Superstitions and weird beliefs still thrive in Russia. How many times have I heard “Don't whistle in the house!” because otherwise there won't be any money in this house. Or “My ears are hot. Someone must be berating me!” And I'm not kidding, people actually believe in these kinds of things. Not everyone though – most of my friends are less superstitious than my aunts and uncles. Hopefully one day whistling inside of the house will no longer be forbidden, because these restrictions are quite annoying to me :).
There are tons of superstitions in Russia, some of them are regional and rare, some are more common. I'll list here only those that I heard constantly when living in Moscow.
- If you drop a fork, you'll have guests, probably male.
- Hiccups mean someone is thinking about you right now.
- It's a bad sign to give something over a threshold, both people should be either outside or inside.
- If you break a mirror, there will be seven years of misfortune.
- If you break dishes, something good will happen.
- But do not keep broken dishes – that would only bring misfortune. Even if there is a tiny crack on a cup, you have to throw it. Even if you really really like it...
- Rain before traveling means your trip will be safe.
- If a black cat crosses your path, something bad will happen. To protect yourself from it you should hold a button on your clothes when you meet a black cat.
