Are Seashells Bad Luck?

In Feng Shui, shells symbolise good fortune, but I was conditioned to see them as bad luck. My beliefs were controlling my perception, and here’s what I did to change that.

Seashells: Good Luck or Bad?

Seashells are good for Feng Shui, they represent protection and are believed to enhance travel luck and strengthen long-distance relationships.

One website cites: “Keeping seashells in a basket will bring much-needed luck in your life. For greater wealth: Decorate a water fountain with seashells. In Feng Shui, a flowing water fountain symbolises money flowing into the house. Adding seashells helps protect that money.” 

A limiting belief got in the way of my beloved Feng Shui practice

Although I follow Feng Shui practices closely at home and trust in their power to activate good energy, my own beliefs have proven to be even more powerful.

It wasn’t the Feng Shui principles themselves holding me back, but the limiting beliefs I had unknowingly carried with me. This realisation helped me understand the true power of mindset and how it shapes our reality, even when we try to create harmony in our environment.

Why Most Beliefs Are Formed in Childhood: Understanding the Roots of Your Mindset

As a child, I spent a lot of time with my grandfather, and he had a significant influence on my life, including his superstitions. He had a strong aversion to seashells, insisting that they were a bad luck.

His house was right in front of the beach, so you can imagine how many times my brothers and I brought shells home, only for him to make us throw them out. Each time, his actions reinforced the belief that shells were something to be avoided.

He probably had his reasons for thinking that seashells carried negative energy, but the specifics have since faded from my memory. However, this experience stuck with me, shaping my perception of seashells as something to avoid. It’s fascinating how such early beliefs can linger in our minds, often without us realising their impact on our lives.

Embedded in Our Subconscious: How Childhood Beliefs Shape Our Perceptions and Choices

I don’t often think about my experiences with seashells, but I find myself avoiding them altogether—whether it’s not bringing them home or steering clear of seashell decorations. It’s not a conscious decision; it’s more of an automatic reaction. I associate them with a bad feeling without actively thinking about it. For instance, if someone gifts me seashells, I quickly remember that they give me negative feelings, leading me to either dispose of them or politely decline the gift.

I had a memorable moment during a trip to Hawaii when the luau hosts were handing out seashell necklaces to the women and seed necklaces to the men. When it was my turn, I hesitated and asked if I could please, please have a seed necklace instead. I worried that I came off as crazy and ungrateful, but the thought of wearing a seashell around my neck felt overwhelmingly uncomfortable. That experience really highlighted how deeply rooted those childhood beliefs can be, influencing my choices even when I don’t fully understand why.

I was reminded of this one day of 2020, when my son came back from the beach with a pocket full of shells. Seeing him so excited, I couldn’t help but feel a mix of joy and anxiety. While he was thrilled to share his treasures with me, a small voice in the back of my mind echoed my grandfather’s warnings about shells being a bad luck.

It was a moment of realisation for me—how deeply ingrained those childhood beliefs were, despite my efforts to embrace a more open-minded perspective. I watched my son admire his collection, and it struck me how important it is to break free from those old superstitions and allow him to create his own beliefs. After all, these shells, once symbols of misfortune for me, were just beautiful reminders of nature for him.

“Mummy, I got you a surprise!”

Me seeing the shells:

My heart stopped for a moment when I saw those shells

Looking at them sparked all the fears associated with keeping shells at home; I could only think of all the bad things that might happen if I let them stay.

Thanks to years of inner work, I’ve developed the ability to identify where these fears come from. I’m not always able to transform or reframe those beliefs on my own, but at least I can recognise them.

I had buried the belief that shells are bad deep inside my subconscious mind. It’s not something I think about every day, but I knew that if I kept all the shells, I would be focusing on the negative and, in turn, attracting it.

As beliefs are formed in our childhood, they often remain present in our lives, even if we don’t think about them daily. The belief that shells are bad luck hasn’t significantly impacted my life, and out of all the beliefs I need to reconsider, this one might not be that important. Our experiences shape how we live, so it’s essential to pick and choose our battles.

Some beliefs can be harmful, while others can be useful. If a belief isn’t hurting you, stopping you from reaching your goals, or holding you back from being successful, then it’s okay to keep it and work on them later on.

I could potentially transform this belief using tools from my mindset transformation toolkit — (Join My Free ‘Build Your Mindset Toolkit Challenge’ and Discover Three Powerful Tools to Rewire Your Brain for Lasting Mindset Transformation!)

Additionally, I could find evidence that shells are actually good, rewriting my past to show my brain that it’s safe to keep them at home.

So, what did I do with the shells? I didn’t let the thought worry me. I thanked my son for being so thoughtful in collecting those shells for me and secretly disposed of them in the bin the next day. As of now, thirty days later, no one has asked about the shells yet.

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2024 Update

Last year, we travelled to Fiji, and my husband gave me a heads-up: “Don’t be rude. Just accept the beautiful shell necklaces or any gifts the locals offer at the airport or hotel. You can do whatever you want with them the next day, but accept them graciously.”

So, I decided to reprogram my mind ahead of time. It might sound a bit silly, but even with small things like this, I could’ve attracted the very things I feared—just because I had connected shells with misfortune. It wasn’t the actual shells that had any power, though.i My brain, conditioned since childhood to think that way. But here’s the thing—I realised I had already changed that. We’re not stuck with our beliefs forever.

We see the world through filters—like glasses that shape how we perceive things and influence the actions that got us where we are today. But if you’re not satisfied with where you are, if you know there’s more to life, then it’s possible to make a shift.

It’s not your fault if you’ve been programmed to see things a certain way, but it is your responsibility to do something about it.

I accepted the shells, and now they’re displayed at home. They’re a beautiful reminder that you are in control of your destiny and your mind—and, of course, of the amazing trip we had in Fiji!