The rabbit's foot

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Shany
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I've heard about the rabbit's foot for quite some time and I'm really curious if such thing is real. I'm gonna quote the whole thing from wikipedia here:

In some cultures, the foot of a rabbit is carried as an amulet believed to bring good luck. This belief is held by individuals in many parts of the world including Europe, China, Africa, and North and South America. It is likely that this belief has existed in Europe since 600 BC amongst Celtic people living in Britain. In variations of this superstition, the donor rabbit must possess certain attributes, or have been killed in a particular place, or killed by a particular method, or by a person possessing particular attributes

First, not any foot from a rabbit will do: it is the left hind foot of a rabbit that is useful as a charm.
Second, not any left hind foot of a rabbit will do; the rabbit must have been shot or otherwise captured in a cemetery.
Third, at least according to some sources, not any left hind foot of a rabbit shot in a cemetery will do: the phase of the moon is also important. Some authorities say that the rabbit must be taken in the full moon, while others hold instead that the rabbit must be taken in the new moon. Some sources say instead that the rabbit must be taken on a Friday, or a rainy Friday, or Friday the 13th. Some sources say that the rabbit should be shot with a silver bullet, while others say that the foot must be cut off while the rabbit is still alive.
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Does anybody keep a rabbit's foot for luck? Does it really affect your life? For some reason I have an urge of buying one but I'm not sure if it would do anything nor I know where to buy the right rabbit's foot that has power. :think:


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Bumping this for you as I do not own one. The thought of touching one always grossed me out lol.


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Hi p’yunik~*~chovexani,

Below are a description on what i've found out abt rabbit foot, hope it helps :D


The Rabbit Foot

The belief that a rabbit's foot is lucky seems to have become a commonplace of American popular culture, but at one time in the past this belief was considered a Southern superstition, specifically one of strictly African-American origin. And from what i have read in older books on folklore, in earlier decades, it was only the left hind foot of the rabbit that was considered lucky and the bearer had to rub it to activate the luck. In addition, some people back then believed that the rabbitÕs foot was a source of protective magic in addition to bringing good fortune.

Images of the lucky rabbit foot were most common in the era before World War Two. The foot charm depicted on a "Good Luck" postcard of the 1910s (tied with a red ribbon, much as raccoon penis bone charms are tied), and on several North American Good Luck Coins of the 1930s.

As for the foot itself, a circa-1940 mail order catalogue from the Standard O and B Supply Company, a Chicago-based distributor of African-American hoodoo material, offered undyed rabbit foot charms "made with a metal band and a link to attach on chain." The Johnson-Smith Novelty Company offered identical charms in its 1941 catalogue.

The advertisement shown goes these one better and promises a free vial of Van Van oil with each rabbit's foot; the formula is a Louisiana hoodoo favourite that "clears away that evil mess" and increases the strength of any good luck charm to which it is applied. Since none of the older catalogues or ads mention any colour when describing rabbit's foot charms, it can be assumed that the items were undyed and came only in natural tan or white.

Symbolic representations of the rabbit foot have become rare now, possibly due to the contemporary interest in "animal rights." But while Johnson-Smith no longer offers rabbit foot key chain charms for sale, traditional rabbit foot charms, both dyed and undyed, are still manufactured and remain part of the hoodoo stock in trade. Contemporary conjure bags in my collection that contain rabbit foot charms include a "Fast Luck" bag and a "Wishing Bag." The rabbit feet in these bags are natural in colour and not dyed.

Why is the rabbit foot lucky? Rabbits are swift and they reproduce prolifically, but the luck of the rabbit foot is monetary and sexual; as far as i know, it is not related to swiftness or fertility. There is considerable evidence that the lucky rabbit foot is a remnant of an African clan totem, an importation related somehow to Br'er Rabbit, the famous protagonist of an African trickster-god myth-cycle.


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tinkyberz wrote:Hi p’yunik~*~chovexani,

Below are a description on what i've found out abt rabbit foot, hope it helps :D


The Rabbit Foot

The belief that a rabbit's foot is lucky seems to have become a commonplace of American popular culture, but at one time in the past this belief was considered a Southern superstition, specifically one of strictly African-American origin. And from what i have read in older books on folklore, in earlier decades, it was only the left hind foot of the rabbit that was considered lucky and the bearer had to rub it to activate the luck. In addition, some people back then believed that the rabbitÕs foot was a source of protective magic in addition to bringing good fortune.

Images of the lucky rabbit foot were most common in the era before World War Two. The foot charm depicted on a "Good Luck" postcard of the 1910s (tied with a red ribbon, much as raccoon penis bone charms are tied), and on several North American Good Luck Coins of the 1930s.

As for the foot itself, a circa-1940 mail order catalogue from the Standard O and B Supply Company, a Chicago-based distributor of African-American hoodoo material, offered undyed rabbit foot charms "made with a metal band and a link to attach on chain." The Johnson-Smith Novelty Company offered identical charms in its 1941 catalogue.

