A MagiQal Life » superstitions

Superstitions

Thu, 29 Nov 2007 16:11:45 +0000

As I mentioned before (Superstisous?) I have recently gotten a few books on superstitions, and I’ve finally gotten around to gleaning some worthy information about them and putting them up on my main page. While there is not much there yet you may find an interest in what I have gotten.

Currently I have all the days of the week, as well as the magickal uses of saliva. More article are planned, epsecially a page on clovers as I have a knack in finding them and likely some bit about luck in general.

If you have a few moments then click on through and check it out. The main index on superstitions can be found here: Traditional Beliefs about Superstitions

Superstitious?

Sat, 10 Nov 2007 06:16:14 +0000

I recently took a trip to Knoxville to McKay Books, a simply FANTASTIC used bookstore. I do my best to make it over there at least once every few months and would like to go more but generally do not have the money. They sell high quality, but used books that are generally at least 50% off of the cover price, though even better deals can certainly be found.

In the past I have gotten several magickal text, a few craft/project books, and even a gardening book. I generally head out there with my Most beloved, but sometimes I’ll head out there with her daughter, which is who I went with this last time. She got a few novels of the time travel/paranormal variety, and I got three books on superstitions.

The Encyclopedia of Superstitions, by E. and M. A. Radford [Barnes & Noble, 1961]
370 pages of information on European and American superstitions complete with a decent bibliography and a handy index for cross-referencing. Well worth its $7.50 price tag.
Dictionary of Superstitions, by David Pickering [Cassell, 1995]
It has 294 pages with more entries then the previous book, but less information for each one of them. It offers no other perks, but is still rather handy as an A-Z guide for it’s topic. Certainly a good starting point, and I’m glad that I got it for $5.25.
A Treasury of American Superstitions, Claudia De Lys [Bonanza, 1948]
This little gem has 484 pages, a bibliography, and a decent index. It is not an A-Z guide however and finding things quickly could prove difficult without it’s index. It is well written, easy to follow, and has more information then either of the other two on the topics that it covers. One nice thing is that it focuses on American traditions, though many did come from over seas originally.

I plan on writing up several articles on what can be had in all three books so stay tuned to both here and the main site for updates concerning superstitions. To get a small taste of what is inside the three books check out these Occult Corpus discussions for superstitions for the entire week: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday.

The Apple Of My Eye

Thu, 11 Oct 2007 10:27:18 +0000

My birthday is in October so inevitably my birthday parties always had a Halloween theme to theme. That’s not a bad thing mind you, I love that spooky holiday. But it’s not always about the tricks and treats or the goblins and ghosts. It’s about other fall festivities like Hay Rides and Bobbing for Apples. Of course I had no Idea that Hay rides derived from such simple pleasures as this being the time of year and such hay pulling NEEDED to be done. Of course I also had no idea that Bobbing for Apples and the use of apples in general were ancient Celtic traditions that could foretell who I was going to marry. Had I paid more attention I could have saved myself some heart ache and just gone for the loving bliss I’ve found here in Tennessee.

As many of the older traditions started based on the needs of daily life, its no wonder that fruit, specifically apples, became an integral part of the harvest festival we have come to know as Halloween. In the beginning of early pagan traditions, apples were believed to hold special powers, not only were they a symbol for the female gods, but when an apple is split in two through its center, it will reveal a five-pointed star at the center. I mean, how cool is that? Not to mention tis the season for apples and of course how yummy they taste.

Unwed folks used to compete to see who could bob for an apple or bit a hanging apple from a string. The first to get their teeth marks into it would be the first to marry.

Peeling apples in front of a mirror in candle light can supposedly produce the image of ones future spouse. This is rather humorous, especially as, if it took a while to bring about the image you could then divine just how long you would live. According to tradition by comparing the length of the peel to your average life expectancy you could divine the rest of your time. The longer the peel, the longer you’re here.

I’m sure the list is much longer then that, but I’d just assume eat apples then use them in any ritual that’s too long (and as such keeping me from eating them).