10 Weird Greek

Superstitions
 01 “To Mati”
The evil eye.
 This must be the most well-known of Greek
superstitions, the curse of the evil eye, said to be
caused by jealousy and excessive praise.

 Greek evil eye charms and amulets, in the shape of

eyes, are worn, carried in pockets, or hung on
walls, to ward off this bad fortune.

 To test if you have been unlucky enough to have

been touched by the curse of the evil eye, place a
drop of oil in a glass of water, if it floats, all is
well, you have not been afflicted, if it sinks though,
well, then it’s a good idea to call a Greek mama to
say her secret prayer for you, and when you start
yawning, that’s the sign the curse is leaving you!

03/09/2021 2
 02 “Filaxta” Talismans
and amulets.
Flilaxta, are Greek amulets, or talismans, usually
seen pinned to babies, or children’s clothes, but
are also carried in the pockets and purses of older
people, and are believed to ward off the evil eye.

Called “Baskania” by The Greek Orthodox Church,

small pieces of cloth are sewn into tiny sachets,
embellished with beads, or the sign of the cross,
filled with cotton wool soaked in holy oil, which
has been blessed by a priest, or pieces of olive
branch or basil, that has been used in some
religious ceremony, performed by a priest.

 Anything that is from holy ground, or that has

been blessed by a priest, can be used to fill these
“Filaxta”.

03/09/2021 3
 03 Spitting
Don’t be too surprised to see Greeks spitting all
over the place, actually, it is not spitting as such,
but more of a spitting sound;

 “Ftou, Ftou Flou”

Always spit three times (Three depicting The Holy

Trinity; Father, Son and Holy Ghost), and you’ll be
kept safe from the evil eye.

 If you hear someone speaking of misfortune and

misery, say “Ftou, Ftou, Ftou”, that should keep the
same misfortune and misery away from you and
your loved ones.

 Fishermen spit on their nets, to ensure a good

catch, and Greek babies are “Ftou, Ftou Ftoued”
over,  all the  time, to keep the devil at bay.

03/09/2021 4
 04 Itchy palms
Next time your palm itches, take
note which one has the tickle, left,
or right?

I hope for your sake, that it’s the

right palm, this means you’re going
to receive money, not a welcome
itch if it’s the left palm though,
you’ll be the one giving money to
someone else’s itchy right palm! 

03/09/2021 5
 05 Writing boy’s names on the soles
of wedding shoes.
Want to know who’ll you marry?

When attending weddings, young, unmarried girls, and

bridesmaids, write the names of their loved ones on
the soles of their shoes, or, the name of the boy they
have their eye on.

If, at the end of the day, the name has not worn off,
then, you soon may be hearing your own wedding
bells.

Have you noticed how young Greek girls seem to walk

so, so, carefully at weddings?

Now you know why!

03/09/2021 6
 06 Don’t hand over a knife
If someone asks you to pass them a knife,
never put it straight into their hand, if you
want to remain friends.

Place the knife on the table, in front of them,

for them to pick up themselves, otherwise,
you will fight, or your friendship will be cut
short.

03/09/2021 7
 Never give perfume as a gift
07 without receiving a coin in
exchange
If you can’t imagine live without your best friend, or
don’t want to break up with your boyfriend, don’t give
them perfume as a gift.

Giving perfume as a gift is a sure-fire way, according

to the Greeks, to ruin any relationship.

If you absolutely must buy them the latest cult

fragrance, make sure they give you a coin in return;
this should ward off any evil vibes!

03/09/2021 8
 08 Sneezing
Greeks believe, that when you sneeze,
someone is talking about you, to find out who
that someone is, ask whoever is with you, to
give you a three digit number, add the digits
together, For example, say they give you the
number 123:

123 1+2+3=6, the name of the person who is

talking about you, begins with the sixth letter
of the alphabet.

03/09/2021 9
 09 Crows
To the Greeks, crows represent a bad omen, bad news,
misfortune and death, and the crow was a symbol of the
occult in ancient Greek mythology.
When they see, or hear a crow, a Greek is likely to say:
“Sto kalo, sto kalo, kala nea tha mou ferris”

This means, literally:

“Go to the good, go to the good and bring me good
news”

With this, they send the crow on its way, with

instructions not to return without good news.

03/09/2021 10
 Try not to spot a priest walking in
10 the street
Everybody loves a Greek priest, but,
even though they are revered, look
away quickly, if you see one in the
street, it’s thought to be a bad omen.

If you can’t avoid a priest out and

about on the streets, whisper
“Skorda” garlic, this should do the
trick of deflecting any bad omens!

03/09/2021 11