Where There Is No Doctor 2011 5
Many things do harm only because
people believe they are harmful.
WITCHCRAFT—BLACK MAGIC—AND THE EVIL EYE
If a person believes strongly enough that someone has the power to harm him,
he may actually become ill. Anyone who believes he is bewitched or has been given
the evil eye is really the victim of his own fears (see Susto, p. 24).
A ‘witch’ has no power over
other people, except for her ability
to make them believe that she has.
For this reason:
It is impossible to bewitch
a person who does not believe
in witchcraft.
Some people think that they
are ‘bewitched’ when they have
strange or frightening illnesses
(such as tumors of the genitals or
cirrhosis of the liver, see p. 328).
Such sicknesses have nothing to do
with witchcraft or black magic. Their
causes are natural.
Do not waste your money at ‘magic centers’ that claim to cure witchcraft.
And do not seek revenge against a witch, because it will not solve anything. If
you are seriously ill, go for medical help.
If you have a
strange sickness:
do not blame
a witch,
do not go to a
magic center.
but ask for
medical advice.