SUPERSTITIONS AND BLIND FAITHS

A superstition is ?a belief or practice resulting from ignorance, fear of the unknown, trust in magic or chance, or a false conception or lets say something that’s done traditionally with out any specific science behind it. A black cat crossing the road symbolizes bad luck, a crow cawing indicates that guests are arriving, drinking milk after eating fish causes skin diseases and itchy palms mean that money is coming your way. Sitting in the thought bar this week is all about the weird superstitions around the world.

INDIA

Unlucky number 13 is something that I come across often especially when I stay in hotels, most may not have the 13Th floor, it may be 13A or can go to 14 from 12th floor. Even if your room is filthy, your mom will not let you sweep the floor in the evening. That's because Indians believe that Goddess Laxmi generally visits homes during the evenings and therefore sweeping will drive her away. Many consider that flat feet indicate widowhood, therefore in ancient India, during match-making, the mother of the groom checks ?the feet of the bride, Sati the Indian custom of a wife immolating herself either on the funeral pyre of her dead husband was considered so gruesome that it was abolished in India.

CHINA

Feng shui, also known as Chinese geomancy, is an ancient Chinese traditional practice which claims to use energy forces to harmonize individuals with their surrounding environment. Feng shui translates to “wind and water.” It’s a practice that helps people align their energies with their surroundings. Feng shui splits the world into five elements, wood creativity and growth, fire ?leadership and boldness, earth strength and stability, metal ?focus and order and water emotion and inspiration.

Within the Chinese culture, superstitions are common among many people some of these may seem strange, but they hold unique value. In Chinese culture, people will burn fake paper money to commemorate a person who has passed away, besides funerals Joss Paper, ( see Pic of a ?joss paper shop ?below ) also known as ghost or spirit money, are sheets of paper that are burned in traditional Chinese deity or ancestor worship ceremonies during special holidays.

Burning paper money ( see pic above) ?represents a common and prevalent understanding of the connections between the living world and the dead world. The process of lighting paper money on fire symbolizes the practice of sending, or mailing money that the dead ancestors can use while “living” in another world

INDONESIA

Indonesia a country of around 300 Million people have their share of superstitions too some common ones are opening an umbrella indoors will cause someone in the house to die soon, especially if the umbrella is black as black umbrellas are commonly associated with funerals, cutting your fingernails at night will cause you or your parents to die soon, Children should not play outside after Maghrib ( the time for a daily Islamic prayer after sunset) or they’ll be snatched by children loving demons, whistling at night could prompt evil spirits to appear, and has been passed down from generation to generation, especially among the Javanese

AMERICAN

Here are ?some American superstitions Three sixes in a row give some people the chills. It's a superstition that harks back to the Bible. In the Book of Revelation, 666 is given as the number of the beast, and is often interpreted as the mark of Satan. Those wishing for luck will often cross one finger over another the story goes that two people used to cross index fingers when making a wish, a symbol of support from a friend to the person making the wish, Opening an umbrella indoors is supposed to bring bad luck, ?Like the don't walk under a ladder ?superstition, this seems to be a case of a myth arising to keep people from doing something that is slightly dangerous in the first place.

?TALISMAN

A talisman is any object ascribed with religious or magical powers intended to protect, heal, or harm individuals for whom they are made. Talismans are often portable objects carried on someone in a variety of ways but can also be installed permanently. One good example in India is lemon tied together with Chili ?and hanged on the walls of houses, offices, shops and vehicles to protect one's home or possession from all the evil spirits and evil eyes of jealous competitors. In India, it is a long-standing tradition to give money as a gift on weddings and other special occasions, for instance, birthday celebrations or achievements one rupee coin is the most sought-after coin for this ritual.

The number 8 is believed to be the luckiest number in China because '8' is associated with wealth. 'Eight' (八) in Chinese is pronounced ba and sounds similar to fa (meaning 'well-off' or 'becoming rich in a short time).You may recall that Olympics was inaugurated at 8 PM on Friday, 8 August 2008, as the number 8 is considered to be auspicious

For many Indians, the number nine plays an important role in their lives, especially while buying property and jewelry as well as registering vehicles.