{"id":120139,"date":"2023-10-26T22:41:43","date_gmt":"2023-10-26T11:41:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/?p=120139"},"modified":"2023-10-26T22:46:48","modified_gmt":"2023-10-26T11:46:48","slug":"committee-for-lorne-superstitions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/news\/committee-for-lorne-superstitions\/","title":{"rendered":"Committee for Lorne: Superstitions"},"content":{"rendered":"

Superstition:<\/b> \u201c… <\/span><\/i>a belief or practice resulting from ignorance, fear of the unknown, trust in magic or chance, or a false conception of causation<\/span><\/i> … or … an irrational abject attitude of mind toward the supernatural, nature, or God resulting from superstition.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Who can forget [or haven\u2019t heard played] \u2018Superstition\u2019? \u2014 Stevie Wonder\u2019s 1972 song ranked #12 in Rolling Stones 2021 list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.\u00a0 With apologies to Stevie, I have changed his fifth line from <\/span>\u2018Thirteen-month-old baby\u2019<\/span><\/i> to suit the purpose of this article.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cVery superstitious<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Writing\u2019s on the wall<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Very superstitious<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Ladder\u2019s bout to fall\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Thirteenth day\u2019s a Friday<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Broke the looking glass<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Seven years of bad luck<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

The good things in your past\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

For those with a superstitious streak … Note: Tuesday, October 31st [Halloween] is fast approaching … we have just negotiated another super-superstitious day: Friday 13<\/span>th<\/span>.\u00a0 That said, many may be unaware that there is an extra \u2018kick\u2019 to Friday 13<\/span>th<\/span> October, as opposed to Friday 13<\/span>th<\/span> on any other old month!<\/span><\/p>\n

The conjunction of Friday with the 13<\/span>th <\/span>of the month comes around [on average] every 212 days … or 1.72 times\/year.\u00a0 But the even rarer combination of Friday the 13<\/span>th<\/span> with October occurs only once every few years, the most recent Friday, October 13th to pre-date this year\u2019s \u2018fateful date\u2019 being in 2017.\u00a0 The next won\u2019t occur till 2028.<\/span><\/p>\n

The superstitious significance of Friday 13<\/span>th<\/span> October harks back to 1307 when Phillip IV of <\/span>France issued his infamous order to arrest every Templar Knight in France.\u00a0 The Templars, a once all-powerful \u2018holy\u2019 fighting force \u2014 often described as \u201c<\/span>the most formidable Christian Crusader soldiers the world had ever seen<\/span><\/i>\u201d \u2014 were caught by complete surprise and were [literally] carted off to prison.\u00a0 Tortured and tried in a sham court process for heresy, sodomy, and other sacrilegious offences, they were all judged guilty and then burnt en-masse at stakes set up on the outskirts of Paris with Phillip and his court looking on with satisfaction<\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The superstitious warning <\/span>\u201c… don\u2019t open your doors or go outside\u201d … <\/span><\/i>has been attached to every Friday 13<\/span>th<\/span> thereafter, no matter the month, though Friday 13<\/span>th<\/span> in October holds added significance.\u00a0 Who could blame you if, on this most recent Friday, October 13th<\/span> \u2014 just over a millennium past that first fateful day in 1307 \u2014 you had turned to your bookshelf to select and re-read Dan Brown\u2019s conspiracy pot-boiler, \u2018The Da Vinci Code\u2019!<\/span><\/p>\n

The number 13 [+\/- Friday] attracts other superstitious conspiracies: Jesus was crucified on a Friday [though it is thought to have been on 3<\/span>rd<\/span> April AD 33], while <\/span>there were 13 disciples at the Last Supper \u2014 the traitorous Judas being 13<\/span>th<\/span> at the table.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The number 13 is also considered unlucky in Norse mythology, one source noting that <\/span>\u201c… when 12 gods were invited for dinner in Valhalla by the god Balder but the trickster god, Loki, was omitted, Loki arranged for god H\u00f6dr to shoot and kill Balder.\u00a0 When the arrow hit home, it is said that the earth darkened and mourned\u201d.\u00a0 <\/span><\/i>Ever since, the number 13 has been a fateful number in Viking mythology.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Halloween, October 31<\/span>st<\/span>, is another peak day in the superstitious calendar and is nearly upon us<\/span>.\u00a0 In just a few short days, the footpaths of Lorne will reverberate to the patter of tiny ghoulish feet as the local kids get out and about in their finest ghoul-wear.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While the 31<\/span>st<\/span> is clearly not the same as the 13<\/span>th<\/span>, there <\/span>is<\/span> still one <\/span>really<\/span> weird conjunction of 13 and 31 beyond the fact that they contain the same two numbers, I and 3.\u00a0 The linking oddity is a prime number \u2014 Belphegor\u2019s Prime \u2014 named for Belphegor, one of the seven princes of hell.\u00a0 Belphegor\u2019s prime [NB: a prime number is only divisible by itself or by 1] is the only known palindromic prime [one that reads the same forwards as it reads backwards] was discovered by Harvey Dubner.\u00a0 It contains 31 numbers, has a 1 at each end, and 13 zeros on either side of 666, the devil\u2019s number.<\/span><\/p>\n

