The Evil Eye

There are a lot of day to day things that we do that should also be regarded as satanic and evil, such as child abuse, dishonest business practices, alchohol, substance and tobacco addiction, then there is gambling also.

Raise children on strong moral grounds and give them every opportunity to take ownership and buy in of discipline, order and good clean practices.

The evil eye is within us. Its our own conscious.

she should not have honked ~ terrible commercial

I believe it exists but, it's wrong to dwell & practice such evi.

If Jews would FEAR the Almighty as they SHOULD they would have no such superstitions as this "evil Eye"!!!!

Is there anything non-pagan in this hamsa thing?

According to Rabbi Soloveitchik, there is no such thing as an Ayin Hara! He has said it many times. Putting on a red ribbon or the like borders on idol worship. If somebody seems to have it all, but then either loses it all or have bad tidings befall them, it is due to arrogance, not the evil eye!

My parents, may they rest in peace were very humble. No flash here was there motto. So we never had fancy cars, fancy houses, expensive trips or anything like that. They could have had a little more, they choose not to. I was always taught to go unnoticed. I am the queen of unnoticed. I can meet anyone twice and they won't remember meeting me. I think the Rabbis are all for humble. Not being remembered? That's taking it a bit too far. I don't wear makeup in the summer & feel less comfy in my clothes that are trendy. I really have no fun with going unnoticed. And now that I'm 45 yrs old, I think it's counterproductive. I would never want to be an in your face person. Just remember my face, please. LOL, not always laughing though. Any thoughts to tweak it besides makeup?

With all due respect to your parents, a"h there is a difference between being fiscally prudent and being self effacing. It sounds like they were very smart when it came to saving money. However, there is a difference between someone remembering the car you drive and remembering your name. You have the right to stand up and be who YOU are. You don't need to wear makeup or drive a fancy car. Being you is enough. If you are friendly and genuine to others, that is all a person can want.

Not only are the other posters correct for criticizing your tacit endorsement of the innocent occupants of the ostentatious car being placed in physical harm by the cowardly acts of the occupants of the modest car, but why shouldn't I take "pride" in my ostentatious car, or lifestyle, or whatever, so long as they give me pleasure and I earned them through my hard work, industry and ingenuity?

This is where the problem starts!you earned your car/ lifestyle or whatever else through your hard work, industry,and ingenuity?
Think again darling! Ein od milvado! It all comes from The Boss! He decides who gets what and it has to do with our own spiritual journey . Yes, we go through the motions here, so we do not feel humiliated, but we do not actually do anything so it is all on loan!
Can you be proud of something you got at a handout? We have to be grateful for all we have and understand we get free gifts all the time. Let us use them well and share with others our good fortune of being His children.
Give a break to Rabbi Tzvi, he was only relating the ad.And if it bothers you , as it should, drop a line to the car company on their website.
The holy Basl Shem Tov use to say that when something bothers us we should make a Heshbon Nefesh as we probably have a similar fault in our character.

Thank you rabbi Tzvi for an excellent article.

Pride is great. Knowing when to have pride is even better. You should take pleasure in the fruits of your labor. You should take pride in your work ethic. You should take pride in your ingenuity. You should feel blessed to be blessed with ingenuity and the ability to carry out and bring to fruition. c. . I sincerely hope you aren't missing out on some things you could miss if your loving your material goodies takes up most of your spare time. The hard work and ingenuity, that's what I wish for my kiderlach and myself. That is awesome to have those traits!!! You may want to shake around the thinking about or tweak it! You sound kinda angry.

I love the scripture reference to Micha 6:8, it is one of my favorites. Lording ones blessings over another is a sure way to have HaShem "take you down a peg" for you own good and the good of others. By the same token if your blessings are shared with others and bless others, you can be assured of greater blessing because you bring honor to the giver of the blessings. Share your blessings with others for their good and by doing so honor HaShem. On a side note: A Rabbi shared with me about walking humbly with HaShem, in the Micha reference, Rabbi said that to walk humbly is to be teachable by HaShem and not so lifted up as to be hard hearted. B'H

I would have jumped out of the blue VW Passat station wagon and yelled at the tough guy: "Hey you're looking for me!".

