Q&A: The Evil Eye
The Evil Eye
Question
Hello and blessings,
There is a well-known belief, especially among Middle Eastern and Sephardi communities, in the “evil eye.”
My question for the Rabbi is: does such a thing actually exist in reality, and if so, what are its implications and how does it work—for example, the story in the Talmud that 99 out of 100 died from the evil eye, and the like?
Or is this some kind of “aggadah” meant to explain to us, in a vivid way, the severity of evil speech and similar things?
Answer
I don’t believe in it. In the Talmud it seems they did believe in it, as was common in their time and place. In any case, it has nothing to do with evil speech.
Discussion on Answer
Would you derive halakhic implications from your disbelief in the evil eye? (For example: would two brothers be called up to the Torah one after the other?)
Because I have no indication whatsoever that it’s true. The question is not why I don’t believe, but why anyone else does.
Of course I would. Laws that are based on the evil eye (in its mystical sense) are not valid in my view (just as they are not, in Maimonides’ view, either).
The simple claim is that it’s written in the Talmud and in Jewish law, so that is the indication that it’s true. And maybe it doesn’t require empirical proof since it’s spiritual and impossible to test.
So what if it’s spiritual?! It’s a factual claim that can be tested like any scientific thesis.
And as for the Talmud, the question is how did they know? A tradition from Sinai? It’s pretty clear these are ancient notions that were widespread in their time.
Where does Maimonides write that there is no evil eye?
Maimonides, in general, comes out against anyone who believes in mysticism and mystical influences in several places, and calls him a fool. Specifically regarding the evil eye, there is a Talmudic passage in the first chapter of Bava Batra about the evil eye in a garden, and Maimonides omits it from Jewish law. The accepted explanation is that this is because he did not believe in it. You can see a survey here (and it also cites a responsum of Maimonides with a more subtle formulation regarding the evil eye in a garden, but in my opinion that is what he means): https://itzikhollandergmaraiyun.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/d7a1d795d792d799d794-d794-d794d799d796d7a7-d7a8d790d799d794-d791d792d799d7a0d794-d79ed7a2d795d793d79bd79f.pdf
Why don’t you believe in it? (I don’t either, but I’m interested in your answer.)