My encounter with the "Evil Eye" I must admit I’m not sure if the woman is just an intellectual simpleton or a clever charlatan preying on the gullible. I suspect the former. In any case, here is the story. Upon invitation, and for a fee, this peculiar character travels from the Middle East to North America to rid people of the effects of the Evil Eye. Evil what, you ask? As featured in many cultures, the Evil Eye is a look directed at some unfortunate person, resulting in bad luck or outright harm. The perpetrator is usually believed to possess some sort of supernatural power, although in some cultures an envious person may cast the Evil Eye unintentionally. In either case, the poor soul who has been malevolently gazed upon must resort to some very unusual means to remove the curse. Such as sending for a witch doctor, for lack of a better term, who comes bearing the necessary tools of the trade: pieces of lead and some metal containers suitable for melting them. Here’s the process. The victim of the evil eye sits on a chair, head covered with a towel. The witch doctor proceeds to heat up a few pieces of lead in a dish on the stove. Since lead has a relatively low melting point, it readily liquefies. The molten metal is then poured into a container filled with cold water held above the victim’s head, hopefully with a steady hand. Molten lead on the head is certainly not an attractive prospect. There’s an immediate sizzle as the lead hits the cold water and solidifies into a variety of randomly shaped pieces. Some of these, with a stretch of the imagination, resemble body parts, and are picked out and displayed. These were supposedly the parts cursed by the evil eye, and their presence in the bowl means the curse has been removed. Fascinating stuff. Needless to say, absurd. And potentially dangerous. How do I know about this nonsense? Because I had a call from an anxious lady who had been subjected to this bunk at the urging of her husband, who believed that her germophobia was the result of being targeted by an Evil Eye. She thought it was pretty much claptrap but agreed to be “leaded” for the sake of good marital relations. But all that the ridiculous process accomplished was to increase her phobias. Now she has something else to worry about. Could the lead have contaminated her stove so that every time is was now being used, toxic fumes of lead were being wafted into the air? Not an unreasonable question. Lead is an insidious toxin and even exposure to small amounts can cause harm. In this case, though, there was nothing to worry about. Since the stove had a ceramic top, it was easy to check if any lead had been spilled and solidified. None could be detected. The witch doctor may have been in need of some oiling of her mental machinery, but at least she was not sloppy.
Posted on: Wed, 11 Sep 2013 18:14:31 +0000
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