A professor made his audience laugh several times on Monday by introducing the effects supernatural beliefs have on Asian culture.
Kris Rugsaken, a Ball State's Asian studies professor, talked about Asian superstitions as an event of Focus on Asia Month 2004.
The supernatural beliefs are carried on generation to generation and have profound psychological effects in Asian society, Rugsaken said.
Numbers are often used in many Asian superstitions, but some numbers can have opposite meanings in different Asian countries.
In Thailand, the number nine is a lucky number because it sounds like "moving forward" in Thai language, Rugsaken said. The number is also lucky in Malaysia and China.
He also said Chinese people prefer to marry on the ninth day of the month because the number means "long-lasting," and Chinese people see the day as the good day for love.
However, in Japan, the number is something people want to avoid because nine in Japanese is pronounced "ku," meaning pain or suffering, Rugsaken said.
Because of the reason, many hospitals in Japan don't have the ninth floor, he said.
Rugsaken said the Koreans were as superstitious as other Asians. He recently learned some beliefs from his Korean students.
"Korean students will not wash their hair before big exams," Ragusaken said, "because they believe what they study and put in their head will go away by washing their hair."
Rugsaken brought laughs to his audiences by explaining why some Koreans don't clean their apartments when leaving.
"Cleaning the house when moving out is believed to disturb the spirits in Korea. So, landlord is not happy," he said.
Zahiyah Majeed and Tanetta Ranson found fun learning the Asian beliefs. They are both in the second year of Chinese class at the Indiana Academy.
Ranson heard about some Chinese superstitions in her class but found other Asian countries around it also have many similar beliefs, she said.
Ranson said learning about different cultures would make her get along well with people from outside of the United States.
When meeting Asian people in the future, Ranson wants to start conversations with what she learned from Rugsaken's speech.
"We have similar superstitions, too," Ranson said. "So we can spark the conversation because we have something to relate to."
Muncie resident Larry Bennett came to the speech with his wife because he has been always fascinated with Asian cultures, he said.
"Asian cultures are so advanced and so old," he said.
He enjoyed the speech and was amazed at the knowledge that Rugsaken had, Bennett said.
Bennett said the speech would help him appreciate and understand more about his own culture, too.
"Unless you realize there are other cultures and belief systems, you don't realize that you have superstitions," Bennett said. "You think what you believe is how everything is."
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