By Maya Pillai (read the full post here)
Though many believe Friday the 13th to be an unlucky day, there are many groups who defy such thoughts and superstitions. Some activities like cutting your hair or nails, shifting to a new house, commencing a new venture, purchasing a new vehicle, etc. are avoided by many on Fridays or on the 13th day of the month. There are many stories and myths attached with this date.
Do the terms triskaidekaphobia and paraskevidekatriaphobia mean anything to you? Have you come across these terms?
Triskaidekaphobia means fear of the number 13.
Paraskevidekatriaphobia is the fear of Friday the 13th.
Dr. Donald Dossey, an American psychotherapist, coined these terms. There are many people who are treated for these phobias. It is believed that some people would completely cancel or postpone their daily activities if they happen to fall on a Friday-the-13th date and reschedule important business meetings and travel plans to another day. A loss of millions of dollars is recorded on this day. Friday the 13th is the day for many to laze around within the premises of one’s home because of the fear of bad luck striking them if they did venture out.
Legends of Friday the 13th
Ancient Egyptians considered the number 13 as symbol of death. Remember, ancient Egyptians believed in life after death.
According to the Norse myths, once upon a time at Valhalla, the heaven of the Norse Gods, Gods were invited for a party by Balder – the God of Joy and Gladness. There were 12 Norse Gods, including Balder, partying. When the party was in full swing the God of Mischief Loki walked in. He was the uninvited 13th god. He showed his anger by arranging Hoder, the blind God of Darkness to kill Balder with a poisonous mistletoe arrow. It is believed that the Earth plunged into darkness and evil took over the reign. This could be one of the reasons why some people consider number 13 to be ominous and unlucky.
Friday is also considered to be unlucky by the believers of Christianity. There were 13 people at “The Last Supper” (also known as known as the Lord’s supper was the last meal Jesus had with his 12 Apostles).
Beliefs and superstitions that Friday the 13th brings bad luck saw no bounds in the Middle Ages. The historical records say that Jacques de Molay Grand Master of the Templars was arrested on October 13th, 1307 AD – a Friday. Eventually he was executed in 1314 AD. Hence, Friday the 13th, is considered to be an unlucky day in Europe.
Hollywood also did its share in driving the ill-luck association of Friday the 13th deeper into the public psyche with the Friday the 13th movie franchise in which the lead antagonist, Jason Voorhes, a psychotic serial murderer, is mentioned as having been born on this ominous date.
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It is always a delight to read your books and your blog, Mr. Coelho. My great favorite, which I keep re-reading from time to time, is The Alchemist.
I was born on Friday the 13th, and although many people react funny when I tell them, it is to me just as normal a day as if it were Thursday the 12th, or any other day.
Superstitions can really limit a person’s life, I think…
Warm wishes,
Miriam
Les cuento que; Hoy me levante de buen humor, casi no me di cuenta que es viernes 13 y por aca En Argentina Corrientes amanecio el dia nublado muy lindo, a esta hora de la tarde (18Horas) se encuentra con un hermoso sol y un calido viento ideal para sentarse afuera a compartir unos ricos mates. Y no creo en que el viernes 13 sea de mala suerte. De paso saludos a la mama de Antonia.
Ce matin en allumant mon ordinateur pour commencer on travail , ma page facebook c’est “restaurée ” et il est apparu un merveilleux texte que l’on avait écrit pour moi cette nuit , plein de chaleur et de poésie. Ces mots chargés de douceur ont illuminé toute ma journée et m’ont aidé à distribuer toute la compassion dont mes patients ont besoin . Ce partage d’âme est pour moi , la vraie source du bonheur. C’est ce matin, vendredi 13 que ce bonheur me fut donné , peut être vais je croire que ce jour est béni ? Blessings to the beautiful souls of That World .
Une pensée émue m’habite quand même au souvenir de la souffrance des templiers, innocents hommes , que l’on a immolé au nom de la politique , même si ce ne furent pas les deniers. La souffrance humaine perpétrée par la barbarie d’autres humains me touche depuis toujours et me terrifiera à jamais.
