedding day will be the first to die.
WEDDING CAKE
If a single woman sleeps with a piece of wedding cake under her pillow, she will dream of her future husband.
*A child sleeping with a key under his/her pillow is protected from evil spirits, dropping a key is bad luck, and jingling your bunch of keys on a Wednesday promotes madness!
* Never choose a redhead as your bridesmaid as she will steal your Groom, and never let the bridemaids wash any dishes after the feast or they will fall out with the married couple
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
ALL SORTS
*A silver coin placed in the foundations of a house, ensures luck for the property.
*Meeting a goat on the start of a journey is a good omen, meeting a black goat on a bridleway means there is treasure nearby and keeping a strong smelling billy goat ensures the health of your cows, sheep and horses.
*It is good luck to find a hair pin; hang that found hair pin on a hook will bring you a new friend.
* Finding a stray hair on your shoulder, expect an important letter very soon.
*Don't get angry if you smudge your lipstick, thespians regard accidentally smearing some lipstick on to a tooth a sign of receiving a good contract.
*When you have a death in the home, cover all the household mirrors, this prevents their soul being caught and detained in the mirror
*Turning your apron inside out when seeing a full moon, wishes made, will be granted..
*If you do not present a new pair of shoes to a poor person at least once during your life, you will go barefoot in the next world.
*Passing an empty bucket when leaving your house gives you good luck all day, but don't sit on an upturned bucket, that'll only bring you bad luck all day.
*When playing cards and asked to deal from a choice of 2 packs, always choose the one farthest away from you, and a dog in the room while a game is on, is said to cause disputes.
* When you see a coin on the floor, have a closer look before picking it up. It's bad luck to pick up a coin if it's tails side up. Good luck comes if it's heads up
*Meeting a Dalmatian dog is especially lucky & a greyhound with a white spot on its forehead is good fortune coming your way
*If by chance you meet the same person twice when you are out on business this is Good Luck. It is even luckier if you encounter the person once when you are setting out and again when you are returning
*When a boy is born under the waning moon, the next birth will be a girl, and vice versa. When a child is born under a waxing moon, the next birth will be of the same sex
*Waste bin full?? ... well ... Burning an old shoe prevents infection in the house and burning an old boot before a journey will bring you good luck
*Take a pea-pod containing 9 peas and suspend it over the doorway using a white thread. If the next person who enters by the same door is not a member of the family and is a bachelor or spinster, then your wedding will take place within the year.
*Stirring a pot of tea, stirs up trouble; finding a floating tea leave in you cup, expect a visitor and bubbles in your tea is a sign of kisses or finacial gain.
*If you are going to Turkey or Greece for your holiday, remember to carry or wear a charm, bead or talisman made with torquoise to protect you from their evil spirits, also if the colour pales it warns the wearer they are in danger.
* Never bet on a horse who's name has been changed, bad luck to change the name of any horse and it's bad luck to wish a jockey good luck before their race.
*If the first initial of each of your names spells a word this will give you a lucky life.
*When swans take to the air, you can expect strong winds; a swan stretching it's neck back over it's body signals a storm is on the way but seeing 3 swans in flight together is an omen of a national disaster
*Next time you see a chimney sweep, go and shake his hand, some of his good luck will rub off onto you.
*Be kind to a bee entering your home, it's a sign that you will soon have a visitor. If you kill the bee the visitor will be unpleasant and bring bad luck. Beware a swarm of bees settling on a roof is an omen that the house will burn down.
* If a bat flies into your house there are ghosts about. Even worse if a bat flies around a house 3 times this is an omen of death.
*Dont be too nervous at that special do, because accidently spilling wine while proposing a toast is a sign of Good Luck!
* Breaking a mirror means 7 years of bad luck, NOT SO, if you take the pieces outside & bury them in moonlight. But if a mirror in a house, out of the blue, suddenly falls & smashes then it means that there will soon be a death!
* Better start to get ready early, like on a Thursday for the weekend outing, 'cos cutting or filing your finger-nails on a Friday is so unlucky and done on a Sunday even more unlucky.
