1. Religious Beliefs. Religious beliefs are probably the most common examples of belief systems. A religious belief usually involves the belief in God,the belief that God created the universe, and so on. Religious beliefs usually involve rituals. The most common religious ritual is prayer, in which the religious devotee pretends he is communicating with God.

2. Superstitious Beliefs. Superstitious beliefs are similar to religious beliefs,but are less formal. Superstition often takes on an informal character, and is often expressed as folklore. Examples of superstition include a belief in good luck and bad luck. Often, vaguely defined spirits are claimed to be responsible for determining the fate of an individual. One of the more common forms of superstition is Astrology. Astrology requires that a person believes that the movements of planets and stars in the sky influences their fate. Astrologists maintain that the movements of celestial bodies has great spiritual significance.

3. Extraterrestrials. The belief in extraterrestrials involves any belief that the Earth has been visited by flying saucers or other vehicles that originate on other planets. Although many people claim flying saucers are real, there is no scientific evidence that suggests life exists on other planets. Believers in extraterrestrials not only claim that flying ships have visited the Earth, they also claim that people have communicated with aliens, and have been abducted by aliens.

4. False Historical Beliefs. Some people believe in false versions of history. The classic example of this is the story of Atlantis. People claim that an ancient civilization called Atlantis existed thousands of years ago. They claim that the denizens of Atlantis were a highly advanced civilization that had developed technology, including automobiles and airplanes. There is no archaeological evidence that proves Atlantis ever existed.

5. Racist Beliefs . Some people have taught that one race is superior to another. Racist beliefs often have political or religious overtones. For example,the Nazi Germans taught that the German race was superior to all other races. They taught that Jews were inferior to Germans. In South Africa, the government had established a system of racial apartheid (racial separation), that existed through most of the twentieth century. Racial apartheid required blacks and whites to occupy different social classes. Racial apartheid implied that blacks were an inferior race.

6. Chauvinist Beliefs. Chauvinism is the belief that men are superior to women. Chauvinist beliefs are often deeply rooted in folklore. One old proverb says, ‘The woman’s place is in the home’, which implies that women are only fit to stay at home, and function as housewives, while men go out into the community to work and earn money. An old Bulgarian proverb says, “A horse is for riding, a wife is for beating’, which implies that it’s okay to beat your wife if you get mad at her.

7. Feminist Beliefs. Feminism is the belief that women are superior to men. One feminist claimed that men suffer from ‘testosterone poisoning’. Testosterone is a male hormone, which is naturally produced by men’s bodies. She claimed that men’s testosterone made them violent and belligerent, and went on to say men were inferior to women because of their violent personalities.

8. Machines. Sometimes the developers of a machine create a belief system that is based on that machine. They may expect people to believe in the machine’s capabilities, or to believe that the machine is safe, when, actually, it is unsafe. The classic example is the case of nuclear power plants. The makers of nuclear power plants claimed that the plants are perfectly safe, although there is a possibility that the plants could leak radiation, and expose people living nearly to fatal levels of radiation. Another example of a belief system based on machines is the case of so-called ‘lie detectors’. A lie detector is also called a polygraph, it’s makers claimed that it can determine when a person is lying. Judges in American courts do not permit the use of lie detectors in trials.

Being pregnant is considered lucky in the Philippines.  A seller whom a pregnant woman buys something makes when in his business.  But despite bringing luck to business, a pregnant woman must observe several practices as told by the old people for her and the unborn child’s safety.  Listed below are some of these beliefs:

1.  She should wear a something to cover her head when going out in the dark or at night.  This is to prevent the so called “aswang” (mythical creatures that attacks human and feed on human internal organs).  This creature can see through the pregnant woman’s forehead the unborn child inside her womb. When attacking the victim, this creature sucks the unborn child out of the womb through her long tongue which she just let it pass through the victim’s house roof.

2.  She must never wear red clothes for this will make her womb “transparent” to the creatures mentioned above.

3.  She should not step over her husband while he is sleeping for he will be sleepy the whole day.

4.  A person should not share with the food being eaten by a pregnant woman for he will become sleepy the whole day.

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1.  The dead is positioned in such a way that the feet faces the way going out of the house.  This is done to ensure the smooth exit of the spirit.

2.  On the first day the person died, a candle must be continuously lighted until the day the dead is buried.

3.  The remains of a used up candle must be removed first from the candle holder before placing a new candle.  Never put a new candle on top of a used one for this will cause continuous deaths in the family.  The candle must be used up until the flame dies by itself before it is replaced.  A short candle should not be blown off to be replaced.

