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Superstitions
Beliefs and practices resulting from the human need to find causation in the everyday happenings of life. This is where we will try to unravel some of the unusual and esoteric things people ask us about.
1,659 Questions
This is absolute nonsense, people who write these crazy chain letter are bored and have nothing to do except try to scare other people. they should learn to read a good book and do something constructive with their lives! Do not pay attention to this garbage.
What does two feathers falling from the sky mean symbolyze?
That the bird flying overhead is starting to go bald.
What are superstitions about red cardinals?
The Cardinal is one of the most easily recognizable birds and was chosen by seven states to be their official state bird. The Cardinal with its brilliant red color can be seen throughout the twelve months of the year and is often depicted on Christmas cards and gift wrap. Their eggs hatch in twelve days.
The number twelve connected with the Cardinal is why there is a folkloric belief that they are lucky. When a Cardinal flies into your life you can expect a change for the better to occur within twelve days, twelve weeks, twelve months or at the hour of twelve. Or if you observe a Cardinal flying upward toward the sky you will have good luck. Be sure to welcome the Cardinal to your windowsill for it is the spirit of a recently deceased relative or friend.
What are the effects of superstition to people?
If people truly believe in the superstistion it can really damaged their mental well being if they are confronted with the belief...like if they see a black cat or end up walking under a laddeer.
There's also the belief that the dead will come back and harm the living, so those that believ this use a lot of time and energy trying to keep their dead ancestors appeased.
Example of superstitious beliefs and explain the basis for it?
An example of a superstitious belief is that spilling salt is bad luck. It originated because both spilling things and bad luck are fairly ordinary events and it is difficult to disprove the correlation.
Is there any scientific basis for superstitions?
While there are certainly historical, anthropological and cultural reasons behind most superstitions, they are called superstitions because of the very fact that they have no basis in Science.
Give at least 5 superstitions belief?
1. step on a crack and break ypur Mother's back.
2. walk under a ladder
3. Break a Mirror and get 7 years of bad luck
4. Black Cat crosses your path
5. Waste salt and you have bad luck
Why do you call bad luck when you spill salt?
It might be because theres so many salt grains you have to puck up, good question
Differentiate superstitions from scientific beliefs?
Superstition is an irrational belief that is deeply held, even in the absence of evidence, and that always causes some degree of anxiety when it plays out [situations for example where you have no alternative but to walk under a ladder, or step on a crack-- and then something horrible happens!]. Superstitions are inner convictions about how the world operates, and they are hard to overcome. Even though they may lead to some anxiety, they are ways for us to experience consistency in the world, and sometimes it is easier for us to want our superstitions to be 'true' [yes, once again I see that the world is consistent] than it is to give them up [I'm free of that, and now open to new possibilities].
In very simple terms science is the accumulation of knowledge, sometimes slow and laborious, based on observation and the manipulating of variables in order to see what affects what. As time goes on, a more and more consistent view of the physical world develops, and scientific beliefs can be used to explore and develop new areas of technology.
A Little More Exploring
The distinction between the two seems at first to be complete and unambiguous, doesn't it? But a sharp distinction between superstition and scientific belief really may not be possible. The way humans believe is not neatly divided into these two categories. Superstition is a kind of magical thinking where a person is convinced that taboo behaviors somehow force something bad to happen. There is hardly a person, however scientific he may think himself to be, who is totally free from even the slightest degree of superstition. Try any of the following to test this out: put your shoes and socks on in the order different from usual. Change the order of your morning rituals-- brush first then shave, change the way you shower-- and notice what happens. There is some tug on you that doing things out of their 'proper' order will result in something bad or uncomfortable. Take as an example someone who experiences 'bad luck' when a black cat crosses his path. You might develop an experiment where you will randomly make a black cat cross his path, even with his knowledge, in an attempt to prove to him that the superstition is nonsense. But the superstition is like an 'inner engine', and the person will see to it (not consciously) that there will be 'bad luck' each time the cat crosses his path. So, for him, superstition is supported by repeated experimentation!
'Scientific belief' on the other hand should refer to knowledge that has been theorized and repeatedly tested out. But clearly not everything we do and believe has come under the scrutiny of the 'scientific method'. It would be absurd for us to require scientific backing for every step we take and every move we make. We can just be 'reasonable' about how we approach things. It sometimes surprises us to learn that one of our pet 'scientific beliefs' is really urban legend, and to discover how hard it is to give up one of these beliefs in favor of something more supportable. We've all experienced this kind of 'clash in the head' when we learn that something we have comfortably assumed for a long time is, in fact, not true. The history of science highlights many times when world views have abruptly changed, and adherents to the older theory fought tooth-and-nail to maintain their ways of thinking, even though they clearly represented what had become irrational thinking.
This leads us to consider that science, however lofty one thinks of it as the source of the highest levels of objective truth, may have some element of superstition in it, just as the guy with the black cat superstition can say that his superstition has some element of 'science' in it.
