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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Shaghayegh" data-source="post: 6031286" data-attributes="member: 6694199">How do superstitions start? I propose that some superstitions in a setting in which magic is real and active are just the misinterpretations of the activities of wizards and other magic-users when witnessed by those who are uneducated. Picture a wizard casting a spell, say Mage Armour, as a peasant watches from a distance. The peasant cannot hear the incantation, but he can make out some gestures and see the components. Then he sees this scrawny greybeard shrug off a blow from an axe. He does not know what is really involved, but he does his best to imitate the spell, carrying what he thinks is a magic item (the spell component) and perform a rough imitation of a somatic gesture to protect himself. He teaches his family to do the same in the hopes that it will help them and a superstition is born--- wear a piece of cure leather for luck.  Now, think about a real life superstition you know about, like using a rabbit's foot for luck or not letting a black cat cross your path. How can you back-engineer the superstition to reveal the spell or magic effect that inspired it?</blockquote>