Bloody Mary (folklore)
Bloody Mary is a legend of a ghost, phantom, witch, or spirit conjured to reveal the future. She is said to appear in a mirror when her name is chanted repeatedly. The Bloody Mary apparition may be benevolent or malevolent, depending on historical variations of the legend. Bloody Mary appearances are mostly witnessed in group participation play.
Ritual
Historically, the divination ritual encouraged young women to walk up a flight of stairs backward holding a candle and a hand mirror, in a darkened house. As they gazed into the mirror, they were supposed to glimpse a view of their future husband's face. There was, however, a chance that they would see a skull instead, indicating that they were going to die before they would have the chance to marry.In the modern ritual that began to coalesce in the late 1960s, Bloody Mary allegedly appears to individuals or groups who ritualistically invoke her name in an act of catoptromancy. This is done by repeatedly chanting her name into a mirror placed in a dim or candle-lit room. More modern versions of the ritual are played in a restroom. The name must be uttered 3 times. Some stories suggest you must chant her name into the bathroom mirror 47 times before she will come out. The Bloody Mary apparition allegedly appears as a corpse, witch, and ghost that can either be friendly, evil, or a demonic spirit, and is sometimes seen covered in blood. The lore surrounding the ritual states that participants may endure the apparition screaming at them, cursing them, strangling them, stealing their soul, drinking their blood, or scratching their eyes out. Some variations of the ritual call Bloody Mary by a different name—"Hell Mary" and "Mary Worth" are popular examples. The modern legend of Hanako-san in Japan strongly parallels the Bloody Mary mythology. Additionally, in the 1990s the Bloody Mary ritual was represented in pop culture and used as a tool to discuss racial and sexual violence, and gender oppression.