People
often knock on wood when they make a statement which seems to tempt fate. The
idea is that knocking on wood will ward off evil spirits. Superstitions
surrounding evil spirits are ancient, and the idea of touching wood to avoid
them is also quite old. Many people in Northern Europe and North America knock
on wood so reflexively that they do not even realize that they are doing it,
showing how ingrained the tradition is in these cultures.
In most cases, it is believed
that one must literally knock on wood to deflect bad luck.Usually, people rap
on wood with a closed fist, creating a rapping noise like knocking on a door.
In other cases, people may say “knock on wood” or “touch wood” after making a
potentially risky statement such as “it doesn't look like rain today.”
The exact origins of the
tradition are unclear. In many pagan traditions, fairies and other creatures
were said to live in the trees. In these instances, people might knock on wood
to request good luck, or to distract spirits with evil intentions. This idea
may have been adapted by Christians, as many early pagan beliefs were, and
certainly some people associate knocking on wood with the Cross. Pieces of wood
or the true cross may be carried around for good luck by some people as well.
It is also believed that evil spirits can not enter churches and so most churches
having wood, people would knock before entering, thus warding off the evil
spirit.
All I
know is that it wards off bad luck and so far it has Worked so warding off bad
omens or not, I m still gonna do it, because lets face it as a college student….I
need all the Luck I can get!!!
My roommates and I do this all the time, and coincidentally, a few days ago, we were talking about what to do if we could not find anything wooden. It could start to get difficult as things are more frequently made of plastic! I have even noticed people do this as a reflex and knock on things that actually aren't made of wood. It has become that much of a habit for them. Let's hope generations before us have warded off most of the evil spirits, and that none decide to come in college!
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ReplyDeleteThis knocking on wood habit has been a trend of mine since I was in elementary school. I took it to mean that I wouldn't jinx bad things that could possibly happen. Being so young, I took it to heart completely and would get nervous or scared if my mom didn't say it when appropriate. But yet again, its so interesting to learn the history behind it.
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