Superstitions of the Head and Face

TL;DR

The head and face are considered by many to be the very most important parts of the body. They are the first thing people see when they meet us, so is it any wonder when people are trying not to be embarrassed, that is called “saving face”? Professional fighters can be seen protecting their heads and faces while their opponents pummel their torso, more intent on protecting what’s most important. The ancient Celts believed the soul resided in the head, and to possess the head of a slain enemy meant to hold on to their spirit forever. Because our heads and faces are so very important, many fascinating superstitions have developed about them. Some call these backwards beliefs, but others swear by these superstitions, counting them as fact.

 

Growing up, you may remember the adults telling you whenever you scratched your ear, “When your ear is itching, it means somebody’s talking about you.” Or it may have been your nose itching meaning you were being talked about. They may have said it was either one ear or one side of your nose or the other, and you may have laughed it off as the older people in your family being silly. These superstitions go deeper than just a signal for when you are being talked about however, and you will be surprised just how many people believe these things to be signals from the Universe.

The Nose Knows

More than just something to breathe from, sniff yummy foods, or turn up at things we dislike, the nose is considered by many to indicate plenty of significant things. While a pimple on nose superstition means you’re nervous about something, there is more to nose superstitions than just this. Your whole destiny may be foretold!

What Does an Itchy Nose Mean?

This elicits a lot of different responses depending on who you ask what that itch in your nose means. Some say it means somebody is talking about you, while others insist it means you are about to luck into some money! Some say if the tip of your nose itches, to look for a letter that’s on the way, and others say that you’re about to get an unexpected visitor. If the left side itches, said visitor will be male, if the right itches, it will be a female visitor.

One Sneeze Superstition

There is disagreement about what this means. Some say when you sneeze, your soul might escape, so people immediately say, “Bless You!” to keep it inside. Others say one sneeze means people are saying nice things about you. Some would say a sneeze means you will lose your job soon, or that it even means once you get married, you will have a good relationship with your in-laws. If a cat sneezes once, it’s good luck, but if it sneezes a total of three times, be aware- you are going to catch a case of a cold!

Sneezing Multiple Times in a Row Superstition

There may be debate about what one sneeze means, but those who are superstitious about sneezing agree that the amount of times you sneeze consecutively is significant. Sometimes it means good things, others, bad things. An old rhyme says the amount of times sneezed foretell what will come to pass, it said,

“One for a kiss, two for a wish,

Three for a letter, four for a better,

Five for silver, six for gold,

Seven for a secret never to be told.”

Sneezing Twice in a Row Superstition

They say if you sneeze twice together, the opposite of one sneeze is true. It means people are saying bad things about you rather than good things. Shame on them!

Three Sneezes in a Row Superstition

You can rejoice when you sneeze three times in a row because love is in the air. It means you will either find yourself in love soon, or somebody already loves you. Wonder who?

Four Sneezes in a Row Superstition

Perhaps the worst amount of times to sneeze altogether, four sneezes at once is a harbinger for tragedy that is about to strike you or your loved ones. While it’s always best for this just to be a coincidence, if you sneeze four times in a row, it can’t hurt to be on the lookout to see if bad times hit, and it certainly can’t hurt to check in on your loved ones.

Five Sneezes in a Row Superstition

Doctors would say that to sneeze this many or more times in a row, your first few sneezes did not pack enough of a punch to expel whatever is irritating your nose, but some disagree. It is said by some that five sneezes or more in a row point to the same thing four sneezes in a row point to- bad times befalling you or your loved ones. However…

Sneezing Six Times in a Row Superstition and Sneezing Seven Times in a Row Superstition

Some sex therapists say if you sneeze six or seven times in a row, it is as pleasurable as an orgasm. This claim has been made sans scholarly research, but some would swear all those sneezes just feel so good!

Sneezing Eight Times in a Row Superstition

Nobody wants to sneeze this many times consecutively, but if you do, another old rhyme says this:

“ One for a wish, two for a kiss,

three for a poem, four for a letter,

five for gold, six for lumber,

seven for illness, eight for a dance,”

nine for a cold, ten for a grave”

However, not everybody says ten is bad!

