Of course, we know why people fear the haunted house at Thrillvania in DFW. We’ve packed it full of every monstrous terror you can imagine. But why do so many people fear the number 13? After all, it’s just two tiny little digits and they don’t even amount to much. Or do they?
In a survey conducted in 2003 by the Stress management Center and Phobia Institute in Asheville, North Carolina, 2,068 people were questioned and 25% of them firmly associated the number 13 with bad luck.
These people also were more likely to experience high levels of anxiety on days like Friday the 13th and that anxiety made them more prone to accidents, thus increasing their anxiety even more and cementing their belief that bad things always happen on the 13th – especially if it’s a Friday.
But why, in this modern world of smartphones, HDTV and world-wide Internet access, do we still have this unholy fear of the number 13? Certainly we’ve advanced to the point where we no longer allow superstition to rule our lives, haven’t we?
Centuries ago, we developed triskaidekaphobia, an extreme superstition regarding the number 13, based on Christian teachings. That silly, two-digit number was to be feared because there were 13 months in the pagan calendar and those who practiced paganism were destined for Hell. Thirteen was also an unholy number because there were 12 witches in a coven and the 13th person was the devil.
According to mathematicians, the number 13 is “incomplete” and “restless or squirmy” because it comes after the number 12. Think about it. There are 12 months in a year, 12 signs in the zodiac, 12 eggs in a carton and Jesus had 12 apostles. When we think “12” we think “complete.” When we think “13” we think odd or strange.
These days, people don’t fear the number 13 because they’re afraid of witches or the devil or curses. We learn to fear that silly two-digit number at an early age when our parents and friends tell us that it’s supposed to be an unlucky number, so we lie awake at night, anticipating an untimely death on Friday the 13th.
In fact, this fear of the number 13 is still so strong that more than 80 percent of high-rise buildings don’t have a 13th floor. Many hospitals and hotels still don’t have a room number 13, and airports still skip over gate 13.
Of course, there are those who thumb their noses at the number 13 and can’t wait for something bad to happen on Friday the 13th so they can poke fun at the office triskaidekaphobe. We’re in their camp and we hope nobody every breaks this 13-link chain of fear. After all, that’s what Thrillvania’s all about.
If you’re with us, and you’re brave enough to come out from under the covers, we invite you to join us at Cutting Edge Haunted House on Friday, June 13, 2014. Listed in the Guinness World Records as the “World’s Largest Walk Through Haunted House” you definitely don’t want to miss their special Friday the 13th Event!
And don’t forget to start planning your annual trek to Thrillvania Haunted House Park. Located at 2330 County Road 138, Terrell, TX 75161. Contact us at 972-428-9653 for our Fall schedule or bookmark our Schedule page.