Stroll through the craft shops or with a little observation around you, you will discover that the hand of Fatima is widespread in Jordan. But do you know exactly what it means and what its origin is? Here we explain it to you and, after reading the post, who knows if you will also be tempted to get one, either in the form of jewelry, painting or another fashion or home item.
Hamsa or hand of Fatima: what is its shape like?
Throughout the Middle East and North Africa, the hand of Fatima is one of the most recurrent symbols. You will quickly recognize it: it is a hand that is usually symmetrical, with outstretched fingers, with a longer heart, the index and ring fingers the same, and the thumb and pinky even smaller but also aligned.
In the center of the palm, an open eye; and around its perimeter, profuse plant decoration. In fact, when arranged with the fingers upwards, its appearance can be reminiscent of a flower. But it is also very common to find it upside down, with the fingers down.
Meaning of the Hand of Fatima
The meaning of the hand of Fatima is, in general, that of a protective amulet against the evil eye, thus invoking good luck and protection against diseases. This is how it is interpreted by invoking the two elements that make up the symbol: a hand to stop and an eye, God’s, to watch.
In this sense, the arrangement of the fingers would be important: upwards, it would invoke the protection and blessing of its owner; and downwards, it would highlight their generosity and charity, thus attracting positive energy through good deeds.
In fact, it is a symbol shared with Judaism, of which there is evidence several centuries before our era. And some theories suggest that it was also present in ancient cultures, such as that of the Carthaginians.
It should be remembered that a very common term to refer to it is hamsa or jamsa, using the Hebrew term jamesh. In both cases, the meaning is “five“, and this can be considered a divine number in Islam: the term refers to the five fingers of the symbol and could evoke each of the five pillars of Islam.
Origin of the hand of Fatima
However, the term ‘hand of Fatima’ is just as popular, on whose origin there is no unanimity. Specifically, there are two main theories spread throughout the Arab world, both referring to the daughter of the Prophet Muhammad and her relationship with her husband, Ali ibn Abi Talib, in turn Muhammad’s cousin.
In a first version, Fatima, while cooking a stew in a pot, would have discovered her husband with a concubine, both arriving home. Overcome with sadness and perhaps absorbed in her thoughts, she put her hand in the pot, forgetting the saucepan and suffering serious burns, although the feeling of sadness was greater than that of the pain, making her not notice it. This moved Ali ibn Abi Talib who, admiring her patience and fortitude, abandoned the concubine.
In a second version, Fatima would have placed her hand on the body of Ali ibn Abi Talib and would have dedicated a prayer to her husband, who in addition to being the fourth Orthodox caliph and the first Shiite imam, was a prominent military man in the expansionist beginnings of Islam. And that gesture would have conferred energy and good luck, preventing him from falling wounded in battle.
Be it interpreted in one way or another, the truth is that the hamsa or hand of Fatima will be very present during your trip. And it’s up to you to bring one back home, invoking its divine properties and, of course, its aesthetic beauty.