Sneezing Ten Times in a Row Superstition

If the old Flemish belief that sneezing when somebody made a statement proves it’s truth- sneezing after saying something ten times will absolutely prove your point in the very most concrete way! But believe it or not, ten sneezes in a row is not the maximum amount possible, according to the Guinness Book of World Records, that is. They say that in 1983, a Donna Griffiths had the world’s longest sneezing eruption, sneezing about one million times in 977 days. Antihistamine anybody?

The Eyes See All

Some say the eyes are the windows to the soul, and others say they are harbingers of what will come to pass. Pay attention to those eyes and you will learn much!

What Does a Twitching Eye Mean Superstition

Believed by some to be more than just a spastic nerve, superstitions of the eye twitching abound. To some this even means different things depending on which eye it is. Some people in India have superstitions of the right eye twitching , and they say it means good things. You may get good news, or a pay raise, for example. However, their superstitions of the left eye twitching may be good or bad, depending on whether you are male or female. If you are a woman, it is usually okay, but if you are male, watch out- pun intended- because it’s not a good omen for you.

A right eyebrow twitching superstition, however, is not so cut and dried. In China, it is believed that this means bad things, bad luck, and bed news on the way, however, in India, it means good things for men! In contrast, left eyebrow twitching superstitions in China say it’s good news for a woman, as she can expect a new baby on the way. In Africa, it can mean sadness, or you will be meeting a stranger.

Hiccups Superstition

According to the Mayo Clinic “ Hiccups are involuntary contractions of the diaphragm — the muscle that separates your chest from your abdomen and plays an important role in breathing. Each contraction is followed by a sudden closure of your vocal cords, which produces the characteristic "hic" sound.”

According to superstitions, they are caused by somebody who dislikes you speaking against you and the way to make this stop is to figure out who is doing the talking. Other people insist hiccups are caused by somebody who you know suddenly remembering you. Still other people have a superstition that the way to get rid of hiccups is to hold your breath and drink exactly nine swallows of water. Others say to hold your breath, drink water, and say three times “As I went over the bridge, the hiccups fell in the water.” It can’t hurt to try!

Chin Twitching Superstition

Our eyes and eyebrows twitch, yes, but those are not the only parts of the face that twitch to indicate meaning. While doctors say an occasional chin twitch is harmless, superstitions say otherwise, and depending on just what side of your chin twitches, it’s a very good thing or a very bad thing. If the right side of your chin is where the twitch is, be happy, because it indicates a new love life is about to begin. Yet if the left side twitches, unfortunately, it means bad news about your love life is coming your way.

How About Them Apples?

The “apples” of your face, your cheeks, also twitch to let us know what’s about to come to pass. A left cheek twitching superstition in China is one of bad news is on the way, but in India, they say it’s a good thing. On the other side, the right cheek twitching superstition says the opposite. In China, it’s an indication of all good things, yet in India, it means bad things. Some would say the left cheek twitching means happiness and harmony at home, and others would say twitching of your cheek or anything at all on the right side of your head means you’ve got money in the way. In contrast, a lower lip twitching superstition says you are about to lose a friend!

The Crown

The crown of our face, or our forehead has some superstitions attached to that as well. A forehead itching superstition is a very good thing because it means you will get a promotion! A pimple between eyebrows superstition is more than just unattractive. It’s something they say you get because you fell in love. A mole between the eyebrows, on the other hand means you are intelligent, and it is said if a woman has a high forehead, she will have a lucky, prosperous life. However, a broad forehead can indicate an unlucky life, and the unfortunate lady with one of these foreheads could cause her father-in-law to die.

Hole Above Ear Superstition

Called a preauricular pit by doctors, a small hole above one or both ears is actually not horribly uncommon, occurring in 5 to 10 of every 1,000 births. Normally, it’s just the small holes above one or both ears and harmless. Beyond medical findings, superstitious people believe these holes are leftover from when we used to be smaller organisms that still lived underwater. They believe these to be leftover “gills” from the form humans were before we evolved to our present form. There is no scientific evidence that this is what these holes are, and this belief is based on what some people THINK they are, so until it’s proven it counts as a superstition. You never know, it might just be true!

It’s amazing how much a small itch, twitch, or pimple somewhere on our heads or faces can tell us about what’s in store for us, isn’t it? Just don’t dismiss superstitions the people raising you told you about as silly stories to laugh off. It’s possible that itch or twitch is putting you on notice for good news, or giving you a heads up that something less than great is about to happen, and this will give you plenty of time to prepare!

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Know here All About Superstition