The Evil Eye

After we moved to Almaty we noticed that people avoid looking at others and making eye contact. It took a little bit of time but we eventually realized that people avoided looking at us, and specifically Addie, not because they were cold and uncaring, but out of respect. Why would you purposefully not look at a child out of respect?? It all goes back to the Evil Eye.

And not this Evil Eye.



Many cultures have a belief in the evil eye and each is unique to country, culture, and people, but there are some shared or commonly held ideas regarding the evil eye. I can't say that I completely understand it, but I'll try and share what I do know.

The evil eye is a belief that if you look at something or someone--especially a baby--and admire it, compliment it, or covet it, it will be lost or harmed in some way. Most instances where the evil eye is "cast" are accidental, but wealth, health, good fortune, and happiness are believed to be lost nonetheless.

What's a girl to do with all this bad mojo going on??

In our area many people carry an amulet or wear beads with the blue eye on it. This design is often called a nazar. (If you follow the link it will show a picture.) These talismans are believed to protect the holder from the evil eye and we've seen little children wearing little bracelets or pins with the bead on them.

People will also "spit" after giving compliments, attention, or adoration. The spitting is usually just a "ptw, ptw" noise and gesture, but some people do get a little over zealous. Luckily, we haven't run into that type often.