How to give someone the Malocchio

How to give someone the Malocchio

​Italians have a long and deep-rooted tradition of beliefs about luck and things that give either good or bad luck. In Italy there are colloquial names for bad luck. Think of:"sfiga" or "jella" (read it as "yella), but the most scary thing for millions of Italians is "Il Malocchio", which translate as "the evil eye".

Il Malocchio is a condition of unluckiness that comes from someone or something else. Its origin usually lies in envy and according to elders the bad luck can be caused intentionally and unintentionally. The origin of this belief can be dated back as far as the ancient Greeks and Romans. They believed in the negative power of envy. A state that can cause an enormous amount of bad luck to the envied subject. Humans were warned to not brag too much because even Immortal Gods could become jealous of human happiness and luck and destroy their life. Many Italian still don't say a baby or child is beautiful, neither do they want to hear someone saying this about their child. This can cause il Malocchio.

The Roman poet Catullus wrote to his lover, after asking her thousands and thousands of kisses "conturbabimus illa ne sciamus, / aut nequis malus invidere possit, / cum tantum sciat esse basiorum" that can be translated: we will mix and confuse all of them, so evil people will not be able to give us the evil eye because of this high number of kisses.

So, as you can see, talking about Malocchio is talking about the same origin of what nowadays is Italian culture. Besides knowing the origin of Malocchio and that avoiding making people too jealous is how to prevent it, it is very important to know how to find out if you are the subject of the evil eye. According to popular traditions there is a list of signs that may indicate this. Think of: being particularly goofy, losing things and missing opportunities, doing bad things while we usually do good which also can be felt as a sensation of illness and weakness.

To avoid and protect themselves from il Malocchio Italians use amulets. Protective gestures are very important. For example; when someone is talking with a lot of pride, he can use the expression "facendo corna" close the hand in a fist rising the forefinger and the little finger creating a pair of horns. Horns are a very powerful symbol to avoid il Malocchio and bad luck in general. Italians can make this gesture when they see someone that they consider particularly envious, able to bring bad luck or when someone is wishing something bad. Another gesture is touching something made of iron or touching the genitals (for men).


These gestures are considered particularly unclassy and no one makes them in a formal or elegant context.

The power of horns as phallic symbol can be reproduced using amulets in forms of horns: these amulets are called "cornetti" and are very common in Italy. They usually look like a red hot pepper, since they are colored in red. The color red is being used because in the past to obtain the the strongest effect the amulet had to be made from red coral. You can see "cornetti" against the Malocchio basically everywhere, hanging somewhere in Italian cars and places to take away the evil eye from that person, family or activity.



Onomastico

Yesterday : s. Andrea Today : s. Eligio Tomorrow : s. Bibiana

Many of our Italian relatives believe in superstitions. One of the more popular superstitions is the Malocchio (mal=bad occhio=eye) or the evil eye.

It’s the look that one person gives to another if they are jealous or envious.

According to Italian folklore, those giving the malocchio can cause harm to someone else.

Legend says it’s just another way of putting a curse on others that can cause physical pain such as head or stomach aches or even cause misfortune.

How to give someone the Malocchio

Protecting Yourself from the Italian Evil Eye Curse

What can you do to prevent the malocchio (often pronounced “maloik”) ?

Many Italians wear a horn (cornetto, corno, or cornicello) which resembles a chili pepper.

The horns are usually made of coral, gold or silver and are either worn as a necklace or hung in one’s home to ward off evil spirits. 

This horn tradition evolved in Old Europe when the horned animal (the moon goddess) was considered sacred.

They are a culturally popular amulet and are primarily found in Italy and in North America among descendants of Italian immigrants.

In some instances, the corno has become a symbol of Italian pride.

Besides wearing the corno, an old wive’s tale says that to diagnose someone with the evil eye, have them drop three drops of olive oil in a bowl filled with water. 

If the oil forms the shape of an eye, the victim has indeed received the malocchio. 

As the oil separates from the water, make the sign of the cross and say, “In the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.”

Then make the sign of the cross on both of your hands. 

As you do this, place your hands on the other person and say: “Father this prayer is being said for (insert name of victim) and I pray it works in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.”

The old wive’s tale then states that you must repeat this prayer three times. 

After that is done, both people must say one Our Father, one Hail Mary and one “Glory Be To the Father, Son and Holy Spirit as it was in the beginning is now and forever shall be.”

Sometimes this part is done by holding hands.

It is known that this prayer is the most effective on Christmas Eve, but, of course, it will still work during any time of the year! What are some other well-known Italian superstitions? Share with us your tales!

