Bad Luck Superstitions
Walking Under a Ladder
According to early Christian belief, a leaning ladder formed a triangle with the wall and ground. It was considered an affront to the Holy Trinity to walk through a triangle, lest you be considered in league with the devil.
Alternative explanation: Ladders used to be used for getting a body off the scaffold. To walk under it would invite death.
Friday the Thirteenth
In the Bible story of the Last Supper, Jesus says he has chosen 12 disciples, "but one of you is a devil"-a very vivid example of unlucky 13 at table. The next day a Friday, Jesus is crucified. Friday had long been seen as a day of ill omen by the Romans, and was adopted as such by Christianity. Traditionally, Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden on a Friday, and Noah's flood started on a Friday. So Friday and 13 make a deadly combination.
Alternative explanation: At the turn of the fourteenth century, the King of France, Philip le Bel, applied for membership in the Knights Templar, a secret order affiliated with the Pope. He was rejected, and out of revenge ordered the arrest of the Templars. Out of 5000, only twenty escaped. The remaining few cursed the day, Friday the 13th, forever.
Saying "God Bless You"
It was once believed that when people sneezed their soul was expelled from their body and could be replaced by an evil spirit. Blessing them brought their soul back.
Alternative explanation: During the Plague in Europe, sneezing indicated that the person was going to die and so was in need of a blessing.
Spilling Salt
One tradition has it that Judas spilled salt during the Last Supper. Alternative explanation: Salt was used for medicinal purposes in the Middle Ages; disease was believed to be caused by evil spirits. If you spilled salt, throwing it over your left shoulder would hit the spirits in the eye, thus preventing illness.
Avoiding Black Cats
The ancient Egyptians worshipped the Goddess Bast, in the form of a black cat. Christians seeking to eliminate pagan religions later associated black cats with demons.
Break a Mirror
In the Middle Ages, mirrors were very expensive, so breaking a mirror itself was extraordinarily bad luck. It was potentially dangerous because of the shards of glass left over. From a metaphorical perspective, when a mirror breaks, the appearance of reality is fractured in disturbing ways.
Alternative explanation: Ancient Romans believed that reflections in water were actually glimpses of the soul. Disruptions of their reflection affected their soul and brought about bad luck. This was later applied to mirrors.
Opening an Umbrella Indoors
Don't open an umbrella inside the house, or bad luck will "rain" in on you.
Good Luck Penny
This superstition is encapsulated in an old childhood rhyme: "See a penny, pick it up, all the day you'll have good luck. See a penny, let it lay, bad luck plagues you all the day."
A variation: It's only lucky to pick up a penny that's heads up.
Carrying a Rabbit's Foot
Rabbits are associated with spring and the return of new life. They're prolific breeders and thus are symbols of fertility, thought to bring good crops, many children, and prosperity. Owning a rabbit's foot would give you vital connections with many powerful forces (some would say dark forces, since rabbits live underground). According to one source, the rabbit's left hind foot is considered lucky because it touches the ground before its front legs.
Something old, something new
Something borrowed, something blue
This rhyme originated in Victorian times, although some of customs referred to are much older.
The "something old" is traditionally a garter given to the bride by a happily married woman in the hope that her happiness would be passed on to the new bride. "Something new" symbolizes the newlyweds' happy and prosperous future.
The "something borrowed" would be something lent by the bride's family, which she must return to ensure good luck. The custom of the bride wearing "something blue" originated in ancient Israel where the color blue represented fidelity.
White Wedding Gown
A white wedding gown symbolizes purity. A British rhyme summarizes beliefs regarding colors of gowns:
Married in White, you have chosen right,
Married in Blue, your love will always be true,
Married in Pearl, you will live in a whirl,
Married in Brown, you will live in town,
Married in Red, you will wish yourself dead,
Married in Yellow, ashamed of your fellow,
Married in Green, ashamed to be seen,
Married in Pink, your spirit will sink,
Married in Grey, you will go far away,
Married in Black, you will wish yourself back.
Source: Wedding Customs & Superstitions