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So … no wonder 13 is an \u2018iffy\u2019 number!\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Finally, Halloween is just around the corner, and its superstitious origins are worth considering.\u00a0 As the History Channel tells us [https:\/\/www.history.com\/topics\/halloween\/history-of-halloween<\/a>], \u201c… <\/span>Halloween\u2019s origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in)\u201d.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

The Celts, who lived 2,000 years ago in the area that is now Ireland, the United Kingdom and northern France, celebrated their new year on November 1st.\u00a0 This was the day that traditionally marked the end of summer and the harvest, while it signalled the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year often associated with human death.\u00a0 Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead blurred, the gates to the underworld briefly opened, and the ghosts of the dead returned to earth.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Their Druids built huge sacred bonfires to commemorate the event, where the people gathered to burn crops and animals as sacrifices to the Celtic deities.\u00a0 During the celebration, the people would dress in costumes, typically of animal heads and skins, and attempt to tell each other\u2019s fortunes.<\/span><\/p>\n

The mouth of a cave \u2014 the Cave of Oweynegat \u2014 is believed in legend to be the Gateway to the Otherworld and is near the ancient Celtic centre of Cruachain of Connaught, <\/span>the ancient seat of the kings of Connacht in northwest Ireland.\u00a0 An astounding 240 archaeological sites and monuments can be seen in the area, their age ranging from 4,000 BC to AD 400.\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/h5>\n
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Oweynegat \u2013 the entrance to the Otherworld<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Celtic mythology says that on Samhain eve [October 31st], Otherworld creatures emerged from Oweynegat to ravage the countryside.\u00a0 Herein lies the origins of Halloween.<\/span><\/p>\n

I am not, by nature, particularly superstitious.\u00a0 But I am always wary of a ladder, preferring to go around and not under it.\u00a0 I go cross-eyed if I sight a black cat [or, here in the Otways, a black panther] … and if a black cat should appear on Halloween, I am ready to completely dissemble!\u00a0 I throw salt [NB: rock salt if available] over my left shoulder to ward off ill luck \u2014 as my mother taught me to do … or even better, I seek wood to touch [but always unvarnished and unpainted where possible]. <\/span><\/p>\n

John Agar – Feature Writer<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

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A word from the Chairman<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n
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Hello<\/span><\/p>\n

As Cup weekend approaches, our town prepares for the influx of visitors and the start of our summer season.<\/span><\/p>\n

There are lots of activities planned for Cup weekend for our residents and visitors, starting with our Community lunch on Friday November 3 at Stribling Reserve Community Pavilion.\u00a0 All are welcome to come along and enjoy a fine lunch and learn about what is happening in our community and especially at our school.\u00a0 You will also hear an informative and entertaining presentation by Henry Dwyer, an up-and-coming horse trainer from Ballarat who will tell us some stories from the racing game and maybe give us a few winners for Cup week.\u00a0 For further details see the One and Only Lorne Community Notice Board Facebook page and bookings are essential at <\/span>nicole@greatoceanroadrealestate.com.au<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

On Saturday, our newly reformed cricket team will look to continue their winning form against Tomahawk Creek at Irrewillipe after a convincing win in the opening round against Carlisle River in front of a small but vocal crowd at Stribling Reserve.<\/span><\/p>\n

On Cup Eve there is a members and guests night at the Country Club.\u00a0 Come along and enjoy a tasty dinner, good company and community fun.\u00a0 Bookings are essential at <\/span>lornecountryclub.com.au<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

On Cup Day, the Aquatic Club will hold their traditional chicken lunch and afternoon with sweeps on each race and Fashions on the Field for all genders.\u00a0 Dress up in your best racing outfit and join the fun. Bookings are essential with Ian at 0439031442.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

There is no excuse to stay home!<\/span><\/p>\n

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There is much excitement at the football\/netball club at the signing of Ed Curnow as senior football coach for season 2024.\u00a0 Ed retired as a player with Carlton this year and is looking forward to the next stage of his football career.\u00a0 Despite a number of lucrative offers elsewhere, Ed and his wife Emily decided that the Lorne community will provide the best environment and opportunity for their young family.\u00a0 We welcome Ed and Emily and their children into the community.<\/span><\/p>\n

Rumour has it that it was news of Ed\u2019s signing sent that caused shock waves through Colac and Otway districts last Saturday night!<\/span><\/p>\n

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This week our VCE students are completing their final exams.\u00a0 This time is important for them as they embark on a transition to work or further studies.\u00a0 I think we can all look back on our school days, hopefully with fond memories of good times and enduring friendships.\u00a0 Yes, exams are important and we encourage our students to give their best efforts, but the result (the score) does not define you.\u00a0 It lasts for a day, a week, or a month.\u00a0 Most people go on to enjoy success and happiness on very different paths to what they thought when they were leaving school.\u00a0 Good luck to all our students!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Cheers<\/span><\/p>\n

John Higgins Chairman<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Lorne Ward Events Calendar – <\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

October<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n