There are some taboos in our culture. For example, we are not allowed to insert chopsticks vertically into the food. Please see the photo.
http://goo.gl/10aI3
We have a tradition of ancestor worship. The food on the photo is sacrificial offerings for ancestors. You can see that incense sticks are placed vertically into the sacrifices. So, if we put chopsticks like that, it implies the food is for dead people. That is a curse on the person who will eat the food. It is very unlucky. Besides, we don’t write names in red. Chinese people like red color, which means good luck and good fortune. In Chinese New Year, we like to wear red clothes, put red couplets on doors, and give red envelops to children. However, red also means blood and accidents. If you write a person’s name in red, it will bring misfortune or deadly accidents to him/her. Maybe it is a superstition, but it shows how we view the death.
1. Do you have any taboos or superstition in your culture? What are they? What do they mean? Please show examples.
2. How do you feel about these taboos or superstition?
Answer from LC1 Wolfert Lyceum
We have had three groups independently answer your question. They found it very hard to talk about taboos.
Good luck with the next step.
1. Parents being abusive to their children and hurting them.
2. We think it is bad that this happens.
We have taboos like mistreatment, alcohol to function, sexual
mistreatment and going to a prostitute, people in our country don’t like that.
Superstition in our country is not very popular. There are people who believe that something wrong happens when they see a black cat or walk under a ladder.
It’s awful when these things happen and we as a country try to avoid this things.
We don’t believe in superstition, we think it is fake.
If you walk under a ladder or break a mirror this means seven years of bad luck. The misfortune number is 13 and the misfortune day is Friday the 13th. But those things also bring bad luck in other countries and continents, like America.
In Holland we have the superstition that if you open your umbrella inside you'll get bad luck.
We think superstition is really funny, 'cause it's kind of like there is something more than just us, the humans. Like if there'r more than just the Earth.
Answer from LC2 Sutton Public School
Question: List some taboos and superstitions from your culture.
In our culture we have some taboos. It is rude to shake someone’s hand and not look into their eyes. Our culture also has many superstitions. A few of them are walking under a ladder, a black cat crossing your path, breaking a mirror, or opening an umbrella under a roof. All of these superstitions will bring bad luck.
Question: How do you feel about them?
I feel that some of these superstitions are reasonable but some of them are not. For example, I don’t believe that you will get bad luck if a cat crosses your path. I think that you should look into someone’s eyes when you shake their hands because it acknowledges them and shows respect.
Answer from LC3 Hajj Bahaa Eddine Hariri School
Here are some of the superstitions in Lebanon.
1-If you hear a humming sound in your ear it means someone is talking badly of you.
2- If you open an umbrella someone in the family will die!
3- If someone dies it is customary for someone to guard the body before they are buried or a cat might eat their eyes out!
4- If you eat zaa'tar before an exam, you will remember all you studied.
5- If you’re in a crowded place that suddenly goes completely quiet then it could mean :
a-a girl was born or b-the grim reaper was passing by.
6- If you choke on something you were eating then someone is envying you and your food.
7- You should give a pregnant woman every food she asks for, otherwise the baby will grow up with a psychological complex.
8-If you accidentally bite your tongue then you'll receive a gift.
9-If you arrive at someone's and finding coffee already prepared means that your mother-in-law loves you.
10- If you accidentally step over a baby, he will never get taller.
11- If you wear your shirt inside out; this indicates bad luck.
12- If you shower, and go outside... you will get sick.
13- If you cut your nails at night, you shorten the years in your life.
14- If you place your shoes upside down, someone in the family will die.
15- If you have blue eyes or parted teeth, you could ultimately jinx someone!
It is worth mentioning that we don't believe in these superstions. Many years ago people heard of them and believed in them.
We asked our friends about some of these superstions, and they said that they hear of them from their parents, but they don't think that such things exist.
Answer from LC5 Canisius
Yes we also have taboos like. We have made a top 5 of taboos and a top 5 of superstitions.
TOP5 Taboos
1 Having sexual intercourse with your or someone ells his/her child.
2 Stealing something very expensive from the person you work for.
3 Needing alchohol before functioning at work.
4 Having a sexual relationship whith someone while you are married with someone else.
5 Using physical pressure on your partner to have sex with you.
TOP 5 Superstitions
1 Friday the 13th (this is a day where everone as bad luck).
2 Walking under a ladder.
3 Spilling your salt.
5 Bbreaking a mirror.
6 Seeing a black cat.
Answer from LC6 Morning Star School Ltd:
We as an African country, that is Ghana, have many taboos in our different forty-six (46) ethnic groups. Some of the ethnic groups and their taboos include:
Akans
- If you go to the sea on Tuesdays the sea goddess will punish you because that is the day she and her children will relax.
- If you are a lactating mother and your baby defecates into your food, you just have to scoop out that portion and then continue to eat but if you stop eating the food your child they believe may die.
The Gas
- You are not to sweep in the night because they believe if you have any gold dust it is possible it may pour and you may sweep it away.
- When you eat you are not supposed to put your other hand on the floor because they believe you will not be satisfied.
These are a few of the many taboos associated with some of the various ethnic groupings.
We as citizens, we are sometimes intrigued and slightly irritated when people misconstrue these taboos to be traditional whereas there may be hygiene associated with it for your own good. We are often irritated and wish these taboos will be understood and put to good use.
Thank you.
LC6.
