I'd like to create a character with a lot of superstions. Not the neurotic type as the character in the "Monk" series. This character of mine gathers all the superstitions originated by "folklore", history and the ones of the ancestral human culture like throwing salt over the shoulder, touching wood, number seven, avoiding walking under un A-shape ladder, et cetera. It would be better if the superstition involves some previous trigger situation before the weird counter effect. Could be things that brings good luck too. Any superstition is welcomed. Thanks.
My great-aunt always crossed herself when she saw a cat cross the road in front of her. Didn't have to be a black cat -- "It might have some black on it somewhere!" Also, she was Southern Baptist, not Catholic, and her version of 'crossing' herself was to draw a cross in the air in front of her with one finger. No idea where that one came from.
If the snow was fresh, this old guy I used to know would always walk the last few feet to his house backwards so the spirits would get confused and wouldn't be able to follow him.
Tesla used to do everything in threes or multiples of three, such as: if it was twenty nine paces across a room he would shorten his stride to make it 30. That's the story anyway.
Yeah, Tesla was a strange guy. I'm not sure if that was superstition or a legit untreated mental health issue, though. I guess either way they're kind of functionally similar.
We have saluting a magpie over here, but only if there's only one of them because it's supposed to undo the 'one for sorrow' thing. Also where I'm from seeing a black cat is meant to be good luck. Breaking a mirror as seven years bad luck. Don't put new shoes on the table (no idea where that comes from!)
Also making a wish when you either catch a dandelion clock head and let it go, or some people if they have a loose eyelash make a wish on it.
There are people here in Scotland (I never heard this one till I moved here) who are horrified if you put a pair of shoes on a table. Don't know why, but that's supposed to portend all sorts of bad stuff. I also heard another one which, for some reason, I pay attention to. That's the one about never watching somebody go out of sight, because that means you'll never see them again. If somebody is leaving, wave bye-bye, then turn your back on them. Don't stand and watch them till you can't see them any more.
Don't put any shoes on the table. Do you even know where those things have been? Also, apparently when you hang a hat, always hang it brim down, so bad luck/spirits won't sit in it which is especially bad because you'll be pouring them over your head. (Was just told that one).
There is always crows who are seen are bad omens... but that was not the case in some cultured like the “Vikings”. Mistletoe was considered by some ancient civilisations to be a porter of good or good spirits. My grandmother used to say that one should always sleep aligned northward (with the head as north). Never sure why but apparently sleeping in any other way is a bad omen. Also, sleeping lying down was often seen as a mark of death, so it was considered a bad omen if you were found sleeping lying down.
we are talking like 13th century Europe here... or at least more specifically 13th century Switzerland
Beds were short centuries ago in Europe so one could sleep sitting up. My grandfather saw a crow land on his neighbour's roof. It then flew over to another neighbour's roof. Finally, it flew to his roof. He told my grandmother that Mr. Jones (first roof) will die soon. He continued saying Mr. Hayes (second roof) will die afterwards. He then announced, his death would follow. Within a month all three were dead, in order, of natural causes. My uncle (Mother's brother-in-law) had two brothers. They died almost a year apart to the month. He was convinced that the next year in that same month, he would die. He did so of natural causes.
Wow. That's wild. Anyway, what about the age-old pentagram = evil? Sure, its simple, but the MC could make a point of always trying to "purify the demon's landing" (a fun way of saying "I'm gonna try and make it so no demon returns here". So splashing it with holy water or something.
OCD Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Like flipping on and off a light switch x amount of times to prevent something bad from happening.
Here's a link explaining it with more examples. https://www.helpguide.org/articles/anxiety/obssessive-compulsive-disorder-ocd.htm
If my great aunt saw frog's in the garden she'd get her linen in because it was about to rain and it usually did = eventually
Throwing a pinch of salt over your left shoulder to counter the bad curse associated with spilling salt. While not definitive, this superstition may have originated at the time of the salt tax, when salt was exceptionally expensive and spilling it would have been like throwing away gold.
A more modern example was my aunt who, bless her soul, used to slow down when approaching a traffic light in case it might turn red as it would be easier to stop if the light happened to go from green to red during the approach. Needless to say, it was often a self-fulfilling prophecy and travelling anywhere with her exercised extreme patience.
Thanks, these things always comes handy but I prefer not to use that kind of dissorders. Only common or rare superstitions I'm looking for. But I don't care much how strange or illogical these could be. Like some good/bad numbers, touching wood when a bad luck token is triggered and something like that.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4245538/ There's an American sitcom I like called Fresh Off The Boat that devoted a whole episode to Chinese Superstition where 4 is a bad omen and 8 is a good omen; This episode reminds me; superstition is culture based. So ask yourself, your superstitious character, what's their background/culture? If it's Western, perhaps be weary of the number 13 and black cats (though, black cats are considered lucky by some, like Wales, UK).
I'd admit to having a lucky pair of underwear or two. Maybe because my faith in this superstition boosts my confidence? Maybe because the underwear makes my body look better to others? Who knows? I don't even know, and it's something I do/have done in the past for sure.
Futurama had a touching episode with a lucky seven leafed clover, which used this symbol to combine two superstitions into one, the superstition of the four leafed clover with the superstitious believe of the number 7 being a good omen, and making for an extra special good luck charm found by Fry and used by his brother which allowed this symbolic object, for Fry, to tell a story spanning centuries. You'd see this seven leafed clover in one shot set a thousand years ago in one characters hand, and then focused on and used for the present day shot of it/a thousand years in the future again, it was great.
