Superstitions surrounding death.

Last week I spoke about some superstitions concerning the Bee and the Robin so this week I thought I’d follow the Irish Wake with some:

Superstitions surrounding death.

There are many superstitions and we are a superstitious nation.  These superstitions give the Irish a certain charm that no other people seem to have. But what is a superstition,

A superstition is anything that people believe that is based on myth, magic or irrational thought. They are beliefs that are steeped in lore or tradition and it is usually difficult to pinpoint the exact origin.  Superstitions are also known as old wives tales, legends and traditions and they are an integral part of almost every culture around the world.

Even people who say they do not believe in superstition may still pause before walking under a ladder, say bless you when someone sneezes or carry a good luck charm. And how many people would stay in a graveyard alone after dark.  Superstitions, whether believed by a whole culture or just one person still have some effect over people’s lives, with or without having any actual power.

Here are some superstitions surrounding death.

When someone dies you should close the curtains because should a moonbeam shine through the window onto the corpse then the devil sends his demons down it to steal the soul.

You must stop all the clocks at the time of death to confuse the devil and give the soul time to reach heaven.

In Ireland the dead are carried out of the house feet first in order to prevent the spirit from looking back into the house and beckoning another member of the family to follow him/her.

Family photographs were turned faced down to prevent any of the close relatives and friends of the deceased from being possessed by the spirit of the dead.

Cover all the mirrors in the house at the time of death or the soul will be trapped within the mirror.

If you smell roses when none are around then someone is going to die.

The souls of the dead who happen to die abroad greatly desire to rest in Ireland.  The relations consider it their duty to bring back the body to be laid to rest in Irish earth. However, even then the dead will not rest in peace unless laid with their forefathers and their own people and not among strangers.

There’s an old story about a young girl who happened to die of a fever while away on a visit to some friends in Cork and her father thought it safer not to bring her home but to have her buried in the nearest church graveyard.  However, a few nights after his return home he was woken up by the sound of a mournful wail at his window and a voice cried out,

“I’m alone, I’m alone, I’m all alone”.

The father knew well what it meant and he prayed in the name of god that the spirit of his dead child might rest in peace until the morning. At day break he rose out of his bed and set off to the burial ground where his daughter lay and there he drew the coffin from the earth and had it carried all the way back to County Mayo. Once he had placed the coffin containing his daughter’s remains in the old graveyard out the west road beside her own people the spirit of his child was at rest and the mournful cries were never heard again.

The custom of placing candles on or around the coffin comes from the belief that you were lighting the way to paradise for the corpse. This continued as you walked the coffin to its final resting place. The tradition of walking slowly behind or on either side of the coffin came about because you walked slowly so the candles wouldn’t blow out. You see there’s always a simple explanation.

Finally, in Westport today we turn out to walk the coffin to the church where it is rested until the following day’s service and it’s then carried out of the church and placed in the hearse.  The hearse is then followed by those in attendance slowly walking behind until it reaches the edge of town. People will then make their way to the graveyard to say their final farewell.

It is good to see that some of the old traditions still hold true. When a funeral makes its way through the streets of Westport, work stops as it passes by, some businesses still turn out their lights and close their doors and people on both sides of the street will stand, take off their hats (if men) and pay their respects. When the hearse makes its way along the streets and roads as it heads towards the graveyard other vehicles should not overtake it or those coming towards it should slow down and even stop until it passes. However, as time progresses I wonder how many of our old traditions will still hold their place in a fast moving society where no one seems to have any time for the old ways.