evil eye

Nazars, charms used to ward off the evil eye.

The evil eye is a look that is believed by many cultures to be able to cause injury or bad luck for the person at whom it is directed for reasons of envy or dislike. The term also refers to the power attributed to certain persons of inflicting injury or bad luck by such an envious or ill-wishing look.

The "evil eye" is also known as ʿayn al-ḥasūd (عين الحسود) and mal de ojo.^[1]

The idea expressed by the term causes many cultures to pursue protective measures against it. The concept and its significance vary widely among different cultures, primarily the Middle East. The idea appears several times in translations (Tirgumim) of the Old Testament.^[2] It was a widely extended belief among many Mediterranean tribes and cultures: It started in Classical Greece and later passed to ancient Rome.^[3][4]

Forms of belief

Ilya Repin, "Muzhik with an evil eye" (1877), portrait of I.F. Radov, the artist's godfather.

In some forms, it is the belief that some people can bestow a curse on victims by the malevolent gaze of their magical eye. The most common form, however, attributes the cause to envy, with the envious person casting the evil eye doing so unintentionally. Also the effects on victims vary. Some cultures report afflictions with bad luck; others believe the evil eye may cause disease, wasting, or even death. In most cultures, the primary victims are thought to be babies and young children, because they are so often praised and commented upon by strangers or by childless women. The late UC Berkeley professor of folklore Alan Dundes has explored the beliefs of many cultures and found a commonality—that the evil caused by the gaze is specifically connected to symptoms of drying, desiccation, withering, and dehydration, that its cure is related to moisture, and that the immunity from the evil eye that fish have in some cultures is related to the fact that they are always wet.^[5] His essay "Wet and Dry: The Evil Eye" is a standard text on the subject.

In many beliefs, a person—otherwise not malefic in any way—can harm adults, children, livestock or possessions, simply by looking at them with envy. The word "evil" is somewhat misleading in this context, because it suggests an intentional "curse" on the victim. A better understanding of the term "evil eye" can be gained from the old English word for casting the evil eye, namely "overlooking", implying that the gaze has remained focused on the coveted object, person, or animal for too long.

History

The amount of literary and archeological evidence attests to the belief in the evil eye in the eastern Mediterranean for millennia starting with Hesiod, Callimachus, Plato, Diodorus Siculus, Theocritus, Plutarch, Heliodorus, Pliny the Elder, and Aulus Gellius. In Peter Walcot's Envy and the Greeks (1978) he referenced more than one hundred of these authors' works related to the evil eye. Studying these written sources in order to write on the evil eye only gives a fragmented view of the subject whether it presents a folkloric, theological, classical, or anthropological approach to the evil eye. While these different approaches tend to reference similar sources each presents a different yet similar usage of the evil eye, that the fear of the evil eye is based on the belief that certain people have eyes whose glance has the power to injure or even kill and that it can be intentional or unintentional.

Classical antiquity

Roman-era mosaic from Antioch depicting a plethora of devices against the evil eye

Belief in the evil eye during antiquity is based on the evidence in ancient sources like Aristophanes, Athenaeus, Plutarch, and Heliodorus. There are also speculations that claim^[who?] Socrates possessed the evil eye and that his disciples and admirers were fascinated by Socrates' insistently glaring eyes. His followers were called Blepedaimones, which translates into "demon look," not because they were possessors and transmitters of the evil eye, but because they were suspected of being under the hypnotic and dangerous spell of Socrates.

In the Greco-Roman period a scientific explanation of the evil eye was common. Plutarch's scientific explanation stated that the eyes were the chief, if not sole, source of the deadly rays that were supposed to spring up like poisoned darts from the inner recesses of a person possessing the evil eye (Quaest.Conv. 5.7.2-3=Mor.80F-81f). Plutarch treated the phenomenon of the evil eye as something seemingly inexplicable that is a source of wonder and cause of incredulity.

The belief in the evil eye during antiquity varied from different regions and periods. The evil eye was not feared with equal intensity in every corner of the Roman Empire. There were places in which people felt more conscious of the danger of the evil eye. In the Roman days not only were individuals considered to possess the power of the evil eye but whole tribes, especially those of Pontus and Scythia, were believed to be transmitters of the evil eye. The phallic charm called fascinum in Latin, from the verb fascinare, "to cast a spell" (the origin of the English word "fascinate"), was used against the evil eye.

The spreading in the belief of the evil eye towards the east is believed to have been propagated by the Empire of Alexander the Great, which spread this and other Greek ideas across his empire.^{[citation needed]}

Distribution of the belief

Tree with nazars in Cappadocia, Turkey.