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How to give someone the Malocchio

Do you take 3 steps back when you see a black cat? Or have a rabbit’s foot on your keychain for good luck? Every culture has superstitions they believe in and so does ours. In Italian culture, the most common superstition is Il Malocchio, meaning an evil eye. Italians believe that if someone stares or glazes inspired by jealousy or envying your good looks or your success, gives you Malocchio. People believe that this way Italian curses you to have bad luck or misfortune. Think of how nonna looks at someone who has wronged her… 

How to give someone the Malocchio

The origin of Malocchio

There are traces of the evil eye superstition going back to Mesopotamia, five thousand years ago in the Sumerian region. Being one of the first known civilizations, people in this region engraved the earliest beliefs about the misfortune of the evil eye curse. 

There are writings in ancient books about the power of the evil eye. Dating back to the classical era, a period of intertwined cultural history of two civilizations, ancient Greece and ancient Rome. 

Many poets and authors like Hesiod, Plato, Plutarch, Pliny the Elder wrote about the evil eye.  Described by Pliny the Elder some African enchanters had the “power of fascination with the eyes and can even kill those on whom they fix their gaze”.

How to give someone the Malocchio

According to writings about the enchantments of the evil eye in religious books, like the Bible, the Quran, and the Jewish Talmud this spell can kill plants, crops and even can be the cause of people’s death. Here are just some of the writings from those sacred books: 

“I said to them, ‘Cast away, each of you, the detestable things of his eyes, and do not defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt; I am the LORD your God.’ (Ezekiel 20:7) 

The Quran states: “Say: ‘I seek refuge with the Lord of the Dawn, from the mischief of created things; From the mischief of darkness as it overspreads; From the mischief of those who practice secret arts; and from the mischief of the envious one as he practices envy’” (Quran 113:1-5). “For one who dies of natural causes, ninety-nine die of an evil eye” (Rab. Talmud: Baba Metzia, 107b). 

Nowadays this belief is passed through generations, transcending through time and cultural changes and it is still popular in the modern era. Nazal is the name for the evil eye in Turkey, Mal de Ojo in Central America and Mexico, Drishti in India, Zle Oko in Poland, as you can see the magic behind the evil eye is embedded in almost every county and religion worldwide.

How to give someone the Malocchio

The story

Everything surrounding us is energy. That’s why the ancestors believed that you can be cursed simply by bad energy sent your way. Ancient belief is that a person’s eyes are a window to the soul, and just an evil gaze with bad energy can cause someone misfortune and ill-feeling.

The belief about the power of Malocchio is not some supernatural power that “chosen” people can possess, but it’s a power of every ordinary man that is very jealous or harbor’s a great amount of envy for another man’s success, possession or looks. That’s why you won’t hear from Italian that everything in their life is perfect even if it is, they don’t want to attract unnecessary jealousy.  

If you have been casted a Malocchio you could experience severe headaches, nausea, even a loss of strength. The “diagnosis” of the Malocchio states that even if you have a strike of bad luck you’ve been cursed. Lifting of this curse goes through few “treatments” performed by “healer”, or so it is a belief in the countries of the Mediterranean region. 

The “healer” performs a ritual to determine if you have been a victim of the evil eye spell. It usually involves a bowl of water and oil drops. If the oil and the water mix you have been cursed, and if the oil stays on top of the water you are clean. Also, “healers” use milk and herbs to lift off the curse, accompanied with a sacred prayer to free the victim. 

People still use the healing properties of the herbs like basil and rue, and in some countries burning olive leaves release you from the evil eye causing misfortune. 

How to give someone the Malocchio

How to protect yourself from Malocchio

As protection from the Malocchio people use, different amulets, pendants or even hand gestures. In Italy, you can see amulets shaped like horns, usually in red color, silver or gold, called “cornetti”. 

The red “cornetti” can be easily mistaken for chili pepper. There are “cornetti” hanging everywhere, on keychains, in cars, on windows, basically every place that people believe needs to be protected from the evil eye of jealous and envious people. 

But still, the best protection is if you have a talisman on yourself, or as my grandmother would say, “wear more shiny jewelry to “catch” the eye of evil intended people.” 

In parts of Italy, people wear pendants, as a piece of jewelry made of stone, most common obsidian, coral or onyx decorated with silver, so it will absorb and fight off the bad energy caused by Malocchio, protecting the person who wears it. 

How to give someone the Malocchio

A common belief is that if the decorations of the necklace fall off, it has been full of bad energy and should be replaced with a new one. As a tradition, the talismans against Malocchio are gifted from older relatives to pregnant women and newborns. 

Religion advises using prayer to send back the bad energy to the sender to stop it affecting you reciting that you have Jesus and saints on your side. Or you can imagine a big mirror in front of you warding you from the malicious intent of the Malocchio and send it back to the sender. 

Summary

Even though there are things and feelings that we can’t explain, we simply know they exist. So believing in Malocchio or not you unconsciously you can feel someone’s gaze over you. And it’s up to you if you chose to wear some kind of talisman, repeat some prayer or ward yourself with an imaginary mirror. Or simply believe that by not giving power to the evil eye, the curse can’t get to you.  

How to give someone the Malocchio