In different cultures, there is a common belief: to avoid failure, not to jinx luck and attract the benevolent eye of fortune, you need to knock on wood.
Tree perfume
Despite the fact that the phrase “knock on wood” has been an integral part of more than one culture for several centuries, no one really knows exactly where this superstition came from.
One explanation traces the emergence of this phenomenon from ancient cultures, especially the Celts, who had close ties with trees. The tree was sacred to Celtic culture. The Celts believed that gods and spirits lived in trees, and could call them with a knock, asking for protection and help. In addition, the practice of knocking on wood could mean gratitude for the fact that someone was lucky.
Another theory explains the practice of knocking on wood as an attempt to distract evil spirits, to drive them away from the place where there is talk of luck, luck or happiness, so that these spirits do not take it into their heads to envy or take revenge.
Promotional video:
Salki
Some researchers have gone in a completely different direction and associate the practice of knocking on wood and the appearance of this expression in popular culture and spoken language with children's games. For example, in England at the beginning of the 19th century there was a popular type of game of tag, where one who touched a tree, that is, any nearby wooden surface, could not be caught. The game focused more on finding "protection" for yourself than on running away.
Given the popularity and ubiquity of this game, which was well known to both children and adults, researchers suggest that it was she who became the progenitor of the tradition. This theory is supported by the fact that the game and the phrase “knock on wood” are practically the same age. If the practice of knocking on wood were as old as Celtic culture, the accompanying phrase would surely have appeared in various languages much earlier.
Hope Chikanchi