It is well known that if you walk under a ladder or break a mirror, you will have bad luck. Is it really bad luck by walking under a ladder? Is it true that if you break a mirror you will have seven years of bad luck? It might be, but it could also depend on the person themselves and what type of day they are having. Maybe these superstitions were made from scratch, or maybe there is a story behind them.
Where exactly did these superstitions begin? Superstitions have been around for centuries. It all started when our ancestors became curious on how mysterious events happened (Superstitions). The breaking a mirror superstition and walking under a ladder superstition are well known ones that has been around almost since the beginning. These two superstitions are known as bad luck.
There have been many reasons on why they are bad luck. When a ladder is looked upon the shape that most people see is a triangle. It could be a standing ladder or a ladder leaning against a wall however it is still a triangle. It is usually said that the triangle represents the trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. By walking underneath the ladder you are violating God. It was known that you broke the trinity and God would become angry with you. Mostly Christians of the Trinity faith were the only ones to believe this actual origin (“Superstitions”). Also, the triangle represents the family. If you walk under the ladder, you break the whole of your family (Collis, 64).
Just as the trinity and the family reasons, there are other reasons people believe how this superstition is bad luck. The Egyptians believed that the triangle held special power, because it was shaped like a pyramid, and if you walked under that ladder you broke the power of the shape (“Superstitions”). The Egyptians often put ladders in the tombs of pharaohs. The ladders were thought to be sacred to them (Patrick, Thompson, Petroski, 117). Another reason was created in the medieval times. The medieval gallows resembled a leaning ladder and by walking underneath the ladder you were guarateening your own death (“Superstitions”). These are just a few of the many reasons why walking under a ladder is known to be bad luck. “You will have seven years of bad luck if you break a mirror!” In addition to the walking under the ladder superstition, there is the breaking a mirror superstition. The origin of this superstition comes from the Romans.
The Romans created the first “glass” mirror. They believed that the mirror contained part of your soul. If a person looked into a mirror and their image was messed up in anyway, this could mean that their soul was damaged somehow. It was believed that if you broke a mirror your soul would be trapped inside or it created a broken soul within you. Breaking a mirror did not look good to anyone (“Superstitions”).
The Romans also believed that a person’s physical body renewed itself every seven years. If you broke a mirror that would mean it would take seven whole years for the soul to be restored (Pollick). Another reason thought was before mirrors were even invented, anything that reflected was thought to be magical. It was believed to show a person’s future (“Superstitions”). If you broke the mirror, you destroyed your future. Superstitious people worry about things like what happens if I get bad luck by doing these two things? There are ways to reverse the bad luck you have been given.
For instance, if you walk under a ladder to reverse the bad luck you would spit through the ladder’s rungs three times, but this is only one of the many. The Romans believed the way to reverse the bad luck was a fico, which was putting your thumb between your first two fingers and pointing it at the ladder (Patrick, Thompson, Petroski, 117).
A few other reversing theories are crossing your fingers until a dog passes by you, spit on your shoe and do not look at the shoe until the spit is dry, and a well known is walking backwards underneath the ladder the way you entered. As well as the reverses for walking under a ladder, there are also reverses for breaking a mirror. If you happen to break a mirror you must immediately grind the shards of glass into powder.
There is also spinning around three full times in a counter-clockwise direction right after the mirror is broken. Another way is to start a fire and throw the shards into it until they get blackened, after that, bury the shards. This should left your bad luck after a full year. If you want to get rid of the bad luck quicker is by gathering the shards of glass and throwing it into the south-running stream, this will get rid of your bad luck after only seven hours (Mikkelson). One last one is on a night of a full moon you will have to bury the shards of glass to gain back your luck. Superstitions will most likely always be around till the very end of age.
