Happy Friday the 13th All!

[Guest guest]

Good Friday morning to everyone!

 

It is a wonderfully cool, cloudy, breezy Friday the 13th morning here in

my neck of the woods (or swampy bog as far as my geography is concerned

 

I hope everyone enjoys the little snippet of creepy lore about Friday

the 13th

 

Enjoy! I'm going to celebrate Friday the 13th by seeing one of my

favorite guitarists tonight - Buckethead - who happens to wear a Michael

Myers mask *lol*

 

*Smile*

Chris (list mom)

 

Pumpkin Chai Spice Artisan Handmade Soap

Holiday Tradition With Real Organic Pumpkin

http://www.alittleolfactory.com

 

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http://www.rosslyntemplars.org.uk/friday,_13th.htm

 

 

 

Friday the 13th myth makers

 

 

 

By JENNI DILLON

 

 

 

Watch out for black cats, avoid mirrors and ladders and, by all means,

don't spill the salt.

 

 

 

As most people probably already realize, today is Friday the 13th, a

date commonly associated with bad luck.

 

 

 

For the next several hours, millions of superstitious individuals across

the country will hold their breath anticipating misfortune. Others will

avoid leaving the house altogether, refusing to drive, shop or work on

the ill-fated day.

 

 

 

But whether you're a true triskaidekaphobe (a person with an irrational

fear of Friday the 13th, also called a paraskevidekatriaphobe) or just

mildly suspicious, it's probably a good idea to know just where your

trepidation comes from.

 

 

 

Though it's hard to pinpoint the exact origins of any superstition,

several Internet sites are devoted to the history of the Friday the 13th

legend. And most list the same possible origins of the rumoured curse.

One of the more lucid sites is David Emery's urbanlegends.about.

 

 

 

According to a biography on the Web site, Emery is a freelance

journalist, as well as a staff writer for both a TV sitcom and a

satirical newspaper. He has a bachelor's degree in philosophy from

Portland (Or.) State University and completed graduate studies in

philosophy and the classics at the University of Texas at Austin. He

apparently has a particular interest in modern folklore and founded

urbanlegends.about.com to " debunk, deconstruct and discuss the most

popular tall tales and hoaxes in circulation. "

 

 

 

While the Web site explores everything from e-mail hoaxes to dubious

quotes, three pages are devoted to the history of Friday the 13th.

 

 

 

According to the site, the superstition is derived from myths about both

Fridays and the number 13.

 

 

 

Fridays, for example, are hailed as a particularly significant day in

the Christian tradition. Obviously, there is Good Friday, the day Jesus

Christ was crucified. But according to Christian lore, Adam and Eve also

supposedly ate the forbidden fruit on a Friday, the Great Flood started

on a Friday, the builders of the Tower of Babel were tongue-tied on a

Friday and the Temple of Solomon was destroyed on a Friday.

 

 

 

Of course, the Bible doesn't specifically note many these events

occurring on Fridays, and Emery explains some of the tradition may have

stemmed from the fact that pre-Christian pagan cultures hailed Friday as

holy days. The word " Friday " is, in fact, derived from a Norse deity who

was worshipped on the sixth day of the week and who represented marriage

and fertility. Fridays in the early Norse culture were associated with

love and considered a good day for weddings.

 

 

 

Over time, however, mythology transformed the Norse fertility goddess

into a witch, and Fridays became an unholy Sabbath. Incidentally, the

goddess' sacred animal was a cat, which may explain the legendary

connection between witches and cats, as well as the superstition about

black cats heralding bad luck.

 

 

 

In addition to the legendary significance of Fridays, the sixth day of

the week also was execution day in ancient Rome and later Hangman's Day

in Britain, according the Emery's Web site.

 

 

 

The number 13 also has mythological and religious symbolism.

 

 

 

Both the Hindus and Vikings reportedly had a myth in which 12 gods were

invited to a gathering and Loki, the god of mischief, crashed the party

and incited a riot. Tradition in both cultures holds that 13 people at a

dinner party is bad luck and will end in the death of the party-goers.

 

 

 

Following in that vein, the Last Supper in Christian tradition hosted 13

people and one betrayed Christ, resulting in the crucifixion.

 

 

 

The number 13 also has been associated with death in other cultures. The

ancient Egyptians, for example, believed life unfolded in 12 stages, and

the 13th stage was death. The Egyptians considered death a part of their

ultimate journey and looked forward to the spiritual transformation <

thus 13 was not an unlucky number in their culture < but like so many

others, the tradition warped through time and cultures, eventually

associating the number 13 with a more negative and fearful

interpretation of death, Emery writes.

 

 

 

Finally, Emery suggests the number 13 may have an unlucky connotation

because of its association with the lunar calendar (there are 13 lunar

cycles in a year) and with femininity (women have 13 menstrual cycles in

a year).

 

 

 

Then, there's the event that ties the two superstitions together.

 

 

 

" Though it's clear that superstitions associating Fridays and the number

13 with misfortune date back to the ancient times, some sources assign

the precise origin of the black spot on the day itself, Friday the 13th,

to a specific historical event, " adds Emery.

 

 

 

It was on Friday, Oct. 13, 1307, that France's King Philip IV had the

Knights Templar rounded up for torture and execution. The Knights

Templar were an order of warriors within the Roman Catholic Church who

banded together to protect Christian travellers visiting Jerusalem in

the centuries after the Crusades. The Knights eventually became a rich,

powerful < and allegedly corrupt order within the church and were

executed for heresy.

 

 

 

So, who knows?

 

 

 

The date may be forever cursed by one event that occurred nearly 700

years ago, or by a series of cosmic coincidences.

 

 

 

Or it may be a figment of human beings' collective imaginations.

 

 

 

Peninsula Clarion (Arkansas)

 

Friday, June 13, 2003