Are Curses Real?

We’ve all heard of famous curses like The Hope Diamond, King Tut’s Curse, and the Kennedy Curse. But are they real or just a series of coincidences?  It’s true that our words hold power.  In the Book of Genesis, God creates the entire world with His words.  Words are indeed seeds of creation, but the power of belief is just as potent.  Let’s examine some famous curses and let the facts help us determine if curses are powered by words or belief.  Could it be that there is magic in the intention behind a curse?  Or it more plausible that curses only work if the curser and the cursee believe in it?

 THE HOPE DIAMOND

When the Hope Diamond was stolen from a Hindu statue, the priests put a curse on the thief.  The man died a slow and painful death. King Louis the XIV bought it in 1673.  He died shortly thereafter of gangrene and all his children – save one – died in childhood.  Louis the XVI inherited the stone and gave it to his wife Marie Antoinette.  They were beheaded during the French Revolution.  The stone then passed to Wilhelm Fals, a Dutch jeweler murdered by his son. A Greek merchant bought the diamond and later drove his car off a cliff.  When heiress Evelyn Walsh McLean bought the diamond, she lost her son in an accident and her daughter from a drug overdose. The next owner, Harry Winston, heard the only way to break the curse was to give the stone away.  He donated it to the Smithsonian where it can be seen today. 

THE CURSE OF KING TUT

When Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon found Tutankhamen’s tomb in 1922, it’s said that “death comes on wings to he who enters the tomb of the pharaoh” was inscribed over the entrance.  Shortly after, a mosquito bit Lord Carnarvon on his cheek. When he opened the cut while shaving, he got blood poisoning and died that evening in Cairo.  His beloved dog is said to have howled and died at the exact moment back at his estate in England.   In 1925, when Tutankhamen was unwrapped, he was found to have a wound on his left cheek in the exact spot where Lord Carnarvon was bitten by the mosquito that led to his death. By 1929, 11 people connected to the expedition died mysterious deaths.  Ironically, Howard Carter – who led the expedition and entered the tomb first – lived a long, healthy life.  He never believed in curses.

TECUMSEH’S CURSE

After William Henry Harrison defeated Tecumseh and his men at the Battle of Tippecanoe, rumor has it that Tecumseh placed a curse on the future president.  William Henry Harrison was elected president in 1840, but he caught a cold at his inauguration (after ignoring his wife’s suggestion to wear a coat) and died of pneumonia after being in office for just one month.  Since then, every president from 1840- 1960 elected or re-elected every 20^th year has died in office. The curse has been considered broken since Ronald Reagan (elected in 1980) survived an assassination attempt in 1981.  Could it be that Tecumseh put a curse on the man and succeeding gentlemen who stole land from his people?  Or is it just a series of odd coincidences?

HAROLD BENNETT

When Dr. Larry Dossey interned at a hospital in Texas, he met a patient named Harold Bennett who appeared to be dying but doctors couldn’t figure out why.  Mr Bennett told Dr. Dossey that he’d refused to pay a fortune teller, so cursed him. Dr. Dossey feared that because Mr. Bennett believed he was dying from a curse that traditional medicine wouldn’t work on him.  So he and a colleague pretended to do a voodoo ceremony to undo the hex.  Mr Bennett watched as the doctors lit a small fire, took a lock of his hair and began an incantation.  They told him that curse was now removed.  When Dr. Dossey went to check on his patient the next morning, he was sitting up in bed, eating breakfast - completely recovered.  So did the doctors perform the ceremony correctly or is this just a case of the power of belief?

ARE YOU CURSED?

Often people feel as though they’re cursed.  Martha Gooden lost both parents to cancer in her 20s.  Her first husband abused her. Her store went out of business during the recession. Martha believed she was cursed.  Her therapist told her she wasn’t cursed but was living from a victim mentality.  Martha trained her mind to believe she was a magnet for happiness not a victim of bad luck. She heard about a grant program for people hit by the recession and returned to school.  Today she’s a nurse and is happily married. If you feel you’re a victim, the universe will treat you that way.  But if you believe in yourself, the power of your words, the universe will treat you accordingly.  Curses are real if you believe in them, but if you choose to believe in the power of YOU, the universe will reward you with a positive life. 

HOW TO BREAK A CURSE

If you’re reading this and you still believe in curses, beware of anyone who tells you a curse has been placed on you and that for a small fortune, they can remove that curse.  This is a scam and is always false.  Every one of us will go through a series of bad luck usually followed by a period of good luck.  This is called life.  In a way, it would be comforting to believe in curses because it takes away personal responsibility.  We’re responsible for our life – good or bad. If you’re going through a difficult time right now, if you feel trapped in a relationship or job, it’s important to remember that you have choices. Decide where you want to start to make changes and take action.  If you want your ship to come in, build a dock.