Superstitions, beliefs and customs across cultures

Alexander Crespo Paunero Koyelia Sirkar Maria Toner Oana Popescu

Group Members

SUPERSTITIONS

近义词： folklore; old wives' tale; tradition; blind faith; blind worship

(English – Chinese Dictionary)

Superstitions have their roots centuries ago, when our ancestors tried to explain mysterious circumstances, preserve traditions or share tacit knowledge.

MONEY

Romanian Chinese

Lucky

To feel itchy on the left hand (you will receive money soon)Throw coins into fountains

To spend 88, 99 or 66 $Right eye blinking (you will receive money)

Unlucky

To spend money on Mondays or on 1st of JanuaryTo wear a wallet with no money in itTo feel itchy on your right hand

To avoid to spend 44 $

Left eye blinking (money loss)

Romanian Chinese

Lucky

Horses, especially white ones, are creatures of magic and luck. The spider is considered the messenger of eventsWhite cat is sign of luck

DragonPigTigerBat

UnluckyBlack cat is the symbol of evil and should be avoided Crow

ANIMALS

Indian Chinese

Lucky Red Red

Unlucky White Black

COLOURS

COLOURSRed is the colour of good luck and joy in Chinese culture. It symbolizes happiness and is completely forbidden for funerals.

Also in Spain, people wear red clothes, usually underwear, in New Year’s Eve to attract the good luck.

COLOURS

Molière (Jean Baptiste de Poquelin) died in the scene wearing yellow clothes. Since then, yellow is also the colour of bad luck for the actors in western countries.

Yellow is associated to the sulfur of the Hell by Christian tradition.In the 13th century the Pope Innocent III banned this colour from the Catholic liturgy.

Indian Chinese

Lucky 7 8

Unlucky 8 4

NUMBERS

NUMBERS3. 三 (sān)"birth" 生 (shēng)

6. 六 (liù) "glide" 澑 (liù), "fluid" 流 (liú), "bless" 祿 (lok)8. 八 (bā) "prosper" or "wealth" 发 (fā) – short for " 发财” "double joy" 囍 (shuāng xĭ)

4. 四 (sì) "death" 死 (sǐ)

NUMBERS13 and 666 represent the numbers of the bad luck in Christian cultures.In particular Friday the 13th is believed to be the day of the bad luck in many countries.

666 is believed to be the number of the Devil in the Bible. However, recent studies have shown that the actual number of the Beast may be 616.

Indian Chinese

Sneezing before starting something important is a bad omen.

Sneezing can mean that someone is talking about the “sneezer”.

So in India a twitching right eye is definitely a good sign while the left eye twitching is considered inauspicious.

An old Chinese saying about twitching eyelids - "the twitching of the left eyelid indicates the coming of good fortune; while the right one is a warning about the coming bad luck."

ACTIONS

ACTIONS

In Christian cultures, sneezing was believed to mean that the soul of the person was trying to get out of his body. For this reason, in many countries it is usual to say “Bless you” or, like in Spain, “Jesus”.

The salt is considered a high valued element of purification in many cultures and it was believed to stop the Devil. Therefore, spilling salt is considered to be a symbol of bad luck.

ACTIONS

ACTIONS

In European, Indian and Chinese cultures, mirrors are believed to have the power to confiscate part of the soul of the people reflected on it.

Therefore, if someone breaks a mirror, part of his soul might be kept trapped forever.

Indian Chinese

A the time of Vidayi (leaving the house after marriage) the girl throws rice and other grains and her brothers and everybody else in the house catches it in some cloth it symbolises the girl’s wish that even after she leaves the house, her family should have sufficient and should remain prosperous.

Throwing rice confetti at the newlyweds will bring them prosperity all their life.

If it rains during the wedding, it means prosperity and happiness for the newlyweds.

(Same)

WEDDING

Paganism

Christianity

Irish Mythology

Learnt Observation

Irish Superstitions

IRISH AND CHINESE SUPERSTITIONS

Newgrange 3200 BC

Book of Invasions 11th Century

God

Son of God

Holy Spirit

YinFemalewater

YangMaleFire

Christianity Taoism

Tao Hua Yuan“Peach Blossom Spring”

Tír na nÓg“Land of the Youth”

Pre Tang Dynasty(pre- 618)

Tao Qian

11th Century

Book of Invasions

Ireland China

Peaches: longevity & prosperity

Peach Blossom Festival (Spring)

Leprechauns – Luprachán:guarding treasure

Lughnasadh festival (Aug)

IMPLICATIONS• Superstitions means to believe in spite of evidence or without

evidence; to believe that the world is governed by chance or caprice; to disregard the true relation between cause and effect; to put thought, intention and design back of nature; to believe in force apart from substance, or in substance apart from force; to believe in miracles, spells and charms, in dreams and prophecies; to believe in the supernatural. Thousands of persons believe in lucky and unlucky days, numbers, signs and jewels (Ingersoll, 2010).

Conclusion

References

• MacMillan Dictionary• Oxford Dictionary• English – Chinese Dictionary• Ingersoll – 2010• Understanding South Asian culture compiled by Caritas Youth and Community Service• Sources of Chinese tradition by W.M.Theodore De Bary , Wing-tsit Chan, Chester Tan• Hindu manners , customs and ceremonies by Abbe J.A. Dubosis• Indian Civilazation , the Formative period by S.C.Malik• India-An illustrated history by Prem Kishore and Anuradha Kishore Ganpati• Irish language and culture by Francesca Coles• Stanton, F., 2002, Culture and Customs of Spain, Greenwood Press, Westport, US• Stanton, F., 1999, Handbook of Spanish Popular Culture, Greenwood Press, London, UK • www.irishcultureandcustoms.com• www.triskelle.eu/history• www.chinatownconnection.com

QUESTIONS