In the western world, one of the common superstitions is knocking on wood. It is believed that this practice originated from that side of the world.
Several spiritual meanings and messages are attached to knocking on wood. Apart from the physical act of knocking on wood, the phrase can be used in sentences, and for describing events.
Knocking on wood has spiritual meanings and superstitions, which will be discussed in detail in this article.
Therefore, if you want to know the spiritual meaning of knocking on wood, pay attention to this article. Every question concerning the spiritual practice of knocking on wood will be discussed in more detail.
Where did Knock on Wood come from?
Knocking on wood came from the pagan religion. Before it became widely accepted by other religions and cultures, paganism have practiced this for many years. Pagans believe that spirits live in trees.
They believe that whenever you knock on wood, you will invoke the spirit that lives in trees to communicate with you.
It is said that spiritual elders in the pagan religion can invite spirits into their shrines by going to knock on their wood (the home of such spirits).
In Christianity, knocking on wood became a phenomenon because it was connected to Jesus.
The cross was made of wood.
Therefore, when any Christian knocks on wood, it is said that such an individual is trying to ask for forgiveness. Now, this practice has been reduced in Christianity today. However, it was once common in the religion.
From Christian practices, we can further trace knocking on wood to Jewish practices. It is believed that knocking on wood was for gaining entrance into the synagogues.
Furthermore, it was associated with survival and safety.
Several cultural and religious practices adopted knocking on wood and attached several superstitions to this practice. We will discuss this later in the course of this article.
Why do People Knock on Wood?
Several reasons why people knock on wood can be traced to religious beliefs and cultural practices. Let us look into a few of them.
- People knock on wood because it is believed that spirits reside in trees. Therefore, they go to knock on wood to call on spirits.
- For example, if someone needs a spirit to protect him/her, going into the forest to knock on wood is one of the common practices.
- You will find people knocking on wood as a spiritual practice of cleansing rituals. Now, this might sound barbaric to you, but there is a belief that the bloodstain that comes out of your knuckles is a cleanser. The blood is believed to be the bad energy in your soul.
- Therefore, as it flows out of your body, you are letting go of contamination. It is not recommended to practice this. However, if your knuckles have ever bled from knocking on wood, it might be a sign of cleansing.
Knock on Wood Meaning (Spiritual)
Knocking on wood means wasting time. Whenever you see people knocking on wood, it is believed to be a sign of wasting time. That is, you are doing several irrelevant things that are wasting your precious time.
Therefore, if you see yourself knocking on the woods for days without stopping, this might be telling you that time has been wasted.
Another spiritual meaning of knocking on wood speaks about stagnancy.
Whenever you are knocking on wood, you will be fixed on a spot. Therefore, this is a spiritual sign of stagnancy. It is saying that you are on a spot for too long.
Apart from the bad spiritual message of stagnancy, knocking on wood for long can be a sign of patience. That is, the message speaks to you about patience. Knocking on wood can teach you that patience is crucial to every advancement.
Spiritually, knocking on wood is also a sign of searching for answers.
This is why you are searching for answers from every source – including knocking on wood.
If you see yourself knocking on wood in a dream, it might be a sign of confusion and clarity. That is, you are searching for answers to a question in your heart.
Whenever you knock on wood, this is an indication that the spiritual realm needs to communicate with you.
For example: if you see yourself knocking on wood in the evening, it is believed that the spiritual world needs to speak with you. If you hear knocking on wood, it is saying that spirits need to get access to you.
Have you heard about woodland fairies? Well, they are real. It is believed that knocking on wood invokes woodland fairies.
7 Superstitions about Knocking on Wood
Whenever you knock on wood, there are 7 superstitions attached. Let us talk about this:
1) Persistence
It is believed that knocking on wood is a sign of persistence.
Whenever you see yourself knocking on wood in the rain, it is saying that you have an attitude of persistence – even if the face of uncertain situations.
Normally, you should go inside the house when rain is falling. However, the mindset that keeps you knocking on wood in the rain is persistent. People that do this are never going to give up on their lives.
They are not going to give in to pressures.
2) A restless soul
It is also believed that knocking on wood in the morning is the sign of a restless soul.
Why should you be knocking on wood in the morning? You should be going to work or spending time with your family and loved ones.
However, knocking on wood in the early hours of the morning shows that you are restless.
This restlessness might be a result of depression, anxiety, or confusion about a certain matter. Therefore, once this begins to happen, seek help from therapeutic experts, or practice relaxing spiritual exercises like yoga and meditation.
3) The spirits are trying to gain access to you
Now, this is a little different. Whenever you hear knocking on wood sound, it is a sign that spirits want to gain access into your life.
