Hi everyone,
Here is a BBC article on the power of the Evil Eye and its continued presence even today.
http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20180216-the-strange-power-of-the-evil-eye
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When it comes to warding off the mystic malevolent forces of the world, there is perhaps no charm more recognised or renowned than the ‘evil eye’. Ubiquitous in its use, the striking image of the cobalt-blue eye has appeared not only in the bazaars of Istanbul, but everywhere from the sides of planes to the pages of comic books.
In the last decade, evil eye imagery has most frequently appeared in the world of fashion. Kim Kardashian has been photographed on numerous occasions sporting bracelets and headpieces featuring the symbol, while fashion model Gigi Hadid jumped on the trend in late 2017, announcing that she would be launching the EyeLove shoe line.
This recent endorsement from A-list celebrities has resulted in the surfacing of countless online tutorials for making your own evil eye bracelets, necklaces and keychains. Though all this attention would suggest the evil eye is seeing a sudden surge in popularity, the truth is that for thousands of years the symbol has maintained its steady hold on the human imagination.
In essence, the curse of the evil eye is not a complicated concept; it stems from the belief that someone who achieves great success or recognition also attracts the envy of those around them. That envy in turn manifests itself as a curse that will undo their good fortune. The concept is well captured by Heliodorus of Emesa in the ancient Greek romance Aethiopica, .....
Belief in the evil eye has transcended mere superstition, with a number of celebrated thinkers attesting to its veracity. One of the most notable examples was the Greek philosopher Plutarch, who in his Symposiacs suggested a scientific explanation: that the human eye had the power of releasing invisible rays of energy that were in some cases potent enough to kill children or small animals.
With such an ardent and widespread belief that a stare held the power to inflict catastrophic misfortune, it’s no surprise that the people of these ancient civilizations sought out a means to repel it, which led to the earliest iterations of the nazar amulet that we know today.
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.
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Cheers.
Sriram
Nice.
However, the Greek bloke nicked the concept from Egypt (Most Greek ideas were nicked from Egypt and 'Hellenised.)
The original was the Wadjet - - the eye of Horus, supposedly the falcon aspect of Re-Horakhty which supervised Ma'at.
It was allso symbolic of the 'Ba' - an aspect of the soul which lived on after mummification.
Two painted eyes were often shown on the side of coffins of the Middle kingdom - the body being laid on its' side in the rectangular coffin - so that the body could see the tomb contents (food, drink, model slaves, etc) and be refreshed in the afterlife.
The eye thus became a charm, an amulet, and now a Hollywood craze.
