High five!

For those unfamiliar with the Israeli culture, you might be wondering what the heck is that weird hand necklace doing as the welcoming image of this blog. No, it is not there to stop you. And no, I don't want you to talk to the hand.

But it didn't get there by accident, though. The hand (hamsa) and I (shiksa) have one thing in common: we have absolutely nothing to do with Judaism. However, the common things stop there: the hand is a righty, I am a lefty.

Hamsa is derived from the word meaning five in Arabic (and also in Hebrew: hamesh, no?). Very logical, since a hand usually has five fingers. It can also be referred to as the hand of Miriam (Moses' sister), Mary (the virgin) or Fatima (Muhammad's daughter) - depending on whom you ask. Seems like everybody wants to hold that hand close to their beliefs.

The symbol of the hand is believed to protect its bearer from the evil eye and generally bring you good luck and give power. So it may come very handy during times of despair. In Israel you can see it everywhere, everything from jewellery to car air fresheners. And even though it has nothing official to do with Judaism, it has become very popular among the people.

I have three hamsas in my possession: one you see on top of this page and this is the one I hold most dear to me. The other two are below and are more common hands-on examples of the use of the hamsa.

A keyring from Eilat. On the backside, it has the prayer for travelers.

A poster I bought online in 2010. When I purchased my own place, I got a strange urge - if not an obsession - to get myself a hamsa poster to keep my home safe. Later I came to realize also the other symbolism the poster features.