Friday the 13th: why people around the world are afraid of this day
'13.11.2020'
Source: Sputnik
At least once a year, the 13th falls on Friday. In 2020, there are two such coincidences - one of them was in March, the second was in November. Why do people fear this date and where did this superstition come from? Sputnik.
The idea of Friday the 13th as the most unlucky day of the year exists in many countries and cultures, including Russia. People attribute to this day a special “dark” power and try to be more circumspect so as not to bring trouble.
At the same time, the researchers argue that the likelihood of incidents does not increase on Black Friday, but on the contrary, there is a downward trend in accidents, and they attribute this to the fact that many people behave much more cautiously on this day.
Why Friday the 13th is considered an unlucky day
Superstitions and prejudices associated with Friday, the 13th, have been formed over millennia, and ideas about the mystical component of the number 13 and Friday as an unfortunate day of the week existed in parallel. By adding these two factors and combining separate, unrelated events, a myth arose about some extremely unhappy day.
According to one of the versions, it was on Friday, the 13th, that Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, after which they were expelled from paradise. Complementing this story of the unfortunate number is the fact that 13 people were present at the Last Supper, including Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus Christ for thirty pieces of silver. Interestingly, in Catholicism, 13 can also be a revered number, because it symbolizes Christ and the 12 apostles.
There was also another understanding of the "devil's dozen" in the Middle Ages. It was believed that the witchcraft sabbath could take place only with the participation of 12 witches and Satan - a total of 13 participants.
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The events that took place on Friday, April 13, 1307, also played a role in the hoax of the day. Then the King of France Philip the Fair ordered the arrest of all the Templars (representatives of the powerful knightly order of the Crusaders, founded in Jerusalem in 1119). Members of the order were burned at the stake of the Inquisition.
The ancient Slavs, according to some scholars, had their own understanding of good and bad numbers, as well as good and bad days. Friday among them was considered unlucky.
“This day of the week is also associated with the Christian holy Paraskeva Friday. By the way, they believed that she could punish women for extracurricular work (sewing, washing, and so on). True, most likely, this superstition dates back to pre-Christian times, ”says Olga Trefilova, a researcher at the Department of Linguistics and Folklore at the State Academy of Slavic Culture.
“But neither the Western nor the southern Slavs had a bias towards the number 13,” she is sure.
Despite the large number of versions of the origin of superstition, none of them has scientific confirmation. Nevertheless, the fears associated with this day have very real economic consequences, since many on this day try not to make any purchases, do not make deals, do not plan travel, and some even try not to leave their homes.
In medicine, panic fear of this date is officially considered a mental disorder and is called paraskaidekatriaphobia, or frigatriskaidekaphobia, and the phobia associated with the fear of the number 13 is called triskaidekaphobia, or terdekaphobia. According to statistics, about 60 million people on earth suffer from paraskavedekatriaphobia.
Friday the 13th, different countries
There are entire states, for example the United States, where they try to use number 13 as little as possible. There are even many buildings that do not have a 13th floor: just after 12th there is 14th, many airports do not have 13th gates. In addition, there are airlines that delete this day from their flight schedules, and hospitals and hotels lack ward 13 and room 13.
The fear of this date appeared among the inhabitants of Great Britain in modern times, when the kingdom became a sea power and contacts with representatives of other cultures increased. For this reason, the superstition regarding Friday, the 13th, first appeared among the sailors, some of them refused to go to sea that day.
In the same Britain, doctors are still afraid of “Black Friday” - they appoint, if possible, operations and procedures for other dates. Also, there is no seat number 13 in the country's cinemas.
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In France, if 13 people gather at the table, then in some places a figure, a mannequin is necessarily planted to them.
But hackers love Friday the 13th. It is on these days that the largest number of DDOS attacks and virus launches falls. The first large-scale attack took place in 1988. The Jerusalem virus has erased over a thousand files from computers around the world.
Friday the 13th: Do's and Don'ts
There are certain signs associated with this date, which people who fear it believe in:
- do not take or lend money - it is believed that the negative is transmitted through money;
- do not plan on Friday, the 13th, travel and any trips;
- are especially careful while driving;
- do not go to a new job that day;
- do not play a wedding;
- do not start new businesses.
But it is best not to pay attention to superstitions and omens, tune in to a positive mood - then Friday, the 13th, will become an ordinary calm day.
