Many people around the world suffer from Paraskevidekatriaphobia, an irrational and morbid fear of Friday the 13th.
It is said that the fear of Friday the 13th is rooted in ancient, separate bad-luck associations with the number 13 and the day Friday. Together the two combined make for one very unlucky day.
The superstitions surrounding Friday the 13th finds its roots in many cultures and traditions.
The most common source of both these fears stem from Christian theology. The number thirteen is significant to Christians because it is said to be the number of people who gathered for the Last Supper (Jesus and his 12 apostles). Judas, the apostle who betrayed Jesus, was the 13th member of the party to arrive.
Christians have also traditionally been apprehensive of Fridays because Jesus was said to have been crucified on a Friday, It is therefore a day of penance for Christians. In addition to that, some theologians state that Adam and Eve ate from the forbidden fruit on a Friday; the Great Flood began on a Friday; and the Temple of Solomon was destroyed on a Friday. In the past because of these associations, many Christians would never take a trip on a Friday, or begin any new projects on that day for fear that it would be damned from the start.
Another theory holds that the distrust surrounding Friday the 13th came about not as the result of a many superstitions, but rather a catastrophic single historical event that happened in the early 1300’s.
“On October 13, 1307, a day so infamous that Friday the 13th would become a synonym for ill fortune, officers of King Philip IV of France carried out mass arrests in a well-coordinated dawn raid that left several thousand Templar knights, sergeants, priests, and serving brethren in chains, charged with heresy, blasphemy, various obscenities, and homosexual practices. None of these charges was ever proven, even in France and the Order was found innocent elsewhere but in the seven years following the arrests, hundreds of Templar’s suffered excruciating tortures intended to force ‘confessions,’ and more than a hundred died under torture or were executed by burning at the stake.” (recounted by Katharine Kurtz in Tales of the Knights Templar (Warner Books, 1995)
As well, there is a Norse myth that talks about 12 gods having a dinner party at Valhalla, a place known as their heaven. Legend has it that in the midst of the party, Loki, another god walked in uninvited as the 13th guest. Once there, Loki arranged for Hoder, the blind god of darkness, to shoot Balder the Beautiful, the god of joy and gladness, with a mistletoe-tipped arrow. Balder died and the Earth got dark.
While in ancient Roman times, witches reportedly gathered in groups of 12. The 13th was believed to be the devil.
Another early superstition having to do with the number 13, which is still observed today, is said to have originated by the Hindus, who thought that it was unlucky for 13 people to gather in the same place.
Both Friday and the number 13 were once closely associated with capital punishment. In British tradition, Friday was the day used for public hangings, and it is said that there were 13 steps leading up to the noose.
And finally, in numerology 12 is considered a “complete” number, since there are 12 months in a year, 12 signs of the zodiac, 12 gods of Olympus, 12 tribes of Israel and 12 apostles of Jesus. By exceeding 12 by 1, the number 13’s affiliation with bad luck has to do with it just being a little beyond completeness.
What do you think? Do you buy into all the hype? Are you superstitious? Is Friday the 13th an unlucky day for you?
Whatever your own personal belief’s are, try to enjoy the day!
Blessings, Francesca