WHY(s) of the Day

* Upon requests, this thread became a daily one. *

=== Why are most people pessimistic about Friday the 13th? ===

+ Friday the 13th occurs at least once and at most thrice a year. Pessimism about this day is due to the fact that Friday was the day when:

* Jesus was crucified
* Adam left heaven
* the Great Flood (Noah days) occured
* Solomon's Temple was destroyed
* Roman prisoners were executed

- And 13, according to Christians, is the number of those who attended the last dinner where Judas Iscariot, Jesus' Apostle who betrayed him, was one of them. That's why the presence of 13 people around a table is disliked.

According to the Pharaohs culture, people back then used to believe that life consists of 12 stages, and death comes in the 13th stage.

---- Info around the topic:

* Around the globe, people who fear Friday the 13th are diagnosed with Paraskevidekatria Phobia.

* According to a study performed by a US magazine, the US companies lose millions of dollars every Friday the 13th, for many people avoid shopping, traveling, and even leaving their homes...

>>>> Translated From "200 Questions and Answers From Our Daily Life", Iyad Shafik Saab <<<<

Whoa...

Ineteresting facts, thanks for sharing

I'm enjoying these, Abed. Thanks for posting.

In Norse mythology 13 people at a table is said to lead the death of one of those 13. Also fearing Friday the 13th is considered a phobia known as friggatriskaidekaphobia - Frigga being the Norse Goddess the day is named after.

Some airlines omit the number 13 from their seat-plans. Presumably because superstitious or nervous air-travellers would refuse to sit in that seat.

Mmmm just read a facebook status about this, actually I don't think its bad :P for me I met my boyfriend on Friday the 13th :D it was good, and still is good :] <3

I love this thread! YOU ARE AWESOME LAPI

This is quite interesting, thanks for sharing :)

Haha Nana :P

you are lucky even on the most disgraceful days

I discovered that today is Friday the 13th

!!

!

!!

Did you really not know that? LOL I thought thats why you posted this one, bahaha.

I don't notice anything crazy to happen with the number 13. I mean, it's a bakers dozen. I like doughnuts, hello extra doughnut!

I swear I didn't know, lol :O

I just translated like 4 questions and chose this one randomly, and through what Nana said above, I checked the computer calendar to find it's Friday, July 13, 2012 :P

It was so weird!

haha, I don't believe in this also.. those are just illusions :P

And hell yeah, an extra doughnut is always amazing!

That makes me giggle, like a lot. That's so funny!

I'm trying to think of other "13" related things but I guess I just don't know. I feel like not being aware of the superstition is going to make something bad happen to me today or something... haha!

Haha, Abed, I thought this book holds something for each day of the year, correlating the seven days of the week. I thought...what a book!

You ever watched that movie 'Friday The 13th'?

Actually the questions are so randomized, ranging from 'why' about names, food, animals, days, religion, etc..

Neat! I honestly did not figure out it was Friday the 13th 'til you posted it.....I love reading these why's though.

Bring on the randomness!

Thank Godness it's almost over now :)

You all can breathe easy here in about 18 minutes (my time)

Wait a minute Connie, it is not yet midnight here, and then, how could one not mention this interesting Norse story, about the significance of 13:

And Loki makes thirteen

Twelve gods (Viking gods) were invited to a banquet at Valhalla. Loki, the Evil One, god of mischief, had been left off the guest list but crashed the party, bringing the total number of attendees to 13. True to character, Loki raised hell by inciting Hod, the blind god of winter, to attack Balder the Good, who was a favorite of the gods. Hod took a spear of mistletoe offered by Loki and obediently hurled it at Balder, killing him instantly. All Valhalla grieved. And although one might take the moral of this story to be "Beware of uninvited guests bearing mistletoe," the Norse themselves apparently concluded that 13 people at a dinner party is just plain bad luck.

As if to prove the point, the Bible tells us there were exactly 13 present at the Last Supper (already narrated by Abed, above). One of the dinner guests -- er, disciples (Judas?)-- betrayed Jesus Christ, setting the stage for the Crucifixion.

Did I mention the Crucifixion took place on a Friday?

(Story re-quoted without modification from http://urbanlegends.about.com/cs/historical/a/friday_the_13th_2.htm)

Another phobia Triskaidekaphobia, is the word coined to reflect a fear of the number 13, is a predecessor of its more modern cousin Paraskevidekatria, a phobia of Friday the 13th, coined by a psychotherapist (see below).

The oldest known reference to the fear of the number 13 is in the Mesopotamian Code of Hammurabi, a Babylonian code of law that dates to approximately 1760 BC. The laws are numbered, but number 13 is omitted (along with numbers 66 through 99).

In the modern sense today, triskaidekaphobia is widely accepted among Western cultures. Most Western hotels omit the 13th floor. Many airlines omit the 13th row in seating. Even some cities and towns skip over 13th Street. Friday the 13th is considered a particularly unlucky day. Fear of Friday the 13th is known as paraskavedekatriaphobia. The origins of this fear are unknown, but may be connected to the arrest of the Knights Templar on Friday, October 13,1307.
Dr. Donald Dossey, a psychotherapist specializing in the treatment of phobias who coined the term paraskevidekatriaphobia, also spelled paraskavedekatriaphobia, believes no fewer than eight percent (21 million)of Americans remain in the grips of this very old superstition.

(abstracted from open source publications on about.com)

Wow Abed! You made me read in depth about these weird terms and the associated superstitions. Enjoyed the thread. Thank you.

Poetess, i like your friday the 13th Avatar, a new breed of feline cat species is it./wink

The Norse story is interesting!

what mythology is that?

Too bad our 'modern' society still believes in this crap.
I thought we are more 'realistic' now.
Another paradox!

Norse (diction) here implies medieval Scandinavians. Today, we include:
a. The people of Scandinavia; the Scandinavians.
b. The people of Norway; the Norwegians.
c. Speakers of Norwegian, Icelandic, and Faroese.

Viking = any of the Scandinavian people (Norse) who raided the coasts of Europe from the 8th to the 11th centuries

Norse mythology is the study of the myths told in Germanic countries (Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Faroe Islands) during the pre-Christian times, especially during the Viking Age.

Here are some links to norse mythology and Gods that I could find quickly. Perhaps, someone from that part of the World (Ingrid, Ari, Mera Luna could better my simple understanding.

http://ancienthistory.about.com/od/norsemyth/a/aa081799Norse.htm
http://ancienthistory.about.com/od/creationmyths/a/11083199Norse.htm

Also, (I know at least in America) some architects do not include a 13th floor in the building plans, as to avoid bad luck

Thanks a lot, David!

What about Apollo 13? Thought this deserved a mention. Launched at 13.13 on 11th April 1970 but aborted 2 days later (making it 13th April) after an oxygen tank exploded on board.

Mmm... weird, too!

This WHY is not quite so scientific. At all. But superstition is always fun.