The bottom line is that while superstition and scientific belief are different in some ways, they also share some interesting and very human things in common. They involve an investment of personal energy in advancing a certain world view. A superstitious person will see the world and operate in the world within the limits of his world view. A scientist might approach certain questions because there is a personal investment in the importance of the work, to the exclusion of the work of others, sometimes. Both individuals might be operating out of a set of false or flawed assumptions, all based on what is going on inside. "I'm convinced that this is the way the world is, so obviously my set of observations (not that other person's) are really the important ones, and so the questions I come up with are really going to get to the heart of the matter."
This investment of personal energy is really the uniting factor, and the thing that should make everyone humble about being sure of one's knowledge. The best approach is to be willing to question everything, and not get too bothered when a pet theory or belief is challenged or debunked.
What are the example of superstitous beliefs?
Some examples of a superstitous beliefs are: * not to walk under ladders * don't let a black cat cross your path * point at a rainbow try this website for some wierder ones: http://www.corsinet.com/trivia/scary.html
Is it bad luck to marry the same person twice?
no it defintely isnt lots of people have done it my teacher etc
Is it bad luck when a Buddha falls?
Buddhism doesn't relate well to luck. Things happen because you make them by omission or commission. A falling statue of Buddha might be unfortunate, painful, hard to explain - but not unlucky.
What does an itchy ear symbolize?
Itching
-right hand Money going out.
-left hand Money coming in.
-right foot Journey to familiar place.
-left foot Journey to strange place.
-right ear Spiteful gossip.
-left ear Someone is speaking well of you.
-right eye Good luck in the offing.
-left eye Luck will soon turn against you
-nose Going to kiss a fool; expect a quarrel.
The correct term is superstitious beliefs. Superstitious beliefs are the belief that any one event will lead to a specific outcome even though the two events do not have a connection. An example would be believing that breaking a mirror causes seven years of bad luck.
Well that is just plain silly! If you like collecting owl ornaments you shouldn't pay attention to petty superstitious beliefs and keeps on collecting!
Owls are not always unlucky - there are a number of people (and groups) who believe that owls are a symbol of wisdom. Others see them as messengers. I have an extensive collection of my own, and I see them as representatives of a wonderful, beautiful and majestic creature of nature.
What are some birth superstitions?
Carrying high, or the baby kicking on the means a boy, carrying low or kicks on the left means a girl.
Untying any knots, braids etc and placing a knife under the bed will ease childbirth. Iron nails will keep evil spirits away from the mother & baby during the birth. Chicken feathers burned under the bed (after delivery) will stop bleeding.
Babies born under a waning new moon are destined to a life of failure, while a waxing new moon means a life that will grow strongly.
Then there is the old nursery rhyme: Monday's child is fair of face. Tuesdays child is full of grace. Wednesday's child is full of woe. Thursday's child has far to go. Friday's child is loving and giving. Saturday's child works hard for a living. But a child that is born on the sabath day, is blythe and bonnie, good and gay.
There is no such thing as ghosts.
**
On TV to "provoke" a ghost, they make it mad. IE "So, you killed your wife, that makes you a horrible person..." etc. They just try and make it mad so it "shows" itself.
Are ravens the sign of bad luck or a bad omen?
There are those who would say yes, others say no. It depends on your personal perspective. Below you will find an old poem about the number of ravens you see:
One is for bad news,
Two is for mirth.
Three is a wedding,
Four is a birth.
Five is for riches,
Six is a thief.
Seven is a journey,
Eight is for grief.
Nine is a secret,
Ten is for sorrow.
Eleven is for love,
Twelve for joy tomorrow.
Can someone give you an example of superstitious beliefs related to personal hygiene?
It is believed by some to be bad luck to wash your hair or clothing on New Year's Day.
It is believed you will adversely impact your health if you cut your fingernails or hair during the waning moon.
Combing your hair out of doors is believed to bring storms.
Haircuts have a wonderful rhyme: Best never enjoyed if Sunday shron, and likewise on a Monday, Cut Thursday and you'll never get rich, Likewise on a Saturday. But live long if shorn on a Tuesday and best of all is Friday.
An old rhyme about bathing says: He who bathes in May will soon be laid in clay, He who bathes in June will sing a marry tune, but he who bathes in July will dance like a fly.
Why do human believe in power of supernatural?
The answer is Simple, If there isn't a supernatural power, it is impossible to see a "Intelligent Design" of the creations around us! This universe is Designed by a supernatural power! e.g. We never can say a mobile device was found in the desert after millions of years of evolution because of the design and the structure, and we also cannot deny the perfect design of the living beings!for an example, we can take a Human's Hand, It is impossible to lift up a glass of water without the help of the Thumb finger, (if you doubt it you may try it and see) therefore, certainly someone has engineered Humans' internal and external body structures, without a doubt! And as an another argument, we can post a question, did everything came from nothing? physics gives an answer saying NO... it is impossible something to come from nothing, So there is certainly a creator! Quran 52:35-36 questions mankind " Were they created of nothing, or were they themselves the creators? Or did they create the heavens and the earth? No, they have no firm belief. " Allah is all wise all knowing! .
How does science oppose superstitions?
By proving that walking under a ladder will not make bad things happen to you, it may be stupidly risky if someone has a tool/bucket/tin of paint and you knock the ladder causing it to hit you but by the scientific process of prediction, testing and conclusion of results we get proof that some superstitions are wrong.
