Have you ever told someone something that you’re about to do prematurely and then kicked yourself because it hasn’t happened yet and now you’ve put the evil eye- or nazar- on it so it’s not likely to ever be fulfilled?!

If you’re not Muslim you might knock on wood to protect what you just said. If you’re Muslim you might say inshaAllah, God Willing or for stronger protection (when speaking about children or property), mashaAllah la quwatta illa billah- God has willed and there is no power or might except His- as a reminder that simply mentioning something prematurely (it’s quite common when admiring something too) doesn’t give the person power to change anything; it works as a reminder that God is still in charge

This is funny but also true because sometimes one believes that ‘the evil eye’ is actually evil and occurs because of ‘the green eye’ -jealousy- but other times, we just see it as something we ‘jinxed’ by speaking about it too early, indeed my little sister speaks about ‘self-nazar’. So you can actually jinx yourself! The best way to protect yourself from this is to refrain from speaking about things before they have been manifest and maybe even being mindful, whilst speaking, that everything is from the Almighty and not from yourself at all- and there is no pride in that!!

There is no evidence in Islam to say that it is a practice of the Muslims to wear an amulet for protection. However, now that we’ve established it’s real and has been around for centuries, we need to remember that the way of protecting oneself is by saying the prayers that have been taught to us, with presence of heart and with reflection on the profound meanings of these words:

1. The 3 Quls (morning and night, three times each.) It is also ideal to say them once after every prayer.

2. One should do likewise with Ayat al-Kursi: recite it every morning and night, and ideally after every prayer.

3. One should constantly supplicate (dua) to Allah to protect one from the evil eye.

أَعُوذُ بِكَلِمَاتِ اللَّهِ التَّامَّةِ مِنْ كُلِّ شَيْطَانٍ وَهَامَّةٍ وَمِنْ كُلِّ عَيْنٍ لَامَّةٍ

a`udhu bi kalimaatillahi ttaammati min kulli shaytaanin wa haamma wa min kulli `aynin laamma

I seek refuge in Allah most perfect words from every devil, harmful thing, and accusing eye

I think it’s important to note that we do actually believe in the ‘Evil Eye’ and that ultimately the Power is from Allah but that He has created harmful effects from jealousy and glances from other people who wish harm upon us, may He protect us!

Turn to Him for help and closeness and a connection and you will not be disappointed inshaAllah!

The fact that people may want to do you harm, should not inhibit your actions or limit the things that you aspire to achieve in your life. We must always remind ourselves that Allah is in Control and, in reality, as long as we ask Allah for protection we should have that conviction that we will be protected in the best way and then we must get on with our lives.

Remember that if the whole world were to gather together before you and do some harm they wouldn’t be able to without the will of the Almighty. Even though we have free will, we believe in destiny and that’s why we shouldn’t worry too much about these things. We should read the prayers of protection and move on.

It’s a funny thing in our culture that when something happens to a family member then the first thing we think of is nazar. We must refrain from thinking like this, especially if there is was a way to prevent the occurrence (for example the person getting ill could have been prevented by healthier eating and introducing exercise).

Mental illnesses are usually put down to issues with the jinn. Although this can, in fact, happen it’s actually quite rare and a lot of these mental health issues are usually because of lack of Vitamin D or some other easily repairable issue. It’s always best to go to a Psychiatrist who’s trained in dealing with these things rather than making baseless assumptions. My husband is a Psychiatrist (mashaAllah la quwatta illa billa!!) and he comes across many cases where the family of the patient have delayed getting professional help because they were too busy looking for that peer or this peer (mystical scholar). A warning here to beware of the phony peers too! Be wary if they ask for money! That’s a sure sign that something’s a bit off.

Make dua, the prayers, and get professional help if there is a mental issue and you will be protected inshaAllah. May Allah always protect you and guide you. Please keep us in your duas.

So that’s it from me for now,

Until next time,

Peace and Love,

Sidra Ansari

PS To help me on my journey to enoughism I will write down 3 things I am grateful for at the end of each post. These are:

1. My new job. Praise the Lord, it’s great to be back in the working world!

2. Meeting other mums always inspires me, especially if they’ve got older kids, as it’s a subject I’m always wondering about, with it being the ‘next stage’ for us to go through. It’s good to swap stories and tips. A mother I met today spoke about her 22 year old son, finally ‘returning’ after being so difficult from the age of 17 upwards. It’s hard to hear stories like this- 5 years of craziness! But also, it’s quite hopeful as he did ‘come back’! I can’t imagine how that would feel if it happened to us. May God help us!

3. Feeling excited about a couple of writing competition opportunities via Twitter. I don’t know if I’m going to enter them yet, but it’s fab to be in touch with the right people and have a choice. Will keep you posted!

Take care my dears,

I’ll be in touch,

Sidra ❤

P.S.S Don’t forget, my book Finding Peace Through Prayer and Love, published by Beacon Books is already out via Amazon. Check it out today!