Roman Superstitions

Nightmares, black cats and even stumbling upon a doorstep- a mere incident for us today, right? However this wasn’t the same viewpoint of the Romans during the Roman Empire. The Romans were very superstitious when compared to our society today. They believed in many superstitions and omens that could be a hindering factor in their everyday lives. Many of these superstitions were part of other civilizations as well in an evolved way. Many of their superstitions would seem obscure to us today, yet the Romans held strong beliefs in them. For example, Romans believed that spilling thinks like water, wine or oil were a signal of misfortune. Romans wore amulets and lucky charms to protect themselves from the evil eyes of society. Romans believed in their superstitions until Christianity was adapted and made them change their viewpoints towards their superstitions. The relationship that the Romans had to their gods was very strong and the Romans were able to link themselves to their gods through the belief in their superstitions. To begin with, the Romans had a very strong belief in the superstition if the Fates. The Fates were three sisters that were the goddesses of the duration of a person’s life. The three sisters were Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos. They were weavers that spun and cut the life of a Roman whenever they wanted. Clotho was the spinner meaning she was the one that initiated a life. Lachesis was the measurer that measured how long the life of the Roman would be. Atropos was the cutter of the thread, which meant the death if the Roman person. Together these three sisters made up the birth, life duration and the death of a Roman individual. The Fates were also called the Moirai. The Fates were not subject to any god and worked on their own without any interference from another deity. The Fates were said to be the daughters of Zeus and Themis. They were described as loving upon their birth, but later were called hags dressed in white robes.

Bibliography: •"MOIRAE : Greek Goddesses of Fate & Destiny ; Mythology : MOIRAI, MOIRA, AISA, PARCAE." THEOI GREEK MYTHOLOGY, Exploring Mythology & the Greek Gods in Classical Literature & Art. Ed. Aaron J. Atsma. Theoi Project, 2008. Web. 04 Apr. 2011. . •Hefner, Alan G. "History of the Fates." The MYSTICA.ORG. 1997. Web. 04 Apr. 2011. . •"Omens and Superstitions." The Roman Empire. Web. 04 Apr. 2011. . •Miller, K,ate. “Ancient Roman Superstitions (And Omens).” Julius Caesar Wikispace. Web. 04. April. 2011. http://campbellsjuliuscaesar.wiki.manheimcentral.org/Ancient+Roman+Superstitions.