The concept of the evil eye and the incorporation of its image in jewelry and household decor is a very common idea throughout the world. Many cultures believe this symbol acts as a ward and can be used to protect yourself from negative energy and harm. But can you purchase this protection for yourself or must it be gifted from someone else in your life?
Can you purchase an evil eye for yourself?
Probably the most important rule of today’s “evil eye” symbols is that you shouldn’t buy one for yourself. Evil eye jewelry should be given as a gift by a friend or family member who wants to protect you, or it can be inherited and passed down from generation to generation once you are old enough to take care of the pendant/jewelry.
However, is this a hard-fast rule? The answer is no. Depending on where you are and what culture you interpret, the answer becomes unclear. Some countries believe it is bad luck to buy an evil eye for yourself while others don’t think it is such a big deal. While it isn’t their FIRST CHOICE, many don’t believe it is bad luck to buy a charm for yourself, they just wouldn’t do it if they could have someone else get one for them. So, if you don’t have someone to get one for you and you are in the market, feel free.
While we will get into the origins of the evil eye symbol in a bit, that distinction needs to be made clear, the malevolent glare from the talisman works either way as long as you believe.
Who normally receives the evil eye as a gift?
- Newborn babies
- Newlywed couples
- Someone starting a new job
- Divorced men and women
- Someone starting a new venture
- Someone who recently moved
- Someone coming out of a terrible situation
- Someone heading off to college
Is it bad to wear evil eye amulets?
In many cultures, it is customary for people to wear evil eye bracelets, necklaces, and rings, and is considered absolutely normal. The purpose of this symbol is to protect you from harm wished upon you by your enemies. Wearing the symbol of protection acts as a ward, a shield, and is a layer of spiritual protection against all bodily harm.
It is believed that evil eye charms provide protection from all kinds of negative things such as accidents, misfortune, evil spirits, bad energies, harm coming from other people (enemies), arrogance, and so on. This piece of jewelry is filled with protective power and the blue eye protection guards at all times. It is considered a protection talismans against evil energies and angry spirits and angry persons.
These charms are known to be passed down from one generation to another for a simple reason – they work. No matter what your religious or spiritual beliefs may be, wearing an evil eye bracelet or necklace will bring positive energy into your life.
What does the evil eye charm look like?
Ancient tradition says that evil eye malas are worn by men and women all around the world and usually have a string attached to them made out of leather or hemp. The Mala itself can be wrapped several times around your wrist for added protection.
You can carry or wear an evil eye charm to bring positive energy into your life.
In its simplest form, the basic design is a blue or white-colored symbol that consists of a “polygon with a circle in the middle” but they come in many different shapes and sizes according to each country’s individual culture. In general, it is considered that blue color or white color have their own protective powers which makes them perfect for this amulet.
Evil Eye Malas are typically made out of semiprecious stones, glass beads, gemstones, crystals, and metals with each having its own unique properties that can help protect us against negative energy. No matter what they are made of, the eye for protection will still work as a protective amulet.
Place The Evil Eye On Your Pet
If you have a pet, consider adding a charm with the evil eye bead to his/her collar and watch as they suddenly become the official guardian of your home. If you feel like you need an added extra layer of protection when you are alone in your house, this is one sure-fire way to surround yourself with a barrier of spiritual protection.
The Origin Of The Evil Eye
The myth of the evil eye is probably one of the oldest myths in human history but was not always represented by an eye symbol. It is believed that originally this power was associated with all sorts of round or oval-shaped symbols like circles, eggs, fruits, etc. The idea behind these objects was that they were complete and did not have any beginning or end. This made them perfect for representing eternity and immortality, two things that are usually associated with god/spiritual entities in many cultures around the world. That is why the sun, moon, stars other celestial bodies were often attributed to the power of the evil eye.
In ancient Greece, people believed that being exposed to sunlight gave them this power, and because the sun was a celestial body it had great spiritual significance in their mythology. This is probably why they were one of the first civilizations who created evil eye jewelry in the form of an undefined symbol (although at that time it wasn’t precisely seen as an eye).
The idea of using an eyeball as an evil eye symbol has probably originated around 1000 BC in Babylonian culture where people believed it would protect them from powers associated with the Storm god, which was very common in Mesopotamia during that period. It is possible that Ancient Greeks adopted this tradition after their military campaigns when they conquered areas like Anatolia or Syria.
Another theory about the origin of this belief is that it was a result of “one-eye” symbolism which was common in many religions.
One-eyed symbolism appeared in most civilizations throughout the world and usually represented spiritual/celestial power or evil eye. For example, in Hinduism, Shiva was known as “the one-eyed god”, and also had two other names associated with his third eye (Ajikan).
The first reference to an eyeball symbol as an evil eye has probably occurred around 400 BC when people believed that looking at someone with an all-seeing eye gave them this power. The idea was very common among ancient Romans who would frequently depict their gods (Jupiter) using single eye symbols on their headdresses, clothes etc.
The modern evil eye symbol which we all know today was probably developed by Hittites around 1300 BC. They were very skilled goldsmiths and created large quantities of different types of evil eye jewelry. Evil eye jewelry was especially common among royalty, which is why many people think that it actually originates from this culture, not Greece as previously thought.
This concept was adopted by Ancient Greeks around 500 BC who started using evil eye symbols in the form of metal disks or medallions with undefined shapes/forms. They often used these magical objects to decorate their shields so they would have protection during war campaigns against other cultures. During that time, there wasn’t just one universal evil eye symbol associated with power – every town/city had its own symbols which they believed would protect them from evil forces.
The most famous one was probably the Gorgoneion, which was originally an “eyeball” symbol with snakes protruding from it (probably representing spiritual/celestial power). However, in later times, this evolved into something known today as the “Gorgon mask” with scary features like sharp teeth and protruding tongue (usually seen on its head). It is very likely that one of the reasons for this transformation was to scare enemies during battle. The snake imagery stayed around but instead of being on top of eyeball, it had a more sinister appearance after the mask has been adopted by ancient Greeks.
This new version became so popular that even Romans started using Gorgon masks on their helmets and shields during military campaigns. Even today we can find this evil eye symbol in countless places like murals, mosaics, paintings etc.
And although we mentioned that Greeks adopted “one-eye” symbolism from other cultures (Hittites), it is possible that they influenced its usage in other cultures too. For example, according to Ancient Roman historian Pliny II (who was also a scholar), Egyptians would put an eye on top of their head to scare away crocodiles while traveling by boat on the Nile river.
This could mean that this tradition has originally come from Greece and then migrated into Egypt where people added additional elements like crocodile teeth and staff to hold the magic object with the all-seeing eye which would frighten away any negative forces.
While there are some experts who believe that the evil eye protection charm concept has its origins in Ancient Egypt (for example, Eye of Horus ), it is important to remember that most of what we know about Egyptian culture comes from relics that were left behind, not texts or documents describing traditions or beliefs. Because of this, it’s very hard to determine how much influence other cultures actually had on Ancient Egyptians, how much is based on personal belief, and how many elements in today’s evil eye protection symbols were incorporated into the Egyptian empire after it collapsed in around 4th century BC.