Nazar Utarna: What Is the Evil Eye and How Do You Remove It?

Nazar Utarna: What Is the Evil Eye and How Do You Remove It?

There is a moment every Indian parent recognises. Your baby has been sleeping peacefully for weeks. Relatives visit, admire the child, hold her, praise her. That night she will not stop crying. The next morning she has a fever no doctor can fully explain. Your mother-in-law is already in the kitchen, reaching for the rai and salt.

This is not superstition. The belief that a concentrated gaze of envy, admiration, or ill will can transfer negative energy to a person, especially a child, a new home, or a new business, exists across virtually every culture and religion in the world. In Hindu tradition, it is called Nazar. In South India, Drishti. The remedy is Nazar Utarna: the removal of the evil eye.

What Causes Nazar?

Nazar does not always come from someone who wishes you harm. Often it comes from someone who admires you intensely; a neighbour who genuinely marvels at your new home, a relative who cannot stop talking about how beautiful your baby is, a colleague who notices your sudden success. Even a parent admiring their own child too intensely, without the protective 'Thu Thu' or kala tikka, can inadvertently transmit Nazar.

The Sanskrit concept underlying this is drishti dosha; a negative energetic imprint caused by the concentrated gaze of another person, whether that gaze carries envy or simply overwhelming attention.

The Vedic understanding is precise: concentrated focused attention, whether envious or admiring, carries energy. When that energy is imbalanced by the emotional state of the person giving attention, it can disrupt the aura or Pranamaya Kosha of the recipient. Children are most vulnerable because their energetic fields are not yet fully formed. Pregnant women, newlyweds, new homes, and people going through significant positive transitions, a new job, a new business, a recent celebration, are traditionally considered the next most susceptible.

How Do You Know If You Have Nazar?

There is no single definitive symptom, which is partly why nazar is so easy to dismiss and so hard to ignore. Common signs include:

• Unexplained fatigue, headaches, or physical discomfort that has no clear medical cause
• A baby or child who becomes suddenly cranky, refuses to eat, or develops a mild fever without illness
• A business or new venture that was progressing well and then suddenly stalls or attracts problems
• A general sense of heaviness, anxiety, or things going wrong in clusters — small mishaps that pile up
• Feeling drained after social events where you received a lot of attention or compliments

Many families notice nazar most acutely after moments of visible good fortune like a new job, a new home, a newborn, a wedding, a business launch. These are the moments of highest vulnerability.

The home remedies: what works and how to do them correctly

These are the most widely practised Nazar Utarna remedies in the Hindu tradition. Each works by absorbing the negative energy from the affected person or space into a substance, which is then destroyed or discarded, taking the Nazar with it.

1. Rai aur Namak (Mustard seeds and salt): Take a handful of rock salt and a small amount of mustard seeds. Circle them anticlockwise around the affected person's head and body, three, five, or seven times while praying for the removal of all negative energy. The person performing the ritual should have pure intention and no Nazar of their own. Immediately after, burn the salt and mustard seeds. If they crackle sharply or emit an unusually strong smell, it confirms the presence of Nazar. Dispose of the ash outside the home.
2. Mirchi aur Nimbu (Chilli and lemon): Seven green chillies and one lemon strung together and hung at the entrance of the home specifically targets Alakshmi (the goddess of misfortune), who is believed to dislike sour and spicy items. Replace this string every Saturday. When the lemon begins to shrivel or the chillies lose their colour, the string has absorbed negative energy and should be disposed of outside the home, not in the household dustbin.
3. Fitkari (Alum): Take a piece of alum and circle it anticlockwise around the affected person's head seven times. Then heat it on a tawa (griddle). The shape the melted and resolidified alum takes reveals the source and severity of the Nazar. Dispose of the alum at a crossroads, traditionally by throwing it southward.
4. Kala tikka for children: A small black dot applied behind the ear or on the sole of the foot, placed where it is not immediately visible. The colour black absorbs negative energy before it reaches the child.

The protective mantra to be chanted during all Nazar Utarna rituals

Om Hanumate Namah Nazar Na Lage, Buri Nazar Door Ho

Lord Hanuman is the primary protective deity invoked during Nazar Utarna in the Hindu tradition. His energy creates a shield around the devotee and the home. Reciting the Hanuman Chalisa daily, particularly on Tuesdays and Saturdays is considered one of the strongest ongoing protections against Nazar. Bajrang Baan is recited when Nazar is severe or persistent.

Protecting your home: ongoing practices

Beyond the Nazar Utarna ritual, the tradition offers specific practices for maintaining a protected home:

• Keep a Tulsi plant at the entrance, east or northeast-facing, as an energetic guardian.
• Light a camphor diya at the main entrance on Tuesdays and Saturdays.
• Hang a Neem leaf garland at the entrance after any large gathering in the home.
• Keep the northeast corner of the home clean and uncluttered. In Vastu, this is the Ishaan Kon, the direction of divine energy.
• Regular Hanuman Chalisa recitation within the home creates what the tradition calls a Kavach, a protective shield that accumulates with consistent practice.

How BookMyPooja can help

If your family has been experiencing persistent Nazar particularly affecting a child, a new home, or a recently started business and home remedies have not been sufficient, a formal Nazar Nivaran Puja performed by an experienced pandit is the right next step. BookMyPooja Online offers Nazar Nivaran Puja as a dedicated home service conducted by verified pandits trained in protective Vedic rituals, with the correct Sankalp, Kavach mantras, and Havan. We also offer Griha Shanti Puja for homes where negative energy has accumulated over time. Book your puja, specify your concern clearly, and receive the complete protection the tradition provides.

Because sometimes what your home needs is not just a remedy. It needs a reset.

Om Suryaya Namah. Om Shanti.