Learn about superstitions related to itchy palms
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| INTRODUCTION |
| John: Hello and welcome to Culture Class: Russian Superstitions and Beliefs, Lesson 5 - Itching Right Palms and Itching Left Palms. I'm John and I'm joined by Karina. |
| Karina: Привет! (Privet!) I'm Karina. |
| THE TWO SUPERSTITIONS |
| John: In this lesson we will talk about two common superstitions in Russia. The first superstition is about bad luck. What’s the superstition called in Russian? |
| Karina: правая ладонь чешется, (pravaya ladon' cheshetsa). |
| John: Which literally means "itching right palm." Karina, can you repeat the Russian phrase again? |
| Karina: [slow] правая ладонь чешется [normal] правая ладонь чешется |
| John: Hold on, one second. My hand’s itching. |
| Karina: Really which one? |
| John: The left one. |
| Karina: Oh good. If it was your right palm, you might give away or lose some money soon. |
| John: This is because in Russia, the right hand is considered to be the "giving hand.” |
| Karina: and the left one is the "taking hand." |
| John: So I probably won’t be losing money any time soon. |
| Karina: No. In fact, maybe the opposite. |
| John: The second superstition is about good luck. What’s the superstition called in Russian? |
| Karina: левая ладонь чешется, (levaya ladon' cheshetsa). |
| John: Which literally means "itching left palm." Let’s hear it in Russian again. |
| Karina: [slow] левая ладонь чешется [normal] левая ладонь чешется |
| John: In Russia, it's believed that if your left palm is itching, you are about to receive some money. |
| Karina: Which is good news for you! |
| John: Yes! As we said earlier, the right hand is considered to be the "giving hand," and the left one, is the "taking hand." |
| Karina: So to get some money, you should scratch your left palm more often. |
| John: Well I won’t need to. If this superstition is true and I come into some money, I’ll buy you dinner. |
| Karina: Well now my left palm is starting to itch! |
Outro |
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| John: There you have it - two Russian superstitions! Are they similar to any of your country’s superstitions? Let us know in the comments! |
| Karina: Пока! (Poka!) |
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