Passez un bon vendredi 13 …
Imortal Paulo, Sir Paulo ou só Dom Paulete….(posso te chamar assim né)…….já te mandei um monte de email mas voce nunca retornou, muito loko que curto seu trabalho desde a barriga da mamãe que era hippiie e pirava com suas letras…
Li praticamente todos seus livros, depois de Veronika decide morrer achei que voce havia perdido sua essência para o mundo consumista…mas em o Aleph que acabei de ler……realmente sua forma magnifica está de volta… é uma leitura muito agradável, daquelas que dá um aperto no coração quando você vê que está acabando o livro!!!
Paulo, moro em São Paulo, e não por coincidência queria pedir (muitos lhe sugerem isso né) que estude a possibilidade de vir a São Paulo para uma noite de autográfos…….eu gostaria muito de lhe conhecer e sugerir que escreva um dia sobre a vida do apóstolo Paulo………e por conseguinte sobre sua conversão, de perseguidor para pregador da palavra de Jesus……pouco se fala sobre sua conversão na estrada de Damasco……..sobre o amor……..
sim seria uma grande obra meu mestre, ainda que eu seja um desconhecido para você……Saulo de Tarso, Paulo….sua transformação…seu sofrimento…seu martirio…sua peregrinação…..as epistolas…..o amor….que voce tão bem define…………..
eu acredito que voce e São Paulo (o apóstolo) tem mais coisas em comum que apenas o nome!!!!!!!!!!
por favor não ignore mas esta mensagem………..
assessoria ….encaminhe-a ao Sr. Paulo……
de São Paulo…sobre o apóstolo Paulo…para o mago e escritor Paulo……
vc cantando my way de Frank no exato momento em que eu lia seu livro e ouvia esta musica….me deu um estalo liguei a tv e lá estava voce em um pub com um maravilhoso violão de cordas……no canal GNT…..que coincidência….
Abraços
Adriano – São Paulo – Brasil……
Adriano, no momento nao tenho planos de fazer tardes de autografos em nenhum lugar do mundo. Comentei isso no programa da Ana Maria Braga, que está no ar.
Mas obrigado pelo apoio, e se Deus assim decidir, nos encontraremos
Que pena que você não faz mais sessão de autógrafos.
Uma vinda em São Paulo seria muito bom !!!
Eu com certeza iria .
Fiquei curioso , você cantando my way do Frank Sinatra ?
Posta o link pra gente dar uma olhada .
Já vi Paulo coelho escritor , compositor , arqueiro , mas cantor nunca .
Fiquei curioso !!!
Abraços Paulo !!!
: )
Yo naci un dia como hoy un viernes 13 , de hace 45 años y todo lo contrario me gusta el 13 y los viernes y sabados
dla mnie 13 i w dodatku piatek jest zawsze szczesliwym dniem, nie uwazam zeby ten dzien byl pechowy , pozdrawiam serdecznie
Bom dia 13 pra mim sempre foi um dia comum,mas esta madrugada tive sonhos com muita chuva cansaço e eu finalmente sai do sério com o pai do meu filho a ponto de por na cadeia coisa que por misericórdia seria incapaz de fazer ,estou bem confusa.
I think the fairytale of “Sleeping Beauty” resembles this Norse myth. That’s very interesting.
Ti seguo da tutti i tuoi libri, quindi da quando posso. Mi hai aiutato a trovare percorsi, a sentirmi in compagnia, a cercare i segnali. Ti ringrazio di aver facilitato la lettura di facebook e del tuo blog con la traduzione!!! Ti auguro tutto il bene che so sentire!!! Buon 2012!!! Daniela
I don’t believe in it. I believe in other things :)
Good eeeeeeeeeveningggggggggggggg!!!!!