The advertisement shown goes these one better and promises a free vial of Van Van oil with each rabbit's foot; the formula is a Louisiana hoodoo favourite that "clears away that evil mess" and increases the strength of any good luck charm to which it is applied. Since none of the older catalogues or ads mention any colour when describing rabbit's foot charms, it can be assumed that the items were undyed and came only in natural tan or white.

Symbolic representations of the rabbit foot have become rare now, possibly due to the contemporary interest in "animal rights." But while Johnson-Smith no longer offers rabbit foot key chain charms for sale, traditional rabbit foot charms, both dyed and undyed, are still manufactured and remain part of the hoodoo stock in trade. Contemporary conjure bags in my collection that contain rabbit foot charms include a "Fast Luck" bag and a "Wishing Bag." The rabbit feet in these bags are natural in colour and not dyed.

Why is the rabbit foot lucky? Rabbits are swift and they reproduce prolifically, but the luck of the rabbit foot is monetary and sexual; as far as i know, it is not related to swiftness or fertility. There is considerable evidence that the lucky rabbit foot is a remnant of an African clan totem, an importation related somehow to Br'er Rabbit, the famous protagonist of an African trickster-god myth-cycle.
You're mostly right except Br'er Rabbit came from Cherokee legends that were later adopted by African slaves for more info check out this article http://www.telliquah.com/cherokee.htm


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lol rabbit feet never seemed to lucky to me. look what happened to the rabbit


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sadlotus79 wrote:lol rabbit feet never seemed to lucky to me. look what happened to the rabbit
lol that's a good one :thumbup: However, anyone has any experience to share with rabbit foot charm?


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Just curious, I heard that if you possess a rabbit's foot and you lose it, it brings you bad luck. Is that true?


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MorningRain77 wrote:
tinkyberz wrote:Hi p’yunik~*~chovexani,

Below are a description on what i've found out abt rabbit foot, hope it helps :D


The Rabbit Foot

The belief that a rabbit's foot is lucky seems to have become a commonplace of American popular culture, but at one time in the past this belief was considered a Southern superstition, specifically one of strictly African-American origin. And from what i have read in older books on folklore, in earlier decades, it was only the left hind foot of the rabbit that was considered lucky and the bearer had to rub it to activate the luck. In addition, some people back then believed that the rabbitÕs foot was a source of protective magic in addition to bringing good fortune.

Images of the lucky rabbit foot were most common in the era before World War Two. The foot charm depicted on a "Good Luck" postcard of the 1910s (tied with a red ribbon, much as raccoon penis bone charms are tied), and on several North American Good Luck Coins of the 1930s.

As for the foot itself, a circa-1940 mail order catalogue from the Standard O and B Supply Company, a Chicago-based distributor of African-American hoodoo material, offered undyed rabbit foot charms "made with a metal band and a link to attach on chain." The Johnson-Smith Novelty Company offered identical charms in its 1941 catalogue.

The advertisement shown goes these one better and promises a free vial of Van Van oil with each rabbit's foot; the formula is a Louisiana hoodoo favourite that "clears away that evil mess" and increases the strength of any good luck charm to which it is applied. Since none of the older catalogues or ads mention any colour when describing rabbit's foot charms, it can be assumed that the items were undyed and came only in natural tan or white.

Symbolic representations of the rabbit foot have become rare now, possibly due to the contemporary interest in "animal rights." But while Johnson-Smith no longer offers rabbit foot key chain charms for sale, traditional rabbit foot charms, both dyed and undyed, are still manufactured and remain part of the hoodoo stock in trade. Contemporary conjure bags in my collection that contain rabbit foot charms include a "Fast Luck" bag and a "Wishing Bag." The rabbit feet in these bags are natural in colour and not dyed.

Why is the rabbit foot lucky? Rabbits are swift and they reproduce prolifically, but the luck of the rabbit foot is monetary and sexual; as far as i know, it is not related to swiftness or fertility. There is considerable evidence that the lucky rabbit foot is a remnant of an African clan totem, an importation related somehow to Br'er Rabbit, the famous protagonist of an African trickster-god myth-cycle.
You're mostly right except Br'er Rabbit came from Cherokee legends that were later adopted by African slaves for more info check out this article http://www.telliquah.com/cherokee.htm
Wrong. Cultures in West, Central, and Southern Africa have hare figures which have been connected to Br'er Rabbit. This has been documented by Joseph Opala in his book "Gullah Customs and Traditions".


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When I was a little kid I had a couple of rabbit's feet. Two that were obviously fake, but at one point I did have a real one (bone sticking out and all). I eventually had to get rid of that last one because it started to stink up my room as it was very real. To be honest I don't remember where I got them from, but I bet my mom would remember if I were to ask her.

I don't think that they ever really brought me good luck or bad luck, but I was just a kid and you don't really take anything like luck seriously at that age, you just kind of roll with the punches that life hands out and find the good in everything...but I was like that as a kid. I saw life in everything and was very respectful of all things. I didn't like seeing a tree get cut down because it was alive, but I also didn't like kicking a rock because it was alive in my mind. I changed over the years, but in many ways it might be better if I were to go back to that mindset.

So I cannot say that a rabbit's foot every brought me luck, it could just have been me at the time.


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