13 Superstitions to be Aware About During Friday the 13th

In many cultures, A rabbit's foot is considered good luck when carried as an amulet. This superstition orignated from African-American folk magic called 'Hoodoo'. Now, not just any old rabbit foot will do. It has to be the left hind foot, has to be caught in a cemetery and of it course this must all happen on Friday the 13th. So good luck to all you hunting rabbits today!

Knocking on Wood, which I do all the time comes from tradition in western folklore where one knocks on wood to avoid tempting fate. Some say the origns come from Germanic folklore, where tree nymphs used this idea for protection on their wood houses. I have no idea if this has any real effect (knocks on wood), but so many people do it, so why stop now.

Many believe that this is psychological and comes from the limited complexity of the brain. The number '3' being a very consistent number in our life, even going back to "The Holy Trinity". People also are natural pattern seekers. So when things happen, we tend to notice three big catastrophes happening so close together because of our pattern seeking tendencies. Interesting, I guess I never really thought of it that way before.

I have actually never heard of this one before, but apparently this shoe-perstition comes from England and relates to coal mining. Every time a miner died, his shoes were placed on the table for a sign of respect.  Therefore putting shoes on a table of someone that didn't die, is considered bad taste and tempting fate. I'll definitely have to keep this one in mind next time I buy a new pair of shoes!

Not all superstitions bring just bad luck, some bring good luck! Many people believe that picking up penny brings good luck. Others say if you find a penny tails side up, flip it over for the next person to find it and bring them good luck. I like this one, because you could end up helping someone by bringing them good luck! So if you're having a bad Friday the 13th, maybe finding a penny will turn your day around.

Three six's in a row also dates back to the bible and is considered the number of the best (devil), mark of Satan, and a sign of the end of times. There is so many interpretations of this number, but all signs lead to bad stuff especially if you've seen 'The Omen'.

This origin comes from the Romans were the first to create glass mirrors. The Romans along with other cultures believe that a mirror has the power to capture one's soul and if you broke the mirror, you'll soul would be trapped inside the mirror and in turn cause you to have a broken soul. The Romans also believed the physical body renewed itself every seven years. Leave it to cultures to have irrational beliefs about the very thing they created.

Dating back to the late 19th century, cracks in the ground are believed to lead directly to the underworld, therefore stepping on one would release demons that dwell underneath and they would bring you bad luck. Another belief is the one I grew up with, "step on a crack, will break your mother's back." Still to this day, I avoid stepping on cracks so mama Redmond doesn't get a broken back.

Tracing back to early Egyptians, an umbrella was used for protection from the sun and was said to ward off spirits. If one were to open an umbrella inside or in the shade it offend the God of the Sun. Others believe it originated in 19th century London and was also considered bad luck to open indoors. This is another superstition that I don't dare cross for reasons I can't explain, but just something doesn't seem right about it.

Some superstitions I don't quite believe, but I have never and will never walk under a ladder. Just something about the idea of it makes me uneasy. Many people believe this superstition stem from Christian beliefs the the three points of the ladder represent 'The Holy Trinity' and if were one to walk under it, they would be disbelieving in the trinity and support Satan. This was very dangerous in the early Christian times and people that walked under ladders were labeled as witches. I'm not the religious type, but I still wouldn't walk under a ladder.

Many numerologists believe events linked to the time 11:11, appear more often than can be explained. Ever hear the saying "11:11, make a wish!"? Some claim the time signals a spirit presence, while others believe it has mystical powers adopted by new age philosophies. There;s really no explanation about this phenomena. Maybe this one also show our pattern-seeking tendencies.

In early Egyptian times, black cats were considered a symbol of grace and poise. It wasn't until the Middle Ages when the European Church accused people of being witches and black cats were normally associated with those accused. In old Scotland believed in a giant black cat fairy called the Cat Sith who had the ability to steal a dead person's soul before the Gods could claim it. But the main origin of a black cat crossing your path being bad luck dates to the 1500s when a witch who caused mischief against anyone who crossed her would shape shift into a black cat. Every black cat I've come across have been very nice, so maybe witches found a new animal to shape shift in to.

As I stated before it dates back to the middle ages. Also many people have developed a fear to the number 13 and has been given the scientific name "triskaidekaphobia".