Belief in the evil eye is strongest in the Middle East, East and West Africa, Central America, South Asia, Central Asia, and Europe, especially the Mediterranean region; it has also spread to other areas, including northern Europe, particularly in the Celtic regions, and the Americas, where it was brought by European colonists and Middle Eastern immigrants.

Belief in the evil eye is found in Islamic doctrine, based upon the statement of Muhammad, "The influence of an evil eye is a fact..." [Sahih Muslim, Book 26, Number 5427].^[6] Authentic practices of warding off the evil eye are also commonly practiced by Muslims: rather than directly expressing appreciation of, for example, a child's beauty, it is customary to say Masha'Allah, that is, "God has willed it," or invoking God's blessings upon the object or person that is being admired.^[7] Aside from beliefs based upon authentic Islamic texts, a number of unsubstantiated beliefs about the evil eye are found in folk religion, typically revolving around the use of amulets or talismans as a means of protection.

Although the concept of cursing by staring or gazing is largely absent in East Asian and Southeast Asian societies, the Usog curse of the Philippines is an exception.

In the Aegean Region and other areas where light-colored eyes are relatively rare, people with green eyes are thought to bestow the curse, intentionally or unintentionally.^[8] This belief may have arisen because people from cultures not used to the evil eye, such as Northern Europe, are likely to transgress local customs against staring or praising the beauty of children. Thus, in Greece and Turkey amulets against the evil eye take the form of blue eyes, and in the painting by John Phillip, below, we witness the culture-clash experienced by a woman who suspects that the artist's gaze implies that he is looking at her with the evil eye.

Among those who do not take the evil eye literally, either by reason of the culture in which they were raised or because they simply do not believe in such things, the phrase, "to give someone the evil eye" usually means simply to glare at the person in anger or disgust.

Protective talismans and cures

Attempts to ward off the curse of the evil eye has resulted in a number of talismans in many cultures. As a class, they are called "apotropaic" (Greek for "prophylactic" or "protective," literally: "turns away") talismans, meaning that they turn away or turn back harm.

The Hamsa, a charm made to ward off the evil eye.

Disks or balls, consisting of concentric blue and white circles (usually, from inside to outside, dark blue, light blue, white, dark blue) representing an evil eye are common apotropaic talismans in the Middle East, found on the prows of Mediterranean boats and elsewhere; in some forms of the folklore, the staring eyes are supposed to bend the malicious gaze back to the sorcerer.

Known as nazar (Turkish: nazar boncuğu or nazarlık), this talisman is most frequently seen in Turkey, found in or on houses and vehicles or worn as beads.

A blue eye can also be found on some forms of the hamsa hand, an apotropaic hand-shaped talisman against the evil eye found in the Middle East. The word hamsa, also spelled khamsa and hamesh, means "five" referring to the fingers of the hand. In Jewish culture, the hamsa is called the Hand of Miriam; in some Muslim populated cultures, the Hand of Fatima. However, it is considered a superstition to practicing or religious Muslims that any symbol or object protects against the evil eye. In Islam, only God can protect against the evil eye.

In Islam

Evil eye, Isabat al-’ayn, is a common belief that individuals have the power to look at people, animals or objects to cause them harm. In Islam, God is the only one who can protect against the evil eye; no object or symbol can. Muhammad prohibited the use of talismans as protection against the evil eye because it is idolatry, the form of protection allowed being supplication to Allah.^[9] It is tradition among many Muslims that if a compliment is to be made one should say "Masha'Allah" (ما شاء الله) ("God has willed it.") and also "Tabarakallah" (تبارك الله) ("Blessings of God") to ward off the evil eye.

Assyrians

A Ruby Eye Pendant from an ancient civilization in Mesopotamia was possibly used as amulet to protect against evil eyes. Adilnor Collection.

