Hamsa

The Hamsa (Arabic: خمسة‎ Ḥamsah, Hebrew: חַמְסָה‎, also romanized khamsa), is a palm-shaped amulet popular throughout the Middle East and North Africa, and commonly used in jewelry and wall hangings. Depicting the open right hand, an image recognized and used as a sign of protection in many times throughout history, the hamsa is believed to provide defense against the evil eye. The symbol originated in Punic Carthage, modern-day Tunisia, and was associated with the Goddess Tanit.

Ḥamsah is an Arabic word that means "five", but also "the five fingers of the hand". It may also be taken as a reference to the primary number itself.

History

Early use of the hamsa has been traced to ancient Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) as well as ancient Carthage. A universal sign of protection, the image of the open right hand is seen in Mesopotamian artifacts in the amulets of the Qāt Ištar/Inana. Other symbols of divine protection based around the hand include the Hand-of-Venus (or Aphrodite), the Hand-of-Mary, that was used to protect women from the evil eye, boost fertility and lactation, promote healthy pregnancies and strengthen the weak, and in the Buddha's gesture (mudrā) of teaching and protection. In that time, women were under immense pressure and expectation to become mothers. The women’s upbringing was centered on becoming a mother as an exclusive role, and it indicated child bearing as necessary. In addition, it was also thought marriage was a sense of protection for both the man and woman.

Puranas

The word Puranas (Sanskrit: पुराण, purāṇa, /pʊˈrɑːnəz/;) literally means "ancient, old", and it is a vast genre of Indian literature about a wide range of topics, particularly myths, legends and other traditional lore. Composed primarily in Sanskrit, but also in regional languages, several of these texts are named after major Hindu deities such as Vishnu, Shiva and Devi. The Puranas genre of literature is found in both Hinduism and Jainism.

The Puranic literature is encyclopedic, and it includes diverse topics such as cosmogony, cosmology, genealogies of gods, goddesses, kings, heroes, sages, and demigods, folk tales, pilgrimages, temples, medicine, astronomy, grammar, mineralogy, humor, love stories, as well as theology and philosophy. The content is highly inconsistent across the Puranas, and each Purana has survived in numerous manuscripts which are themselves inconsistent. The Hindu Puranas are anonymous texts and likely the work of many authors over the centuries; in contrast, most Jaina Puranas can be dated and their authors assigned.

Hamsa (musical group)

Hamsa (חמסה) was an Israeli musical quintet, perhaps best described as an Israeli Spice Girls. The group was formed in 2001 by music producers Eyal Buchbut and Dror Margalit. The group got a breakthrough in the spring of 2003 with the single Chayav lamoot alai, followed by their debut album Hamsa, and shortly after disbanded, during 2004.

Members