The belief in the evil eye dates back to the bronze age, when eye-shaped amulets were first crafted. Hand-shaped charms were found in ancient Egypt, in Greece and in the Roman Empire.
The blue eyes are still very popular today and it is impossible to imagine the streets of Turkey without them. Nazar is the Arab word for »evil eye«. It is based on the belief that some people have a strong energy which they can use to bring pain, illness, or even death to other humans or animals.
This superstition includes the belief that objects that are gazed at with jealous eyes will break or shatter. In order to divert this
malicious energy, so called nazarlıks (ed. – Turkish for talisman or amulet) are worn.
The most popular are the blue eye-shaped talismans, but they also come in various other forms: Other examples include stones with holes, garlic, eagle talons, date seeds, eggshells, the eye of a sacrificed animal, antlers, nigella and cloves – all are used as a defence against evil.
Nazarlıks are supposed to attract the malicious energy and thus divert it from the human, animal or object that is targeted by the evil eye and break the talisman instead of the original target.
They are often attached to the clothes or pillows of newborns. Adults wear them as fashion accessories or actually believe in the influence of the evil.
In rural areas, the superstition is widely spread. This is why farmers attach protective charms to livestock, tractors, gardens and fields. As soon as a nazarlık breaks, they believe they have to be on guard against people with evil intentions.
According to the superstition, the typical eye-shaped form of the glass pearls has a strong connection with »büyü« (ed. – Turkish for witchcraft and sorcery). Legends ascribe a magic ability to the eyes to predict future events and identify or conjure evil. They can further serve as a shield for protection. Blue is a very strong and effective colour.
According to superstition, people with blue eyes may carry negative energy within them and should be avoided. Infants are often hidden from people with blue eyes.
Other protective measures are smearing your face with smoke, a
sh or mud, wearing safety pins on your underwear and spitting on seats that you previously sat on. What’s most fascinating about the evil eye isn’t its mere longevity,
but the fact that its usage has deviated little over the course of millennia.
We’re still affixing the evil eye to the sides of our planes in the same way that the Egyptians and Etruscans painted the eye on the prows of their ships to ensure safe passage. It’s still a tradition in Turkey to bring an evil eye token to newborn babies, echoing the belief that young children are often the most susceptible to the curse.
If, despite all precautions, someone is afflicted by the evil eye, they have to follow a very specific ritual: An adult person will have to say powerful prayers and end the exorcism with the words »uçtu, gitti« (ed. – Turkish for the evil eye flies, it goes away). Practices like the pouring of molten lead or freezing salt are also
supposed to drive away the negative energy.
The following practices are a bit more tricky:
Ash from the neighbour’s oven has to be stolen, mixed with water and then it has to be drunk.
Secretly, a piece of clothing from the person who possesses the power of the evil eye has to be cut off and burnt. A bit of salt from the house of the person commanding the evil eye has to be taken and burnt as well.
Even if the belief in the evil eye may appear primitive, it is a fixed element of everyday life. Whether the
superstitious notion of evil forces is true or merely an extension of cultural identity, we can’t determine. At least, now my friends know the meaning of the evil eyes.