*It's bad luck for a professional football player to take a new number when he is traded to another team, but double numbers on a player's uniform brings good luck.
*Yawning is caused by the devil, so evil spirits can enter your body when your mouth is wide open, and ou thought it was good manners covering your mouth while yawning, no, it stops the evil spirits.
*When out fishing, to bring you luck spit on your bait before casting your rod, but if a barefoot woman passes you by that could ruin it all, as it means the fish may not bite for the rest of the day.
*If golfers start their round with odd numbered clubs, the golfers can have a successful 18 holes, but don't use balls with numbers higher than 4.
*If you bite your tongue, someone is talking saying nasty thinks about you; so bite your sleeve to make them stop, but some say if you bite your tongue you'll soon kiss a fool.
*Be careful with this, if you give anyone an empty purse or wallet as a pressie they will never be blessed with riches, unless you put a coin inside it for luck
*The good thing about having a cold is, if you sneeze 3 times before your breakfast, you can expect good luck that day!
* If after leaving your house, you have to go back to fetch something, when you get inside please sit down and count down from seven to one, in order to avoid ill luck.
* Does your shoelace keep coming untied, don't curse 'cos it is an omen of good news, or you are about to receive a fortunate letter.
* Your soul could escape from your body when you sneeze, so to stop this from happening ask God to "bless me". Also say it to protect any other person who sneezes ~ "bless you".
WEATHER
*A peacock calling is an omen of rain, "When the peacock loudly bawls ~ soon we'll have both rain & squalls".
*If bats come out early and fly around playfully good weather is ahead.
*Rings around the moon are a sign of rain or snow; seeing a new moon straight ahead of you is very good luck, but never point at the moon in any of it's stages, that's very bad luck.
*Worms coming out of the earth in the day, expect it to rain; and seeing earthworms out after rain in Autumn, expect a mild winter.
*When it's stormy weather get those scissors out, it is said to be good luck to cut your hair during a storm
CURES
*To cure a fever eat a spider with jam, syrup or an apple, to ward off the plague wear a spider in a walnut shell around your neck
* Need to ease your toothache or cure a fever, then wear a pouche about you containing splinters from a gibbet.
*If you inhale a horses breath it will cure your whooping cough, and eating a hair from a horse's forelock will cure you from your worms.
*Rub your warts & sties with gold, especially a wedding ring, to cure them.
.NEW YEAR DAY
*Just as the clock strikes twelve the head of the house should open the door in order to allow the Old Year to pass out and the New Year to come in.
*Make as much noise as possible on New Years Eve to keep th evil spirits away
*Do not forget the kissing at mid-night to ensure that those affections and ties will continue throughout the next twelve months.
*Just as the clock strikes twelve the head of the house should open the door in order to allow the Old Year to pass out and the New Year to come in.
*Wear something new on January 1 to increase the likelihood of your receiving more new garments during the year to follow.
*Make sure you do something related to your work on the first day of the year, even if you don't go near your place of work that day, you must be be successful at it.. but don't engage in a serious work project on that day is very unlucky.
*Do not pay back loans or lend money or other precious items on New Year's Day. To do so is to guarantee you'll be paying out all year.
*Nothing is to leave the house on the first day of the year. If you have a present to deliver on New Year's Day, leave them in the car overnight. Don't even put rubbish or empties to the dustbin.
*Stock up your food cupboards and fill your wallet, empty pockets or empty cupboards on New Years Eve fortell a year of poverty
* Don't use those sissors on New Years Day, you'll 'cut off' your good fortune.
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WINTER
* If the first calf born in the winter is white, expect a real bad winter, but if the first butterfly you see this year is white, you'll have good luck the rest of the year.
*In late winter, do not sit at your front door step to do your knitting, as that could lengthen the winter well into spring.
