Like..... its 7 years bad luck if you break a mirror or its unlucky for two people to pass on the stairs.
2006-09-05 23:53:38 · 34 answers · asked by Cg19832 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Mythology & Folklore
Ha--I'd love to be able to look at it as you seem to (as in past tense).
Sadly, and shockingly, these beliefs are *very* commonplace. Not because there's any validity to them, but because people are ruled by emotion, not by reason, and because so many tend to accept, unskeptically, anything they read or hear from another person.
Ridiculous and ancient myths therefore continue.
There is a great danger. While the examples you gave seem harmless and silly, and probably won't do much damage, a person who lacks the ability or willingness to think critically is vulnerable to all kinds of misinformation about the world... in realms as critical as health, politics, relationships, finances, and education, to name a few. The very existence of hundreds of myths and pseudosciences is proof of that.
These people are the types who receive a forwarded e-mail about some grave danger -- a virus that will cause your computer to crumble into a pillar of salt, or some "patriotic" individual enlightening you to the "fact" that some world leader is a criminal, a terrorist, or whatever. SEND THIS TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW! And they do... and so misinformation spreads.
Rampant misinformation causes doubt and fear... what are we to believe? Doubt and fear lead to all kinds of bad judgement and decisions... all the way up to war.
2006-09-06 00:41:28 · answer #1 · answered by Question Mark 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have a few that I tend to hold with, but I don't let them take over my life either, basically they are just old wives tales, someone who broke a mirror about a thousand years ago had nothing but bad luck for almost 7 years, so everyone took it upon themselves to believe if they did the same thing it would happen to them too, people just though it was bad luck for everyone who broke a mirror after that, superstitions are fine as long as they don't take over your life.
2006-09-06 01:26:30 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Lots of superstitions have some truth behind them. I've learned
that this is the way things were taught in the old days, because they didn't have the knowledge we do today.
Our beliefs can all be expalined in a logical way today, because
God has opened up our minds through movies and television.
All spirits have a spiritual bond. Telepathic and empathic from
an Earthly point of view. There are also magnetic forces at
work in Reality. With that little bit of understanding, one can
rationally explain many so-called mysteries.
2006-09-06 00:04:07 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well, to my belief superstitions are self-fulfilling prophecies. It probably started from common sense and ended up becoming superstitions.
So if you break a mirror and believe you'll have 7 years of bad luck, most probably you will.
2006-09-05 23:57:22 · answer #4 · answered by Laras Big Brother 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I am totally superstitious and it drives my husband crazy! It's inherited though. My Nan and my Mum are both superstitious as well, and my whole life I listened to them and learned to throw spilled salt over my left shoulder, birds flying into the house are bad luck (my Mum is petrified of that one! When I moved house once, my Mum and Dad came to help me and I had the kitchen window opened and there were a bunch of little birds in the back garden, my Mum was stood there watching them, and then all of a sudden she shut the window and said...'They're getting too close') never walk under a ladder, and all sorts of stuff that really doesn't make any sense. I know that it's all probably foolish, but I can't let go of it. ;-)
2006-09-06 05:01:39 · answer #5 · answered by krissy_butterworth 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I do not think about the two people passing on the stairs thing. I have an issue with doing anything major like air travel on a Tuesday. When shocking bad things happen, it's usually on a Tuesday.
2006-09-05 23:56:53 · answer #6 · answered by georgestrait66 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, unless you can see the origins of such superstitions. if the stairs are narrow it might be "bad luck" to try to force your way past another person causing an accident.
2006-09-05 23:56:43 · answer #7 · answered by IndyT- For Da Ben Dan 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I do not believe in superstitions and so far I have had no bad luck ( touch wood)
2006-09-05 23:57:21 · answer #8 · answered by banditblue1200 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Regardless of how absurd superstitions plainly are, there will always be those who believe in them. It is impossible to overestimate the degree of ignorance and stupidity around.
2006-09-05 23:56:40 · answer #9 · answered by bonzo the tap dancing chimp 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
No I'm not superstitious, i find it quite amusing when i see people walk around a ladder or refuse to leave the house on Fri the 13th.But everyone has their own opinion i suppose.
2006-09-06 00:40:18 · answer #10 · answered by misty 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