The Concept of 'Ain (Evil Eye) in the Qur'an and Hadith: Implications for Mental Health in Contemporary Era
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33367/al-karim.v3i1.5385Keywords:
‘Ain in Islamic Perspective, Mental Health, Qur’an and Hadith, Spiritual Protection, Digital AgeAbstract
This study aims to analyze the concept of 'Ain disease from the perspective of the Qur'an and Hadith, as well as its implications for mental health in the contemporary era. In the modern context, phenomena such as jealousy and envy, often triggered by exposure to social media, can affect an individual's mental well-being, leading to stress, anxiety, and depression. The data used in this research was obtained through literature studies on Qur'anic texts, Hadith, and contemporary psychological studies related to mental disorders influenced by social factors. This research employs a qualitative approach with a hermeneutic method to analyze the understanding of 'Ain disease and explore its connection to current psychological symptoms. The findings show that 'Ain disease, as a manifestation of the negative effects of jealousy, is closely related to the mental disorders commonly experienced by modern society. The social stigma surrounding 'Ain disease further exacerbates this condition, as many individuals are reluctant to seek psychological help. Therefore, a holistic approach that integrates spiritual and psychological understanding, as well as raising awareness about mental health, is essential to mitigate the negative effects of 'Ain disease.
Contribution: This research contributes to the development of mental health studies within religious and contemporary contexts, highlighting the importance of integrating spiritual and psychological approaches in addressing mental health challenges in society.
Downloads
References
Algharabali, Nada, and Hanan Taqi. “‘Say Mashallah!’: Investigating Sociolinguistic Manifestations of the Evil Eye in Kuwait.” International Journal of Language and Culture 7, no. 2 (December 31, 2020): 147–63. https://doi.org/10.1075/ijolc.20036.alg.
Alper, Sinan, Us ,Elif Oyku, and Dicle Rojda and Tasman. “The Evil Eye Effect: Vertical Pupils Are Perceived as More Threatening.” Cognition and Emotion 33, no. 6 (August 18, 2019): 1249–60. https://doi.org/10.1080/02699931.2018.1550741.
Al-Qurthubi, Abu‘Abdullah, and Ahmad Syamsuddin. “Al-Jami’li Ahkam al-Qur’an: Tafsir al-Qurthubi.” Beirut: Dar Ihya at-Turats al-‘Arabi, 1985.
Al-Qurthubi, Muhammad bin Ahmad abi, and Bakr Abi‘Abdullah. “Tafsir Al-Qurthubi al-Jami’li Ahkam al-Qur’an.” Beirut: Dar al-Risalah, 2006.
Al-Qusyairi, Abdul Karim. “Risalah Al-Qusyairiyah Fi ‘ilm al-Tashawwuf.” Birut: Dar al-Khair,[Tt], 1988.
Alrashidi, Alanoud, and Sara Alnufaishan. “‘I Am Afflicted with the Evil Eye!’ How Islamic Cultural Beliefs Influence College Students’ Perceptions of Their Academic Experience.” Journal for Multicultural Education 18, no. 4 (August 13, 2024): 523–39. https://doi.org/10.1108/JME-05-2024-0054.
Ar-Razi, Fakhruddin. “Mafatihul Ghaib.” Beirut: Dar Ihya’at-Thuros al-Arabi 1420 (2000).
As-Suyuti, Jalaluddin. “Ad-Durrul Mantsur Fi Tafsir Bi al-Ma’stur.” Dar Ihya Turats Al Araby, n.d.
Bartels, Edien. “The Evil Comes from Outside: Evil within Religion as a Psychosocial Problem among Adolescent Moroccan Girls in the Netherlands.” Brill, 2008. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789401205375_006.
Chajes, J. H. “Re-Envisioning the Evil Eye: Magic, Optical Theory, and Modern Supernaturalism in Jewish Thought,” November 19, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1163/1872471X-11411098.
Connaway, Lynn Silipigni, and Marie L. Radford. Research Methods in Library and Information Science. Bloomsbury Publishing USA, 2021.
Curcio, Felice, Hafsa El Khabir, Gianluca Chelo, Sonia Puggioni, Marica Soddu, Maria Raffaela Lucchetta, and Cesar Iván Avilés-González. “Transcultural Perspectives in Nursing: Understanding the Role of Healers and the Evil Eye in Modern Healthcare.” Nursing Reports (Pavia, Italy) 14, no. 3 (September 1, 2024): 2443–55. https://doi.org/10.3390/nursrep14030181.
Esbati, Esmail. “Analyzing the Quranic and Hadith (Narrative) Foundations of Belief in the Effect of the Verse.” Quranic Knowledge Research 14, no. 55 (December 22, 2023): 181–213. https://doi.org/10.22054/rjqk.2023.74934.2851.