The Assyrians are also strong believers in the evil eye. They will usually wear a blue/turquoise bead around a necklace to be protected from the evil eye. Also, they might pinch the buttocks, comparable to Armenians. It is said that people with green or blue eyes are more prone to the evil eye effect. A simple and instant way of protection in European Christian countries is to make the sign of the cross with your hand and point two fingers, the index finger and the little finger, towards the supposed source of influence or supposed victim as described in the first chapter of Bram Stoker's novel Dracula published in 1897:

When we started, the crowd round the inn door, which had by this time swelled to a considerable size, all made the sign of the cross and pointed two fingers towards me. With some difficulty, I got a fellow passenger to tell me what they meant. He would not answer at first, but on learning that I was English, he explained that it was a charm or guard against the evil eye.^[10]

In Judaism

The evil eye is mentioned several times in the classic Pirkei Avot, Ethics of Our Fathers. In Chapter II, five disciples of Rabbi Yochanan Ben Zakai give advice on how to follow the good path in life and avoid the bad. Rabbi Eliezer says an evil eye is worse than a bad friend, a bad neighbor, or an evil heart. Judaism believes that a "good eye" designates an attitude of good will and kindness towards others. Someone who has this attitude in life will rejoice when his fellow man prospers; he will wish everyone well. An "evil eye" denotes the opposite attitude. A man with "an evil eye" will not only feel no joy but experience actual distress when others prosper, and will rejoice when others suffer. A person of this character represents a great danger to our moral purity.^[11] Many Jews avoid talking about valuable items they own, good luck that has come to them and, in particular, their children. If any of these are mentioned, the speaker and/or listener will say, "b'li ayin hara", meaning "without an evil eye", or "kein eina hara" (often shortened to "kennahara"), "no evil eye".

Ethiopia

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In Ethiopia, it is believed that anyone could give you the evil eye. Women occasionally spit to the ground when ever they admire a loved one in order not to give them the evil eye. Buda (or bouda), in Ethiopian folk religion, is the power of the evil eye. Buda is generally believed to be a power held and wielded by those in a different social group, for example among the Beta Israel or metalworkers. Belief in the evil eye, or buda, is widespread in Ethiopia. The Beta Israel, or Ethiopian Jews, are often characterized as possessing buda. Other castes such as ironworkers are often labeled as bearing the buda. In fact, the word for manual worker, tabib, is also used to denote "one with the evil eye." The alleged evil power of the tabib is believed to be at a level similar to that of witches. Buda's alleged prevalence among outsiders correlates with the traditional belief that evil eye curses themselves are rooted in envy. As such, those allegedly possessing the power of buda might do so because of malevolent spirits. One study^[which?] specifies that they are believed to be "empowered by evil spirit". Niall Finneran describes how "the idea of magical creation underpins the perception of artisans in Ethiopia and in the wider African context. In many cases these skills have been acquired originally from an elemental source of evil via the paternal lineage, rather like a Faustian pact".^{[citation needed]} Ethiopian Christians will generally carry an amulet or talisman, known as a kitab, or will invoke God's name, to ward off the ill effects of buda. A debtera, who is either an unordained priest or educated layperson, will create these protective amulets or talismans.

Greece

The evil eye, known as μάτι (mati), "eye," as an apotropaic visual device, is known to have been a fixture in Greece dating back to at least the 6th century BC, when it commonly appeared on drinking vessels.^[12] In Greece, the evil eye is cast away through the process of xematiasma (ξεμάτιασμα), whereby the "healer" silently recites a secret prayer passed over from an older relative of the opposite sex, usually a grandparent. Such prayers are revealed only under specific circumstances, for according to superstition those who reveal them indiscriminately lose their ability to cast off the evil eye. There are several regional versions of the prayer in question, a common one being: "Holy Virgin, Our Lady, if [insert name of the victim] is suffering of the evil eye release him/her of it"^{[citation needed]} repeated three times. According to custom, if one is indeed afflicted with the evil eye, both victim and "healer" then start yawning profusely. The "healer" then performs the sign of the cross three times, and spits in the air three times.

Another "test" used to check if the evil eye was cast is that of the oil: under normal conditions, olive oil floats in water, as it is less dense than water. The test of the oil is performed by placing one drop of olive oil in a glass of water, typically holy water. If the drop floats, the test concludes there is no evil eye involved.

If the drop sinks, then it is asserted that the evil eye is cast indeed. An alternate form of the test is to place two drops of olive oil into a glass of water. If the drops remain separated, the test concludes there is no evil eye, but if they merge, there is. This is usually performed by an old lady, who is known for her healing, or a grandparent.

The Greek Fathers accepted the traditional belief in the evil eye but attributed it to the Devil and envy. In Greek theology the evil eye or vaskania (βασκανία) is considered harmful for the one whose envy inflicts it on others as well as for the sufferer. The Greek Church has an ancient prayer against vaskania from the Megan Hieron Synekdemon book of prayers (Μέγαν Ιερόν Συνέκδημον).

