The term Hamsa is of Arabic origin and its meaning is "five", referring to the 5 fingers of the hand. This is present in various eastern doctrines, such as Judaism, Islam, and Buddhism, each having its own meaning. The hamsa is also known as "Miriam's hand" especially in Jewish culture, and as "Fatima's hand" by Muslims, while in Buddhism it is called "Abhaya Mudra". This symbol is generally used in the jewelry and tapestry industry. Its symbolism is protection, and it is commonly used as a defense against the evil eye, mainly by Jews, Christians and Muslims.
The hamsa As such, it is adopted as an amulet for the protection of the evil eye, or of any misfortune. The symbol of the "hamsa hand" is characterized by representing the design of a symmetrical right hand with five fingers: the middle finger in the center, the ring finger and the index finger on either side, a little shorter than the heart and equal to each other, and finally at the ends two thumbs, of similar size and both have an outward curvature of the hand.
Within the hamsa, it is possible to find other symbols such as eyes, stars of David, fish, and others with the aim of strengthening its power, it should be noted that it has a large number of representations. An example of this is when it is represented with the fingers together. For people the hamsa is an amulet that is used for good luck, in the case of having separate fingers it is used to ward off negative energies.
As an amulet, the hamsa was worn by the Carthaginians since 820 BCE and while in the northern region of the African continent it was associated with an attribute of the goddess Tanit; later it passed to the Berbers and Maghrebians.
Luego de tales acontecimientos, las culturas judía y árabe lo adoptaron como motivo independiente. Se cree que fue incorporado en dichas culturas como una evocación del motivo conocido como mano de Dios, cuyo origen está relacionado con el aniconismo.
