The difference between religion and superstition varies on who is asked. If one was to talk to a strictly religious person, the response would be totally different than that of a radically superstitious person. Excellent examples of both are instituted in Mark Twain�s novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Religion is defined as a belief in a divine or superhuman power such as a deity or higher being to be worshiped as the creator of the universe. There are many examples of religion in the book, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Many of the characters have strong religious beliefs, but will not partake in any form of superstitious behavior. Both the Widow Douglas and Miss Watson share a common belief in God yet view Him in different ways. "Sometimes the widow would take me one side and talk about Providence in a way to make the body�s mouth water; but maybe next day Miss Watson would take hold and knock it all down again."(p.13) This proves that Miss Watson and the Widow Douglas have differing views of heaven or "Providence." While Huck is in the care of the Widow Douglas he also learns about God but is unsure of how to view Him. "�so I kneeled down. But the words wouldn�t come. Why wouldn�t they? It warn�t no use to try and hide it from Him �.It was because my heart warn�t right."(p.205) Near the end of the book, Huck is torn by whether or not to turn in Jim for running away, for fear that it will make him "wicked" and "sinful." Eventually he decided that he would just "go to Hell" and tears up his note to Miss Watson. Huck�s struggles attempting to understand religion are spread throughout the entire story. The definition of superstition is any belief or attitude that is inconsistent with the known laws of science such as charms, omens, and the supernatural. When the characters are expressing or acting out on their superstitious beliefs, they rarely have religious connotations. There are also many examples of superstition in this novel. One such example is when Huck flicks a spider into a candle flame and it dies. "�I flipped it off and it lit in the candle; and before I could budge, it was all shriveled up. I didn�t need anyone to tell me that was an awful bad sign." (p.5) After Huck realizes what�s happened to the spider, he performs a ritual meant to keep away witches. This is but one of many examples in the book of Huck�s superstitious nature. Jim is also very superstitious, with such obvious examples as his "magic hair-ball." This hair-ball was taken out of an ox�s stomach, and Jim claimed it could tell fortunes, and people actually believed it. When Huck asked if it knew anything about his Pap, Jim said that it wouldn�t talk without some kind of payment, so Huck pays with a fake counterfeit quarter, and Jim gives him a vague explanation of what is going to happen. And Huck believes him. A third example is the snake skin fiasco. Both Huck and Jim believe the snake skin, when touched, would bring bad luck, and sure enough it does. "I awluz �spected dat rattlesnake-skin warn�t done wid it�s work."(p.90) This turns out to be true when Huck and Jim�s raft is damaged by a passing vessel, and Huck and Jim are separated. As clearly shown, most of the superstitions Huck and Jim follow are not based on religious beliefs. Superstition and religion are not completely opposites however. There are subtle similarities expressed by different characters. For example, "there was a cross in the left boot-heel made with big nails, to keep off the devil." Pap, being superstitious, does what he can to keep away bad omens. Pap is as far away from being religious as a person can get and yet he believes in the devil. It is commonly known that the devil is associated with religion. This is one similarity between religion and superstition. Another similarity is how religiously Huck follows his superstitions. "�turn over the saltcellar at breakfast. I reached over for some of it as quick as I could to throw over my left shoulder to keep off the bad luck�feeling all worried and shaky, and wondering where it was going to fall on me, and what it was going to be." (p.16) When Miss Watson saw what Huck was doing she told him he was making a mess and to stop. The widow put a good word in for him yet he still felt bad because he could not finish his ritual. Just like a religious person feels bad when they can not finish their prayers or worships. In conclusion, religion and superstition mean completely different things, however they can be practiced in the same way. The similarities between the two ideas are closely related and yet totally different.