Cris
Hehe funnily enough Italy didn’t have friday 13 in the superstition list … before the movie that is … it does have friday 17th, or 17 in general anyway … and from what I heard it’s related back to the romans and their numbers (XVII) rearranged = VIXI (= lived in latin, ergo “dead”) and friday is the day Jesus died …
I do find superstition interesting topic … after all … if you believe something to be real … you are making it real … good or bad … works both ways I suppose … :-)
I was born in a house with housenumber 13. I had a very pleasant childhood. When I left my parents home I had many bad experiences in life. 10 Years ago I met my husband. We have a very good marriage and we bought a house with guess? Housenumer 13:)
13 Has always been my lucky number:)
Har alltid opplevd 13. som lykketall,,,,
Friday is a blessed and best day in islam. Muslims have a special friday prayer though every day they have 5 times of prayers but. adam was born(created) on friday, he was sent on earth on friday and he died on friday as well. its a very important day indeed for muslims :)
Interesting trivia:
There are three months with a “friday the 13th” in 2012 which are each 13 weeks apart. The first is today, the second is in April, and the third is in July. There won’t be three spaced 13 weeks apart in one year again until something like 2040 because of the leap year. The next years with three occurances of Friday the 13th will be 2015 and 2026. For both years the Friday the 13th will fall in Feb, March, & Nov.
I was born Friday 13th & today is my birthday !
I cut my nails today … before reading this article. But I can’t understand the reason why is it wrong (for those who believe) to do such a thing on a Friday, 13 …? :)
Number 13 has always been my lucky number, maybe because I was born on the 13th, although it wasn’t Friday and if it was I don’t believe it would have make any difference.
yo no creo en superticiones ,la mala suerte se crea en la mente de las personas ,ya que empiezan el dia pensando que les ira mal, creo que uno debe ser positivo desde que empieza el dia
Aren’t there some cultures that consider 13 to be lucky, or at least, a good number? I thought I’d heard that somewhere.
pues por cultura ni te cases ni te embarques
13th is the Fatima apparition
I believe on February 14th – Valentine’s Day! Really I do :-) !
Non voglio viverlo in negativo..no!
I would like to believe there is no bad luck connected with Fri. 13th, or black cats, or walking under ladders. In fact I didn’t think of it until I read the blog. In any event it is ingrained in our culture and if something does ironically happen to a person on this particular date then that person will be suspicious of the 13th.
I started today with very good mood, slept well.
The weather today in north Germany is sunny, which is the first time I saw since 3. Jan.
I had good concentration finishing my preparation for classes.
I went to the childcare where I did my apprenticeship, got a good note back, and happy to know from the teacher that the little kiddies were still missing me after I left for almost 3 months.
I planed to meet a friend in Cafe this afternoon, she will take her dog along, which I loved a lot.
And tonight I will have full power to do karate.
And I am happy to realize now, that today is the Friday the 13th, and my beloved author doesn’t believe in that kind of thing as well.
It does seem that Friday is a good day in Portugal because they call it Sexta and in short Sex. I don’t think it is bad day in Portugal no matter what date it holds. :-D
Thank God it’s Friday!
Oh, come on! “Sexta” is not short for sex! Sexta means “the Sixth”, for the sixth business day of the week. You gotta learn yourself some Portuguese.
But when they write it as Fri or the sixth it is writen Sex. I didn’t mean to distrub. I just mean to say what some people think it is a bad day other might be enjoying it. I apologize if I sounded not right.
Cheers!
Oh! I forgot to add Lisbon and surroundings rocks!!! Nice infrastructure, sweet people and good coffee!! Didn’t
I realized it is Friday ,13th of January only now , when i read this article …It is funny that usually i never believe in superstitions or i never think on that. What happens simply happens as a result of your acts or maybe just because they have to happen. And i love fridays..just because it is my free day from work and i feel so released having my own day just for me.
But still today is different for me..let´s say i have a very bad and sad day..things go wrong…does it have to do with number 13? or with the day of Friday? Does it have to do with my destiny, faith? Well….questions to think about.
Anyway..i wish all of you who pass by here a great friday ..be it 13 :)
Chris, Portugal
There are some days that everything is going wrong and when it happend
on fryday 13 i should start t/b superstitious
It is likely, something like a self-fulfilling prophecie. For me, Friday the 13th a normal day. Unless there is a normal day. What fascinates me about the 13 is the painting by DaVinci. The Last Supper. A couple of guys eating. A beautiful painting. There were 13. But otherwise, the whole theme certainly falls into the realm of superstition. But if you look a little into the future. The 13 April 2029 will be an exciting day. An old Egyptian god check it out. But I’m not superstitious. Now to explain that, on the day an asteroid crosses Earth’s orbit. Its name is Apophis. At a Friday. Then, when some black cross our path, we’ll have a problem. No, certainly not. The “doomsday” is this year. I forgot, sorry.
