On Friday 13th October some people are so suspicious they won’t even leave their own homes.


Bringer of Bad Luck


When it comes to bad luck, there are few superstitions as pervasive in Western culture as that of Friday 13th. Like crossing paths with a black cat or breaking a mirror, the idea of a day that can bring misfortune is deeply embedded.

There’s even a name to describe the irrational dread of the date: paraskevidekatriaphobia — a specialised form of triskaidekaphobia, a fear of the number 13 (try saying those after a few glasses of wine).

Our Gregorian calendar means that the 13th of any month is slightly more likely to fall on a Friday than any other day of the week. It is not, however, universal: In Greece and Spanish-speaking countries, it is Tuesday the 13th that is considered an unlucky day, while in Italy, it is Friday the 17th that is met with fear.

It goes further back to Norse mythology. In his book ‘Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things,’ Charles Panati traces the concept of the cursed back to Norse mythology, when Loki, the God of Mischief, gate-crashed a banquet in Valhalla, bringing the number of gods in attendance to 13. Deceived by Loki, the blind god Hodr was tricked into shooting his brother Balder, the God of Light, joy and goodness, with a mistletoe-tipped arrow, killing him instantly.

From Scandinavia, Panati explains, the superstition then spread south throughout Europe, becoming well-established along the Mediterranean by the start of the Christian era. It was here that the unsettling power of the numerals was cemented through the story of the Last Supper, which was attended by Jesus Christ and his disciples on Maundy Thursday. The 13th and most infamous guest to arrive, Judas Iscariot, was the disciple who betrayed Jesus, leading to his crucifixion on Good Friday.


13 is Lucky for some, Unlucky for others


Even so, the number 13 is not to be considered unlucky in China where in Mandarin, the number 13 translates to 'assured growth' or 'definitely vibrant,' which goes to show that the number is auspicious rather than suspicious in Chinese culture.

But the theory persists that this number is synonymous with bad luck. It's considered unlucky to have 13 guests at a dinner party; many buildings don't have a 13th floor and most people avoid getting married or buying a house on a day marked by this dreaded number. Especially superstitious folks even avoid driving on it. In India, There’s no 13th floor in the hospitals either. Well, it’s because the number is supposed to bring bad luck - who needs that in a hospital?

But the number 13 is associated with growth and vibrancy in Feng Shui. Thus, buying a house with this number is considered lucky, whereas in other cultures when building houses, the number 13 will be missed out, with 12 and 14 being next door to each other, or they may get around it by giving the missing house the number 12A.

It was believed that a witches’ coven consisted of exactly 13 members, or If you have 13 letters in your name, you’re believed to be cursed. A year with 13 full moons instead of 12 posed problems for the monks in charge of the calendars, as it upset the regular arrangement of church festivals.


The film called Friday 13th


There’s even a film called ‘Friday the 13th’ - an American horror franchise that spawned twelve films, a TV series, novels, comic books, video games etc. It mainly focuses on the fictional character who was thought to have drowned as a boy at a lake due to the negligence of camp staff. Decades later, the lake is rumoured to be ‘cursed’ and is the setting for a series of mass murders.

Some historians have claimed it was the day on which Eve bit the apple from the Tree of Knowledge, the great flood began and the building of the Tower of Babel started. Hmm. Believe that, you’ll believe anything.

Author

Marilyn writes regularly for The Portugal News, and has lived in the Algarve for some years. A dog-lover, she has lived in Ireland, UK, Bermuda and the Isle of Man. 

Marilyn Sheridan