How to Protect Yourself from Unseen Threats

There are many unseen threats in today’s world that people may experience and be frightened of.  Whether these threats are real risks or only in a person’s imagination, it cannot hurt to take steps to protect yourself against those who wish you harm or against black magic or evil that exists in the world.

Understanding How to Protect Yourself from Unseen Threats

There is a specific phrase that can be used to describe the practice of trying to protect yourself from unseen threats or to describe the practice of trying to ward off evil. The phrase is called “apotropaic magic.”  The website Examiner.com provides comprehensive information about apotropaic magic and about the history of this practice of warding off evil.

The phrase apotropaic comes from Greek words. The word apotrepein means to ward off and is made up the prefix apo which means “away” and the suffix “trepein” which means “to turn.”

Apotropaic magic may involve specific practices or observances that are designed to prevent a specific type of harm or evil intent. This type of magic can also be used to bring general good luck and keep away the bad luck.  The right method of using apotropaic magic will depend upon what your belief system is and what you think are the potential threats that you may be faced with.

The Evil Eye

For example, apotropaic magic is frequently used in order to ward off something called the evil eye. The evil eye is a malevolent look that is believed to potentially cause injury or misfortune to someone that the look is directed at. Within some cultures, if someone gives you the evil eye, this could cause you to have something bad happen to you or to have bad luck.  The evil eye is frequently directed at people out of envy or jealousy, or because the recipient of the evil eye is disliked by the person who is giving it.

The evil eye or some variation thereof is something that exists in many different cultures and from people of many different religious backgrounds. For example, there are talismans and cures that exist in Islam, in Judaism, in India, in Greece, in Ethiopia, in Sicily and in Italy, and even within the United States.

In Judaism, the idea of the evil eye is mentioned in a story called Pirkei Avot, which translates to “Ethics of our Fathers.”  In the story, Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai has five disciples who give advice about how to avoid a bad path in life and stay on a good path.  The Rabbi’s lessons say that an evil eye is worse than an evil heart and is worse than both a bad friend and a bad neighbor.

An evil eye in Judaism is the opposite of the “good eye,” which is representative of kindness to others and of wishing someone well.  A person with an “evil eye,” on the other hand, does not feel any joy if someone else has good fortune. Instead, the evil-eyed person will rejoice when other people have bad luck or suffer and will feel jealousy, anger or distress if others prosper.

My Jewish Learning discusses some ways of warding of the Evil Eye.  One thing that is common is that when someone is praising others, he may say “let it be without the evil eye,” which means that the praise is not intended to come with a malevolent glance.

While there are no express symbols that are directly intended to ward off the evil eye, there are plenty of symbols in the Jewish religion that have meaning and that are intended to show faith.  You can visit www.yourholylandstore.com to find evil eye jewelry to protect yourself from the evil eye and to find different religious items and symbols that can bring luck to a person and provide protection.

In addition to items and practices that are designed to ward off a specific evil or general unseen threats, some people will also wear amulets in order to bring them good luck.  While it is not clear whether symbols actually bring you luck or protect from evil, there is no harm in doing whatever you feel you need to do to protect yourself and to bring positive energies into your life.