A Nazar battu (

Hindustani Hindustani may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Hindustan (another name of India) * Hindustani language, an Indo-Aryan language, with Hindi and Urdu being its two standard registers * Hindustani Muslims are the Urdu-speaking, Hindust ...

: नज़र बट्टू or نظر بٹو) is an icon,

charm bracelet A charm bracelet is a type of bracelet which carries personal jewelled ornaments or "charms", such as decorative pendants or wikt:trinket, trinkets. The decorative charms usually carry personal or sentimental attachment by the owner. History Th ...

tattoo A tattoo is a form of body modification made by inserting tattoo ink, dyes, or pigments, either indelible or temporary, into the dermis layer of the skin to form a design. Tattoo artists create these designs using several tattooing processes ...

or other object or pattern used in

North India North India is a geographical region, loosely defined as a cultural region comprising the northern part of India (or historically, the Indian subcontinent) wherein Indo-Aryans (speaking Indo-Aryan languages) form the prominent majority populati ...

and

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

to ward-off the

evil eye The evil eye is a supernatural belief in a curse brought about by a malevolent glaring, glare, usually inspired by envy. Amulets to Apotropaic, protect against it have been found dating to around 5,000 years ago. It is found in many cultures i ...

(or ''nazar''). In Persian and Afghan folklore, it is called a cheshm nazar () or nazar qurbāni (). In India and Pakistan, the Hindi-Urdu slogan of Persian origin '' Chashm-e-Baddoor'' () is used to ward off the evil eye.

Forms

A ''nazar battu'' is often an intentional blemish or flaw that is introduced to prevent perfection. For instance, a black mark (''kaala teeka'' in Hindi-Urdu, ''tor khaal'' in Pushto) might be made on the face or neck of a loved one. In houses, a deliberate flaw might be included in the otherwise-perfect physical appearance of the house. In expensive items such as carpets or saris, a deliberate coloring or stitching flaw is sometimes created.

Amulet An amulet, also known as a good luck charm or phylactery, is an object believed to confer protection upon its possessor. The word "amulet" comes from the Latin word , which Pliny's ''Natural History'' describes as "an object that protects a perso ...

s – some resembling the Turkish ''nazar boncuğu'' and others which are threads, sometimes with a ''taveez'' attached (a small cylinder that contains a prayer verse) – are common in the region. Some ''nazar battu'' amulets are region specific, for instance silver-mounted leopard nails which are used in the

Chamba district Chamba district is the northwestern district of Himachal Pradesh, in India, with its headquarters in Chamba town. The towns of Dalhousie, Khajjhiar and Churah Valley are popular hill stations and vacation spots for the people from the plains ...

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...

state. Although it doesn't involve a specific ''nazar battu'', it is customary in the region for mothers to lightly spit at their children (usually ritualistically to the side of the children rather than directly at them) to imply a sense of disparagement and imperfection that protects them from ''nazar''. Children are also marked with a black spot on the cheek.George Vensus A. (2008).
Paths to The Divine: Ancient and Indian (Volume 12 of Indian philosophical studies)
'. Council for Research in Values and Philosophy, USA. . pp. 399. Excessive admiration, even from well-meaning people, is believed attract the evil eye, so this is believed to protect children from ''nazar'' that could be caused by their own mothers' "excessive" love of them.

Satirical usage in popular culture

In North India and Pakistan, the term ''nazar battu'' can be used idiomatically in a

satiric Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of exposing or ...

sense to allude to people or objects which are undesirable but must be tolerated. For instance, when it appeared that former military ruler

Pervez Musharraf Pervez Musharraf (11 August 1943 – 5 February 2023) was a Pakistani general and politician who served as the tenth president of Pakistan from 2001 to 2008. Prior to his career in politics, he was a four-star general and appointed as ...

would insist on being accommodated institutionally as Pakistan made the transition to democracy with the 2008 general election, some press commentators alluded to him as the ''nazar battu'' of Pakistan's democracy.

Gallery

File:India-shop-chili-peppers-and-limes.jpg, A ''nazar battu'' charm strung from chilli peppers and limes File:India-shop-balls-and-leaves.jpg, Leaves and balls of flower petals as ''nazar battu'' by a shop File:India-house-shoes-on-wall.jpg, Footwear on a wall used as ''nazar battu'' File:India-truck-axel-with-painted-face.jpg, A ''nazar battu'' face painted on a motor vehicle

References

{{Superstitions Superstitions of Pakistan Superstitions of India

Forms

Satirical usage in popular culture

Gallery

See also

References