4.  Sweeping using broom made of coconut tree leaves is not allowed.  Once the dead is inside the house, the dirt collected from sweeping must not be put outside the house.  Nobody must sweep under the coffin.

5.  Wearing of red clothes is prohibited in adults but children should wear only red.  This is done so that the spirit cannot see the young children and pull them to death with him.

6.  The family must not watch or listen to any form of entertainment. 

What are these practices?

 A superstition is a belief, rite or practice irrationally maintained by ignorance of the laws of nature or by faith in magic of chance. A few of us act on simple impulses and previous habits while some just replicate what others are doing. As aforementioned above, these superstitious beliefs can manipulate and persuade a person in so many ways. What are these top practices of Filipinos and the corresponding areas affected?

1.      General Health

o   Sore eyes can be alleviated with washing the eyes with the first urine early in the morning.

2.      Clothes

o   Sewing a button while the garment is worn will make someone undergo operation in the future.

3.      Giving

o   Giving a pair of shoes to someone without having received any amount of coin from that person in exchange will mean that they will be in constant fight with each other for the rest of their lives.

4.      Animals

o   Cows, which have crossed the road before your vehicle passes through, will bring you lots of money.

5.      Wedding

o   Giving of chamberpot (arinola) is believed to bring good luck to newlyweds.

6.      Pregnancy

o   Taking pictures of a pregnant woman will cause abortion or a difficult delivery.

7.      Money

o   Itching hands should be placed immediately inside the pockets as this means plenty of incoming money.

8.      Numbers

o   When three persons pose for a photo, the one in the middle is expected be the first to die.

9.      Body marks

o   A mole on the hand signifies wealth and prosperity.

10.  Death

o   If a person dreams of having his teeth pulled out, it means that a family member will die.

These top superstitious beliefs of Filipinos are merely based on sayings and notions from ancestors making a person to abstain from doing something in particular or preventing a threat from happening. These exert influence on the traditions and customs creating either a phenomena or scare in people.

Lucky charms recommended by Feng Shui weaken negative energy and strengthen positive energy. For this to happen, they should be installed in the right place.

Bagua Mirror

Photo by the writer

This lucky charm should be installed outside the house, particularly on top of the main door where it returns the poison arrow from the opposite house hat could be hitting your main door. A poison arrow could be the sharp edge of roof of your neighbor or bended iron grills of a gate pointing your house. These provide negative energy at your home and should go back where they came from by installing a Bagua mirror.

Money Frog

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A frog with a coin on its mouth or money frog should be facing opposite the main door and facing the living room which means prosperity is entering or getting inside your home. It is known as Chan Chu in Chinese which means “toad” or “frog”, especially the “Lucky Money Toad” or “Three-legged Money Frog”. It is also believed to drive away evil, protect wealth, and increase income.

Color

Use white, silver, gold curtains in your study area for luck. The same goes with your work area. These colors are considered lucky for these areas.

Aquarium

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Your aquarium should be positioned in the north and southeast.  Keep the water clean to attract money luck. If you’re going to place it in the north, it doesn’t just attracts money luck but attracts luck in career as well.

Water Fountain

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Like an aquarium, a water fountain should be place in the north or in the southeast also.  This lucky charm also brings money and career luck.

Bats

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A bat figurine should be place in the living room because it is believed that it brings a healthy and lucky life.

It should be noted also that thrash cans/rubbish bins should be place in the toilet or in hidden areas. They should not be displayed because it absorbs positive energy that supposedly circulating inside the house.

For home, family, gardening and other domestic related articles see

Help Your Kids Get Into Reading

Encourage Your Kids to Eat Fruits and Vegetables

Filipino Foods made from Sweet Potato

A Niece Inquiry on Mother’s day History

Ornamental Plants That Bear Flowers All Year Round

The Art of Bonsai

1. Bushy Joined Eyebrows
   

   Unibrows are normal. Especially when your hormones tell that you are hairy. But if the brows are really thick, grows in every direction, and looks odd or scary, there might be another reason.

2. Small Pointed Ears
   

   Check the ears. Do they seem normal but look something like “hobbit ears” as seen from The Lord of the Rings trilogy?

3. Ring Finger As Long As Middle Finger

   Normally, each of our fingers differs in length. But another sign to suspect is when the ring finger and the middle finger are as long as the other. Try to check yours now.

4. Hairy Palms

   As we can observe, the skin on the soles of our feet and the palms of our hands differ from the rest of our body. That’s why we cannot see any hair growing. I think this is the best way to detect, among the others presented, because of the rarity of the case.

This is just based from what they call superstitious features of suspected werewolves in the old times. We don’t know if the clues are true or are they still applicable in this day and age. Everything depends on the person’s belief and it is up to you if you believe or not.