Answer from LC7 Herbert H. Carnegie Public School, Patrice and Natalie:
To answer this question, we had a discussion with several students. Below is the transcript of the discussion:
Ishaan: I don’t quite believe in superstitions; however, one day when I was playing basket ball, a black cat stopped and just stared at me. Although I don’t believe in superstitions, it still affected me. Maybe it bothered me because I am just scared of cats, period! My brother’s girlfriend has a cat that attacked me the first and only time I went to her place. So because I’ve had a bad experience with one cat, it probably doesn’t matter what the colour of the cat is- I don’t trust any of them!
Danielle: Oh, I believe in superstition! Now, I don’t know if this is a superstition or not, but I’ve heard that dogs that stop and stare at a wall, are actually seeing spirits or something supernatural. I believe this because I have observed this with my dog.
Leeya: My grandmother used to have a german shepherd and he died in the corner of the house. When she got her new dog, he would always bring his bone or treat to that corner and he would not let anyone touch it. I’ve also heard and know that dog’s can read people’s personalities and can warn you if a person is good or bad. I once had this really smart dog (it’s dead now) that we would always bring to a park where people would walk their dogs and throw chew toys. One day, there was this strangely dressed guy just hanging out in the park. He was dressed in all black, didn’t have a dog and looked really out of place. My mom, when she saw him, got a little scared and was hoping that the dog would not go up to him. But when the dog saw him, he wagged his tail and the man turned out to be a very friendly man who actually played gently with him and smiled a lot! The dog showed us that the man was not at all how we thought he would be.
Victoria: I don’t believe in things or certain actions bringing good or bad luck, but I do believe that our dreams hold symbols or a deeper meaning. For example, if I dream that something gets broken, then that may mean that a bond or friendship might be broken or may end. So, but I don’t believe in curses.
Tieba: I am super superstitious! I am so superstitious that I don’t even want to talk about the things that have happened to me!
Victoria: Maybe it’s because you’re gullible J
Abbas: I’m not superstitious, but my mom is, and that affects my life. My mom stops me from doing many things because she has a lot of superstitions, and that just sucks for me!
Because we have so many different cultures and religions in our class, we asked a few of the students to share some superstitions that are connected to their cultural backgrounds:
Jewish: If you write or say God’s name in vain, you’ll have bad luck. During Shabbat, you have to kiss the challah before you eat it. Not doing this means bad luck!
Pakistani: After using scissors, always close them, because leaving them open means that you are cutting the bonds between you and a friend
Russian: If you whistle in the house, you will have bad luck.
Italian: Wearing blue on your wedding day is bad luck. To keep evil spirits away, a hot red pepper is hung from the rear view mirror of a a car.
Asian: There are no fours in our addresses and there are no 3s or 13s, as well as 3rd , 4th or 13th floors in our address numbers and apartments.
Filipino: If any Filipino lives ion the 13th floor, then within five years, a loved one will die or become ill.
Answer from LC8 Herbert H. Carnegie Public School, Rebecca and Laura:
The superstitions in our culture are defined as a belief that is not based on reason on knowledge. Some examples of superstitions in the Canadian culture are:
- If your neighbour brings you a plate of food, you must give back the plate dirty because washing it will bring bad luck.
- Picking blackberries after October 11 is bad luck in Alberta because by October the 11 the devil has already claim the remaining berries.
- Never put your shoes on your bed because that means someone will die in your family.
- If a wild bird flies into your house it is a sign of death.
- If one has an itchy ear it means someone is talking about you.
- If one has an itchy right palm, you will meet someone new.
- Having an itchy left palm means that lots of money is coming.
- Having an itchy foot means that one is going somewhere... If you found out that you are wearing or doing something inside out by accident. You will have good luck but you must not correct yourself.
- If you step on a crack, you break your mother's back.
- If you give your friend a knife as a gift, they must give you something back. If they do not it will cut the relationship.
- If you take a straw wrapper and tie it into a knot and think of a person and if the knot comes undone then the person that you were thinking of was thinking about you. However, if the knot does not come undone then they are not thinking about you.
- If you walk under a ladder you will have bad luck.
- B) We think that superstitions can be positive or negative. We think that it’s good to have some superstitions because some of them can lead us to make good decisions. For example, the superstition “Never put your shoes on your bed because that means someone in your family will die” does not necessarily mean that death will happen, but it will definitely keep your bed clean, so the purpose of this superstition may have just been to keep one’s bed clean. Superstitions can also lead you to be more cautious, such as “If you walk under a ladder you will have bad luck” probably stemmed from a safety concern. We think that superstitions can also sometimes be a little funny. A superstition that we think is funny for example is “If you found out that you are wearing something inside out you will have good luck but you must not correct yourself”, which seems more like an excuse for when you accidentally wear your clothes inside out.
Answer from LC9 Nellie McClung P.S., Tracy and Nicole:
Superstitions
Are beliefs that cultures have. For example, in our culture, a well known superstitions is that if a black cat crosses your path then you have bad luck.
Our Superstitions:
We have several superstitions in our culture: if a black cat crosses your path then you have bad luck, if you break a mirror then you will have 7 years of bad luck, if you open an umbrella indoors then you will have bad luck, if you walk under a ladder you will have bad luck; if you put a hat on a table or bad you will have bad luck.
Good luck:
In our class 18 people said they believed in luck. 7 students said they do not believe in luck.
Good luck:
We don’t just have superstitions on bad luck. We also have good luck for example: if a pregnant woman throws salt 3 times behind her back if will ease her labor; if you eat black eyed peas on New Years Eve then you will have good luck. If you have a realistic dream, the next morning breakfast must be eaten before the dream can be mentioned or discussed, otherwise the dream will come true.
Taboo:
Taboos are certain rules that we have in our cultures for example there are certain baby names that are illegal.
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