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VALENTINES DAY
* If you see a goldfinch on Valentine's Day, you will marry a millionaire. If you see a robin flying overhead , it means you will marry a sailor. If you see a sparrow, you will marry a poor person, but very happy. Alas to see a single crow its a wedding of woe
SPRING
*Spring is coming ~ Be careful when doing your household chores, bad luck to turn your mattress on a Friday, and remember that if you turn it from foot to head, you'll never wed. Even changing your sheets on a Friday will bring nightmares to your sleep.
*Cuckoos ~ hope you are in good health when you hear your first cuckoo of the year 'cos your condition that day will remain all year through. Hearing your first cuckoo on the 6th of April or after midsummer is bad luck, but hearing the first cuckoo on the 28th of April is excellent luck. First sound of a cuckoo in spring coming from the left is bad luck, but if from the right it will bring great luck to you.
*Remember to gather flowers and put them by your doors and windows on May Day to keep out the troublesome fairies.
SUMMER
*June is here, and weddings .. it is said that a woman who's second toe is longer than her big toe, will domernate her marriage. While talking feet.. on your wedding day, enter the church, RIGHT foot first, it is unlucky to enter left foot first.
*While gardening this summer never carry a hoe into the house. If, by mistake, you do so .. carry it out again, walking backward to avoid bad luck
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AUTUMN ~ HALLOWEEN
*Unless you were born in October, the wearing of an Opal will be very ill-fated
*Halloween don'ts : Go hunting ~ Turn around to see who is behind you ~ Watch your shadow in the moonlight. All are unlucky activities at Halloween
*It is lucky to catch the falling leaves from trees in autumn; for every leaf that you catch before it hits the ground, you will have a lucky month the following year.
*Go to a crossroads at Halloween and listen to the wind, you will learn all the most important things that will befall you during the next twelve months
CHRISTMAS
*Odd numbers at the Christmas dinner table is bad luck; so have an extra plate in readiness for an unexpected person. The legs of the dining table are to be tied with string to protect the house from thieves and burglars in the coming year; and don't forget to place a bowl of garlic under the dining table and fish scales under the dinner plates for luck.
*If you take a candle to church this Christmas, don't bring it home; blow it out and leave it for the vicar to bring him good luck, oh and don't wear new shoes Christmas Day, bad luck for you
*The nearer the New Moon is to Christmas Day, the harder the winter.
*A man may kiss a girl standing under the sprig of mistletoe, but only if he plucks a berry from the plant and presents it to her with each kiss. Once the berries are gone, so the kissing stops.
*Those born on Christmas Day day will never encounter a ghost, nor will they have anything to fear from spirits. They're also protected against from death by drowning or hanging
*Evergreens to bring into your home at Christmas are Holly, the symbol of eternal life, ivy, rosemary, bay leaves and, of course, mistletoe to keep evil spirits away
*Mince pies must not be cut, you'll cut your luck. None must be eaten before Christmas Eve nor after Twelfth Night. As many mince pies as you eat at different houses during the festive season, so you will have happy months in the year to come
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Spiders ~ seeing
A spider in the morning is a sign of sorrow
A spider at noon brings worry for tomorrow
A spider in the afternoon is a sign of a gift
But a spider in the evening will all hopes uplft
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New Year
If New Year's Eve night-wind blows south
It betokeneth warmth and growth;
If west, much milk and fishin the sea;
If north, cold and storms there will be;
If east, the trees will bear much fruit;
If north-east, flee it, man and brute!
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Christmas
If Christmas Day be bright and clear
Two winters we will have this year
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Christmas
A green Christmas; white Easter
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Imbolc ~ Candlemas
(fertility/fire feast ~ mid-way between the winter solstice & spring equinox)
"Down with the rosemary, and so
Down with the bays and misletoe ;
Down with the holly, ivy, all,
Wherewith ye dress'd the Christmas Hall."
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Imbolc ~ Candlemas
If Candlemass day be dry and fair,
The half o' winter to come and mair
If Candlemass day be wet and foul.
The half o' winter gane at Yule.
This means that if it is nice on Candlemas Day you can expect six more weeks of
winter weather, if it isn't nice on Candlemas Day, the weather should get nicer.
