India is a land of many religions, castes, sub-castes and with these many religions, castes and sub-castes comes even higher number of superstitions – few of them are similar in all castes, but some vary depending on sub-castes and even interesting is the fact that each “family” has their own set of superstitions- which they have been following since ages!
1.Bribing God to fulfill our wishes on the pretext of “praying”
2.Never cut your nails after day-break and abstain from cutting nails on Tuesday, Thursday/Friday (depending on castes) and Saturday.
3.For some castes 13 is auspicious, but for some 13 brings bad luck. In Chandigarh, they don’t have sector 13.
4.Your future depends on the deeds that you do now- This superstition is the major causr that people don’t live in peace anymore.
5.For the non-vegans out there: Having sea food with milk products will give you vitiligo.
6.Sneezing or calling out names from behind is the cause of bad omens in India and the work you are assigned will never be completed.
7.Removing the evil eye by applying some eye-liner behind the ears or on forehead or by hanging lemons and green chilly on the door is said to remove the evil eye.
8.Sleeping with scissors or a knife beneath your pillow helps you get rid of bad dreams
9.Broken glass? Auspicious in some castes while it invites quarrels in some.
10.Steel utensils keep falling down- You are inviting fights and quarrels in your home.
11.Don’t shake your leg when sitting idle- It invites bad luck/ you lose money quickly.
12.If a black cat crosses your way- it brings bad luck and your work will not b fulfilled – Either postpone the work or take a different route
13.Never as in NEVER sweep the floors in the evening- it brings bad luck or it invites demons inside your home.
14.A work will never be successful if 3 people work on it.
15.While gifting someone “money” ALWAYS keep 1 Rupee coin along with the currency- it is auspicious and is called Shagun. NEVER give the rounded off money. Its rude!
By: Archa Dave