Superstitions & the Supernatural

One can define superstitions as a worldwide phenomenon. Others may depict it as a blind belief. Superstitions may be a fear prospered inside, good or bad luck, and simply unexplainable. There are many common superstitions that yet exist in this very world. But, what I am most curious about are...

• Breaking a mirror 
• Bloody Mary 
• Walking under a ladder 

The myth "break a mirror, face seven years of bad luck", first originated back to the Romans, whom coincidentally first created the glass mirrors. The Chinese, Greek, Africans, and Indian cultures shared the same belief as the Romans that the mirror had the strength and power to inherit part of the user's soul. During Roman times many believed that each person's body undergoes physical change every seven years. Thus, the mirror represented a break in the person's health and well-being.

http://www.wisegeek.org/why-is-it-considered-bad-luck-to-break-a-mirror.htm

http://psychiclibrary.com/beyondBooks/broken-mirror-superstition

http://www.snopes.com/luck/superstition/breakmirror.as

Bloody Mary was named after Mary I, Queen of England. During her reign as Queen she resent the Protestants and wanted England to turn back to Roman Catholicism. Therefore, she killed many innocent people by force as well as executed all the Protestant leaders. Naming this period of time Mary's bloody reign of terror.

http://www.greatsite.com/timeline-english-bible-history/queen-mary.html

http://www.castleofspirits.com/bloodymary.html

The superstition, "Walking under a ladder", originated back to medieval times where the ladder signified the gallows- a place where people were hung. Thus, when someone walked under a ladder it was considered that they would evidently face their own death by hanging. Many believed that the triangle of the ladder formed a haunted area because the person was hung at the top rungs of the ladder, their spirit rested within the triangle. The fact that the ladders were leaned against the gallows and typically used to help remove the dead bodies it was perceived that walking under the ladder would cause the dead body to fall on you resulting in an injury or death.

http://psychiclibrary.com/beyondBooks/ladder-superstition


The purpose of these superstitions is to prevent these situations from happening. We all know that breaking a mirror is dangerous because it is sharp and hard to see when broken, therefore, to prevent this from happening many would rather believe the myth behind it in order to understand why you shouldn't do such an act like that. Thus, that carelessness will cause you to believe you are cursed for the next seven years. As for Bloody Mary, taunting her name in a game is a ridiculous way to see a ghost. Because of this belief many are haunted by a memory of her and can play a trick on young minds resulting in nightmares. Hence, the myth plays a great role in scaring people and realizing that ghost don't exist, it is just your mind playing tricks on you believing in what happened and what your mind thinks that happened. Lastly, you have walking under a ladder, which is another way to say don't walk under a ladder because it is dangerous. To prevent something from hitting you that can either be an object or the person on it, it is better if you just take the time and walk around to avoid any injury that may lead to death. These situations result in common sense and in order to understand why not to do them many would like to believe in the myth as a reason why not to. These beliefs persist due to religion, tradition, or background knowledge of the individual.