This article was co-authored by wikiHow Staff. Our trained team of editors and researchers validate articles for accuracy and comprehensiveness. wikiHow's Content Management Team carefully monitors the work from our editorial staff to ensure that each article is backed by trusted research and meets our high quality standards.
There are 11 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page.
wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. In this case, 85% of readers who voted found the article helpful, earning it our reader-approved status.
This article has been viewed 1,184,681 times.
Learn more...
The evil eye is a popular belief that somebody can voluntarily or involuntarily bring disease and disgrace to another person by looking at them, usually brought on by envy. In some cultures, the belief is focused on children, where someone can inadvertently give a child the evil eye by complimenting them, as it draws in negative energy. If you think you or your child is suffering from the evil eye, you can use the methods below to help diagnose and cure it.
Steps
Diagnosing the Evil Eye
-
1Notice the symptoms. The negative energy of an envious person can cause physical symptoms that are not related to a disease, such as weakness, eye infections, upset stomach, fever and nausea. Also, it is likely that the affected person will have personal, family or professional problems without any apparent cause.[1]
-
2Follow the coal method. This method is practiced in Eastern Europe. Simply drop a piece of charcoal into a pan of water. You can also use the head of a match that has burned. Sinking is a good sign, while floating means a person or child has been affected.[2]
- Usually a parent or healer performs these rituals, if the sufferer is a child. If not, the sufferer can perform them.
Advertisement -
3Try the wax method. Another method is to drip hot wax into holy water. Watch how the wax reacts. If it splatters, it means you or the child you are testing for have the evil eye. The same is true if it sticks to the side. People in the Ukraine employ this method.[3]
-
4Try the oil method. With this method, the person diagnosing the condition drops oil into water. If it forms an eye, the child is thought to have the evil eye. Another way is to pour oil over a lock of the affected person's hair into a glass of water (preferably holy water). If the oil sinks, then the person has the evil eye.[4]
Curing the Evil Eye
-
1Try the touch method. The easiest way to cure the evil eye, according to some, is to have the person who caused the evil eye touch the child. Since the evil eye is usually unintentional, the person should have no problem with simply touching the child. It doesn't matter where the child is touched. On the hand or forehead should suffice.[6]
- This belief is most prominent in Hispanic cultures.
- Evil eye is supposedly caused (sometimes) by a person complimenting a child without touching him or her.
-
2Use an egg. In Mexico and Latin countries, some parents use an egg. They pass the egg over the child's body, commonly a prayer is said along with this such as the Our Father, and then put the egg in bowl beneath the pillow. They leave it there during the night and check to see if the white is foggy in the morning. If it is, the child was affected by the evil eye. This method also cures the evil eye at the same time.[7]
-
3Try hand gestures. Some say that making certain gestures with your hand can ward off or cure the evil eye. One gesture is the mano cornuto, which is just a fist with the index and pinkie extended (horned hand). Point your hand down when making this gesture. Another is the mano fico, where you stick your thumb in between your index finger and middle finger (fig hand) in a fist.
- Some Italians carry a little red horn (corna) around by wearing it or keeping it on a key chain. The horn is worn in place of making the horned hand sign.[8]
-
4Find a six-sided mirror. One method said to cure the evil eye is the use of a mirror to reflect back bad energy. This method is used in China. You simply hang the mirror in a front window or on the front door.
- Some people in India also use mirrors to cure or ward off evil eye. However, instead of placing it in the home, small mirrors are sewn into clothes or worn on the body.
-
5Use a healer. Folk healers often provide cures for the evil eye. If you don't feel confident in healing the evil yourself, you can try a healer, who will perform the rituals for you.[9]
Preventing the Evil Eye
-
1Use a pink coral bracelet. Some suggest that putting a pink coral bracelet on your child will help protect against the evil eye. Others suggest having the child wear a buckeye has the same effect.
-
2Try a red string. In Jewish cultures, parents use a red string to fend off the evil eye. For instance, sometimes it's tied around a crib bar or the stroller handle.
-
3Have the baby wear a jet amulet. In some Hispanic cultures, babies wear an amulet made of black jet. Often, it's shaped as a small fist. You may see it with red and black beads on a gold chain.[10]
-
4Use the spit method. When someone gives your child a compliment, you can try spitting over your left shoulder three times and then touching wood (or knocking your own head) three times. This method is most often used in Russia.[11]
-
5Scatter salt. One Sicilian method of protection is to scatter salt on the floor inside the front door or outside the house. The salt (with innumerable grains) is supposed to confuse evil-casters.[12]
- Another method Sicilians use is the urine method, where everyone in the house pees in a bucket. Then the urine is spilled in front of the house.
-
6Try an eye charm. Many cultures use eye charms to protect against evil eye. You can wear one on a necklace, for instance, or use one as a key chains. In Turkey, these little charms are made out of blue glass, but other cultures make them out of other materials.[13]
Community Q&A
-
QuestionHow do I get rid of an evil person?
Community AnswerDon't allow the person to come to your house, and never share any personal information with him/her. -
QuestionHow do I remove buri nazar from my room?
Community AnswerPut salt in every corner of your room. Alternatively, place an eight-sided mirror in the entrance to your room. -
QuestionCan I still use it right now if the bad stuff happened years ago?
Community AnswerYes, you can even if the bad stuff happened long ago.
References
- ↑ https://www.livescience.com/40633-evil-eye.html
- ↑ https://www.ijsr.in/upload/108373904925.pdf
- ↑ https://www.ijsr.in/upload/108373904925.pdf
- ↑ https://www.ijsr.in/upload/108373904925.pdf
- ↑ https://www.ijsr.in/upload/108373904925.pdf
- ↑ https://www.purdue.edu/uns/html4ever/1998/9810.Posey.multiculture.html
- ↑ https://liberalarts.tulane.edu/news-events/publications/newsletter-archive/evil-eye
- ↑ http://siciliangodmother.com/2013/12/02/how-to-protect-yourself-against-the-evil-eye/
- ↑ http://www.dimensionsofculture.com/2010/10/folk-illnesses-and-remedies-in-latino-communities/
- ↑ https://dornsife.usc.edu/news/stories/2836/friday-the-13th-superstitions-and-luck/
- ↑ http://rbth.com/articles/2010/09/07/twelve_russian_superstitions04931.html
- ↑ http://www.animatedexplanations.com/italian-evil-eye-malocchio/
- ↑ https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20180216-the-strange-power-of-the-evil-eye
About This Article
To cure the evil eye, which is the idea that you can be cursed by someone looking at you malevolently, try passing an egg over your body while saying a prayer like the Lord’s Prayer. Then, leave the egg in a bowl underneath your pillow for a night to get rid of the evil eye. You can also try making a “Devil horns” sign by extending your index and pinky finger from your fist, then pointing them down at the ground to ward off the evil eye. If you think your evil eye was caused by someone giving you a compliment, ask the person to touch your hand or forehead to undo the spell. For more tips, including how to prevent giving a child the evil eye, read on!
