Are you superstitious? I am to a certain degree. I am not obsessed with them but on the night of a new moon, i do look at it over my right shoulder to bring good luck. I see superstitions as a way of protection and not tempting fate to bring any bad or evil my way. Have you ever wondered where superstitions came from or how they started. Most of the superstitions that we know of today have been around for centuries and an awful lot of them have their roots based in witchcraft. Superstitions such as knocking on wood go back to the very early days of civilization. Druids and other pagan groups believed that good spirits lived in trees and by knocking on anything made out of wood, you would be awakening the spirits and would be asking them for protection and good luck. I am sure that you have heard that if a black cat crosses your path then you will have bad luck. That superstition was actually changed in the early days of the christian church. The original superstition said that if a black cat crossed your path then that would bring good luck, but the church wanted to associate black with evil so the superstition was changed. At christmastime have you ever kissed anyone under the mistltoe? That superstition started as a witches tradition during our celebration of Yule. Holly and mistletoe were used to decorate the witches home on the inside and out. A sprig of mistletoe was hung by the doorway to repel evil and the berries were burned as incense to attract love. Over the centuries, that superstition has been changed to kissing under the mistletoe would attract love. Have you ever wondered how the number 13 became known as an unlucky number? It once again goes back to the early days of the christian church. Witches celebrate every full moon with a full moon rite and there are 13 full moons every year. Another reason the early christians considered the number 13 as evil is because of the last supper. The apostles with christ all present totaled 13 people, without Judas who betrayed Christ, the number was 12. The 13th person was considered to be Judas and therefore it was evil. Other superstitions that have their base in witchcraft are less known but still believed such as if you burn the needles from a silver fir tree during the moment of childbirth, then that will bring blessings and good fortune to the mother and to the baby. Another belief is that if a dog howls for no obvious reason then that means that spirits have passed by. Some of my favorite superstitions are the ones that no one really knows where they originated or even how thay came to be. Four of my favorites are these, if a young single girl wants to see the face of the person that she will marry then at night she must walk with a lantern to a natural spring and stare at the surface of the water, the face of her future husband will appear. Even better than that is, if a young single girl wants to see not only the face of her future husband but also the faces of all the children that she will bear, then she must walk at night with a lantern and a broken egg in a cup to a natural spring and if she stares at the surface of the water then the faces of her future family will appear. The last two are my favorites. if a girl walks through a swarm of bees and does not get stung, then that is proof of her virginity. I have no idea where that one came from but it is still believed in the hill country in America today. The last superstition is a sailors superstition. I have a feeling how this one came into being but it is still repeated today, Having a naked woman on board a ship will calm rough seas. There are many more superstitions that i have collected over the years and i dont have time to list them, it would take too long and as it is now daybreak and I look out the window, i see a red sky, lets see.....that one goes, Red sky in the morning sailors take warning, red sky at night sailors delight. That means that it is going to rain today so I had better go out now and get my running around done!!