User:Bm153108/Mal de ojo

Mal de ojo

Mal de ojo is a concept widely found in Hispanic and Mediterranean cultures. It is a Spanish phrase which translated into English means "evil eye." The evil eye is a concept recognized by several cultures around the world, including some Jewish and Muslim cultures. In this article, the focus is on mal de ojo as perceived by Latin American and Hispanic cultures. It is believed that almost everywhere that mal de ojo exists, its effects are said to occur as a side-effect of envy or praise. There are mentions of the evil eye in the bible; Proverbs 23:6 "Eat thou no the bread of him that hath an evil eye, neither desire thou his dainty meat", as well as Proverbs 28:22 " He that hasteth to be rich hath an evil eye, and considereth not that poverty shall come upon him." This tie to religion may very well be the reason it is so prevalent in the Hispanic and Latin American cultures, where Catholicism is the dominant religion. There are many literary references referring to the evil eye throughout history, many of which stem from the Mediterranean region. Many references made about the evil eye can be traced back to Judaism and ancient Israel.

Mal de ojo is not unique to Hispanic cultures. Other cultures have similar beliefs of an "evil eye," including some in the Mediterranean region and some Muslim cultures.

Forms of Belief

In some forms, it is the belief that some people can bestow a curse on victims by the malevolent gaze of their magical eye. The most common form, however, attributes the cause to envy, with the envious person casting the evil eye doing so unintentionally. Also the effects on victims vary. Some cultures report afflictions with bad luck; others believe the evil eye can cause disease, wasting away, and even death. In most cultures, the primary victims are thought to be babies and young children, because they are so often praised and commented upon by strangers or by childless women. The late UC Berkeley professor of folklore Alan Dundes has explored the beliefs of many cultures and found a commonality — that the evil caused by the gaze is specifically connected to symptoms of drying, desiccation, withering, and dehydration, that its cure is related to moistness, and that the immunity from the evil eye that fish have in some cultures is related to the fact that they are always wet

In many forms of the evil eye belief, a person — otherwise not malefic in any way — can harm adults, children, livestock, or a possession, simply by looking at them with envy. The word "evil" can be seen as somewhat misleading in this context, because it suggests that someone has intentionally "cursed" the victim. A better understanding of the term "evil eye" can be gained from the old English word for casting the evil eye, namely "overlooking," implying that the gaze has remained focused on the coveted object, person, or animal for too long.

While some cultures hold that the evil eye is an involuntary jinx cast unintentionally by people unlucky enough to be cursed with the power to bestow it by their gaze, others hold that, while perhaps not strictly voluntary, the power is called forth by the sin of envy.

Causes

There are no known diseases in Western Medicine known to corellate with mal de ojo, however in severe cases it has similar symptoms of sepsis. It is usually caused inadvertently. When the symptoms experienced are not severe mal de ojo has been compared to Colic, in babies.

The causes of this disease differ from culture to culture. However, in most cultures, mal de ojo is believed to be a hex caused by the gaze of a stronger person looking with envy at a weaker person. It is believed that the unconscious energy of a more powerful adult is readily absorbed by a weaker person (such as a child or a woman), and as the reverberation settles down it causes the child to become sick. Another belief is that the evil causes living beings to "dry up" -- notably babies, milking animals, and nursing mothers or livestock. The symptoms of vomiting and diarrhea cause dehydration in the victim, causing them to "dry up". It is generally believed to only effect children, however it may effect women as well. The hex is usually caused inadvertently. In Italy, the evil eye is believed to affect men as well as children, nursing mothers, and dairy animals. When affecting men, it brings on impotence by drying up the semen. Here, protective aversions include making hand gestures called "mano fico" (fig hand) and the "mano cornuto" (horned hand).

Symptoms

Those affected may suffer symptoms including headaches, high fever in a child or infant, diarrhea, vomiting, sleeplessness, increased fussiness, crying and weeping without apparent cause. It is not fully known what diseases in Western medicine correlate with mal de ojo, however, in severe cases the symptoms are similar to those of sepsis and should warrant a medical evaluation. Cases of mal de ojo with frequent crying and no other symptoms are thought to be similar to colic.

