Nazar-e-Bad (the evil eye) is an ancient concept found across various nations of the world. During the early era of Islam (Sadr-e-Awwal), the enemies of Islam intended to enlist the services of those individuals from Arabia who were notorious for casting a destructive evil eye, in order to harm Islam. Their claim was that whichever object they looked upon with the intention to harm would be instantly destroyed. Allah Ta’ala safeguarded the Holy Prophet ﷺ from their malice, and all the tactics of these ill-intentioned individuals failed. Their malicious mischief has been described in the Holy Quran as follows:
وَإِن يَكَادُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا لَيُزْلِقُونَكَ بِأَبْصَارِهِمْ لَمَّا سَمِعُوا الذِّكْرَ وَيَقُولُونَ إِنَّهُ لَمَجْنُونٌ (Surah Al-Qalam, 68: 51) Translation: “And indeed, those who disbelieve would almost make you slip with their eyes (out of hatred/envy) when they hear the Message, and they say, ‘Indeed, he is mad.'”
In this Ayat, there is an indication of the transmissive capacity of harm within Nazar-e-Bad, which can actively affect the body and soul of another human being. Accordingly, the blessed declaration of the Holy Prophet ﷺ states:
الْعَيْنُ حَقٌّ وَ نَهَی عَنِ الْوَشْمِ Translation: “The casting of the evil eye is a reality, and he (the Holy Prophet ﷺ) forbade tattooing.” (Bukhari, Al-Sahih, 5: 2167, No: 5408, Beirut, Lebanon: Dar Ibn Kathir Al-Yamamah) (Muslim, Al-Sahih, 4: 1719, No: 2187, Beirut, Lebanon: Dar Ihya al-Turath al-Arabi) (Ahmad bin Hanbal, Al-Musnad, 2: 319, No: 8228, Egypt: Muassasast Qurtuba)
Hazrat Abdullah bin Abbas (رضی اللہ عنہ) narrates that the Holy Prophet ﷺ stated:
الْعَيْنُ حَقٌّ وَلَوْ کَانَ شَيْئٌ سَابَقَ الْقَدَرَ سَبَقَتْهُ الْعَيْنُ وَإِذَا اسْتُغْسِلْتُمْ فَاغْسِلُوا Translation: “The evil eye is a reality; if there were anything that could overcome destiny (Al-Qadar), it would be the evil eye. And when you are asked to perform a ritual bath (for the treatment of the evil eye), then wash.” (Muslim, Al-Sahih, 4: 1719, No: 2188) (Ibn Hibban, Al-Sahih, 13: 473, No: 6107, Beirut: Muassasat al-Risalah)
What is Al-Ayn?
In the Arabic language, Nazar-e-Bad is referred to as “Al-Ayn”. It is linguistically stated: “عَانَ الرجل“ (“Aana al-rajul”), meaning that he cast an evil eye upon such-and-such person. The individual who casts the evil eye is called “Aain”, whereas the one who is affected by the evil eye is called “Ma’een” or “Ma’yoon”. The structural difference between them is that if the evil eye has not fully taken root, the person is called “Ma’een”, and if it has completely integrated its effect, they are called “Ma’yoon”. Approximately the same differentiation has been outlined by Imam Al-Zajjaj.
The Terminological Definition of Nazar-e-Bad
The true nature of Nazar-e-Bad is that the person casting the gaze sometimes looks even with an appreciative eye, but it becomes blended with the envy (Hasad) of a corrupted nature, thereby causing harm to the person being looked upon.
Imam Ibn al-Qayyim (علیہ الرحمہ) states: “The evil eye (Nazar-e-Bad) is like an arrow that shoots forth from the soul of an envious (Hasid), wicked, and ill-natured individual toward another person. This arrow sometimes penetrates the target and sometimes misses. Meaning, if this arrow strikes the person facing it and they lack the inner strength and protection to shield themselves, it penetrates them, leaving them troubled and distressed. However, if a capacity for defense and resistance (Mudafiat) is found within the target, this arrow fails to manifest its effect; in fact, sometimes this arrow recoils back upon the archer himself. This is because Nazar-e-Bad is identical to a physical arrow in its function; the only difference is that a physical arrow deals with physical bodies (Ajsam-o-Abdan), whereas this arrow deals with souls and spiritual essences (Nufoos-o-Arwah).”