Superstitions
I realize that there are a lot of things in common between Japanese superstition and Chinese superstition. I am chinese descendent and i grew up in a family where there is not shortage of these so called taboos and superstitions. Of course, I never give two hoots about them but sometimes…weird things happen, and you wonder if it’s just a coincidence. Well, coincidence or not, here is a list of Japanese superstitions that you might find interesting :)
* The number four:
The number four is considered inauspicious because it is pronounced the same as the word
for death (shi). Therefore, one should not make presents that consist of four pieces, etc. In
some hotels and hospitals the room number four is skipped. yea, the number four is a superstitious number too for the same reason - that it sounds like death* Stick chopsticks into the rice:
Do not stick your chopsicks into your food generally, but especially not into rice, because
only at funerals, chopsticks are stuck into the rice which is put onto the altar.* Give food from chopstick to chopstick:
This is only done with the bones of the cremated body at funerals.* Sleeping towards the North:
Do not sleep towards the North beacause bodies are laid down like that.* Funeral Car:
If a funeral car passes you should hide your thumb.* Cut nails at night:
If you cut your nails at night, you will not be with your parents when they die.* Lie down after eating:
If you lie down immedeately after eating, you will become a cow. I thought it was a pig that you become?* Whistle in the night:
If you whistle in the night, a snake will come to you. My late grandma use to say that if i whistle at night, I am going to attract ghost and ghoulies. Pssh!* Black cat:
There are also some imported superstitions such as the believe that black cats crossing the
street in front of you cause bad luck. my grandma used to tell me that if a black cat jumps over the body of a dead person/coffin, the body will be possessed by evil spirits….. can you imagine how my little mind took it when I was 10 and my grandpa passed away?????? I needed therapy…just kidding, i didn’t but it did freaked me out then
Source: Japan-Guide
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February 18th, 2007 at 6:03 am
Very true about the number four thing. I’ve been to quite a number of hotels all throughout Japan where there is simply no forth floor (Not hidden away in the ‘Being John Malcovich’ kinda way, but just straight from floor three to floor five)! Funnily enough it seems to be mostly hotels which don’t have a forth floor - multi-storey shopping malls and universities, among others, all tend to have forth floors.
And would you be any less freaked out of you attracted a snake, rather than ghosts and ghouls? Maybe the parents just wanted us children to be quiet at night so they could get a good sleep!
January 16th, 2008 at 6:45 am
LoL it should be #2 because its said that what happens twice happens againXD(I do it all the time, and it hurts if that goes on with homework T_T)