BORROWING OLD ROMANI TRADITIONS AND OMENS
Posted by Jasper Lee on Wednesday, October 23, 2013 Under: Romani Gypsy
Did you know that by studying and observing old traditions and simple omens, as people used to do in the past, you can help yourself find luck and success, and remain healthier? This is not a joke. If earlier traditions can once again begin to have a place in our society, it will give us some constructive and positive help, psychologically. What do I mean by that?
Traditions and rituals were practised by folk everywhere, all over the world, for thousands of years (yes, thousands, literally), and now we think it's silly to avoid walking around a ladder, or to avoid putting up an umbrella in the house! It doesn't matter, after all, if we do these things, does it? Folklore, old wives tales, and myths are not so stupid when they can forecast what you can expect during your day, or what you may need to avoid or stop doing during your day. But folklore traditions do matter, and I believe they even have a scientific foundation if we care to study the wonderful psychology that is lurking behind them.
For example, someone who fears walking under a ladder isn't going to be someone who takes ridiculous risks. If you choose to walk under a ladder, do you look up to see who might have hold of (or not) the precarious paint pot that might fall on top of you? If you choose to put the umbrella up in the house, it might mean that there is a leak in your roof after all, which you haven't noticed. There are practicalities to many traditions, rituals and omens, and the Romani people practised these as a matter of routine. Their lives were helped, not hindered, by such things. It makes sense.
Think about the things that happen to you during your day, from finding a coin on the pavement, perhaps, to dealing with the stubbornness of a squeaky door in your house. What do these events represent? Is this a stupid question to ask? It isn't considered stupid in my house, when it relates to the way I am, or to the way someone else in the house is. There are always interesting parallels, stories to tell around what the spirit of your house is trying to tell you. But how do these things going on in our houses, in our cars, in our daily situations, actually link up with traditions, and luck? More importantly, how do they characterise our own psychology, meaning we might just be able to see within them a bunch of clues about how we are to ourselves, and to other people around us. It might mean we have to stop being an arsehole (as one of my open-minded family members might say), or start being more observant about what is going on around us.
The bottom line is that psychology and folklore, and indeed myth, are not so far apart from our everyday worlds, and if we study these ancient traditions, we'll discover they have a practical place and indeed a quite scientific foundation, in our lives.
After writing We Borrow the Earth: An Intimate Portrait of the Gypsy Folk Tradition and Culture (which is once again doing especially well in educating people in ancient Romani traditions), I'm now busy continuing the theme of tradition, ritual, folklore and myth in a couple of other books. And I'm enjoying the journey. You can start your own journey for what traditions, rituals and omens mean to you, personally, and I welcome discussions and comments on these subjects.
By studying and observing simple omens, you'll realise just how much you'll be helped to avoid the things you need to avoid, while being helped to welcome with open arms the things you need to embrace. It is a journey worth taking, a journey you won't regret, and it's been there, all along, waiting for you to begin walking its valuable path.
We Borrow the Earth: An Intimate Portrait of the Gypsy Folk Tradition and Culture
In : Romani Gypsy
Tags: romani gypsy traditions culture magic folklore omens shamanism chovihano.
Here I am often on the telephone connecting this world to the otherworld. Here are my observations, reflections & dreams about the way it all is.
