Bad Luck Banana’s
Exploring the myth and legend around the somewhat well known superstition of leaving banana’s on land and off of boats.
You’ve just got to the fishing grounds on a fishing charter, the captain and crew bait the lines and get to work, while you prepare for what could be a lengthy wait for a fish to bite and pull out a snack. No sooner have you peeled your fresh yellow banana and start driving it toward your mouth, a hand comes out of nowhere and slaps the fruit out of your hand and into the sea even before your lips could touch the sweet treat. The captain, in an angry voice with sub tones of fear goes off about banana’s on boats being bad luck and the likelihood of not catching fish or even worse, breaking or GOING DOWN if there are any banana products on board.
Now, I've heard this forever, it’s an old superstition going back centuries that has been adopted and molded to each new modern age (as the best myths and superstitions do). I’ve seen captains and skippers take guest’s banana bread, banana flavored candy and of course the fruit itself and toss them all overboard immediately upon discovering their presence. Other’s, like an old colleague of mine, Andrew Ellis would claim that REAL fisherman could still catch fish with Banana’s onboard, and we did quite often, ono (wahoo), ahi (tuna), Kahala (amberjack) and more would all be landed by us despite the contents of bananas.
I’m not superstitious….. but as a sailor, I’m a little “sticious” and despite understanding the reasons why this superstition came about, there are still things out there we can’t fully explain and thus gives reason for most of us only “slightly-sticious” to still err on the side of caution. I urge you to read on, listen to the history behind this superstition and make the decision for yourself.
Europeans started exploring the America’s as early as the 15th century, and by the 1600s there were many ships carrying passengers and cargo between Europe and Africa to the Caribbean and America’s. Most of these ships would stock up on supplies, food and water for their crew and passengers however even if not necessary was a wise and prudent decision to re-supply in places such as the Azores, Canary Islands, or the windward islands of the Caribbean. Here in the tropics, ships would fill up their fresh water supplies and replenish food stores with exotic and indigenous fruits, vegetables, meats and whatever they could find before continuing on their journey across the Atlantic.
Throughout these times, ghost ships would often wash up on shore or be discovered by other ships at sea where they would be found to be empty without a soul onboard or just as eerily, full of bodies of the crew and passengers. Banana’s would almost always be found in the hold sparking the idea that banana’s were bad luck at sea. The reality of this, though is that there are multiple factors and possibilities which could have led to these gruesome scenes with a more logical and scientific explanation. One possible cause is what happens and how quickly bananas spoil. Bananas notoriously spoil very quickly and when they do they release a gas that causes other food to spoil more rapidly. Thus, picking up a large supply of bananas could cause all the food around them to spoil, leaving those aboard in the middle of the ocean with no food for weeks or more, starvation inevitable. Another likely threat brought on by bananas was sickness and infection from the pests and insects like venomous banana spiders or snakes which make their home in banana trees. Other stories relayed are of ships with bananas traveling so fast to deliver cargo before it spoiled, crew fishing on board would never catch fish since their rate of speed was too fast and when ships carrying bananas were wrecked in a storm the ships would sink while the cargo of bananas would stay floating in a suspicious and ominous debris field.
After understanding this, it’s easy to see how the superstition came to be for the early sailors and ocean going folks in those days. Much of the mystery and suspense peels away once you investigate with a modern eye, or does it? Ironically enough, on the other side of the world where very few European sailors had ventured, the Hawaiians had similar reservations. Hawaii was only discovered by Europeans in 1778 when Captain Cook was credited for discovering the islands and there have long been stories told and the facts backed up by fisherman who would bring bananas in their dug out canoes to sea. The further they would go the less fish they would catch or end up in peril from weather and misfortune. This has been attributed to Kamapua’a the hog god in Hawaiian Mythology.
Kamapua’a was was cast away from his father or step father Chief Olopona who resented Kamapua’a based on the justified suspicion of his mother Hina’s infidelities through their marriage. Desiring only to be loved and wanted by his father, the hate felt instead soon caused him to run away to the hills, jaded, and spite filled. Kamapua’a had shapeshifting powers which he used to transform into a hog most commonly and would reap havoc on Chief Olopona’s villages and people in revenge. One day Kamapua’a traveled through a fertile valley between Waipio and Pololu on the Big Island during his plunders. There lived three sisters (and their bothers), out of the sisters, Pele was said to be the most beautiful and had a fiery temperament, matching only Kamapua'a's (Pele would become to be known as the goddess of volcanos and fire). Upon laying eyes on her, Kamapua'a fell desperately in love. Yet, now possessing the rugged appearance of a vicious wild hog, Pele had no interest in him. In some stories he sang to her, and in others he begged her to be his wife, but in disgust, she called him a pig, and the son of a pig. With a broken heart, yet again not understanding why he could not just be loved, the only thing he ever wanted, he did what he did best: rampage. In Kamapua'a's rejection-fueled battle against Pele, some say the wild hog tried to drown her, while others say he ate her whole family only to release them from his stomach in guilt. Alternatively, Pele sent her flames to him leaving him in a pit of fire. Eventually coming to a stalemate, the two embraced as lovers, and some say it was the only time Kamapua'a ever felt whole. Confused by the uncharacteristic love Kamapua'a showed her, Pele retreated, telling her once lover that he could reign upon the eastern valleys of Hilo, Hamakua, and Kohala. There, he could keep them wet and fertile, while she kept her western side of the mountain warm and sunny. Although Pele ran from Kamapua'a, he searched for her endlessly, only retreating to the sea when he saw the volcanoes she created erupt. Pele eventually grew to miss him, and seasons later, bore his son, Opelu-nui-kauhaalilo. To this day, Kamapua'a is said to reign from the ocean, protecting the pigs of Kohala and abundance of life in Hawaii, by roaming its many waterfalls. Exiled to the sea however, Kamapua’a is left without the sweet flavors of land and banana’s he loved so much. It’s said with his rampaging, hog-wild mannerisms, Kamapua’a will do whatever it takes for the taste of banana, from pulling sailors and fishermen overboard into the depths to destroying entire boats for the sweet treat and reminiscence of land.
So after these two tales from opposite sides of the earth, I’ll leave you to make your decision. You can choose to never bring a banana on a boat to ensure your safe return to land or pay no mind to the warning hundreds of years old however I give you one more thing to consider. I was inspired to write this article based on the fascinating stories and facts circling this well known superstition coupled with the fact that one of the boats I currently run, we laugh in the face of danger (as far as snacks go at least). That is, we eat bananas and bring them onboard without any second thought, NOT superstitious. So I had a banana with me about 2 weeks ago and had some guests running late, so I decided to get some shots for this article. I put the banana peel on the dock, the helm, the hauler, gunwale, all over the boat for photos. I had not thought anything about it until the following week when we experienced boat issues, running slightly rough. Following an inspection from the mechanic, its now clear we need a part of the engine rebuilt and I cannot peel my mind away from the fact that I got too cocky with the banana’s, next time I will think twice about tempting fate or challenging a superstition.
-Capt. Greg
