(Things almost everyone did or avoided without thinking twice)
Never stick chopsticks upright in rice Looks exactly like incense at a funeral → invites death into the house.
Never cut fingernails at night “Tsume o yoru ni kiru to shinigosan ni au” – you’ll die before seeing your parents again.
Number 4 is unlucky “Shi” = death. Hospitals and hotels skipped 4th floor, no room 4, no 4th hospital bed. Many buildings went 1-2-3-5.
Number 9 also bad “Ku” = suffering. Often avoided together with 4 (e.g., no room 49).
Never sleep with your head facing north Dead bodies are laid with head north → sleeping that way brings early death.
Whistling or playing flute at night Calls snakes and ghosts.
Never pass food chopstick-to-chopstick Exact same motion used when passing bones at cremation.
Black cat crossing your path Same as West – bad luck. People would stop walking or make a detour.
Breaking a mirror / comb Very bad luck. Broken geta sandal strap on the street → people panicked.
Hearing an owl hoot at night Death omen for the family.
Dreams on the first night of the year Everyone remembered:
Mt. Fuji → good luck
Hawk → good luck
Eggplant → best luck (Called hatsuyume – first dream)
Red underwear in your “unlucky year” (yakudoshi) Men 25 & 42, women 19 & 33 were the big ones. In 1987, every 42-year-old salaryman wore red pants or red belly warmer to ward off bad luck.
Never put new shoes on the table Brings death (shoes on table = corpse on table).
Tea stalk floating upright in your cup Good luck coming – everyone pointed and got excited.
Killing a spider at night Bad luck (morning = OK, night = bad).
Writing a person’s name in red ink Used only on funeral envelopes – doing it casually meant you wished them dead.
Never give a clock as a gift “Tokei” sounds like “sending someone to their funeral.”
Hear thunder in winter Very rare → someone famous will die soon (people said this every time).
Most people in 1987 called themselves “not superstitious,” but literally everyone followed these rules automatically.
Broken Geta Strap (Geta no Hanao ga Kireru) – 1987 Superstition
If the thong (hanao) of your wooden geta sandal snapped while you were walking, almost everyone in 1987 treated it as a serious bad omen.
What people instantly thought:
“Someone in my family is going to die soon.”
Or at the very least: “Something terrible is about to happen.”
What people actually did on the spot:
Stopped walking immediately.
Looked shocked or went pale (even salarymen).
Often said out loud “Yabai…” or “Shimatta…”.
Many turned around and went straight home instead of continuing to their destination.
Some threw away the broken geta right there (couldn’t bring “bad luck” home).
Others tied the strap in a knot to “tie up the bad luck” and limped home as fast as possible.
That night or the next day, they usually went to a shrine or temple to get purified or buy a new ofuda (protective charm).
Why it was so feared:
The image is exactly the same as a dead body’s big toes being tied together with a white cord before cremation. A broken geta strap was seen as the “death cord” appearing in everyday life.
In 1987 this was still taken completely seriously by young and old alike — even trendy Shibuya girls in yukata during summer festivals would freak out and often start crying if their geta strap broke.