<P> In medieval France, cats would be burnt alive as a form of entertainment . According to Norman Davies, the assembled people "shrieked with laughter as the animals, howling with pain, were singed, roasted, and finally carbonized". </P> <P> "It was the custom to burn a basket, barrel, or sack full of live cats, which was hung from a tall mast in the midst of the bonfire; sometimes a fox was burned . The people collected the embers and ashes of the fire and took them home, believing that they brought good luck . The French kings often witnessed these spectacles and even lit the bonfire with their own hands . In 1648 Louis XIV, crowned with a wreath of roses and carrying a bunch of roses in his hand, kindled the fire, danced at it and partook of the banquet afterwards in the town hall . But this was the last occasion when a monarch presided at the midsummer bonfire in Paris . At Metz midsummer fires were lighted with great pomp on the esplanade, and a dozen cats, enclosed in wicker cages, were burned alive in them, to the amusement of the people . Similarly at Gap, in the department of the Hautes - Alpes, cats used to be roasted over the midsummer bonfire ." </P> <P> According to a myth in many cultures, cats have multiple lives . In many countries, they are believed to have nine lives, but in Italy, Germany, Greece, Brazil and some Spanish - speaking regions, they are said to have seven lives, while in Turkish and Arabic traditions, the number of lives is six . The myth is attributed to the natural suppleness and swiftness cats exhibit to escape life - threatening situations . Also lending credence to this myth is the fact that falling cats often land on their feet, using an instinctive righting reflex to twist their bodies around . Nonetheless, cats can still be injured or killed by a high fall . </P>

Where did the term 9 lives come from
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