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Cat Tales - Superstition & Lore
By Rochelle Caviness
A superstition is a belief or ritual, such as throwing salt over your shoulder, that has no logical basis. This can be illustrated with the "black cat" analogy. In Britain, black cats are considered good luck, yet in America and Ireland; they are considered bad luck. Why? Who knows? It's a superstition, and therefore there is no logical reason behind the belief. Yet, many diffuse beliefs are based upon the same notion. Take for example these two claims:
- If a black cat crosses your path, it is good luck.
- If a black cat crosses your path it's bad luck.
These seem like two separate sentiments, but really, they are two variations of the same European belief - that black cats are evil.
- In Britain, a black cat crossing your path is considered lucky because it is seen as an indication that evil has passed you by.
- In parts of Europe, a black cat crossing your path is seen as bad luck because it means that evil is near you, and no good can come from it.
Superstitions
Logical or not, superstitions abound about cats. These run the gamut from the belief that cats have mystical powers, to the idea that each cat has nine lives and can see ghosts.
- FYI - A cat only purrs when a ghost is in the room.
Stormy Weather
- A cat can raise a storm by switching its tail.
- In parts of Asia, if you wash your cat you can make it rain.
- If a cat sleeps with all four paws tucked up underneath it - cold weather is approaching.
- If a cat stares out a window all day, it will soon rain.
Death
- A black cat on a new grave means the devil got the soul.
- If two cats are fighting over a grave, they are fighting for the soul of the deceased.
- If a sick man sees two cats fighting, he will die.
- A cat will not stay in a house where someone is about to die.
- Cats are thought to suck the very soul out of babies.
Luck
- The sound of a cat sneezing brings luck to all that hear it.
- Dreaming of a white cat means good luck.
- A stranger visiting someone else's home will have good luck if they kiss the house's cat.
- Seeing a white cat during the day is lucky, although at night it is unlucky.
Love and Friendship
- Single and looking for a mate? Take three hairs from a cat, sleep with them under your pillow and you'll dream of your true love.
- If you've been proposed to but can't decide whether to say yes - take three cat hairs, wrap them up in paper and put them under your front door steps for a night. In the morning, carefully unfold the paper and see what shape the hairs have formed themselves into. Y means say yes, N means say no.
- A cat washing his face in your parlor or living room means that company is company.
- If you're a tea drinker and you see the shape of a cat in the bottom of your cup, one of your friends is untrue.
Never Hurt a Cat
- Kick a cat and it will give your rheumatism.
- Drown a cat and its spirit will come back and drown you.
Cats as incarnations of supernatural beings
In Egypt, the goddess Bast was often represented as a cat, and cats were thought to be predictors of future events.
In Japan, a temple cat, which later became known as Maneki Neko
or the Beckoning Cat, was thought to be the incarnation of the goddess of mercy.
It seems that the rats and mice on Noah's ark were taking the injunction to be fruitful and multiply too literally. The lions, being too big to get into all the little nooks and crannies were not doing a very good job taking care of the rodent population. Just as everything seemed hopeless, one of the lions sneezed out two fully grown cats - one male, one female. In no time at all the rats and the mice were back down to the requisite number and it was the cats' turn to be fruitful and multiply - which they happily did.
