EFFECTS OF EVIL EYE EXAGGERATED, SAYS PSYCHIATRIST

JEDDAH: The evil eye is something that people in the Kingdom — like those of other cultures and religions — generally believe in. However, many people exaggerate its effects and often develop a psyche to continuously attribute their unhappiness and illnesses to the concept.

The evil eye, which is known in Arabic as “Ain,” comes into effect when someone is jealous of another person. As a result, the person affected will feel an adverse effect, such as some sort of material harm.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) indicated that the influence of the evil eye is a fact. Saying Masha Allah (as God wills) when someone sees something appealing is a way of protecting others from the evil eye. It is customary to say Masha Allah, or invoke God’s blessings on the object or person that is being admired. Reciting certain verses from the Qur’an is used to protect one’s self from the evil eye.

In certain cultures, people burn incense sticks, hang the evil eye symbol in their homes, burn garlic peels and carry out wiping rituals. However, Islam considers such actions baseless. Prayers and a clean forgiving heart are what Islam preaches. The Islamic faith teaches believers to look toward those who are above them when considering righteousness and piety, and look toward those below them when considering their material physical wellbeing.

However, some people go to the extreme by believing that the evil eye is behind every difficulty that comes to them. Some wealthy people refrain from spending because they are afraid the evil eye might adversely affect them.

One mother of three, who asked her name not be published, is convinced that the evil eye will harm her family if they spend too much money or show off their opulence.

Her son, who used to own a Porsche while studying in Canada, believed that the evil eye caused him to crash his car. When he first brought the car to Canada from Jeddah, his mother put black seeds into it to protect it. (Black seeds are said to be useful for healing and curing especially if blessed with verses from the Qur’an.)

The woman’s son attributed the crash to the removal of the black seeds when he got the car cleaned.

Maha Ibrahim, a 28-year-old university graduate, said that she and her friends once befriended a woman.

“My friends and I started to hang out with this woman. The first time she joined us was at my friend’s house. When she first walked into the house, she noticed my friend’s new eyeglasses and commented on how nice they were. After a while, she accidentally broke them by sitting on them,” said Ibrahim.

Ibrahim said the woman came to visit her after she gave birth to her first child. The woman commented on how she was breast-feeding her baby. Sometime later, her breasts became affected with a strange type of eczema.

“On another occasion we were all at my friend’s house and the woman commented how beautiful the house and carpets were. At that time a charcoal from a hubble-bubble fell onto the carpet. The resulting burn looked like an eye,” she said. “This was when we decided not to contact her again.”

Dr. Saad Al-Khateeb, a senior consultant psychiatrist at the Jeddah Psychiatric Hospital, said that although Islam recognizes the effects of evil eye as a fact, some people overly attribute all sickness to the concept.

“As a psychiatrist and a Muslim I do believe in the evil eye but some people go to extremes,” said Al-Khateeb.

“If someone is affected with the evil eye and then falls in the street and breaks his leg, should he go to a doctor or a religious man? The result of the evil eye needs to be cured medically,” he added.

Al-Khateeb said psychologists do not study the evil eye. “If someone was affected with it then he or she should see a specialist, for example a religious man who cures using the Qur’an and not a magician who uses black magic. As psychiatrists we try to cure the illness ... we try to convince the patient that he or she needs help,” he added.

Al-Khateeb pointed out that some people attribute certain chronic psychological illnesses whose causes are unclear to the evil eye. “I also believe that the media plays a role in making people believe that evil eye is behind everything, such as a soap about black magic and the evil eye aired on MBC in Ramadan. If someone is a believer he or she would never be affected,” he added.

Laura Bashraheel - Arab News