ARE you experiencing frequent bouts of illness? Has your luck been particularly bad lately? Is there are lot of conflict among the people living in your house? Yet your house is not particularly inharmonious according to Vasthu Sastra principles. So, what is happening?

Indian scriptures would urge you to consider the possibility of a “wicked glance” from someone envious of you. Research and ancient studies show that some people have the power of projecting negative energy simply by staring at another person with unfriendly thoughts in mind. This is a belief that can be found in most cultures around the globe.

The evil eye, as this type of ill-intentioned gaze is also called, diminishes any positive energy you could be enjoying. The ancients say that this can affect an individual’s health, family, beauty, self-esteem, prosperity and fame and could cause the person to meet with accidents. Health effects include the affected individual feeling dull, dehydrated, and having stomach cramps, diarrhoea, itching and dry skin and experiencing panic attacks.

It is generally believed that those who are more prone to being affected by the evil eye are infants and those who are outgoing or in the public eye regularly. Such people can unknowingly create feelings of jealousy among others.

I recently received several e-mail messages and calls from readers wanting to find out more about this affliction and how to deal with it. Here are some ways of shielding yourself from the effects of an evil eye:

Hang a portion of a flat-faced cactus by the doorway of the house; replace it when it dries up.

Tie a chunk of rock salt with black string by the doorway of the house.

String together nine chillies with a red string, topping off and ending with limes; hang this by the main doorway of the house for a week.

Hang a pumpkin by the portal of the house on a new moon day; it should be replaced every month on a new moon day.

String together 11 mango leaves and hang over the doorway; replace dried out leaves regularly.

Mix turmeric powder with water and sprinkle it throughout the interior and around the exterior of the house, paying particular attention to corners.

Get a doorway decoration that has a small mirror embedded in it and hang by the entrance.

Women should use dot their foreheads with the pottu (forehead mark, also known as bindi and tilakam) between the eyebrows.

Tie black, red or yellow holy (blessed by a priest) string around your right wrist.

Ask an elder to burn camphor and swing the burner clockwise around you, then throw the camphor away outside the house’s compound.

To prevent accidents, place fresh lime just in front of your car’s tyres every Friday, and then drive over them.

Drop a lime into a glass of water and place it on a table in the living area to help divert unwanted attention from visitors; the lime should be replaced every Friday.

Place camphor on top of a coconut, light it, then rotate the nut three times around the head of the affected person; after that, smash the coconut on the road outside the house.
If you carry out any of these rituals, do so with faith and respect.

Vasthu talks

The columnist will present a talk on Vasthu Sastra on Dec 2 at 3pm at the Crystal Crown Hotel in Petaling Jaya, Selangor. Admission is by contribution of RM10 to the Amriteswari Foundation of Malaysia. To register, call Jeya at 012-245 9292.

A similar talk will be held on Dec 3 at 2.30pm at the Tropical Inn Hotel in Johor Baru. Admission is by contribution of RM10 to the Education Welfare Research Foundation. To register, contact Arumugam at 016-773 8515.

One more talk will be held on Dec 10 at 2.30pm at Dewan Sri Pinang, George Town. Admission is by contribution of RM10 to the Bayan Baru Sivan Temple building fund. To register, contact Raman at 013-430 0509.

T. Selva, The Star’s Maritime Editor, has spent years researching this ancient Indian science of construction, better known as ‘Indian feng shui’. He is a student of 7th generation Vasthu Sastra Master Yuvaraj Sowma from Chennai, India. He can be contacted at tselvas@pd.jaring.my.
[Posted at: Evil Eye]