———. “Examining the Quranic Principles of Belief in Evil Eye.” Quran and Hadith Studies 55, no. 2 (February 20, 2024): 9–35. https://doi.org/10.22067/jquran.2023.82212.1515.
Ghaly, Mohammed M. “Physical and Spiritual Treatment of Disability in Islam: Perspectives of Early and Modern Jurists.” Journal of Religion, Disability & Health, July 17, 2008. https://doi.org/10.1080/15228960802160647.
Gholamhosseinzadeh, Gholam Hossein, and Afsoon Ghambari. “Belief in Evil Eye among People of Antiquity and Divine Religions.” The International Journal of Humanities 18, no. 1 (February 10, 2011): 1–18.
Hakim, Lukmanul, Asrizal Asrizal, Afrizal Nur, and Agustiar Agustiar. “Qur’anic Interpretation Method And Its Impact On Contemporary Interpretation.” Jurnal Ushuluddin 26, no. 2 (December 13, 2018): 142–53. https://doi.org/10.24014/jush.v26i2.4577.
Hanafi, Hassan. “Method of Thematic Interpretation of the Qurʿan.” Brill, 1996. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004452169_014.
Hapsari, Pauline, Darodjat, and Titik Kusumawinakhyu. “The Power of Qur’an to Heal Physical and Mental Illness.” Psikis : Jurnal Psikologi Islami 10, no. 1 (May 22, 2024): 1–11. https://doi.org/10.19109/psikis.v10i1.19203.
Hassan, Dr Maqbool Hassan Maqbool. “Linkage between Physical Diseases and Moral & Spiritual Disorders in Perspective of Medical Research and Islamic Teachings.” Al-Raheeq International Research Journal 2, no. 1 (January 29, 2023): 28–52.
Ibrahim, Mohamed Akhiruddin, Ahmad Shahir Mohd Shah, and Robiatul Adawiyah Mohd. “Concept Of Shifa’ In Al-Quran: Islamic Medicine Approach In Healing Physical Disorder.” Al-Qanatir: International Journal of Islamic Studies 6, no. 2 (2017): 23–39.
Jauhari, Wildan. “Implementasi Konsep ‘Urf Dan Maslahah Dalam Jual Beli Emas Secara Tidak Tunai (Studi Komparatif Fatwa Dewan Syariah Nasional Majelis Ulama Indonesia Nomor 77 Tahun 2010 Dan Fatwa Al-Lajnah Ad-Daimah Li Al-Buhus Al-Ilmiyyah Wa Al-Ifta’Saudi Arabia Nomor 3211),” 2022.
Katsir, Ibnu, and Abu Fida Ismail bin Umar. “Tafsîr Al Qur’ân AlAzhîm.” Kairo: Maktabah Aulad al Shaikh al Turats, Nd, 1993.
Keshavarzi, Hooman, and Bilal Ali. “Islamic Perspectives on Psychological and Spiritual Well-Being and Treatment.” In Islamophobia and Psychiatry: Recognition, Prevention, and Treatment, edited by H. Steven Moffic, John Peteet, Ahmed Zakaria Hankir, and Rania Awaad, 41–53. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00512-2_4.
Khadzali, Mohamad Khairul Faiz Mohd, and Khadher Ahmad. “Penyakit˜Ain Dalam Perspektif Hadith Dan Masyarakat Melayu: Evil Eye in Hadith and Malay Society Perspective.” Jurnal Usuluddin 48, no. 2 (December 31, 2020): 133–73. https://doi.org/10.22452/usuluddin.vol48no2.5.
Khalifa, Najat, Hardie ,Tim, Latif ,Shahid, Jamil ,Imran, and Dawn-Marie and Walker. “Beliefs about Jinn, Black Magic and the Evil Eye among Muslims: Age, Gender and First Language Influences.” International Journal of Culture and Mental Health 4, no. 1 (June 1, 2011): 68–77. https://doi.org/10.1080/17542863.2010.503051.
Kilborne, Benjamin. “The Evil Eye, Envy, and Shame.” L. Wurmser, Jarass H. Jealousy and envy. Analytic Press, 2007.
“Kolaborasi KemenPPPA Dan UNICEF: Sinergikan Dukungan Kesehatan Mental Dan Psikososial Di Kementerian Dan Lembaga.” Accessed April 5, 2024. https://www.kemenpppa.go.id/page/view/NTMzOA==.
