[judas salt the last supper]Wikimedia Commons * THE SURPRISING ORIGINS BEHIND COMMON SUPERSTITIONS ARE OFTEN FASCINATING. * ANCIENT ROMANS BELIEVED MIRRORS HELD FRAGMENTS OF OUR SOULS, AND THAT SHATTERING THEM THEREFORE REPRESENTED A CRACK IN OUR SOULS, TOO. * WE WISH ON SHOOTING STARS BECAUSE A GREEK ASTRONOMER THOUGHT THEY WERE PROOF THAT THE GODS WERE SPYING ON US. ------------------------- Even if you consider yourself a die-hard skeptic, you've probably heard of one or two superstitions in your time — and perhaps even indulged in an occasional good luck ritual of your own. The most common superstitions didn't just materialize out of nowhere. The surprising origins behind some of the most common superstitions are fascinating at best — and tragic at worst. Check out how 11 of the most common superstitions came to be below. ANCIENT ROMANS BELIEVED THAT MIRRORS CONTAINED FRAGMENTS OF OUR SOULS — SO BREAKING A MIRROR SIGNIFIED A BREAK IN SOMEONE'S HEALTH AND WELL-BEING. bruce mars/Pexels Luckily, they also believed that souls regenerated every seven years, the amount of time the mirror-breaker would be unlucky before they emerged new and whole again. THE SOCIAL ETIQUETTE OF BLESSING SOMEONE AFTER THEY SNEEZE ORIGINATES FROM THE ANCIENT BELIEF THAT ONE COULD SNEEZE OUT THEIR SOUL. andriano.cz/Shutterstock Yawning and sneezing were both considered high-risk activities in the time of the ancient Romans and Greeks. "There are a lot of ancient beliefs in general about a separable soul. It could separate for a brief period of time. When you dream, your soul is out of your body, so it can't get back in if you're sneezing," explained folklore librarian Moira Smith to the Washington Post. Concerned believers started saying "bless you" as a divine safeguard against wayward souls. ANCIENT EGYPTIANS BELIEVED UMBRELLAS WERE ROYAL, AND THAT THEIR SHADE WAS SACRED. Stefania D'Alessandro/Getty Images Umbrellas were fashioned out of papyrus and peacock feathers, and designed in the likeness of the Egyptian goddess of the sky, Nut. An umbrella's shade was therefore sacred, and strictly reserved for Egyptian nobility — anyone else who dared to step into the shadowy space was considered sacrilegious. Opening an umbrella indoors went against its natural purpose, and could consequentially be considered an insult to the God of the Sun, according to some historians. SEE THE REST OF THE STORY AT BUSINESS INSIDER SEE ALSO: * 11 people reveal how they caught their partner cheating * Cutting your own hair can save you a ton of money — here are 6 tips for doing it at home * TSA agents reveal the weirdest things travelers have tried to get through security
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