The seed that measures the evil eye
In Anatolia, Syrian rue is used not only to protect against the evil eye but also to “measure” it: at healing hearths the seeds are thrown onto a hot griddle, and the more they crack, the stronger the evil eye is believed to be. In Kayseri the seeds are burned with brushwood gathered at a crossroads; in Van, with measured threads and the name of the person suspected of casting the evil eye.
Source: Deniz Güçlü, “Anadolu’da Nazar İnancı: Halk Hekimliğinde Tanı ve Korunma Pratikleri”, Lokman Hekim Dergisi 16(2), 2026 (Güçlü, Lokman Hekim Dergisi, 2026). This is a folk record, not a treatment recommendation.
An amulet at the door, poison in the mouth