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Imbolc ~ Candlemas
Kindle the Yule brand, and then
Till sunset let it burn;
Which quench'd then lay it up again
Till Yule next return.
Part must be kept wherewith to tend
The Yule log next year;
And where 'tis safely kept, the fiend
Can do no mischief there.
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First Flower of Spring:
The day you find the first flower of the season
can be used as an omen:
Monday means good fortune,
Tuesday means greatest attempts will be successful,
Wednesday means marriage,
Thursday means warning of small profits,
Friday means wealth,
Saturday means misfortune,
Sunday means excellent luck for weeks.
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Wedding Days
Monday for wealth
Tueasday for health
Wednesday the best day of all
Thursday for losses
Friday for crosses
and Saturday no luck at all
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Wedding Months
Married in January's hoar and rime, widowed you'll be before your prime
Married In February's sleepy weather, life you'll tread in time together,
Married when March winds shrill & roar, your home will be on a distant shore.
Married beneath April's changing skies, a chequered path before you lies,
Married when bees over May blossoms flit, strangers around your board will sit
Married in the month of roses ~ June, life will be one long honeymoon,
Married in July with flowers ablaze, bittersweet memories in after days,
Married in August's heat & drowse, lover and friend in your chosen spouse.
Married in Septmber's golden glow, smooth and serene your life will go,
Married when leaves in October thin, toil & hardship for you are kin.
Married in veils of November mist, fortune your wedding ring has kissed.
Married in days of December cheer, love's star shines brighter from year to year.
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Wedding Colours.
Married in White, you have chosen right,
Married in Blue, your love will always be true,
Married in Pearl, you will live in a whirl,
Married in Brown, you will live in town,
Married in Red, you will wish yourself dead,
Married in Yellow, ashamed of your fellow,
Married in Green, ashamed to be seen,
Married in Pink, your spirit will sink,
Married in Grey, you will go far away,
Married in Black, you will wish yourself back.
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Birth Days
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
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Sneezing Days
Sneeze on Monday, you sneeze for danger
Sneeze on Tuesday, you kiss a stranger
Sneeze on Wednesday, you sneeze for a letter
Sneeze on Thursday for something better
Sneeze on Friday, you sneeze for sorrow
Sneeze on Saturday, see your sweetheart tomorrow
Sneeze on Sunday, your safety seek
For the devil will have you the whole of the week
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Hair & Nail Cutting Days.
Cut them on Monday, you cut them for health;
cut them on Tuesday, you cut them for wealth;
cut them on Wednesday, you cut them for news;
cut them on Thursday, a new pair of shoes;
cut them on Friday, you cut them for sorrow;
cut them on Saturday, see your true love tomorrow;
cut them on Sunday, the devil will be with you all the week.
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Month Names: A Few Historical Facts
January and February were the last two months to be added to the Roman calendar, since the Romans originally considered winter a monthless period. (February being the last month of the year). March was originally the first month of the Roman calendar before the winter months of January and February
January ~ it's original Roman name, Ianuarius (Janus, the god of the doorway)
The Saxon term was Wulf-monath (meaning wolf month)
Charlemagne's named it Wintarmanoth (winter / cold month).
The Finnish called it Tammikuu (month of the oak)
In Czech it is Leden, meaning ice month.
In old Japanese calendar, the month is called Mu tsuki
February ~ (Feb-roo-air-ee) Roman calendar name Februa after the Latin term februum (purifacation)
The Anglo-Saxon terms Solmoneth (mud month) and
also Anglo-Saxon term Kale-monath (named for cabbage)
Charlemagne's named it Hornung.
In Finnish, the month is called helmikuu (month of the pearl)
In old Japanese calendar, the month is called kisaragi or kinusaragi (wearing kimonos over)
March ~ Originally the first month of the year.
In ancient Rome, it was called Martius (Mars, the Roman god of war)
Saxon named it Lenctmonat (the equinox and eventual lengthening of days ~ eventual namesake of Lent)
The Saxons also called March, Rhed-monat (their goddess of love & fertility Rhedam )
Finnish called it Maaliskuu (maallinen kuu meaning earthy month, earth started to show from under the snow.