This sound will come slowly. It will also come in the evening.
Furthermore, it will come in a pattern of 3 and then begin to increase.
Once you hear this, a spirit wants to gain access to your life. Now, this does not have to be a bad spirit.
However, you must be careful enough to discern the spirit that is knocking on the door of your heart.
Something similar to this can be seen in Christianity. You will see Jesus knocking on the door of people’s hearts in the book of revelation. You have the ability and exclusive right to either open your heart or not.
4) The soul of friends are trying to connect
The ancient practice of soul connection reveals this as well. It is believed that whenever you hear your friend calling your name while knocking on a wood, a soul connection is about to be established.
This is saying that the soul of your friends is trying to connect with you.
This is not bad news.
It is a sign that the universe wants you to understand each other better.
It is saying that the friend cares so much about you. Hearing the voice of your friend while knocking on wood is saying that your friend cares about you. It is saying that you are trying to establish a soulish connection.
5) Bad luck
Whenever you see yourself knocking on cold wood, it is revealing bad luck.
In the spiritual world, whenever you see wet wood without rainfall or a river source, it brings bad luck.
Therefore, hearing the knocking on cold wood, or whenever you see yourself knocking on wet wood, is believed to bring bad luck.
This might affect you on your job, it might affect you in your relationship, and other aspects of your life.
Once you have this experience, it is best to seek help. This is the only way to prevent this from happening to you.
6) Too many efforts without results
Once you see yourself knocking on hardwood, it is saying that you are doing too many things, but the results you desire are not manifesting.
This is describing the current phase of your life.
Normally, you should not be found knocking on the hardwood. If you consistently do that, your knuckles will begin to bleed.
Therefore, you need to stop knocking on the hardwood.
Spiritually, it is saying that you need to stop doing too many things.
You need to take a break from the things you have engaged in. You need to evaluate everything you have done so far, check for mistakes, and start all over for positive results.
7) You are trying to live in your past
Most especially when you have amazing experiences in the past. If you find yourself knocking on rotten wood, it is believed to be a sign that you are living in your past.
The universe is telling you to stop because dwelling on the past will stop you from advancing in life.
Therefore, knocking on rotten wood is not a good sign. It is a warning sign that prevents you from sticking to your past.
How many times are you supposed to knock on wood?
The common number of times is 5. You are supposed to knock on wood 5 times. The reason for this is tied to the different spiritual meanings that come with the number 5.
For example: 5 stands for good luck, it stands for angels, it stands for answers, and it stands for clarity. Therefore, whenever you knock on wood 5 times, you will activate its energy.
Apart from 5 times, the Yoruba culture believes in knocking on wood 3 times in the morning and night. It is believed that this will activate spirits to work for you. 3 times activates spirits and ghosts.
Whenever you knock on the wood 7 times, it is also a good way to activate spiritual energy. You must pay attention to this. 7 times talks about perfection. It brings an end to all matters. It is believed to be a sign of conclusion.
Avoid knocking on wood 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 times.
You should knock on wood using odd number frequencies. Doing this will make good luck come into your life. If you see yourself knocking on wood using the even number frequency, it is not a good sign.
Can Knocking on wood ward off bad luck?
Yes, knocking on wood can ward off bad luck. It is one of the ways to stop bad luck from coming into your life. Now, why is this so?
Knocking on wood can protect you:
This is one of the medieval reasons for knocking wood in the past. People will go into the forest to knock on wood with the belief that spirits will follow them into the city for protection.
Therefore, whenever you knock on wood, it can activate protection in your direction.
This protection will ward off evil spirits, and also take away the negative effects of the evil eye from jealous people.
Knocking on wood can attract positivity:
One of the benefits of knocking on wood is an atmosphere of positivity.
It is believed that knocking on wood creates an atmosphere of positivity. It creates an environment where good luck thrives in.
Whenever you knock on wood 1, 3, 5, or 7 times, it is going to bring good luck into your life. You can keep a piece of wood in your workplace, and knock on it before you start work.
Whenever you knock on wood, expect to enjoy good luck. However, make sure not to knock on wet wood. Knocking on wet wood brings bad luck.
Final Words
If you don’t want to go through the rigorous practices of smudging sage, performing cleansing rituals, and other incantations, simply knock on wood.
Doing this has a powerful energy to cause sporadic changes in your life. Therefore, leverage the information in this article, and begin to practice the spiritual art of knocking on wood.
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Julia is a world-renowned spiritual teacher from Sweden, who quit her job at Google to pursue her dream of becoming a digital nomad. I help spiritual seekers step into their purpose and power. Passionate about astrology, meditation, nomad life and the law of attraction.