Italy and Sicily

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The cornicello, "little horn," also called the cornuto (horned), corno (horn) or cornetti (plural), is a long, gently twisted horn-shaped amulet. Cornicelli are usually carved out of red coral or made from gold or silver. The type of horn they are intended to copy is not a curled-over sheep horn or goat horn but rather like the twisted horn of an African eland or something similar.^{[citation needed]}

Some theorists^[who?] endorse the idea that the ribald suggestions made by sexual symbols would distract the witch from the mental effort needed to successfully bestow the curse. Others^[who?] hold that since the effect of the eye was to dry up liquids, the drying of the phallus (resulting in male impotence) would be averted by seeking refuge in the moist female genitals. Among the ancient Romans and their cultural descendants in the Mediterranean nations, those who were not fortified with phallic charms had to make use of sexual gestures to avoid the eye. Such gestures include the fig sign; a fist with the index and little finger extended and a fist with the thumb pressed between the index and middle fingers, representing the phallus within the vagina. In addition to the phallic talismans, statues of hands in these gestures, or covered with magical symbols, were carried by the Romans as talismans. In Latin America, carvings of the fist with the thumb pressed between the index and middle fingers continue to be carried as good luck charms.

The wielder of the evil eye, the jettatore, is described as having a striking facial appearance, high arching brows with a stark stare that leaps from his black eyes. He often has a reputation for clandestine involvement with dark powers and is the object of gossip about dealings in magic and other forbidden practices. Successful men having tremendous personal magnetism quickly gain notoriety as jettatori. Pope Pius the fourth was dreaded for his evil eye, and a whole cycle of stories about the disasters that happened in his wake were current in Rome during that latter decades of the nineteenth century. Public figures of every type, from poets to gangsters, have had their specialized abilities attributed to the power of their eyes.^[13]

Latin America

In Mexico and Central America, infants are considered at special risk for the evil eye (see mal de ojo, above) and are often given an amulet bracelet as protection, typically with an eye-like spot painted on the amulet. Another preventive measure is allowing admirers to touch the infant or child; in a similar manner, a person wearing an item of clothing that might induce envy may suggest to others that they touch it or some other way dispel envy.

One traditional cure in rural Mexico involves a curandero (folk healer) sweeping a raw chicken egg over the body of a victim to absorb the power of the person with the evil eye. The egg is later broken into a glass and examined (the shape of the yolk is thought to indicate whether the aggressor was a man or a woman). In the traditional Hispanic culture of the Southwestern United States and some parts of Mexico, an egg is passed over the patient and then broken into a bowl of water. This is then covered with a straw or palm cross and placed under the patient's head while he or she sleeps; alternatively, the egg may be passed over the patient in a cross-shaped pattern while saying the Lord's Prayer. The shape of the egg in the bowl is examined in the morning to assess success.^[14]

In some parts of South America the act of Ojear which could be translated as to give someone the evil eye is an involuntary act. Someone may ojear babies, animals and inanimate objects just by staring and wanting them. This may produce illness, discomfort or possibly death on babies or animals and failures on inanimate objects like cars or houses. It's a common belief that since this is an involuntary act made by people with heavy look, the proper way of protection is by attaching a red ribbon to the animal, baby or object, in order to attract the gaze to the ribbon rather than to the object intended to be protected.^[15]

Mexico

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Mal ojo often occurs without the dimension of envy, but insofar as envy is a part of ono, it is a variant of this underlying sense of insecurity and relative vulnerability to powerful, hostile forces in the enviornment. In her study of medical attitudes in the Santa Clara Valley of California, Margaret Clark arrives at essentially the same conclusion: "Among the Spanish-speaking folk of Sal si Puedes, the patient is regarded as a passive and innocent victim of malevolent forces in his enviornment. These forces may be witches, evil spirits, the consequences of poverty, or virulent bacteria which invade his body. The scapegoat may be a visiting social worker who unwitingly 'cast the evil eye' ... Mexican folk concepts of disease are based in part on the notion that people can be victimized by the careless or malicious behavior of others".^{[citation needed]}

Another aspect of the mal ojo syndrom in Ixtepeji is a disturbance of the hot-cold equilibrium in the victim. According to folk belief, the bad effects of an attack result from the "hot" force of the aggressor entering the child's body and throwing it out of balance. Currier has shown how the Mexican hot-cold system is an unconscious folk model of social relations upon which social anxieties are projected. According to Currier, "the nature of Mexian peasant society is such that each individual must continuously attempt to achieve a balance between two opposing social forces: the tendency toward intimacy and that toward withdrawal. [It is therefore proposed] that the individual's continuous preoccupation with achieving a balance between "heat" and "cold" is a way of reenacting, in symbolic terms, a fundamental activity in social relations."^[16]

United States

In 1946, the American magician Henri Gamache published a text called Terrors of the Evil Eye Exposed! (later reprinted as Protection against Evil), which offers directions to defend oneself against the evil eye. Also known as "Mean Muggin" among urban youths.