Ancient Hellenic civilization, March was called Anthesterion, from the spring festival Anthesteria.
Old Japanese calendar, the month is called Yayoi
Ancient Britons called it hyld-monath (meaning loud or stormy).
April ~ Originally the second month of the year from the Latin aperire, "to open," being the season when trees and flowers begin to "open,"
In Roman it was sacred to Venus, the Festum Veneris et Fortunae Virilis being held on the first day, originally named Aprilis, from her Greek name Aphrodite (Aphros), or from the Etruscan name Apru.
The Anglo-Saxons called April Oster-monath or Eostur-monath, the period sacred to Eostre or Ostara, the pagan Saxon goddess of spring, from whose name is derived the modern Easter.
In China the symbolical ploughing of the earth by the emperor and princes of the blood
In Japan the feast of Dolls is celebrated
April 24th ~ St Mark's Eve, is when the ghosts of those who are doomed to die within the year will be seen to pass into the church.
May ~ In the neopagan Wheel of the Year, May begins on Beltane in the northern hemisphere and Samhain in the southern hemisphere.
Named for the Greek goddess Maia, who was identified with the Roman goddess of fertility, Bona Dea, hence the maypole dances and
In Finnish, the month is called toukokuu, meaning "month of sowing".
In Slovene, it is called veliki traven, which means the month of high grass.
In Czech, it is called kveten, which means the month of blooms
In the Irish calendar May 1 is Beltane (Bealtaine), the first day of Summer.
June ~ the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere and the winter solstice in the southern hemisphere occurs on dates varying from 20 June to 22 June (in UTC). In the pagan wheel of the year the summer solstice is the time of Litha and the winter solstice is that of Yule.
Named after the Roman goddess Juno, wife of Jupiter and equivalent to the Greek goddess Hera.
In the Irish Calendar the month is called Meitheamh and is the middle month of the summer season.
In Sweden midsummer is celebrated on the third Friday in June.
July ~ Originally called Quintilis in Latin, since it was the fifth month in the ancient Roman calendar,
Renamed for Julius Caesar, who was born in that month.
In the Irish Calendar the month is called Iúil and is the third and last month of the Summer season.
The Welsh name is Gorffennhaf which means end of the summer.
In Finnish, it is called Heinäkuu, meaning "month of grass".
August ~ This month was originally named Sextilis in Latin, because it was the sixth month in the ancient Roman calendar, which started in March about 750 BC under Romulus.
Renamed in honor of Augustus in 8 BC because several of the most significant events in his rise to power, culminating in the fall of Alexandria, fell in this month. August originally had 29 days in the Roman Republican calendar, but two days were added to it by Julius Caesar beginning 45 BC
In Irish, it is known as Lúnasa, a modern rendition of Lughnasadh, from the god Lugh.
August 1, Lá Lúnasa in the Irish Calendar, is still regarded as the first day of Autumn.
In Finnish, the month is called elokuu, meaning "month of reaping".
MORE MONTHS TO COME
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WHICH MONTHS HAVE 31 DAYS
Quick and easy way ~ use the knuckles of the four fingers of both your hand and the spaces between them to remember the lengths of the months. First make a fist, then begin listing each month as you proceed across your hand. All months landing on a knuckle are 31 days long and those landing between them are not.
(Little finger or pinky knuckle of the left hand being January, first dip is February)
(Index finger knuckle of your right hand is August and so on)
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THE FIRST DAY OF THE YEAR
The following dates show the years in which various countries
adopted 1 January as the start of the year.
