Our source is Hartmann and Blass's Thinking Ahead question 3 on page 20 of Quest 3 (2007).
- (3.) Do you know people who have a lucky charm or amulet - in other words, something that they wear on a necklace or keep in their pocket to bring them god luck or protect them from bad luck?
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Amulets were very popular when I was in primary school. We had a small statue of St. Christopher on the dashboard of our car to protect us from accidents. I think every Catholic had one. St. Christopher was said to have carried Jesus safely across a body of water, so he became the patron saint of travellers. Unfortunately, doubts arose after a thousand years or more of sincere belief and the new pope (John Paul II), retired him from active service magically saving lives.
ReplyDeleteAlso popular among my friends and their parents were medals on chains worn around the neck. Again, different saints were believed to offer different types of protection: Saint Dismas (or Saint Nicholas depending on your preferred sources) is the patron saint of thieves, who I guess can use some magical help as much as doctors.
This is my very first time reading about western superstitions especially charms and amulets. I thought it was only personal belief nothing universal or mutual belief like Thai or Chinese culture. I came from Christian school too but I had never heard about this kind of story.
DeleteAlso I just know that the saint can also be retired from the Pope too. It really surprised me. I've never heard of retiring the people who appearing history or religion from Thai culture.
I suspect that the pope thought that is was time to push his church in a less superstitious direction. John Paul II also had a healthy respect for science and solid evidence, and probably worried that there was zero good evidence that St Christopher had even existed.
DeleteI like the way the new pope, Francis, is also pushing in his gentle way to change a lot of traditional attitudes towards sex, women and related things. A lot of Catholic teaching, and Christian teaching generally, was morally rotten when I was growing up, so there is plenty of room for progress.
I really don't know what the official teaching on St. Christopher is, but he has certainly disappeared from the dashboards of Catholic cars.
Also gone is limbo, which was a spiritual realm not heaven and not purgatory or hell when I was learning my catechism from the nuns in primary school. Limbo was where the good people who were not the right sort of Christians (Catholics) could go when they died.
The history of religions can be fascinating.
I have many friends who like to wear something to protect them from bad luck.
ReplyDeleteI'm also the one who believe and do the same things as my friends. I wear a necklace which has a picture of monk by believe that it can bring good luck to me.
I'm not sure that this action is really effective way to bring me a good luck; however, it can help me relax and encourage me to do many things.
Yes, I know a lot of Thai people who have charm and amulet. Both of them are very good symbols of Thai culture. My relative think they can prevent him from getting a big injuries from the car accident. Some people believe that some specific charm can also make them fascinating and easy to persuade any people's mind to do whatever they like. There a lot of vendors lying them and sell them on the sidewalk near my house. Now they become more popular among the foreigners.
ReplyDeleteI am one of people who have a lucky charm. My lucky charm is a red small thing that I keep it in my pocket all the time. I got this lucky charm on Chinese's new year. It is a kind of charm for Chinese that they believe that it will protect you from bad luck.
ReplyDeleteI also know people who have a lucky charm which is one of my friend. She always wear something like green stone when she has an examination. She says that it makes she calm down and do her exam more carefully.
Within Thai society, it is quite common among Buddhist people to have small Buddhist images as their amulets. They believe that the amulets can protect them from bad luck, especially from car accident. When someone survives from a severe accident, the others have already assumed that he got a sacred amulet. And what is funnier is that most newspapers and other media also focus on the amulet.
ReplyDeleteAs Thai people generally believe in the luck from the amulets,some amulets have very high prices.
Many people in Thailand believe in a lucky charm. When I go to temple, the monk sometimes gives me the thing to bring me luck. In some temples, they sell such things as a products to the believers.
ReplyDeleteSome believe that this thing actually bring them success and they are panic when they forget it at home because they think bad things will happen to them on that day.
For me, I half believe in such a thing. I keep some in my pocket to make me feel better.
Yes, my husband always brings a braceletmade of sandalwood in his briefcase and he puts a three-heads elephant sculpture in his car. he got three-heads elephant from a temple in Bangkok. He believes in Thailand, those can protect him from bad luck.
ReplyDeleteWhen my family went to Chinese shrines in Thailand for the important ceremony like Chinese's new year, they sometimes brought some Chinese amulets or charms for me or for family like holy key chain ring or holy papers.
DeleteHow about Chinese? Do people have or do these activities like Thais with Chinese culture background?
Of course I know a lot, but I also have a lucky charm or amulet in my pocket and bring them everyday. I used to be very superstitious. Yet now I am less. Those,in my current opinion, become my accessories rather than a charm or amulet.
ReplyDeleteI think wearing them or bringing them might not attract the good luck or mysterious positive power, success or the like, but they are like my fashion although sounding weird for the others.
I wonder what made you change your opinion about lucky charm?
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