What is a Hamsa?

General information about the Hamsa

Hamsa’s symbolism

The hamsa hand (Arabic) or chamesh hand (Hebrew) is an old and still popular amulet for magical protection from the evil eye known to draw positive energy, happiness, riches and health. The Chamsa’s (semitic root meaning five) includes five digits and symbolizes the Creator’s protective hand. Five is by itself a number which is known as a protector.
Avital's Hamsas include fishes and a eye. Sometimes in a Sephardic household the symbol of a fish is used to repel the eye; this originates from the Talmud where is stated that fishes are immune from the evil eye because they are under water, and this makes fish an effective amulet.
In Avital's Hamsas, the blue or red bead stands for the Almighty’s watchful eye. The blue eye is intended to ward off evil spirits.

Significance of red color

The color red is also thought traditionally to ward it off. Many mothers and grandmothers tie red ribbons and strings to children's underwear and bedding to prevent the evil peer. The color red is significant within Jewish history because it was one of the items necessary for the building of the original Temple. Red thread and dye were used to make fabric; the red thread came from a type of worm. Rabbi S. R. Hirsch points out that the worm was the lowest form of life, and yet it was intrinsic to the building of the Sanctuary. The red thread, reminiscent of the lowly worm, can be seen as protection against this. Each time a person looks at the string he is reminded that a person is really as lowly as a worm. This humility is the ultimate weapon against the "evil eye".

Some history of the Hamsa

The symbol of the hand in Mediterranean cultures is ancient as in far east cultures. There are speculations that the Jews were among the first to use it as a protective amulet, also called “Hand of Miriam”. This tradition predates the Muslim use of the Hamsa (called the hand of Fatima, daughter of Mohammed) by at least a thousand years.

Use of the Hamsas

The hamsa, hung on a wall, is a very common ornament in Morocco, Israel and the Middle East. The use of the Hamsa is part of the Jewish and Israeli folklore and superstition, but it has nothing to do with the official Jewish religion. Of course, many people today display or wear hamsas as ornaments, without giving any thought to their supposed magical properties.