A local magazine published a tongue-in-cheek list of the top 10 Moroccan superstitions and old wives' tales. You'll recognize some of them; they're the same in the West. And I first heard the one about a broom touching an unmarried woman's feet from a Mexican friend whose family swears by the belief.
Here are the Moroccan superstitions, summarized:
1. Don't pour hot water down a sanitation hole after dark because you risk burning revenge-minded jinn asleep underground. (Jinn are supernatural beings mentioned in the Quran) An angry jinni, the story says, is sure to track you down and disrupt your life as payback for your thoughtlessness.
2. Sheepskin prevents acne, clears blackheads and erases scars. You just take the skin of a freshly slaughtered sheep and rub the inside of it on your face.
3. If you've swallowed a bad spirit, drink a nightcap of milk with orange-blossom water.
4. Among several urine-related superstitions: Urinate on your hands if you're clumsy and urinate in front of your house to prevent the evil eye from creeping inside.
5. A twitchy eye means bad news is coming. An itchy hand predicts money on the way. If your right eyebrow itches, someone is singing your praises. If your left eyebrow itches, someone's talking badly about you.
6. If you brush a girl's feet with a broom, she'll never get married.
7. It's better to go around someone sitting in your path. Stepping over him will stunt his growth.
8. Never eat food that's been sitting out overnight because mischievous nocturnal jinn probably have tampered with it.
9. To guard against evil eye, be discreet. Be humble about your own success, hide the extent of your fortune, even present yourself in an unfavorable light.
10. Don't use a whistle in the house. Don't place your shoes upside down. Don't open an umbrella in a closed space.
I'll keep in mind #3. Now that I'm older, I can't handle my 'bad spirits' like I use to.
Posted by: Edie | August 15, 2007 at 11:33 AM
"Never eat food that's been sitting out overnight because mischievous nocturnal jinn probably have tampered with it."
Ah, yes. I know this jinn. I think his name is E.Coli.
Posted by: Cairogal | August 15, 2007 at 11:39 AM
#4. Ummm, I think if you urinate on your hands its BECAUSE you are clumsy, not to prevent it...
Posted by: TexasGrease | August 15, 2007 at 01:33 PM
In much of Latin America, the superstition goes that if a guest to your home overstays his or her welcome, put a broom upside down behind the kitchen door. Sprinkle a little salt on top. The person will quickly leave.
Another superstition in Nicaragua, where I once lived: If you are ironing, never, ever open the refrigerator. If you do, half of your face will become paralyzed.
A third one: If a pregnant woman sees a snake, she will lose her baby.
Posted by: Tim | August 15, 2007 at 11:12 PM
That's great! Hannah, number 5 is prevalent, in the exact form you've described, throughout India as well (as are ideas about the evil eye and "hot" vs "cooling" foods that one hears about in Egypt)
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ok thanks for you
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