Legend has it that if 13 people sit down to dinner together, one will die within the year. The Turks so disliked the number 13 that it was practically expunged from their vocabulary. If you have 13 letters in your name, you will have the devil's luck like Jack the Ripper and Charles Manson.
In numerology, the number twelve is considered the number of completeness, as reflected in the twelve months of the year, twelve signs of the zodiac, twelve hours of the clock, twelve tribes of Israel, twelve Apostles of Jesus, twelve gods of Olympus, whereas the number thirteen was considered irregular and therefore transgressing this completeness.
The superstition can be traced back to Norse mythology. Apparently Friday was named after Frigga, the free-spirited goddess of love and fertility. When Norse and Germanic tribes converted to Christianity, Frigga was banished to a mountaintop and labeled a witch. It was believed that every Friday, the spiteful goddess convened a meeting with eleven other witches, plus the devil - a gathering of thirteen – to plot ill turns of fate for the coming week. For many centuries in Scandinavia, Friday was known as "Witches' Sabbath."
Others say Friday's bad reputation goes all the way back to the Garden of Eden. It was supposedly on a Friday that Eve tempted Adam with the forbidden fruit. Tradition also holds that the Great Flood began on a Friday; God tongue-tied the builders of the Tower of Babel on a Friday; the Temple of Solomon was destroyed on a Friday and of course, Chris was crucified on a Friday.
In Britain, both Friday and the number 13 were once closely associated with capital punishment. Friday was the conventional day for public hangings, and there were supposedly 13 steps leading up to the noose.
Ultimately, the complex folklore of Friday the 13 doesn't have much to do with people's fears in this century. If you think about it, bad things, big and small, happens all the time. But if you get in an accident, lose your wallet or even spill your coffee, you’ll probably blame it on today. After all, it’s Friday the 13.
In numerology, the number twelve is considered the number of completeness, as reflected in the twelve months of the year, twelve signs of the zodiac, twelve hours of the clock, twelve tribes of Israel, twelve Apostles of Jesus, twelve gods of Olympus, whereas the number thirteen was considered irregular and therefore transgressing this completeness.
The superstition can be traced back to Norse mythology. Apparently Friday was named after Frigga, the free-spirited goddess of love and fertility. When Norse and Germanic tribes converted to Christianity, Frigga was banished to a mountaintop and labeled a witch. It was believed that every Friday, the spiteful goddess convened a meeting with eleven other witches, plus the devil - a gathering of thirteen – to plot ill turns of fate for the coming week. For many centuries in Scandinavia, Friday was known as "Witches' Sabbath."
Others say Friday's bad reputation goes all the way back to the Garden of Eden. It was supposedly on a Friday that Eve tempted Adam with the forbidden fruit. Tradition also holds that the Great Flood began on a Friday; God tongue-tied the builders of the Tower of Babel on a Friday; the Temple of Solomon was destroyed on a Friday and of course, Chris was crucified on a Friday.
In Britain, both Friday and the number 13 were once closely associated with capital punishment. Friday was the conventional day for public hangings, and there were supposedly 13 steps leading up to the noose.
Ultimately, the complex folklore of Friday the 13 doesn't have much to do with people's fears in this century. If you think about it, bad things, big and small, happens all the time. But if you get in an accident, lose your wallet or even spill your coffee, you’ll probably blame it on today. After all, it’s Friday the 13.
3 comments:
The most spooky thing that happened to me: AirAsia was punctual on their 9pm flight to KL...and I can't help remembering what you have posted! :p.
hahah.... u must be getting paranoid after reading my blog :p
Wow.... I missed Friday 13th without even realizing it. I checked and the next one will be in March. Maybe we can celebrate that day also
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