You miss the train by two minutes.
Your mobile rings in the middle of an important meeting with your boss.
Your favorite football team concedes in the last minute.
These are all examples of what we have come to know as “bad luck” or “misfortune”.
We sit and wonder how the world could just suddenly decide to turn against us in such a cruel manner.
What could we possibly have done to deserve such treatment we ask, and what on earth can we do to stop it again in the future?
The answer to this question is no, parrots are not unlucky. Amidst all of the superstitions surrounding various types of birds, parrots seem to be one of the least unfortunate types.
However, there are still some reasons why people suggest Parrots to be quite unlucky.
At ParrotWebsite.com we (not surprisingly) LOVE parrots, so the question I’m asking today, is do our colorful, furry friends contribute to this spontaneous and seemingly cruel treatment from the world?
I’m going to be discussing whether it is unlucky to keep parrots inside the house or not.
Also what the Rain and parrots have to do with misfortune.
How do parrots compare with other birds in terms of misfortune?
Let’s get into it!
History of Birds and Superstitions
Before we dive right into the deep end with our parrot friends, it is first important to consider where these beliefs come from.
To sum up briefly: many of our old Friends from Ancient Greece believed that the flight plans of other birds could be a useful predictor into future events.
Hence why they studied them so closely.
A little while later, and the Ancient Romans used the flight path of birds to make decisions in the future, as they believed that the birds were in communication with the Gods.
Now I’m not aware what kind of parrot you have, but I do have some suspicions about whether or not my bird is really that intelligent.
Fast forward until today, and 2000+ years later, many people still can’t seem to let go of their intense beliefs into the relationships between their parrot pet and their life events.
To summarise largely, these are all just ancient myths that are Greek and Roman friends created when they weren’t trying to make their horses into politicians or throwing apples at the women they loved… (yes, they really did this, you can look it up!)
So, back from our conversational detour, let’s not waste any more time.
Is it unlucky to keep a Parrot in the house?
For many years, a common (and unfounded) theory is that birds inside the house is going to bring bad luck.
Now, don’t worry… because we don’t believe it’s true.
A common belief is that sick or injured birds (including parrots) should never be inside your home.
You may care for it outdoors, but custom suggests that having a bird indoors will bring bad fortune.
However, it is highly likely that this is false.
This belief came from medieval times, largely during the times of the bubonic and pneumonic plague.
Having a bird inside your own home would have caused disease and likely death, hence why the superstition concerning parrots (and other birds) and misfortune arrived.
So, it seems then that it is not unlucky to keep a parrot indoors, so don’t worry about keeping your parrot there.
There doesn’t seem to be any problem whatsoever with keeping your parrot indoors, yet some may still disagree… but that’s an argument for another day.
To conclude, keeping a parrot indoors is NOT unlucky.
What does Vastu think?
I know what you’re thinking, “Who on earth is Vastu and what does he know about parrots”.
Well let me explain.
Vastu Shastra is an ancient Indian system of architecture, designed to bring good will and peace to the house which is being built.
Houses built under the principles of Vastu are said to be high in Zeal, power strength and money.
“Okay and what has this got to do with parrots?”
Let me explain.
The Vastu society consider parrots to be a lucky pet actually, in fact, they believe a parrot is the best pet that a person can own (Well obviously?).
There are many suggested ways that parrots help humans in fortunate ways:
- Early in the morning they awake us.
- They always care for us.
- They give warning in our daily work.
- When we come into our house, they welcome us in their own voice
- Their neck, face and feathers are considered to be very attractive. (Again, obviously)
So as far as the Vastu is concerned, as long as the parrot can see other people who it can interact with throughout the day, by all means the parrots are a source of good fortune!
Are parrots really the luckiest kind of pet?
All the research which I have shown you today would suggest that parrots are, in fact, one of the most fortunate type of birds that you can own as a pet.
From the disputing of Roman and Greek myths to the hope and faith in parrots of the Vastu tradition, our colourful, furry friends do seem to be on the more fortunate end of the “lucky chart” (Luckily… excuse the pun.)
But this article would not be complete without fully putting into context just how lucky parrots are considered to be, as pets.
For example, it is a known belief that if a bird flies into your house, it means something serious will happen in your life, but if the bird dies inside or is white, it means death will arrive.
Now, it IS highly unlikely that a parrot could ever fly into your house, (but if it does… you should immediately pick up your phone… and as quickly as you possibly can… you should take a photograph and send it to me because that would be amazing!) so the idea that a parrot could cause harm to your life by flying into your own home is highly unlikely.
It is also known that if a bird should poop on your head, it would bring you good fortune.
Now I don’t know whether this is true or not from experience, but I do know some friends who would reluctantly claim that it is not true.
There is no evidence for this superstition, but it is based in the believe that such an unlikely, disgusting occurrence is only made right by something positive being made up for it.
So should a parrot ever perform such a horrible thing to you, we’ll at least let you take the silver lining from the cloud and assume it will bring you wealth and good fortune.
The bottom line
So then, to conclude. Are parrots unlucky?
Like I stated in the beginning of the article, there is some evidence to suggest yes, parrots are unlucky, but they are largely founded on ancient myths rather than scientific evidence.
Given the lack of research evidence to suggest that parrots, (and all other birds really), are considered unlucky… I think it’s obvious that we could come to the conclusion that no, parrots are not considered unlucky.
So carry on keeping your feathery friend indoors, don’t listen to what the Romans and Greeks have to say and we think you’ll be just fine.
That’s all from us for now, and we’ll see you on the next article.