I have seen two seprate restaurants that placed a knife ontop of the entrance door's lintel. I was wondering what is the reason for this,I suspect its some sort of segulah,but I am not sure. Does anyone know of such a segulah?
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7Sounds dangerous– Double AA ♦Mar 26, 2017 at 1:14
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Its something hard to notice unless you happen to like to look around your surroundings often– samMar 26, 2017 at 1:15
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If it's a restaurant it could just be decoration.– DonielFMar 26, 2017 at 1:52
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I doubt it being a decoration,it looks like it was specifically placed ont top of the entrance door because that is where its supposed to be,also its out of ones view,one needs to look for it– samMar 26, 2017 at 1:57
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"The importance of the tool is evident in the way they were stored in the old days. The axes were kept in a rack above the main door so it would be readily available when venturing out." — northernwildernesskills.blogspot.com/2013/08/…– msh210 ♦Mar 30, 2017 at 23:12
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1 Answer
This superstition seems to not be specifically Jewish. See The Penguin Guide to the Superstitions of Britain and Ireland here, which states:
A knife stuck into a mast or a door lintel is good luck.
See there for more knife related superstitions. It should be noted that this version involves sticking the knife into the lintel, rather than placing it on the lintel. Perhaps the version of placing it into the lintel is related to an older superstition; dating back to Pliny, of affixing iron coffin nails to the lintel of door for good luck.
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so is it asur because of darkei emori?– user9643Mar 26, 2017 at 2:27
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@Ploni That seems likely. The general question of which non-Jewish superstitions are biblically forbidden was asked here. Several justifications for prevalent (primarily Ashkenazi) superstitions are listed by the Aharonim there. Note that the Hokhmat Adam references in the first answer is completely misunderstood.– mevaqeshMar 26, 2017 at 2:37