English Superstitions. Part 4
If a woman’s garter falls in the street, her husband will cheat on her.
If you wash in the same water in which someone before you washed, you are sure to quarrel with that person.
During a new moon, you can look at the new moon through a silk handkerchief that has never been washed before. The silk threads refract the light so that instead of one moon, you will see several. As many moons you will see, in so many years you will marry [Quite logical, especially if there will be really many moons – who needs a wife who got drunk before divination?]
If you cut off two ends of bread at once, the devil will fly over the house.
Counting your teeth is bad luck.
In addition to rice, old shoes are also thrown at the bride and groom.
You can’t wear green at a wedding.
If a girl steps over a lying broom, she will get pregnant before marriage.
Crossed knives on the table – to great misfortune.
The arrival of guests is heralded by a bright spark in the candle flame or a dropped cutlery (knife – the arrival of a man, fork – of a woman, spoon – of a child or a fool).
If a baby cries loudly during the baptism – it is a good sign.
If a woman’s married name begins with the same letter as her maiden name, she will be unhappy in marriage.
To rub on the shoulder of the bride or groom – to a speedy wedding.
Everyone knows the custom of catching the bride’s bouquet. But in the northern regions of England, there was another tradition – the battle for cheese. The girl who first grabbed the piece of cheese, which the bride cut off before leaving the table, would be married next. You can imagine the scuffle that ensued. There was a more abrupt option for men – a battle for the knife, with which the bride cut off a piece of cheese (or stuck in the block of cheese). The man who grabs the knife and does not cut himself gets married next. [In my opinion, such a wedding has a good chance of immediately turning into a funeral.]
In some villages in Yorkshire, after a pastor pronounced the husband and wife, the bride had to kiss the pastor first and only then the groom.. Pastors unfamiliar with this tradition were surprised that the bride was trying to kiss them.
In the same Yorkshire, it was customary to pour boiling water on the doorstep as soon as the bride left her parents’ house. It was believed that before the water dried up, someone in that house would have already arranged a new wedding.
The first spouse to fall asleep after the wedding would be the first to die [I imagine unhappy newlyweds who lay in bed all night with eyes wide open and furtively pinched themselves to avoid falling asleep].
To wear the left sock upside down is good luck, the right sock is bad luck.
In England, there were many kinds of divination. For example, girls poked pins through the candle at the base, so the pin went through the wick. Thus, as if they pierced the heart of the beloved. After that, the spell was cast. . And when the candle burned out, the betrothed had to appear near.
If a wife furtively pours cumin seeds into her husband’s pockets, he will not be able to cheat on her.
After you wash yourself in a basin, you should spit in the water, you should spit in the water so that another person cannot use it. Otherwise, you will quarrel with him. (Scotland)
Cracks on baked bread – to the arrival of a hungry guest. But if the bread cracks constantly, it is a bad sign, perhaps the hostess has been jinxed.(Scotland)
Read also:
English Superstitions 1
English Superstitions 2