I wish you all a wonderful day
Sorry, I meant black cat. Since there are also people who believe in such nonsense. I once read a “Catholic cult” has reservations about these beautiful animals and midwives. They are supposed to be possessed by the devil. Great! But that has nothing to do with Friday the 13th.
Much love to all
I knew the legend about Templars, but I think that is like the end of the world of Maya Calendar (12-21-2012).
These dates make sell many books and gadgedts and so on, often full of lies, but lead also to fear and depression.
Personally I believe in what Jesus said: ” You don’t know neither the day, nore the hour. Only Father knows it” .
This makes us be awaken and ready.
Which is the best one to choose?
I choose the Word of Jesus, I send, on the 13 of october, a positive thought to Jacques De Molay and all the other Templars, killed even if they innocent, and walk my path in the best way that I can.
Love
Cris
I Love Fridays! This nice day have its own magic! Maybe because some mysterious coincidence, it is always followed by a weekend :-). So, who cares if it is the 13, the 14th, the 1st or whatever. I wish you all great Friday & weekend.
yeah, Tarek, true!
& this feeling already starts on Thursday after finishing work :o)
:D Today, lucky day for me and my sisters too.
Lucky not in the sense that I’ll get something great out of it, but we have lots of fun usually on this day.
I like to challenge superstitions(what they say) especially when I see myself fearing them.
So you saw the black cat, now cross the street. :D
They used to say Earth is the center of the Universe and that it is flat, until somebody “crazy” enough decided to go to the boundaries and find out by himself.
Have a sunny day to you all! :)
LOVE
STRANGE I WAS THINKING OF FRIDAY THE 13th FEW DAYS BACK, AND DIDN’T REALIZE TODAY WAS THE COMBINATION! NO I DON’T BELIEVE IN IT…..
I don’t believe either
I do not believe in it too. Who really believes it? It is similar to Mc Donalds. No one goes in, despite it exists. This is funny. Just a thought.
I wish you a wonderful day
Hm, what do you think about C.G Jung’s “synchronicity theory”?
A lot! Life is full of “coincidences”. But that’s just a thought.
Much love to you
Pentru mine vineri 13 nu inseamna nimic,este o zi ca oricare alta si un numar obisnuit,nu sunt superstitioasa si asta din cauza faptului ca numarul casei mele este binecunoscutul 13…..cu stima Mihaela.
It is probably strange for many people, but for me and my family the 13ths of the months and especially the Friday and Tuesday 13ths are lucky. It might be a question of belief… What we believe is what we get
Paraskevi-dekatria-phobia … lovely long GREEK name…but here in Greece it is TUESDAY – TRITI-dekatria-phobia…if you believe in that stuff…
If you look at the row numbers on airplanes, you’ll notice that many skip the number 13 as well.
But to me, superstitions are actually mind-boggling in today’s climate. If we’re in a supposedly ‘enlightened’ era where science and technology – OBSERVABLE proofs – are held as non-negotiable principles for believing something, then why should people believe in superstitions, which have no rational, scientific basis?
So many people are quick to criticise religions and the beliefs of people of faith – people that believe in unseen powers (as part of their religion) – yet many of those critics are themselves superstitious…which pretty much implies that they believe in unseen forces. Ironic, isn’t it?
In Islamic belief, superstitions are completely rejected – because Muslims believe that One, All Knowledgeable, All-Powerful God controls everything – including the aspects of life that cannot be observed by the five senses.
Of course, that’s the ‘pure’ Islamic belief. The reality is that many Muslims do observe some degree of superstition, which is a deviation from the original system of belief.
I’d be interested in hearing about what other faiths say about superstitions – so please do post that here.
Thanks
Yacoob
I am going to buy a Lotto ticket.
Thank you for sharing.
