Boo! The Weird and Wonderful Bathroom Superstitions From Around the World Revealed

We wanted to explore the weird and wonderful bathroom superstitions from across the globe.

You’ve probably heard of the superstition that breaking a mirror causes seven years of bad luck, but have you heard of what may happen if you have two mirrors facing each other? Below are the top ten spooky bathroom superstitions worldwide.

Seven Years of Bad Luck

Many people would have heard of the old wives’ tale. Breaking a mirror will give you seven years of bad luck. Although this is a well-known western superstition, particularly in the UK and the USA, the origins come from Rome. Roman artisans (who created mirrors from polished metal surfaces) believed their Gods could use these to observe their souls. Damaging a mirror was therefore considered disrespectful, as they thought the Gods would rain bad luck on people who were so careless.

Mirrors Should Never Face Each Other

In Mexico, placing two mirrors opposite each other is said to create a doorway for the devil; therefore, many Mexicans only have one mirror in their bathroom. However, in the spirit of all things weird and wonderful, this may be the type of guest you would like to invite to your bathroom, so placing identical mirrors at the same level could mean you are dancing with the devil.

Wash the Ghosts Away

Washing your sanitary towels before throwing them away is not new, as research reveals that over 75% of women wash their period pads before disposal. However, in particular religious groups in Malaysia, it is believed you should clean the blood from your period pads before throwing them away, or ghosts will come to haunt you!

Sweep Away the Wealth

In some Nigerian cultures, if a person starts getting busy with a broom after dusk, it is believed they will sweep away the family’s wealth. If the saying “there is a time and a place for everything” is true, then sweeping at night is certainly not the time to clean.

Don't Cut Your Locks on a Wednesday

Speaking of time and place, it is considered bad luck to cut your hair on a Wednesday in Thailand. According to Thai culture, cutting your hair on a Monday will bring you a long life and on Tuesday, it will bring you power. So much so that many barbers are closed on Wednesday.

Flush Away Your Negativity

Some Chinese people believe that flushing the toilet also washes away negative energy while travelling. The superstition stems from natives believing that flushing the toilet alerts the resident spirit that someone is present; therefore, flushing the toilet twice will eliminate any resident spirits who are not welcome.

Clean Toilet, Clean Mind

In Japanese culture, cleanliness is essential, and it is said that cleaning the toilet attracts luck, good fortune and even makes you more beautiful. This is said to be inspired by Feng shui, a traditional Chinese belief that people’s futures are determined by their surroundings.

Don't Cut Your Fingernails at Night

In Japanese culture, the superstition is that if you cut your fingernails at night, it opens up a way for evil spirits to enter your body through the fresh cut in your fingernails. In Japanese folklore, evil spirits are only around at night, so you should not cut fingernails at night.

Bathing on Good Friday Brings Bad Luck

A well-known superstition In the Philippines is that if you bathe on Good Friday, you will be cursed with a type of sickness/ illness. The superstition is so severe that there is a book called “Don’t take a bath on Friday” based on this insight.

Whistling at Night Calls the Devils

Many of us use our in-house studios (typically referred to as the shower) to hum and tune or whistle. However, in Turkey, whistling, particularly at night, is a way to call the Devil. The Turkish are not the only culture to believe whistling invites evil as Russians believe whistling indoors brings poverty, whilst China and Japan suspect whistlings calls on the supernatural.