Names in various languages

In most languages the name translates literally into English as "bad eye," "evil eye," "evil look," or just "the eye." Some variants on this general pattern from around the world are:

• In Albanian it is known as "syni keq" (Gheg), or "syri i keq" (Tosk), meaning "bad eye."
• In Arabicو ʿayn al-ḥasūd (عين الحسود) "the eye of envy." ʿAyn ḥārrah (عين حارّة) is also used, literally translating to "hot eye."
• In German, it is called "böser Blick", literally "evil gaze".
• In Greek, to matiasma (μάτιασμα) or mati (μάτι) someone refers to the act of casting the evil eye (mati being the Greek word for eye); also: vaskania (βασκανία, the Greek word for jinx)^[17]
• In Hebrew, ʿayin haraʿ (עין הרע) "evil eye"
• In Hindi-Urdu and other languages of North India and Pakistan, nazar; nazar lagna means to be afflicted by the evil eye.
• In Hungarian, gonosz szem means "evil eye", but more widespread is the expression szemmelverés (lit. "beating with eye") which refers to the supposed/alleged act of harming one by an evil look
• In Italian, the word malocchio refers to the evil eye.
• In Japanese it is known as "邪視" (Jagan).
• In Macedonian it is known as урокливо око.
• In Malayalam it is known as kannu veykkuka - to cast an evil eye while "kannu peduka" means to be on the receiving end of the malefic influence. "kannu dosham" refers to a bad effect caused by an evil eye.
• In Persian it is known as "چشم‌ زخم" (injurious look/eyes causing injury) or "چشم شور" (Salty eye)^[18]
• In Portuguese, it is called "mau olhado", ou "olho gordo" (literally "fat eye"). Both expressions are quite common in Brazil.
• In Romanian, it is known as "deochi", meaning literally "of eye".
• In Russian "дурной глаз" (durnoy glaz) means "bad/evil eye"; сглаз (sglaz) literally means "from eye".
• In Sanskrit, an ancient Indian language, it is called "drishti dosha" meaning malice caused by Evil eye.
• In Serbian it's called Urokljivo oko (Cyr. Урокљиво око).^[19] First word is adjective of the word urok/урок which means spell or curse, and the second one means eye.
• In Spanish mal de ojo literally means "evil from the eye" as the name does not refer to the actual eye but to the evil that supposedly comes from it. Casting the evil eye is then echar mal de ojo, i.e. "to cast evil from the eye".^[20]
• In Tamil 'கண் படுதல்' (Kan padudhal) literally means 'casting an eye' (with an intention to cause harm)
• In Turkish nazar looking with kem göz meaning looking with evil eye

See also

John Phillip, The Evil Eye (1859), a self-portrait depicting the artist sketching a Spanish gypsy who thinks she is being given the evil eye.

• Amulet
• Balor of the Evil Eye – a character in Irish legend
• Basilisk Death glance/petrifying glance
• Cockatrice Death glance/petrifying glance
• Envy
• Eye of Horus – an Ancient Egyptian symbol of protection and power against evil.
• Eye of Providence – a symbol showing an eye surrounded by rays of light or a glory, and usually enclosed by a triangle.
• Eye of Sauron – a fictional eye from The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien
• Hamsa
• Harmal
• Medusa and Gorgon Petrification glance (Stone glance), picture also used on as protection from evil eye.
• Mirror armour which believed as protection not from only cold steel and arrows, but also from evil eye
• Nazar
• Nazar Battu - from North India and Pakistan
• Red string (Kabbalah)
• Sign of the horns-horned hand gesture used for warding off the Evil Eye and other purposes
• Thousand mile stare - a relatively common phenomenon that may be mistaken for the evil eye.
• Usog – a Filipino version.

Notes

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Evil eye

• Evil Eye Protection
• A Discourse on the Worship of Priapus by Richard Payne Knight (1786), mentions phallic charms against the Evil Eye in ancient Rome.
• The Evil Eye at Fortean Times
• The Evil Eye by Frederick Thomas Elworthy
• Evil Eye by Hakim Bey
• What is an "Ayin Hara" (evil eye)?