It's Valentine's Day this week, but will the omen of bad luck associated with Friday the 13th cast a shadow over opportunities for a weekend of romance?
Right now we're seeing the brilliant planet Venus, goddess of love and beauty, over the western horizon about 45 minutes after sunset. Venus is going to visible in this position all season long, and well into Summer. And did you know that Venus' day is Friday?
In fact, each of the days of the week is named for one of the 'classical planets', which are the planets visible to the naked eye.
The order is like this:
Monday is Moon's day.
Tuesday, which in the French is "Mardi" as in "Mardi Gras" or Fat Tuesday, is Mars' day.
Wednesday is Mercury's day.
Thursday in the Norse culture of Northern Europe, is Thor's Day. Thor is god of thunder, like Jupiter to the Romans, and his day is Thursday.
Then we come to Friday, Freya's day, also associated with Aphrodite and Venus~each of them goddesses of love and beauty.
So why is it that when Friday falls on the 13th, it brings bad luck?
In the world of the fairy tale, the 13th fairy godmother is always the one who isn't invited to the party, so instead of bringing a gift, she brings a curse. this is one of the ways that the 13th gets associated with bad luck.
When you look into the sky this weekend, not only is it possible to see the brilliant planet Venus,but just above and to the left, the ancient love of Venus, which is the planet Mars. Mars is coming so close to Venus, it's as if the two can hold hands and whisper, which is a beautiful image for a weekend of romance, despite Friday the 13th.