Republic of Venice 1522
Holy Roman Empire 1544
Spain, Portugal, and Roman Catholic Netherlands 1556
Prussia, Denmark Sweden and Norway 1559
France 1564
Lorraine 1579
Protestant Netherlands 1583
Scotland 1600
Russia 1700
Tuscany 1721
England 1752
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New Year ~ First Footing
First Footing: The first person to enter your home after the stroke of midnight will influence the year you're about to have. Ideally, the person should be male, dark-haired, tall, and good-looking, and it would be even better if he came bearing certain small gifts such as a lump of coal, a silver coin, a bit of bread, a sprig of evergreen, and some salt. Blonde and redhead first footers bring bad luck, and female first footers should be shooed away before they bring disaster down on the household. The first footer should knock and be let in rather than just using a key. After greeting those in the house and dropping off whatever small tokens of luck he has brought with him, he should make his way through the house and leave by a different door than the one through which he entered. No one should leave the premises before the first footer arrives. First footers must not be red-haired, cross-eyed, have flat feet or eyebrows that meet in the middle these bring bad luck; but a man with a high instep, or one who comes on a horse, is considered particularly lucky.
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Christmas ~ Turkeys
Turkeys are believed to have been brought to Britain in 1526 by Yorkshireman William Strickland. He acquired six turkeys from American Indian traders and sold them for tuppence in Bristol. Henry VIII was the first English King to enjoy turkey on Christmas Day, instead of his usual goose, and Edward VII made turkey eating fashionable at Christmas. 200 years ago, in both England and US, turkeys were walked to market in herds. In the UK the turkeys wore little boots to protect their feet. Commercially bred tukeys cannot fly, but turkey breeding today, has sadly caused turkey breasts to grow so large that the turkeys fall over.
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June Weddings
This costum started in ancient Rome, where the goddess of youth, Juno, the faithful wife of Jupiter and guardian of women from birth to death ruled for 30 days, the month of June. Despite ancient beliefs, today, the most popular day to wed is a Saturday (I expect our modern working habits has made this so). But in anceint times Saturday, ruled by Saturn, was the most unluckiest day of the week to wed. Maybe a lesson to be learn with modern day stats!
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Confetti
Another costum started in ancient Rome, when the bride, after a wedding,would be showered with nuts, sweets or wheat on her homeward journey to ensure her fertility. Greek, Roman and Anglo-Saxon brides would wear headbands made of corn or wheat for fertility. Also wheat, corn and other fertility emblems would be scattered over the path of the Anglo-Saxon bride on her way to the wedding. But by the middle ages it was thought evil male and female demons were lurking to replace the husband or wife to wreck the couple's happiness, so rice thrown at the wedding would feed and pacify the evil spirits. The 19th century sees confetti, an Italian confectionery was used, tiny sweets and cakes in the shapes of good luck charms and fertility emblems.. then came the paper confetti.
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Honeymoon
The honeymoon custom started with ancient Teutons, who lived in Jutland, northern Europe until they migrated south in the second century BC taking their traditions with them. At Teuton wedding feasts, couples celebrated by drinking mead, a potion of honey (thought to be a aphrodisiac) and wine/ale. The happy couple were allowed a month to celebrate their union. They would drink mead on each day of the first 30 days of their marraige, as it takes 30 days for the moon to go through all its phases (a lunar month) and then disappear, as did the feasting, the honeymoon was over.
When in modern days a bride and groom slip away unnoticed to a secret destination, they are semi-repeating a very old practice. In some ancient civilisations, a young man, helped by his best friend (best man) would seize a woman by force, hide her way in a secret place and fight off any attempts of rescue. While in the secret place, he would convince his lady that he would be the perfect husband. Once convinced, the couple would come out of hiding and the young man would pacify the brides family with gifts.
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Beltane / May Day
May 1: Beltane, also called May Day, is a Sabbat celebrating fertility and the union of the young Horned God and the Goddess. This is the time when life is beginning to renew itself. Animals are mating, plants are sprouting, and people celebrate! Huge fires are traditionally lit to honor the fertility God Belenos. Some people even leap the fires to show their excitement. Maypoles are erected, and bright ribbons are entwined around it. The Maypole is, in essence, a phallic symbol which represents the masculine penis. The soft, colorful ribbons represent the feminine. The union of the two symbolizes the union of the God and Goddess and the promise of rebirth. The God is conceived within the Goddess, and He will be reborn again at Yule. There is a legend that children conceived at Beltane were gifted by the gods. These children are known as Merry-Be-Gots.
