AMULETS: ANCIENT, MEDIEVAL, ORIENTAL 345
writers never for a moment hesitating to accept the popular beliefs in this respect.*8
Among
the Bhots of Landakh in the western part of Tibet, a large piece of
amber or agate is often worn by the men suspended from the neck as an
amulet. Here as in so many other parts of the world, the amulet is
believed to acquire especial eificacy when worn in this way, as it
comes in immediate contact with the person of the wearer.49
A very singular manner of using precious stones as talismans is noted in Burma.50 There are certain talismans called hkoung-beht-set, which
are inserted in the flesh beneath the skin. They are usually of gold,
silver, or lead, or else of tortoise shell, horn, etc., but sometimes
they are rolled pebbles and occasionally precious stones. We are told
that When a prisoner is found to have such talismans on, or rather in his
person, the jailer cuts them out lest they should be used to bribe the
guards. The talismans owe much of their supposed power to inscriptions
in mystic characters, and they are so highly favored that some of the
natives wear one or more rows of them across the chest.
For the Japanese, rock-crystal is the "perfect jewel," tama; it
is at once a symbol of purity and of the infinity of space, and also of
patience and perseverance. This latter significance probably originated
from an observation of the patience and skill required for the
production of the splendid crystal balls made by the accurate and
painstaking Japanese cutters and polishers.
The
belief of Mohammedans in the Evil Eye claims the authority of the
Prophet to the effect that "the âïn (eye) is a reality." The Arabs also
designate the Evil Eye as
u Forttmio Liceti, De annulis, cap. 19.
* Hendley, " Indian Jewellery," London, 1909, p. 59.
•H.
Shway Yoe, "The Bunnan: Hie Life and Nations," in "Indian Jewellery,"
by T. H. Hendley. The Journal of Indian Art and Industry, Jan., 1909,
vol xii, No. 105, p. 143.
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