Timely Superstitions
By OSAblogger on Aug 11, 2009 in Shopping Security
Old wives’ tales have a way of sticking staying around. Even when we have science and technology to clarify phenomena, we still have faith in things best left by the wayside of history. Take these superstitions about clocks, for example, that still exert considerable influence on some cultures.
Death and Clocks
When somebody in the home dies, you must stop the decorative wall clock at the hour of his/her death. Of course, this has a practical function in terms of establishing the hour of death – you know, just in case somebody has a bet hanging on it – but this also left me bewildered.
Only when the burial is finished should the said clock be started again supposedly to symbolize a new period in the family’s life. Yeah, right. In the midst of my grief, I’m supposed to be thinking about my father’s collectible mantel clocks.
As to church clocks, these timepieces also signal death in some circumstances. These include:
* Someone in the parish will die within the week when the clock strikes while a hymn is being sung.
* If during the wedding service, the clock strikes, one of the couple will die within a year.
* If two clocks somehow strike together, a married couple will die soon thereafter.
These folklore definitely bring a new meaning to mortal time on Earth! Maybe I should start ditching some of my nautical table clocks just in case two of them should strike the same hour and my children find themselves without parents.
Clocks as Gifts
No matter the state of your finances, never ever give clocks as gifts to your Chinese hosts! This is because ofstrong homonyms present in the Chinese language wherein “giving a clock” sounds suspiciously like “sending to the death”.
However, you are allowed to give the gift of a watch to your Chinese hosts. Why? Well, because the Chinese word for “watch” is different from that of “clock” so it’s alright. Just make sure that it’s not an imitation watch though.
Clocks on New Year
From the colorful Chinese again comes the practice of wounding up the clocks around the home as soon as the New Year commences. This is supposed to bring good luck and good fortune in the coming year to the whole household. Well, just so long as I don’t have to walk up and down the stairs seven times for good luck, this practice seems alright.
Still, I wonder why man has to make superstitions around things that they invented themselves. It’s like the atheists said: Why worship a theory – God, in this case – that you created in the first place?
Written by: OSAblogger / Bill Wardell - Please Read Our Latest OSA eZine Edition
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