Trick-or-treating, jack-o'-lanterns, weird snacks, candies, costume parties, bonfires, apple bobbing, horror films, and scary stories are all synonymous with Halloween. But it is much more than these modern traditions. The spookiest and scariest festival of the year, Halloween falls on October 31 every year and is celebrated with immense fun, joy, and enthusiasm in the United States and Canada. However, the festival did not originate in the Americas and has its roots in the Celtic festival of Samhain, observed in Ireland. Besides, different traditions, customs, and rituals from numerous festivals play a vital role in the origin of Halloween. As such, this spooky holiday is also associated with a long history superstitions, goblins, witches, folklore, and fantasy. People largely correlate the holiday of Halloween with concerns about marriage, luck, and death. Listed here are a collection of some popular myths and legends about Halloween.
Famous Halloween Myths And Legends
Halloween is a rich source of superstitions. This article outlines some famous myths and legends about the spooky and scary Halloween.
Halloween Superstitions
- Black cats and Halloween fit together just as salt and pepper do. While black cat in North America is considered to bring bad luck if it crosses you, a black cat in Britain, Ireland, or Japan, on the other hand, is thought to bring good luck. However, the opposite is believed for white cats.
- By slicing an apple at the equator to reveal the five-pointed star within, girls can see their future husband when they eat it by candlelight before a mirror. Furthermore, peeling an apple in a long strand and throwing it off your shoulder on the floor takes the shape of the initial of your beloved.
- On lighting a candle, if it suddenly turns blue, it indicates the presence of a ghost nearby.
- Ringing a bell on Halloween helps in scaring away the evil spirits.
- People in Britain and Ireland believed that you shouldn't look back while walking along on a Halloween night and hearing footsteps behind you. There is a possibility of the dead following you. Looking back and sighting the dead means that you will die soon.
- To ward off evil spirits, it is advised to walk backwards and counterclockwise three times around your home before sunset on Halloween.
- Burning a candle in a jack-o'-lantern on Halloween wards off evil spirits and demons.
- Finding a spider on Halloween is an indication of the spirit of a loved one watching you.
- Girls, who wish to see their future husband in their dreams, should place a sprig of rosemary herb and a silver sixpence under their pillow before sleeping.
- By gazing into the flame of a candle on Halloween, you can take a sneak peek into the future.
- Animal bones or a picture of an animal is buried to prevent ghosts from entering the home on Halloween.
- A person born on Halloween is gifted with the power of seeing and talking to spirits.
- Visiting a crossroads at Halloween and listening to the wind lets you learn all the significant things that will occur in the next twelve months.
- During apple bobbing, the first person to bite an apple would be the first to get married.
- Sighting a bat flying three times around a house is an omen of death.
- Tying a knot in a handkerchief is believed to ward off evil.
- Carrying a lump of bread in the pocket while walking in the dark is assumed to serve as an offering to the ghosts.
- Walk around a ghost nine times when you sight it and it will disappear.
- If you hear 3 knocks and do not find anyone opening the door, it indicates that someone close is soon going to die. Superstitious people call it by the name of "3 knocks of death".
- Avoid slamming a door on Halloween as it might hurt a ghost passing by. If it turns true, the ghost is likely to haunt you for the rest of your life.
- Killing a black cat on Halloween means seven years of bad luck.
- Pointing a finger at a grave will result in rotting of your finger.