Kompasiana.com. “Kesehatan Mental di Indonesia Tahun 2024: Antara Tantangan dan Harapan.” KOMPASIANA, June 19, 2024. https://www.kompasiana.com/rifky15/6672b8a2c925c4791a738562/kesehatan-mental-di-indonesia-tahun-2024-antara-tantangan-dan-harapan.
Krawietz, Birgit. “Islamic Conceptions of the Evil Eye.” Medicine and Law 21 (2002): 339.
Magfiroh, Siti. “Penyakit ‘Ain Dalam Perspektif Al-Qur’an (Studi Kitab Tafsir Mafatih Al-Ghaib Karya Fakhruddin Ar-Razi).” Diploma, UIN Sultan Maulana Hasanuddin Banten, 2023. https://repository.uinbanten.ac.id.
Majaya, Mada Tri. “Ain ‘Evil Eye’ in Various Cultures and the Distortion of Faith Against It.” Proceedings of International Conference on Islamic Community Studies, December 20, 2023, 55–65.
Mozafaripour, Sara. “Mental Health Statistics [2024] | USAHS.” University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences (blog), January 3, 2024. https://www.usa.edu/blog/mental-health-statistics/.
Mullick, Mohammad S.I., Khalifa ,Najat, Nahar ,Jhunu S., and Dawn-Marie and Walker. “Beliefs about Jinn, Black Magic and Evil Eye in Bangladesh: The Effects of Gender and Level of Education.” Mental Health, Religion & Culture 16, no. 7 (September 1, 2013): 719–29. https://doi.org/10.1080/13674676.2012.717918.
Qamar, Azher Hameed. “The Concept of the ‘Evil’ and the ‘Evil Eye’ in Islam and Islamic Faith-Healing Traditions.” Journal of Islamic Thought and Civilization 3, no. 2 (2013): 44–53.
Qamar, Azher Hameed, and Qurat-ul Ain. “Where Medicine ‘Fails’: The Evil Eye and Childcare Beliefs among Rural Saraiki Mothers in Punjab, Pakistan.” Social Medicine 14, no. 2 (August 9, 2021): 57–95. https://doi.org/10.71164/socialmedicine.v14i2.2021.1171.
Qayyim, Shams al-Din Muhammad Ibn, and ’Abd al-Ghani’Abd al-Khaliq. Al-Tibb al-Nabawi. Dar Ihya’al-Kutub al-Àrabiyyah, 1957.
Qusyairi, Abd al-Karim. “Al-Risalah al-Qusyairiyah.” Cairo: Darul Ma’arif, 1995.
Rassool, G. Hussein. Evil Eye, Jinn Possession, and Mental Health Issues: An Islamic Perspective. London: Routledge, 2018. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315623764.
Shihab, M. Quraish. Al-Quran dan Maknanya. Lentera Hati, 2020.
———. “Tafsir Al-Misbah.” Jakarta: Lentera Hati 2 (2002): 52–54.
Siksik, Avi. “‘Bli Ayin Ha’Ra!’ (May the Evil Eye Not Affect You): The Autonomous Eye as a Personification of Evil in Judaism.” In Personified Body Parts in Cinema, Literature, and Visual Culture. Routledge, 2025.
Sulaiman, A. A., and W. O. Gabadeen. “Healing in Islam : A Psychological Perspective : Religious Psychotherapy.” IFE PsychologIA : An International Journal 21, no. 3 (January 2013): 47–53. https://doi.org/10.10520/EJC138745.
Türkarslan, Kutlu Kağan, and Ekin Doğa Kozak. “Envious Gazes and Evil Eye Beads: A Self-Psychological Perspective on the Evil Eye.” Psychoanalysis, Self and Context, April 2, 2024. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/24720038.2023.2299702.
Yun, Safia J. Fear of the Evil Eye: A Missional Approach Toward the Envious Gaze Among Young Jordanian Muslim Women. Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2025.
Yun, Safia Jeonghee. “A Study on the Evil Eye from the Perspective of Young Jordanian Muslim Women.” Missiology 53, no. 2 (April 1, 2025): 182–92. https://doi.org/10.1177/00918296241261731.
Zecharia, Sarette A. Horwitz. “Light and Shadow as a Function of the Religious Psyche: The Evil Eye.” Journal of Psychology and Judaism 23, no. 3 (June 1, 1999): 145–52. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1024853022486.
جلال الدين المحلي, Jalal al-Din ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Suyuti. تفسير الجلالين. Rufoof, 1902.
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Nurfajriyani, Ratu Essya Putri Latukau, Muhammad Yasir, Wissam Farhan Al-Nussairi

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
-
The formal legal aspect of access to any information and articles contained in this journal site refers to the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) license.
-
Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
Abstract
Views:
431,
PDF downloads: 422







Licensed under a