Why is Friday the 13th a superstition?
We know that, at least in the Western world, in several countries, there is a certain popular fear when the 13th of the month occurs on a Friday. Many people believe that Friday 13 brings bad luck, curses or something similar negative. These beliefs about that date are considered superstition because they are associated with myths and legends from different traditions, which have been mixed over time. The "survival", that is, the remnants that remain from these traditions, is what forms the superstition (word that comes from the Latin superstition and it means “what stood above [was standing]” or “what survived”).
It is always difficult, and in some cases even impossible, to trace the origins of a given superstition, but as far as Friday the 13th is concerned, here are the main clues.
The number 13 in two Norse myths
Number 13 and Friday go back to the Nordic tradition (which includes, among others, the Germanic and Scandinavian peoples). Two Norse myths are often cited when trying to identify the origins of this superstition.
The first tells the story of the dinner meeting in Valhalla (Abode of the gods). In that meeting were twelve gods. Loki, the god of cheating, who was not invited, decided to enter the meeting unnoticed (thus making a total of 13 people). Because of his envy, Loki set a deadly trap for bucket, god of the sun. For this reason, among Nordic civilizations, such as the Vikings, the number 13 – especially at dinner meetings – was always a reason for bad luck.
The other myth is related to the goddess Frigg, to which fertility cults were dedicated. When there was the Christianization of the Nordic peoples, at the beginning of the AgeAverage, the cult of Frigga declined and, according to popular belief, the goddess began to take revenge, gathering all on Fridays with 11 witches and the devil (13 malefic beings in total) to harm the humans.
Last Supper and Good Friday
The Christian tradition also contributed, in a way, to the symbology of the number 13. THE last supper, which took place moments before Christ's arrest, gathered 13 people: Jesus and the 12 apostles. Furthermore, the Catholic calendar associates the day of Christ's crucifixion and death with Friday. THE Friday of passion is one of the main dates of Catholicism.
October 13, 1307: persecution of the Templars
Another possible source for the spread of the fear of Friday the 13th comes from the Middle Ages. In the year 1307, the French monarch Philip IV, who sought to strengthen his kingdom, tried to join the Order of the Templars. This was an active order since the eleventh century and with great prestige. The members of the order, however, refused entry to the king. To get revenge, Felipe IV ordered the persecution and arrest of the entire Order.
The Templars were accused of:
“[...] incinerate the corpses of deceased brothers and transform the ashes into a powder that was mixed with the younger brothers in their food and drink, to make them adhere firmly to their faith and idolatry; of cooking and roasting little children and anointing their idols with their fat; of celebrating occult rites and mysteries, to which virgins young and tender were presented, and of a variety of absurd and hideous abominations too hideous to be named.” [1]
This event took place on October 13, 1307, a Friday. This persecution eventually brought the Templar Order into complete obscuration.
Movie series with the character Jason Voorhees
When it comes to mass dissemination of the 13th superstition, the image that really remains is that of the character JasonVoorheees, from the film franchise started in the 1980s and entitled “Friday the 13th”. Jason was drowned on Friday, June 13, 1958, during a camp in Crystal Lake. Jason then returned from the underworld, to get revenge, like a monster wearing a hockey mask.
NOTE
[1] ADDISON, Charles G. The story of the Knights Templar and the Temple. Trans. Vera Ribeiro. Rio de Janeiro: Counterpoint, 2012.
By Me. Cláudio Fernandes
