Friday the 13th and Other Superstitions

Yesterday was Friday the 13th, which according to superstition is a very bad, especially if you see a black cat. There’s an actual phobia associated with the 13th, people even call in sick to avoid anything bad from happening to them, even in apartment buildings here, there’s no 13th floor mentioned on the elevator, instead they jump from 12 to 14. The origin of the superstition is believed to come from the day that Jesus was crucified, it is said that on Friday the 13th Jesus was put on the cross. What’s my stand point on this? I think it’s a bunch of crap, Friday the 13th is just like any other day, and there’s no point to be scared. In fact all superstitions are nonsense, to me there’s no supporting evidence to any of them, and therefore they should not be taken too seriously. Don’t get me wrong though, I enjoy learning about other cultures’ superstitions. I think superstitions are an interesting part of culture just like proverbs and even art, but my appreciation for superstitions stops there.

We (Arabs) have our share of superstitions, one of the ones that automatically pops into my head is “Kharaze Zar2a.” For readers not familiar with it, it’s a little blue bead usually place within an eye (made of gold), or on a gold broche which is worn by babies. It is believed that the blue colour repels “El Hisde” (envy). Furthermore, It is believed that if someone envies you about a particular detail in your life, your fate will turn 180 degrees. For example if you’re rich and someone envies you, you’ll most likely become poor.

Envy is directly related to the eye, since to observe something, you need to see it. So it’s very common to hear of 3in (eye), and hence why the blue bead is placed within the eye (mentioned earlier).

Last time I went to Syria, every time I would hold a baby, go into someone’s new house, I would say “oh look at those cheeks”, or “I love fat babies” or “very roomy house” and then I would smile and stop. Meanwhile one of my aunts, cousins, or whoever is around at the time comes in to the rescue and mentions the two words that will protect the babies/house owner from envy. They would say Mashalla (one word in English, two in Arabic). Being so isolated from Arabic culture, I didn’t realize the power of Mashalla, and how often I should use it to shield people from my envy. I guess the eye is treated like an AK47 machine gun, always on a rampage shooting those who are rich, successful, good looking, etc….

By the end of my trip I was starting to force my self to say Mashalla, just so people wouldn’t think I’m envying them. I was saying “Mashalla, mayyet isham ma fi atiab minna” (Mashalla Damascus’ water is so good) or “Mashalla, el jaou kteer 7ilo barra,” (Mashalla the weather outside is great) I was even afraid nature would be under the attack of my envy.

Maybe I exaggerated a bit, very few Arabs actually believe that something bad will happen if you don’t say Mashalla. But through the years “Mashalla” has made it’s way to every day language. I think at one point, many believed in superstition, and that’s understandable. But please, if I ever talk to you in person, don’t expect me to say Mashalla too much. And when you talk to me I don’t expect you to say anything me.

PS While I was searching for an appropriate image, I learned that numerous other cultures believe in the “Evil Eye.” So it turns out we’re not the only ones :)



An example of the little ornaments used to repel envy