Evil eye

[1] It is found in many cultures in the Mediterranean region, the Balkans, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, South Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, and Latin America, with such cultures often believing that receiving the evil eye will cause misfortune or injury,[2] while others believe it to be a kind of supernatural force that casts or reflects a malevolent gaze back upon those who wish harm upon others (especially innocents).

[18] In Greek Classical antiquity, the 'evil eye' ("mati") is referenced by Hesiod, Callimachus, Plato, Diodorus Siculus, Theocritus, Plutarch, Heliodorus, Pliny the Elder, and Aulus Gellius.

[20] The fascinus or fascinum, from the Latin verb fascinare "to cast a spell" (the origin of the English word "fascinate"), is one example of an apotropaic object used against the evil eye.

[25] The phallic charms were often objects of personal adornment (such as pendants and finger rings), but also appeared as stone carvings on buildings,[26] mosaics, and wind-chimes (tintinnabula).

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.

Talmudic exegete, Rashi, says in the wake of the words of Israel's Sages that when the ten sons of Jacob went down into Egypt to buy provisions, they made themselves inconspicuous by each entering into a separate gate, so that they would not be gazed upon by the local Egyptians and, thereby, trigger a malevolent response (the Evil eye) by their onlookers, seeing that they were all handsome and of brave and manly dispositions.

[43] In halachic literature there are a few customs that deal with situations that can attract the evil eye, such as one looking at a friend's field when his crops are ready for harvest.

[48] In Islam, the evil eye, or al-ʽayn (Arabic: العين, also عين الحسودة), is a common belief that individuals have the power to cause harm to people, animals or objects, by looking at them in a way that indicates jealousy.

[50] The evil eye causes its victim to become unwell the next day, unless a protective phrase such as "with the will of God" (mashallah in Arabic) or “May Allah Bless You” (Alhumma Barik) is recited.

Objects that are traditionally used by Albanians for prevention, protection, and healing from the evil eye are: fire (zjarri), smoke, ashes and embers, and fire related metallic objects; serpent/snake (symbolism, as well as amulets with snakeskin and snake head); garlic; house carvings and house dolls (dordolec in human shape or kukull in animal shape); amulets or pendants made with thunderstones (kokrra e rrufesë or guri i rejës), wolf teeth, seashells; etc.

[57][58] A typical ritual performed by the oldest woman of the family consists in taking a bunch of dry grass and burning it somewhere near the cloth that is being woven, so that the smoke goes towards it.

It may have an "attack of fever".’[67] Bracelets made of jet beads are traditionally given to newborns to wear as a preventative measure, while elders also recommend securing a bag of blue dye to the baby's clothes.

In some instances, the cocoyea broom is measured against a particular part of the body at the beginning of the ceremony, and it is believed to be confirmation of najar if the recorded length has changed by the end of the session.

In the Afro-Caribbean Spiritual Baptist and Orisha-Shango traditions, a special piece of jewelry called a 'guard' will be blessed by an elder, who invokes its protection on the wearer.

It 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.

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."

[73] Cultures that have nazars or some variation include Turkey, Romania, Albania, North Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, Palestine, Egypt, Armenia, Iran, India, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Türkmenistan, Iraq and Azerbaijan,[74] where the nazar is often hung in homes, offices, cars, children's clothing, or incorporated in jewellery and ornaments.

Some Ethiopian Christians carry an amulet or talisman, known as a kitab, or will invoke God's name, to ward off the ill effects of buda.

Some truck owners write the slogan to ward off the evil eye: "buri nazar wale tera muh kala" ("O evil-eyed one, may your face turn black").

People hang pictures of fierce and scary ogres called drishti bommai in their homes or vehicles, to ward off the evil eye.

Pope Pius IX 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 the latter decades of the 19th century.

Amulets that protect against mau-olhado tend to be generally resistant, mildly to strongly toxic and dark plants in specific and strategic places of a garden or the entry to a house.

For those lacking in space or wanting to "sanitize" specific places, they may all be planted together in a single sete ervas ("seven [lucky] herbs") pot, that will also include basil and rosemary.

One traditional cure in Latin America 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.

In the traditional Hispanic culture of the Southwestern United States and some parts of Latin America, the egg may be passed over the patient in a cross-shaped pattern all over the body, while reciting The Lord's Prayer.

The idea of mal de ojo is therefore connected to other traditional beliefs in the country regarding a supposed underlying sense of insecurity and relative vulnerability to powerful, hostile forces in the environment.

In a study of medical attitudes in the Santa Clara Valley of California, which has many Mexican-descent inhabitants, 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 environment.

The scapegoat may be a visiting social worker who unwittingly '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".

According to Currier, "the nature of Mexican 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.

Physical symptoms can include: loss of appetite, body weakness, stomach ache, insomnia, fever, nausea, eye infections, lack of energy, and temperament.