Treatment

There are the traditional treatments used when the person who cast the evil eye is unknown or cannot be found as well as if they are known and can be found. A traditional treatment is to take the child (or woman) to a healer who will roll a raw chicken egg over the victim's body to absorb the power of the person who cast the "evil eye". The egg is then cracked, placed in a glass of water and examined. The shape of the yolk is thought to indicate whether the aggressor was a man or a woman. If a white membranous film appears over the egg, it means the person who give the evil eye is a man. If only an eye appears on the egg, it was a woman. Some traditions sweep the egg over the victims body and place it in a bowl of water, the bowl is then placed under the patient while he or she sleeps. In the morning the egg is examined to determine whether or not the patient has been cured. If the victim had a fever, the egg is believed to draw the fever from the individual, and will sometimes appear almost hard boiled when it is broken.The traditional treatment of mal de ojo in rural Mexico is to find the person who placed the hex and have them touch the affected person. If the person who caused to evil eye is identified and found, they will transfer three mouthfuls of water from the mouth of the person casting the evil eye to the mouth of the victim. In Muslim cultures, when a child returns home after being taken out among strangers, the parent will light a charcoal disk and burn on it the seeds of an Aspand plant, while reciting a spell against the evil eye and directing the smoke around the child. This is done as a prophylactic measure, without waiting for symptoms of the evil eye to occur.

Prevention

It is thought that shielding infant's from powerful peoples' direct eye contact can prevent mal de ojo. Having the powerful adult touch the child on the head is also thought to prevent the hex. Some cultures believe that one can tie a red ribbon around the child's wrist or ankle, in order to hold the attention of an onlooker, distracting their gaze from the child.

Often, mal de ojo is circumstantially diagnosed. For example, the child was well in the mornings, was taken out among strangers, and became sick.

A mother whose child has once been struck by the evil eye will often take preventative measures for the child to prevent mal de ojo from occurring in the future. These measures differ greatly from culture to culture. In many cultures they take the form of a charm or amulet. In Mexican cultures, a large brown legume seed that resembles an eye, called ojo de venado ("deer's eye"), is hung from a red cord and outfitted with a fluffy red tassel and a holy print of a saint. It can be worn on the person, hung over the baby's crib, or dangled from the rear-view mirror of a car to ward off the evil eye.

The Evil Eye

Mal de ojo ("evil eye") is an ethnomedical condition common to Latin America. It is a childhood illness characterized by fever, headache, and irritability. The cause of this illness is from an envious gaze from a nonrelative. The cure is for a family member or care giver to touch the child being complimented (called ojo).

References:

• http://altmed.creighton.edu/MexicanFolk/mal_de_ojo.htm
• http://www.sfbardo.com/maldeojo.htm
• http://anthro.palomar.edu/medical/med_1.htm
• http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/mal+de+ojo

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mal_de_ojo

Magic

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MELANIEJ09 - YOU HAD A VERY INTERESTING TOPIC TO WRITE ABOUT. I HAVE NEVER HEARD OF THIS DISORDER AND IT'S STRANGE THAT PEOPLE BELIEVE THAT A HEX COULD BE PUT ON THEM BY SOME ONE LOOKING AT THEM WITH AN 'EVIL EYE.' YOUR CONTENT WAS VERY INFORMATIVE.

SR151597- VERY GOOD ARTICLE. VERY WELL WRITTEN AND ORGANIZED. WOULD LIKE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THE "DRYING UP". IT IS INTERESTING.

KAT163059 - DID YOU FIND ANY COMPARISON BETWEEN THIS AND VODOO RITUALS IN THE U.S.? THIS IS A VERY INFORMATIVE TOPIC AND INTERESTING TO READ.

CLG1124 I LIKED THE ARITICLE. IT IS VERY GOOD. I LIKED THE DRYING UP PROCESS INFORMATION. ALSO DID YOU FIND WHY THEY CAME UP WITH THE RAW EGG FOR DETERMINING WHO PUT THE HEX ON THE PERSON. I THOUGHT THAT WAS VERY INTERESTING.

MISSY071407- I REALLY ENJOYED READING ABOUT YOUR ARTICLE. IT IS VERY INTERESTING.