13th September, 2018 is...

Defy Superstition Day

Stepping under a ladder on Friday 13th whilst clutching a horseshoe the right way up is a great way
of starting off Defy Superstition Day. From throwing salt over your shoulder if you spill some to
worrying about black cats, the world is full of superstitions. Defy Superstition Day gives you the
chance to let your rational mind overcome these strange dictates to prove once and for all that a solo
magpie or treading on cracks in the pavement have no influence on your life.

You may wish to celebrate by holding a “Defy Superstition” party. Guests must, of course, wear red
and white together, have dinner around a table set for thirteen and all put umbrellas up whilst indoors.
Otherwise, why not challenge yourself to see how many superstitions you can break in an hour? A
great opportunity to face your fears, Defy Superstition Day is always worth celebrating.

Stepping under a ladder

Running late for an appointment is a young man dressed in a sharp suit and carrying an attaché.
Weaving through the foot traffic the man checks his watch to make sure he will make his important
meeting. His phone rings and he retrieves it from a pocket and says hello. Distracted, he walks right
under a ladder leaning on a building; realizing what he did he freezes, wondering if what his
grandmother always told him is true- that walking under ladders means bad luck.

The Walking Under a Ladder Superstition

To many walking under a ladder is bad luck, while to others it is simply unsafe. Some will go so far to
say that walking under a ladder is akin to blaspheme, and in the old days being a blasphemer wasn’t
very conducive to good health and long life, so accidentally walking under a ladder in a Christian land
could be considered very bad luck, indeed. But is there anything to the superstition, and where did the
idea that it would bring bad luck come from? And was there anything that could be done to break the
bad luck before it settled to deeply on the offender?

The Origin of the Walking Under a Ladder Superstition

There are a couple of theories about where the “Walking Under a Ladder is Bad Luck” superstition
came from. The one mentioned above- that walking under a ladder was akin to blaspheming- comes
from the early days of Christianity. Many Christians are believers in the Trinity—that God is made up
of three parts, the Holy Father, the Holy Son, and the Holy Ghost (or Holy Spirit). Thus, the number
three was somewhat sacred, and the triangle was by association also sacred with its three sides. A
ladder leaning up against a building was seen as a triangle (the ladder itself making one side, the
building wall making up a second side, and the ground connecting the two making the third side.) To
walk through this triangle (by walking under the ladder) was seen as breaking the Trinity. The bible
talks about the one unforgivable sin being blaspheming against the Holy Spirit, so someone who
breaks the Trinity is seen to be in league with the Devil; and once again, being labeled such in the old
days of Christianity was a quick way to invite the hangman and witch trials.

So what to do if you realize you’ve just walked under a ladder and want to ward off the bad luck? You
spit. Either you spit three times through the rungs of the ladder, or you spit on your shoe. Make sure
you don’t look at your shoe until the spit has dried, however. Failing these tactics, cross your fingers
until you find a dog, or simply back out the way you came in and make a wish!
Spilling Salt

Sitting down to an elegant dinner in tie and tails are a room full of distinguished men each seeming
bent on out-shining the next in terms of breeding and class. As one reaches across the table to retrieve
the dish of butter, his arm hits the salt cellar, which wobbles once or twice, and then falls. The crystals
of salt have barely scattered on to the silk table cloth when the gentleman reaches forward, picks up a
few grains in a pinch, and then tosses them over his left shoulder. This display of the superstitions
about spilling salt passes uncommented upon as the dinner continues.

The Spilling Salt Superstition

It is considered bad luck to spill salt, but the superstition most associated with this activity is not the
act of spilling, but what comes next. In order to prevent the bad luck from settling on the salt spiller,
the person who did the pilling is required to toss some of the spilled salt over his left shoulder. This
very specific action is supposed to act as a shield, but must be done immediately for its benefits to
take hold. This very interesting superstition has been around for a very long time, although its exact
origins are obscured in history.

The Origin of the Spilling Salt Superstition

The origins of the spilling salt superstitions may lie in the fact that spilling salt was considered bad
form long before it was considered bad luck. In ancient times salt was an expensive commodity, and
one that had many useful purposes. Wasting salt, therefore, was frowned upon, and so some suggest
that the admonition of spilling salt being “bad luck” came about as a way to stop the careless from
wasting a precious spice.

But what of throwing the salt over the shoulder- and why the left shoulder so specifically? In some
Christian beliefs the Devil hangs about over the left (also known as the Sinister) side of the body,
looking for an opportunity to invade. Spilling salt, seen as an invitation for the Devil to do his handy
work, needs to be accounted for- tossing said salt over the left shoulder puts it square in the devil’s
face, just as he is on the attack.

There is another Christian origin that some ascribe to the superstition that spilling salt is bad luck. Like
the Holy Grail myth and the superstition about the number 13, the idea that spilling salt can bring you
ill is linked to the Last Supper. The famous painting by Da Vinci shows the betrayer Judas having just
knocked over a salt vessel, spilling the spice all over the table.

clutch = to hold tightly

horseshoe = a shoe for a horse formed of a narrow band of iron in the form of an extended circular
arc and secured to the hoof with nails
akin to = related by blood
magpie = bird – cotofana
tread on = step on
to weave, wove, woven = to interlace threads, to make cloth
put up an umbrella = open an umbrella
distracted = having the attention diverted, not concentrating
conducive = leading to
to take hold = to grasp, to hold firmly
admonition = word of advice, warning
out-shining = shine brighter than
bent on = resolute, firm in purpose
square = directly
careless = heedless, reckless