Encyclopaedia of Superstitions

By Edwin and Mona A. Radford

Published 1949

It is unlucky to meet a man with flat feet on a Monday morning. (How will I know if he has flat feet?)

Windows of a house should be kept shut on the first day in March to prevent the annual effort of fleas to gain entrance.

If birds find your hair cuttings and build nests with them, you will have an eruption of the head.  (ERUPTION?!)

To cure the whooping cough, roast a mouse and give it to the patient.

Spit upon a newborn baby and you will bring it luck. (Thanks to Uncle Mike, Baby Theo is all set!)

If you wear a snake skin round your head, you will never have a headache.

Take the forelegs of a mole and one of the hind legs and put them into a bag.  Wear it around your neck and you will never have the toothache.

A superstition is a widely held, yet unjustified belief in consequences of certain actions.  Because they are unjustified, they are often quite humorous, and with 2,300 superstitions listed in this book, there is much humor found!

To dream of your sweetheart, take the blade bone of a rabbit and stick nine pins into it.  Then put it under your pillow and you will be sure to see the object of your affection.

This encyclopaedia also gives explanations for how some superstitions started.  For instance, walking under a ladder has been considered bad luck because the shape of a ladder leaning against a wall forms a triangle which is a symbol of the Holy Trinity.  Breaking that trinity would bring bad fortune.  Of course, walking under a ladder is usually not the smartest thing to do anyway, as you may end up with a bucket of paint or a hammer on your head.

Now please excuse me while I go put a knife in my pocket to prevent the fairies from lifting me tonight.