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Musicmystery -> RE: What Do These Things Have In Common? (12/15/2009 9:44:31 AM)
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Or perhaps superstitions? All, I think, can be witches in disguise?
DONKEY
Christian tradition stated that donkeys originally had unmarked hides, and that it was only after Christ's entry into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey that they received the dark cross on their backs. The hairs from the cross were widely believed to cure a number of ailments, and were often worn in a charm around the neck to guard against whooping-cough, toothache, fits, and to ease teething pains in babies. Sometimes the hairs were eaten in a sandwich instead. Riding a donkey was also believed efficacious, especially if the rider faced the donkey's tail end, and was sometimes used as a preventative for toothache, measles and other children's complaints. One cure for whooping-cough and ague stated that the patient should be passed under a donkey and over its back either three or nine times; the trick of feeding an animal some of the patient's hair to transfer the illness was also used with donkeys. The donkey was also used to help cure the complaints of other animals; letting a black donkey run with mares in a field was thought to stop the mares miscarrying.
There is also a tradition that to see a dead donkey means great good fortune, and even as recently as this century it was considered a good-luck charm to leap over the carcass of a dead donkey three times.
An old saying claims that no-one ever sees a dead donkey stems from the belief that a donkey knows when it is about to die and hides itself away.
When a donkey brays and twitches its ears, it is said to be an omen that there will be wet weather. The donkey got its long ears and reputation for being stupid when it was in the Garden of Eden. Adam had named all the animals and God asked what their names were. The donkey could not remember his; Adam pulled his ears unmercifully, saying, 'Donkey! Your name is Donkey!'
TOADS
Toads are supposed to be connected to witchcraft and can be turned into old witches on a new moon ,there is superstition by old burglars that if they carried a toad in their pockets they would never be caught, if you are being wed and a toad crosses your path you and husband will enjoy forever happiness.
CROWS
In Greek superstition Crows are seen as a bad omen, often foretelling death.
Upon seeing Crows cawing, it is believed that the Crows are announcing the death of an individual. Greeks believing in this superstition will often say to the birds, "Go on your way, and bring me good news."
They're cawing is what is most feared, as it is seen as an announcement of a death that is soon to be heard! A death of an individual that is likely to be close.
RABBITS
Before Christianity in the British Isles, the hare, like the cat, was thought to be a witch in disguise. This witch could only be killed with a silver bullet.
Since rabbits and hares are born with eyes open, which is an erroneous notion, they supposedly had special powers over the evil eye.
It is believed to be unlucky to meet either a hare or a rabbit, one variant stating that a rabbit which crosses one's path in front is a good omen and one which crosses behind is a bad one. In some English counties it is considered unwise to shoot a black rabbit, as it may be an ancestral spirit returning in rabbit-form; in Suffolk it was believed that white rabbits were witches, which is was also unlucky to shoot. Rabbits and hares were never mentioned at sea, as they were considered ill-omened words, and to meet one on the way to see was a very bad omen.
An old custom is to say 'Rabbits' or 'White Rabbits' either once or three times on the first day of the month, as a good luck charm; it must be the first word said that morning, otherwise the charm is not potent.
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