Snake dreams, old wives’ tales and the fear of tempting fate
WE all have that friend who says: “I don’t believe in superstitions lah”. This is the same friend who, five minutes later, knocks on wood, avoids walking under a ladder and quietly deletes a WhatsApp message about dreaming of a snake.
Superstitions are nonsense – until they happen to you.
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As Stevie Wonder sang: “Very superstitious, writing’s on the wall …” He knew we would read this column and still check our mirrors twice.
Our ancestors knew too – they were the original content creators. Without Google, safety manuals or parenting podcasts, they produced short-form warnings long before TikTok – memorable, frightening and sometimes ridiculous.
Why explain occupational safety when jangan jalan bawah tangga, nanti musibah (don’t walk under ladders or bad luck will befall you) will do? Why lecture on hygiene when jangan potong kuku malam, nanti pendek umur (don’t trim your nails at night, because it will shorten your life) sounds far more dramatic? And why ask someone to get off the pillow when nanti naik bisul (you’ll get boils) gets them off immediately?
Every superstition is funny until you read the fine print and think: “Actually, that makes sense.”
Take cutting nails at night. Before electricity, trimming nails in the dark meant risking cuts and infection. Without modern medicine, even a small injury could have serious consequences. Pendek umur, indeed. Grandmother had a point.
Walking under a ladder? Forget seven years of bad luck. You could have five minutes of very bad luck if someone drops a hammer on your head. It’s health and safety, with a little ghost marketing.
Breaking a mirror supposedly brings seven years of misfortune. Perhaps the real curse was the cost of replacing one when mirrors were expensive. Today you can buy one at Mr DIY for RM20 or less, yet the superstition survives.
What about opening an umbrella indoors? In a cramped house, you could whack a vase, a baby or an unsuspecting relative. Easier to call it bad luck than to explain why you should stop being careless.
Then we have the classics. Sing in the kitchen, nanti kahwin orang tua (you’ll marry an older man), the elders warn. Perhaps the concern was less about romance and more about focus. With open fires, sharp knives, coconut graters and heavy pots, daydreaming could mean burnt rice, overcooked curry or a nasty cut. Marrying an older man was just the most memorable way to say “pay attention”.
Such beliefs are difficult to discard. They are centuries of WhatsApp forwards compressed into one sentence – funny because they are exaggerated, enduring because they sometimes make sense and impossible to kill because deep down, we still wonder… what if?
Take the snake dream. In Malaysia, dreaming of a snake is often linked to romance, marriage or an approaching jodoh (destined partner). It’s our oldest free matchmaking service. No apps, no swiping. Just sleep.
Dream of a handsome python gazing into your eyes and somewhere, an aunty is already checking the wedding calendar. Dream of a snake chasing you – perhaps your jodoh is coming, but with an unusual approach.
Oddly, the comparison fits. Snakes are slippery, fascinating and frightening. You want to run, yet you can’t look away. Marriage can produce much of the same symptoms – palpitations included.
Then there is the real python. A python in a Malaysian home provokes two reactions. A foreigner shouts: “Call animal control!” Someone in a Malaysian household might say: “Wait, jangan bunuh (don’t kill). Maybe penunggu rumah (guardian of the house), maybe rezeki (good fortune). Take a picture first!” And just like that, a wildlife encounter becomes a spiritual consultation.
The python is probably not there to guard the house or deliver prosperity. It likely followed the smell of a rat. It did not come to bring the rezeki. It came to eat it.
Still, try telling that to someone who fears that chasing the snake away might also chase away the family’s good fortune.
That’s the problem with superstition. It’s difficult to argue with “what if?”
So the python is removed, preferably by abang Bomba. And amid the screaming and video recording, someone still whispers: “Sorry, Abang Long”. Just in case.
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Then we have the groom who forgets his lafaz (recitation) during the akad nikah. Some see it as a bad omen, as though the marriage has stumbled before it begins. The groom may have practised for three months. “Aku terima nikahnya (I accept her hand in marriage)”. Perfect.
Then comes the big day. The tok kadi signals the groom to begin.
Suddenly, the brain goes: 404 Not Found. The whispers begin: “Aish, tak baik ni. (Oh dear, that’s not good). First step already sangkut (already stumbling at the first step).”
But actually, it has less to do with destiny and more to do with a man sitting in a packed room, wearing three layers of baju Melayu in 33°C heat, with a songkok that feels two sizes too small, while some 100 relatives point their phones at him. Nerves, emotion and the weight of the moment can make anyone’s brain go blank.
The old belief serves as a dramatic reminder: Boy, take this seriously. No magic required, just pressure management.
Superstitions cannot be deleted like unwanted apps. They cost almost nothing to follow. Ignoring them, however, feels like tempting fate.
Perhaps the lesson is simple. Listen for the wisdom behind the warning, but don’t let superstition run your life. Take what makes sense, leave what doesn’t and sprinkle everything with a pinch of salt. Some warnings carry practical sense, others are folklore that has outlived its explanation.
Still, life is full of strange coincidences and some things are harder to explain than others.
Believe what you will, but be careful what you wish for.
And please, don’t stare at the moon too long tonight. Not because you will get possessed, but because your neighbour might think you are weird.
Now, do you still want to walk under that ladder?