I doing want someone else paying my freight.

While I agree with this artilce, in the interests of justice I must protest the last line. Just because he has an expensive car doesn't make someone guilty of something he didn't do, and he certainly does deserve to be beaten up because of what you did!

I understand what you're saying here about the Evil Eye. But in your story you make it okay that the Passat couple caused trouble, got away, and left another to suffer for their actions -- was that okay? Just to prove your point?

I think the main point in the story got away. How does what the Passat folks did fit into Jewish teachings? How does letting another suffer for your actions make sense as a basic human being---not even as a Jew?

I think part of the problem in the world, part of why we, as Jews, are often overlooked or unknown and feared, is because we DON'T take ownership of the good we do in the world, the positive actions, the social justice fights, the mensh-ness of Judaism. I think it's time maybe we DID take some pride in who we are -- and tell the world.

Too often throughout history did others (ie: Germans? Passat?) pass the blame to us, the Jews. Too often we've suffered for that -- because the world doesn't have a chance to see who we are.

The real villians in the story you told are the couple in the Passat. All those throughout history who have passed the blame onto the little old Jewish couple who worked their fingers to the bone to afford to drive a rented Cadillac for a week while visiting sick relatives far away.

Maybe we need a little pride in ourselves for a change. Instead of beating ourselves up like the rest of the world does.

Fear of showing off is the main reason I still don't have facebook and even my whatsApp photo is of a tree. I learned this lesson from a co-worker years ago. He told me he didn't keep pictures of kids on desk, because there are people who feel pain of childlessness, so no need to show off.
I'm aware that facebook has potential of tying you to long lost friends or relatives, so I'm still tempted, but I don't want to invest time in something that is basically ego-centered. That's not meant to put down the almost everybody else who does have facebook and are probably better people than I.
I also drive a 1998 car while I can afford a new one, but that's not to avoid envy - it's because I feel no need.

Re: Not having a Facebook account. I seriously doubt that people on FB are better than you are. A few years ago I went to my FB page and gasped in horror when I found out that a former co-worker had a massive heart attack and was in a coma. This co-worker's sister kept all of us updated as to his condition, for which I was most appreciative. I think it's possible to take the best of what FB has to offer and just disregard the clutter. You and your former coworker sound like very insightful and sensitive people. I do my best to emulate these behaviors. Sometimes I succeed and sometimes I fail miserably, but I always get back up and give it another effort.

BH, we are fortunate to have financial means. We have a big beautiful house and I have often felt uncomfortable with certain people in our community - this is despite the fact that we have gone out of our way time and time again to host simchas for other people, Jewish learning, etc.
I didn't grow up with wealth and certainly don't behave in a "showy" manner - still, I feel like just the fact that people know we are blessed in this way invites jealousy.
What do you think?

You sound like a very down to earth individual. With that said, you are certainly NOT responsible if other people react to your good fortune in a jealous manner. For whatever it is worth, if I were invited to your home for a simcha, I would be sure to thank you for the invitation.

Dear Nancy,
I greatly appreciate your kind words.

You're welcome.

I was very careful with my wording and thus stated, "However, if that good thing creates bad feelings or ill-will in others that you could have prevented..." "That you could have prevented" is the key phrase - no one is saying you have to live under a rock and cannot enjoy the blessing the Almighty has given to you - especially when they are being used for a good cause. It is the unnecessary, showy pretentious behavior that we need to be aware of. Hope this clarifies matters. Rabbi Tzvi

I suppose I have been so worried about ayin hara that I missed this important point.

Once again, thank you for clarifying - and for writing a good article on this important subject.

This is an important article. Thank you for sharing it.