What interpretation do we give to amulets?
We all know and have had the odd amulet in our hands. Luck, fortune, health... are some of the interpretations we give to amulets, but we really know what they represent or where they come from.
Amulets are small objects to which They are credited with the power to keep us away from evil and surround us with good and that, by carrying them with us, we feel protected. There are also those who have it as a protective element of a place.
We will see below if its origin lies in legends, ideologies or religion and if what we knew about amulets is really true.
Turkish eye, amulet against the evil eye
The Turkish eye or Greek eye, also called nazar, is one of the best-known amulets, traditionally made by hand using colored crystals in the shape of a flat drop and structured in concentric circles.
Is one of the oldest amulets in Eastern Europe used as a talisman against the evil eye and bad energy.
But where exactly does it come from? It goes back to the times of ancient Egypt and Babylon, they believed that the bad omens of the human being were projected in the eyes, since in them is the most expressive part of the body. As a result, the Turks created a talisman in the shape of an eye to, as they said, distract the evil eye and thus be able to always carry it with them and feel protected in their navigations.
Turkish boats always represented the eye to protect themselves from the dangers and incidents that could be found on the way.
The custom stems from this of wearing a Turkish eye as a shield against the evil eye and protection, it was said that with the amulet they felt safe and calm that nothing would happen to them.
Turkish eyeHand of Fatima, the amulet that provides protection
The hand of Fatima, also called Hamsa, is a symbol that, like almost all, provides protection and prevention from the evil eye, but not only that, but also brings fidelity, love or loyalty.
It is represented with five fingers, with the distinction that the thumb and the little finger are curved and equal, inside it can contain an eye in the middle, a star, a lotus flower or religious inscriptions.
One of the best known amulet stories is about a woman (Fatima), daughter of the Prophet Muhammad. It is said that while she was preparing a soup, she watched as her husband came home with another woman. So much was the pain that Fatima felt in her heart that she, without realizing it, plunged her own hand into the pot. She didn't hurt, she didn't burn. When she finally realized what had happened, it was her own husband who healed the burns on Fatima's hand, but her heart was already wounded and nothing could heal it. Since then, her hand has become a symbol of fidelity, purity and protection for women.
Fatima's handFour-leaf clover, the charm of nature
The reason why this plant was categorized as an amulet is because there are very few of them in nature, in fact, it is a genetic mutation.
To find the origin of this amulet we go to cultures like the Mayans, the Celts or the Egyptians. They had this amulet like that brings good fortune and, also, it is attributed to the Christian tradition and, specifically, to Saint Patrick.
The reason is that the legend says that Saint Patrick wanted to explain to the Celts the concept of "Trinity". For this he went out to look for a clover, but to his luck he found one with four leaves. For this reason, in Ireland this amulet has a strong trigger.
Druids living in the British Isles around 200 BC believed that it was a sacred symbol. With it they believed they were able to see the demons and prevent them from approaching them. For Christians it is also linked because the silver that Eve took from paradise was a clover.
Among all the versions of this amulet, we highlight the one that believes that each leaf is related to a specific aspect of life: health, money, love and prosperity.
But there are those who think that they are linked to more earthly aspects such as the cardinal points, the seasons of the year, the elements of nature or the phases of the moon.
four leaf cloverCross, protection against evil
the cross is the purest christian symbol that the Church maintains, where the concepts of divinity and the world are linked. There are also those who keep it as an amulet of protection against evil.
Some mystical interpretations interpret that the vertical portion represents the divinity of Jesus and the horizontal his humanity.
The cross appears centuries before the Christian era in Egypt among the hieroglyphs alluding to life, and was considered a powerful amulet. It also appears as an ornament in oriental and Greek garments without explicit meaning.
CrossRed thread, the legend of soul mates
There is a legend where it explains that people who are united by the red thread are destined to be soul mates, regardless of time or circumstances, they will meet at some point in life. The red thread can get tangled, stretched, stretched or worn... but never break. The quote reads bunk: "An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place or circumstances. The thread can stretch or contract, but never break.
For Chinese mythology human relations would be predestined by a red thread that the gods tie to the little finger of those who are destined to meet in life. The legend is firm: if destiny has prepared that you meet a specific person, it will be so.
This legend tells the story of an emperor who wanted a sorceress to find the woman of his destiny through the red thread. The sorceress and the emperor followed her red thread, which led them to a market where the thread stopped in front of a poor peasant woman who was sitting on the ground with a baby in her arms.
The emperor, seeing the poor woman, thought it was a mockery of the sorceress. He ordered her to stand up and pushed her to the ground with her baby in her arms, causing a large head injury. For the sorceress was ordered to cut off her head. Years later, when the emperor had to get married, he was recommended to marry the daughter of a great general. To his surprise, on the day of the wedding, when he saw the woman's face, he could see a scar on her head, caused by from a fall when he was a baby.
Red string braceletLetters and numbers, personal life memories
Generally, a number of initials accompany us throughout life, the initial of the name of your mother, father, partner, children... They are a number of memories and moments that we store and that tell about your personal life. The same thing happens with numbers, in our heads we have numbers that have followed us, that have brought us luck, or so we believe, and that we have special affection for.
Both the initials and the numbers are memories that we like to keep and want to take them with usTherefore, it is more common to see them in a number of places. We can mainly see them in Hanging o bracelets, even in personalized objects or tattoos.
Giving a pendant with an initial or a number has always been a success, a personal detail that everyone likes.
