Symptoms of Envy

These symptoms are grounded in observed experience; they are not mentioned in the transmitted reports, except for the account of Sahl ibn Hunayf, who collapsed on the spot—or was felled where he stood—and fell unconscious. There is also the hadith of Asmā, in which the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, saw that the children of Ja‘far ibn Abī Tālib were emaciated—that is, thin. It is also reported that he saw a dark cast on a young girl’s face, meaning darkness and pallor. Some hadiths also state that the evil eye may kill its victim, whether human or animal.

Ibn Abd al-Barr related—and al-Qurtubī quoted from him in his Tafsīr—that al-Asma‘ī said: “I once saw a man known for casting the evil eye. He heard a cow being milked and admired the sound of the stream of milk from its udder. He asked, ‘Which cow is this?’ They named another cow in an attempt to conceal the actual one from him. Both cows died: the cow used as a decoy and the cow they sought to conceal.”

This indicates that the evil eye can cause harm in whatever form that harm may take, and there is no fixed rule governing it. Nevertheless, these symptoms are known from the statements of scholars, from observed experience—as I have said—and by those with knowledge and experience in treatment and in dealing with people. They do not all occur together; rather, only some of them may appear. It should also be borne in mind that these symptoms should have no prior history in the person believed to have been affected by envy, or that they should appear suddenly and noticeably, without any known natural cause such as anxiety, exhaustion, fatigue from work, or the like. The symptoms are:

Yellowing and pallor of the face; headache; a feverish sensation; elevated body temperature; profuse sweating, particularly around the back; severe pain in the limbs, sometimes accompanied by trembling and shivering; and continual yawning in an abnormal and conspicuous manner.

In severe cases, the person may cry or shed tears for no apparent reason. Other symptoms include seizures, fainting, muscle stretching—what is known as (stretching oneself)—a general feeling of lethargy, inability to work, and unexplained bruises on various parts of the body that tend toward a bluish or greenish color. Affliction by the evil eye may also be accompanied by withdrawal and isolation on the part of the affected person, as well as psychological or social maladjustment, to the extent that he may abandon some of his work and interests.