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Spring Equinox / New Year / Aprils Fools / Easter
The Vernal Equinox is when the equator is in the direct path of the sun (travelling north), when day and night are of equal length, North and South Poles receive equal light, hence the name equinox. It is a time of rebirth, an awakening of the earth, a time to plant, new beginnings. Easter and the vernal equinox has deep roots in the mythic past. Long before it was imported into the Christian and other modern tradition, people of all creeds have celebrated the vernal (spring) equinox. The Goddess is giving birth to a new year, and life has survived another winter. This is a time to rejoice, dance, and celebrate. So important is this date, it has always been considered to be the start of the New Year. From the March equinox (19-23 varies each year) to April 1st has always filled mankind's calendars from the pre history man to the Romans to the Hindus to the Christians with different feasts, jolliment and sometimes sinister rituals. Even in the Western (or Christian) world until 254 years ago (UK) April 1st was New Years day. In 1582, Pope Gregory XIII ordered a new calendar (the Gregorian Calendar) to replace the old Julian Calendar. The new calendar ruled for New Year's Day to be celebrated Jan 1st. (Yule Tide!) Many countries resisted the change, some European countries held out for centuries, Scotland until 1660; Germany, Denmark, and Norway until 1700 and England until 1752! This change or shift of New Year brought about April Fools Day or All Fools Day. Starting in France, the people who refused to accept the new dates and still celebrated April 1st were called foolish, they were all fools, pranks were played on them, and most likely visa versa I would imagine. Briton and the American colonies started celebrating April Fools Day in 1752. Where as the Equinox and Old New Year are Sun Festivals of beginnings, planting and renewal, Easter is a Moon Festival of renewal, fertility and beginnings. Easter is observed on a Sunday between March 22 and April 25. The common rule is that Easter Day is the first Sunday after the full moon that occurs after the vernal equinox, The actual conditions to determine the date for Easter are: Easter must be on a Sunday; this Sunday must follow the 14th day of the paschal moon; the paschal moon is that of which the 14th day (full moon) falls on or next follows the day of the vernal equinox; and the equinox is fixed in the calendar at March 21 as the modern church rule. This Spring festival honors the goddess Eostre /Ostara /Eastre these words comes from the word 'east', which means 'dawn' . . a beginning = beginning of the year. In days of old it was tradition to clean your house throughout and ridding ourselves of all worn out and useless things, before the new year April 1st. hence our today's spring cleaning. Also a person had to wear at least one peace of new clothing at the new year parties thus our Easter parades and Easter bonnets! The hare is also a symbol of spring, leaping madly around the country side!! and the egg is a symbol of fertility, so there you have the Easter Bunny and your Easter Eggs. The word spring stems from 0ld English springan, German springen, the act of springing or leaping forth, is applied to the season of the year in which plant life begins to bud and shoot.
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BLACK CATS
In parts of the world 4000 years ago, harm a cat, you would have been put to death. In ancient Egypt, the Goddess 'Bastet' or Bast, the perfumed protector, was a black, female cat. Christians, wanting to rid society of all traces of other religions, convinced the ignorant that black cats were demons in disguise and should thus be destroyed. In the process, they also destroyed the kindly ladies who cared for the cats, believing them to be witches. Being now depicted as demons, a black cat crossing your path would create a barrier of evil, cutting you off from God and blocking the entrance to heaven. But many do say if a black cat walks towards you, then it brings very good luck to you - but if it walks or runs away from you, then it takes all it's good luck with it!!
Numbers
Just like Westerners believe that the number 13 brings bad luck, the Chinese and Koreans are believe that the number 4 (as well as 14) has a bad connotation. This is because for Chinese, the number 4 (si) and “死 si,” which means “death,” are pronounced the same, while for the Koreans, the number 4 (sa) and “死 sa,” which means “death,” are pronounced the same.
On the other hand, just as 7 seems to be the designated lucky number for the Western world, the Chinese believe that the numbers 8 and 28 bring good luck. believe that it is because the number 8, when pronounced in Chinese, has the same pronunciation as good luck. Isn't it a strange coincidence that the numbers of bad luck - 4 and 14 - are exactly half of the numbers of good luck, i.e. 8 and 28?
