BellaOnline Forums Travel and Culture Russian Culture Superstitions

Did you know that in Russia, horseshoes are also lucky talismans hung on the front door, but that here they hang upside down? I was always taught never to invert a horseshoe, or the luck would run out. I've never been especially superstitious, but seeing this one 'the wrong way round' really disturbed me - I wanted to go and put it 'the right way up' for them!

Do you have any similar experiences? Or can you add any more Russian superstitions?

My favorite is when leaving for a long trip. We always have to come back inside the house and sit or a few minutes like we have changed our mind and are not going anywhere. It has something to do with fooling malicious spirits who may try to spoil the trip. If they think you have changed your mind and are not leaving they will go away to bother someone else.

I've heard that you need to sit before a journey, but I didn't know why people did it before. Is that something general as well about plans being spoilt, or only travel? A few people have told me that it's not good to make plans very concrete, because fate will spoil them, and I wonder if this is connected?

My husband said it's only for travel. He doesn't know about fate spoiling plans but this isn't very surprising if you know him like I do! He is pretty oblivious sometimes. :-P

Lol! Are you both Russian?

When someone sneezes you tell them Bud'te zdorovy (Rus: Будьте здоровы), which literally means "Be Healthy" (in the formal form of address). It used to be believed that saying this would help the sneezer keep from getting sick. Russian speakers will say it just as freely as an English speaker will say, "Bless you", but the superstitious origins of the phrase have been widely lost in both languages.

My husband is from Russia and I am Russian by marriage only.:)

Milaya, that's great. Have you got interested in Russia through him, or were you already interested? I had a Russian boyfriend for a while and I certainly found I got a closer look at cultural differences, usually fun, sometimes very bemusing!!

Vance, I always heard that English speakers saying bless you dates back to the Black Death. They taught us in school that sneezing was the first symptom, and so people would just assume you were going to die soon if you were sneezing a lot. So, they wanted to wish you luck at the pearly gates by blessing you. This may be nonsense however. The Russian one seems a bit more optimistic!

I've always been interested in Russia so I believe it was fate that the love of my life would be from there. I sure wasn't looking for a Russian to marry.:)