How Do I Protect Myself From The Evil Eye?

Shaykh Farid Dingle answers a question on how to protect oneself from the evil eye.

Question:

Salam,

How do we protect ourselves from the evil eye and jealousy, but without being excessive? For example if you have a child and you want to protect him/her from evil eye, do you just not post a photo of your baby? I don’t understand how to be moderate in it without being excessive in it. Please provide some guidance on this matter.

Answer:

Wa alaykum assalam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,

Dear questioner,

The Evil Eye

Please read this article first: http://seekers.flywheelstaging.com/ans-blog/2010/03/19/the-evil-eye-a-reality/

Ostentation

Showing off in one’s acts of worship, or in worldly possessions or achievements is forbidden. What is wrong with it is that one looks at a blessing that is from Allah, and ascribes it to one’s ownself. Then one seeks that it be seen by others so that one’s rank my rise in their eyes. This results in pride, and has been compared to polytheism: ‘Indeed even a slight amount of showing off is worshipping gods besides Allah.’ [Hakim]

Talking about one’s baby and showing pictures to others can be ostentation and haram. You have to look at your heart when you are doing it and after when people respond. If you are eager to get likes on your Facebook page, for example, or you are waiting for someone to show that they are impressed, or the opposite, you are crestfallen when you don’t get the attention you wanted, then it is ostentation.

If you feel this, you have to get it out of you heart and change your intention before you take an action. Otherwise, you will be acting upon ostentation and doing something forbidden and hated in Allah’s eyes.

It can also be a way of sharing the joy and thanking Allah. If all you want is to show others how happy you are with Allah, and there is not hankering in your heart for their praise then it is not ostentation, inshaAllah.

Breaking others’ hearts

Sometimes, even if we don’t mean to, we break other people’s hearts by mentioning a blessing in our lives that others don’t have. You mention how your baby is staying to coo and you hurt the person you are talking to because she doesn’t have a baby, or her baby has a disability.

This is not sinful if you don’t intend to harm them and you don’t know that it will hurt they feelings, but you do have to be careful.

‘The Most-Merciful only shows mercy to those who are merciful. Show mercy to those on Earth, and He upon high shall show you mercy.’ [Tirmidhi and others]

So you have to look at the scenario, and many other similar scenarios, from these three angles.

I pray this helps.

Farid

Checked and approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani