Blue Eyes - The Windows to the Soul

Gözler. Which translates into the eyes, a way of saying that you are the apple of my eye. The eyes are the windows to the soul. Eyes alone show so much emotion; passion, hurt, love, lies, and truth.  

Here in Turkey, eyes symbolize so much to the people. Everywhere you go you can be sure that you will see evil eyes. These blue eyes are thought of to scare away evil spirits and bad vibes, especially if you purchase something new or receive something new you place an evil eye on it. For example, if you buy a new car, you hang an evil eye from the rear view mirror. Or if you give birth and have a new baby in the home, you put an evil eye on them. The Turkish people believe that if you do not do this something bad will happen. Your car will break down, or your baby will get sick.  This is thought because you failed to deter the evil with the eye.

The Blue eyes are found in nearly all of the vendor stands that we've visited.

I noticed this immediately once we came to Turkey. Evil eyes were everywhere! There were charms, key chains, necklaces, bracelets, and pretty much everything that they can place an evil eye on will possess that bright blue eye.

At one place we visited, Cenk showed us an evil eye tree. He joked that this is how evil eyes are grown. The evil eye trees are quite a sight to see. The branches are covered with different types of ornaments that have evil eyes. These trees reflect the sunlight and just look absolutely beautiful.

Sarah in front of one of the Evil Eye Trees

One thing that I have definitely noticed is that my eyes get a lot of attention. I have very blue eyes which are not easy to hide. Unless I have sunglasses on my eyes are constantly exposed. At one point on our trip, a shopkeeper told me the story behind blue eyes. He told me that my eyes bring good luck and that I am lucky because I do not have to carry an evil eye with me at all times. But he told me that even with my eyes evil can still penetrate and get to me. So to be careful I should carry an evil eye just in case. This is when he told me to wait and that he had something for me. When the shopkeeper came back he held a small pin with an evil eye charm on it. He told me to carry it with me in order to have good luck always.

My blue eyes have captured attention in the shops I have visited. When I went into the jewelry and onyx shop, the jeweler who was talking with me told me I brought good luck to his shop because I had such beautiful blue eyes. He told me that his shop was protected from evil intentions because of the evil eyes he had placed in the room but my eyes brought a new protection to the shop because evil can sometimes get used to the evil eyes that are already located at those locations and break through it.  The jeweler told me that my eyes were going to help with protection as well as ensuring everyone purchasing items would be receiving what they desired. 

These blue eyes really stood out to me because of my own blue eyes.  I was told that I would be receiving a lot of attention, but I did not realize the full extent to which people upheld the belief of the evil eyes.  That actually quite shocked me since I was not expecting to draw attention with something as simple as my eyes.  For example, during my home stay I noticed an evil eye beside the doorframe.  I assumed that this was to deter those who would desire to break in or intrude on the family.  Another thing was that pretty much everywhere you go and purchase something are the little pins that you will likely receive from the shopkeeper that has an evil eye charm with a little animal charm on it as well.  These are given out in order to ensure that we, as the shopper, are not leaving with bad vibes that would cause others to avoid that specific shop. 

This trip has really opened my eyes to a lot of ideas and concepts I never would have thought of before.  This trip has made me very grateful for the things that are available to me in the United States.  I will never complain about tap water again and always will be thankful for the toilet that has been provided to me.  The beauty of the country and evil eyes can be rather intriguing; however, I have to remind myself that you can not place your hope and safety in a symbol and instead remember that God is always there to protect and watch over us no matter where we might be located on this earth.  

Thank you Turkey for the life changing experience I have received

By Sarah Newton