Contents:

  1. Bad omens
  2. Good signs
  3. What to do upon move-out
  4. The day and time of the move matters
  5. Who should be the first to enter a new home
  6. What to do when you arrive
  7. Relocation omens concerning cars
    1. Bad signs
    2. Good signs

Despite the prosperity of scientific and technological progress and the almost daily emergence of more and more high-tech innovations, superstition and fatalism are still present in our lives in one way or another. Moving into a new home is not an exception: there are many signs hovering over this daily-life event, and people continue to believe in them with no regard to the automation of labor, space travel or nanotechnologies. After all, folk wisdom has thousands of years of experience on its back.

Find out what signs of fate can influence the success of moving to a new home, how you can attract good luck or, on the contrary, bring trouble upon yourself by violating the laws of life established by folklore.

Bad omens

We will leave good omens for last. First of all, it will be more useful to find out what folk experts advise against doing.

Thus, it isn’t good to...

  • bathe and wash your hair before moving;
  • drop your keys when leaving the «old» house;
  • hear the cry of an owl or a crow on move-out day;
  • forget any things in the old place and return for them.

In order not to risk it, the sages advise to go around all of the premises one more time at the very end and double-check whether you have left anything. In ancient times, people believed that the ill-willed could curse the new inhabitants of a home through the things left by the previous tenants. 

It is also considered a bad sign if the first person to pass you by on the way to a new apartment, house or office happens to be a woman. It is interesting that in this case it is possible to avert failure: it suffices to whip the lady with a twig in a purely symbolic fashion. It is believed that it is a sign of good luck if the first person you meet on the way to a new place is be a man.

Good signs

If it rains or snows on the day of the move, it signifies luck, wealth and prosperity. New settlers will be especially fortunate if a rainbow appears at the same time. They say that precipitation, as it were, washes away the negative, making room for good changes. And the rainbow, of course, has always been a good sign.

Despite the twig story from the previous list, they say that meeting a pregnant woman, a dog or a beggar when moving is a good thing. Yes, some superstitions can contradict others.

What to do upon move-out

According to popular belief, in order for the move to be successful and your new life to be filled with good events, you should:

  • say goodbye to the old house and give it thanks from the bottom of your heart;
  • clean up all rooms of the house/apartment/office you are leaving, as well as the staircase or threshold if it is a private house;
  • bake a cake to say goodbye to the past, making it similar to your life in the old place: if happy, bake a sweet pie; if there were many difficulties, bake a salty one. The pie must be eaten in both cases; it is believed that in the first case you will leave your problems in the past, and, in the second, you take all the good with you.

Call the house spirit to leave with you.

There are two ways to do this. The first is to sweep up the house on the eve of the move and put the broom in a conspicuous place (it is believed that the house spirit will sit on it and so will get into the new house with you).

The second way is to put beautiful trinkets, food and pillows in a small box and leave it in the center of an empty room when you have already taken all the things out of your old home. Then you need to go out for a while, return and explain out loud to the house spirit that you want to take him with you. Then, upon arrival, you need to pour milk for him and treat him with sweets, having greeted him in your new place.

It is best to transport the house spirit on a Monday or a Saturday. The reason why is unknown.

The day and time of the move matters

Popular wisdom says: it is best to move on a Tuesday or a Saturday (on Saturday, you can immediately bring your house spirit with you). It is believed that on this day the event will be the safest and will change your life for the best.

According to the Orthodox calendar, the most successful day of the year for moving to a new home is September 14, Semyonov day, and the best time of the year for this event is autumn (probably because Semyonov day comes in the fall). If you are guided by the lunar calendar, plan «X-day» on a growing moon: it will not go wrong. But never move during a full moon or eclipse days, these periods are unfavorable for it.

In terms of time, it is preferable to move in the morning. It is better not to do it in the evening hours.

When moving, many are guided by the lunar calendar. It is believed that moving on days of new moon, full moon, lunar and solar eclipses is undesirable.

Who should be the first to enter a new home

The oldest member of the family should be the first to enter the new home. Other beliefs claim that cats should be the first to enter a new home in order to drive away evil spirits and negative energy. At the same time, the place where the pet lies down for the first time is considered bad. It is not advisable to put a refrigerator, a children’s bed or a TV there, you need to place a plant in this area that will take away the negative energy.

What to do when you arrive

A new home must be cleared of potentially dangerous energy flows before moving into it. Most often, superstitious people use the power of need-fire for this. It can be done with either consecrated or ordinary candles from the store. A branch of St. John’s wort will also help. Light a branch or candle and go around all the rooms, starting the route from the corridor at the front door. At the same time, it is good to read a prayer or simply mentally expel all the negativity.

A few more beliefs about actions to take in a new place:

  • When entering a new house for the first time, all family members should throw a coin over the threshold, or better a few, or step over it with the most expensive thing they own. This way the family will attract prosperity.
  • Upon arrival, open all windows and taps with water, turn on the lights everywhere or light candles, put the kettle on and set the table — this way you will cleanse your new home with the help of the elements of fire and water.
  • Found broken dishes in your boxes? Throw them away immediately so as not to cause trouble.
  • If something creaks in your new home, grease/replace the noise source (floorboards, windows, doors, cabinets) to ward off bad luck.

In the distant past, when moving, people also smeared the corners of a new home with honey, so that life in it would be happy and sweet.

A separate step when moving is the celebration of housewarming. Popular wisdom says: it is very important to celebrate this event on a grand scale, inviting not only relatives, but also friends. You can not spare money for treats and serving, because the first feast in a new home symbolizes, according to popular belief, your whole future life in it.

The best time to celebrate a housewarming party is the first weekend after moving. It is important that guests do not cross the threshold empty-handed. If someone nevertheless did not bring anything with them, they should throw a few coins over the threshold and wish the house prosperity.

Relocation omens concerning cars

Bad signs

When moving, many people carry things in their personal cars. There are also many signs associated to vehicles in this context. Among the negative ones:

  • You cannot count money in the car when you move: it is considered to beckon an unpleasant meeting with traffic policemen and fines.
  • A black dog or hare running across the road in front of a car loaded with things symbolizes trouble in the near future. If you come across a hare, you need to slow down, get out of the car and walk around it three times clockwise while reciting «Our Father». According to popular belief, this is the only way to ward off misfortune.

Good signs

There are not many happenings that are considered good when moving by car at all. One of them is to meet a car with the same license numbers on the way to a new home (only numbers are taken into account, letters do not matter). Interestingly, the more expensive such a twin car is, the more luck this meeting promises. But if the twin car you meet is beaten and untidy, this is not a good sign.

Of course, this article does not list everything, but only the most popular and well-known folk superstitions and rituals that are related to moving and housewarming in some way. In fact, there are many more of them. No matter how many omens and beliefs you may know on this topic, though, what really matters is not to get hung up on the negative and look into the future with confidence, with a firm belief in the best. Then the move will be successful and will bring only good changes.