With love
Marie-Christine
Oh, when I read this…
I forgot to buy a lottery ticket today! So I’ll have to do it tomorrow, on the boring & unsuperstituous 14th! :-)
The seed of fear:
C’est le vendredi 13 octobre 1307 que, sur ordre du roi Philippe le Bel que les Chevaliers de l’Ordre du Temple furent arrêtés dans tout le royaume de France. Cet événement marqua tant le peuple du royaume que la date du vendredi 13 devint une date maléfique.
En quelques heures, les chevaliers furent tirés de leurs commanderies et conduits dans les geôles du royaume.
In My expiriece it is the happiest day from the first time to be aware of myself. Behinde it is the hidden truhth if you allow not to be driven by the planted seed of fear. Quite the oposite
love you all
I don’t believe in this at all! I’ve never had an unlucky Friday the 13th
As per me every day is created by God, so there is no question of bad at all. Whatever happens, is due to our destiny and not because a date or a day is bad.
I have bought in to the whole superstition of Friday 13th, simply because I believe if you think about something be it Negative, it will usually come you way. So if people are overtly worried about Friday 13th something bad will eventually happen on this day!! Then they will place the blame on the 13th, instead of looking at themselves..
x
meant to say
I have never bought in to**
Many of my friends are superstitious about Friday the 13th, though they don’t know why. I on the other hand was never superstitious. I work in a small boutique, the style falls between rockabilly and horror, so we use days such as this to our advantage, selling clothing and accessories to accommodate the day. People love it.
I Like the NUMBER 13 and especially FRIDAY 13 .
I am a Lebanese Christian Catholic woman and
during the civil war in LEBANON
I was shooted 5 times by a Sniper.
It was the 13th of the Holy Friday (2days before Easter)
and I did’nt die. It was a miracle !!! Thanks GOD .
I’ve watched all the movies Friday the 13th. I knew about the Knights Templar, but did not know the rest.
I used to be a little uncomfortable on Friday the 13th in the past. In my experience nothing bad ever did occur to me, so I have changed my mind. Also my mother has convinced me it is her lucky day and lucky number. Once she got a very good position on a Friday 13th, in a company called No 13 and I believe the street address was #13 too.
Last year I had to visit a location in Phoenix on 13th floor numerous times, and remember I was surprised they actually call it 13th floor, because so many hotels and buildings just skip this number and go from 12th to 14th floor. Nothing bad ever occurred to me going up the elevator or staying for entire days on this floor. Other people gets very uncomfortable having to go to the same office. One guy actually is not able to get into this elevator, an take the stairs up and down the 13th floor. I’m giving him a hard time!
The only superstition I am very aware I’m doing, is we have a mountain here, which originally has been a Holy Mountain for the Apache Indians. They do not like people to hike up the mountain, and in the past used to kill anyone who trespassed. Well those times are gone, and people hike up there all the time. In the eleven years I have lived here, I have NOT done so, because I am superstitious and because I do want to respect the Native Americans.. Which is unusual for me, as I love to hike to the top of mountains..
Nope, I’m positive.. Tomorrow is going to be my lucky day!
BEST OF LUCK TO YOU ALL THIS DAY! :)
But let’s try all to ‘undo’ this superstition! every day is a gift and may we all enjoy it!
Love and Gratitude
Annie
Thank you Annie, that was beautifully said :) Good luck to you, too today, although I don’t believe in the 13th either.
I think things might go wrong on the 13th because we expect them to go wrong and then we are extra careful and by this we are only making things worse. So let’s just live this day fully with all our energy.
hmmm…interesting! I will share my personal opinion, if I may:) My mom’s birthday happens to be January 13th, I should mention that she is Italian (immigrated to Canada). And, yes, I grew up hearing her talk about how all the bad luck she has had in her life are related to the fact that she was born on the 13th!! I would like to point out that my mom has had sooooo many blessings in her life. Actually she has had a lot more blessings than “bad luck”, however, she will not tell about those, she is convinced that she has gone through a lot more hardships than anyone else because she was born on the 13th. So, maybe somewhere along the way, did we forget about the good things? Mom has a lot to be grateful for despite the fact that she is born on the 13, today, when I remind her of it, she will just laugh it off (got to love her)….Happy Birthday mom:)
I love ‘Friday the 13th’ movies – Jason rocks!
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