Gifts
Chinese believe that you should never EVER give a clock as a gift to a friend. The Chinese sound for clock is “鐘” (zhong). For most Chinese, one should never give it as a present because the pronunciation of “giving a clock” (送鐘 sung zhong) to a person is the same as “送終” (sung zhong), which means to bid farewell to a dying person on his or her deathbed.
In the Chinese language, the fan (扇 shan) and the umbrella (傘 san) have very similar sounds to the word “散 san”, which is a term that means to break up, to dismiss, to dissolve, to seperate.” It is a “forbidden” word among Chinese performers because their professional survival depends on a continuous succession of contracts; therefore, for them, the very notion of “seperation” infers the destruction of their career. This tradition is carried to the extent of preventing a performer not only from voicing this particular word, but even from mentioning any term that includes the same sounds, such as “扇 shan” which means fan, or “傘 san” which means umbrella.
Food
When eating a fish, you are advised not to flip over a fish to debone it once the top half has been eaten. According to Chinese superstition, turning over the fish means bad luck and that a ship/boat would capsize if it was flipped over. They usually just separate the lower half of the fish from the skeleton without turning it over.
When eating with chopsticks, caution is advised. If you find an uneven pair at your table setting, it means you are going to miss a boat, plane or train. Dropping chopsticks will inevitably bring bad luck, as will laying them across each other.
Chinese New Year
It is very inauspicious to sweep clean your house using a broom on Chinese New Year. This is because the Chinese believe that sweeping your house on New Year will mean that you are 'sweeping' away your good luck for the year along with your dirt. On the other hand, the day before New Year, the house is swept from top to bottom to sweep away any traces of bad luck.
Care must be taken not to break any dishes, and the use of knives, scissors, and sharp instruments should be avoided since these things could bring harm, and thus bad luck for the coming year.
During the dinner on the eve of the New Year, red is traditionally worn as this color is said to ward off ghosts and evil spirits. However, white and black are never worn, are these colors are associated with mourning and death.
On a side note, the origin of Chinese New Year is fascinating! Many differing stories exist, but most seem to agree the word "Nian," which means "year" in modern Chinese, was the name of a beast that preyed on people on the eve of the lunar new year
According to one legend, the beast Nian had a very big mouth that could swallow a great many people all at once. Naturally, everyone was scared. One day, an old man came along and offered to subdue Nian. To Nian he said, "I heard that you are very capable, but can you swallow other beasts of prey on earth instead of people who are by means of your worthy opponents?" Taking the old man's challenge, Nian swallowed many of the predators on earth, which were also a nuisance to people and their domestic animals from time to time.
As it turns out the old man was a god, and after subduing Nian, he and the beast disappeared. Now that Nian was gone and the other predators scared into forests, people began to enjoy their peaceful life. Before the old man left, he told people to put up red paper decorations (as red was the color Nian feared most) on their windows and doors at every year's end to scare away Nian, in case it sneaked back again.
From then on, the tradition of observing the conquest of Nian was carried on from generation to generation. The term "Guo Nian", which may have meant "Survive the Nian" today means "Celebrate the New Year" ("guo" in Chinese has the dual meaning of "pass-over" and "observe"). The custom of putting up red paper and firing firecrackers--to scare away Nian, should it run loose--is still around, but no longer hold the same meaning. For many people today, red sets the joyous mood while the popping of firecrackers adds to the excitement of the New Year.
hair - especially long hair - is seen as something beautiful. Just like humans, human spirits are also attracted to beauty. Sprits, jinnats etc are particularly envious of new brides and babies.
Back generation, all babies, male or female, would have their ears pierced to so as to create an imperfection. Do u see what I mean? They do this so that the spirits would not be very jealous anymore.
Even though they don't do that now, new babies are always marked with a kohl spot on the side of the forehead to deflect evil - therefore imperfections such as birthmarks
