18 | SEPTEMBER 15 • 2022 

What Is a 
Hamsa and 
What Makes it 
Jewish?

This symbol of an 
eye embedded in the 
palm of an open hand 
has had numerous 
other names throughout 
the ages, including the 
eye of Fatima, the hand 
of Fatima and the hand 
of Miriam. The form is 
sometimes rendered 
naturally and other 
times symmetrically with 
a second thumb replac-
ing the little finger.
The hamsa has 
been variously inter-
preted by scholars as 
a Jewish, Christian or 
Islamic amulet, and as 
a pagan fertility sym-
bol. Yet, even as the 
magical form remains 
shrouded in mystery 
and scholars debate 
nearly every aspect 
of its emergence, it is 
recognized today as 
a kabbalistic amulet and 
as an important symbol 
in Jewish art.
Read more at www.
myjewishlearning.com/
article/hamsa.

OUR COMMUNITY

W

hile watching a 
Tigers game, have 
you ever noticed 
that relief pitcher and closer 
Gregory Soto wears a beautiful 
diamond-adorned gold hamsa 
around his neck? 
Ever wondered 
why? I have. In fact, 
my cousin, Bobby 
Manela, a native 
Detroiter living in 
Florida, called after 
the All-Star Game 
in July and asked 
me if Soto was wearing a hamsa. 
I confirmed that he was and told 
him I’
d bet others wondered, too.
So, I took a picture of Soto 

and his gold hamsa from my TV 
screen and sent it off with a bunch 
of questions to Jordan Field, 
director of the Tigers Foundation. 
I wanted to know if Soto’s hamsa 
had a family connection, if Soto 
knew the significance of the 
hamsa to Jews and others (I sent 
him the information in the side-
bars on this page) or if there was 
a special story attached to his 
hamsa? 
Field had the Tiger’s Spanish 
translator ask Soto and, as it turns 
out, there is not too much to the 
story.
Here’s what the translator 
wrote: “I talked to Gregory about 
it and he mentioned he doesn’t 

have any connections with the 
Jewish community. He pur-
chased the necklace in 2020 in 
the Dominican Republic because 
he saw it and liked it. Soto noted 
that he has been learning about 
the meaning of the hand and he 
always has it on. But, unfortunate-
ly, nothing special besides that.
”
So, it is a beautiful hamsa and 
Soto wears it all the time because 
he likes it. And, like other Tigers 
fans, I hope it brings him and the 
team lots of good luck. 

Tigers closer Gregory Soto 
wears one all the time.

Sometimes 
a Hamsa is 
just a Hamsa

Don Cohen 
Contributing 
Writer

More Hamsa 
Facts

• 
The hamsa (also known as 
Khama) is a hand-shaped amu-
let used for protection by both 
Jewish and Muslim people. Its 
name comes from a Semitic 
root and literally means “five.” 
The hamsa is usually shaped 
in the form of a symmetrical 
hand, with thumbs on both 
sides, and not in the anatomi-
cally correct way. Though it is 

widely used by both Jewish 
and Muslim people, its origin 
pre-dates both religions and 
is attributed to the goddess 
Taint, a Phoenician lunar god-
dess worshiped as the patron 
goddess at Carthage.
• 
In Judaism, the hamsa is 
also known as yad ha’cha-
mesh (the hand of five) or “the 
hand of Miriam” after the sister 
of Moses and Aaron. It is also 
connected to five books of the 
Torah.

• 
The hamsa is used to 
ward off the evil eye and can 
be found on the entrances 
of homes, in cars, on charm 
bracelets and chains, and 
more. It is also common to 
place other symbols in the 
middle of the hamsa that are 
believed to help against the 
evil eye such as fish, eyes 
and the Star of David. The 
color blue, or more specifically 
light blue, is also considered 
protective against the evil 

eye and we often see many 
hamsas in that color or with 
embedded gemstones in dif-
ferent shades of blue. 
In Jewish use, hamsas are 
often decorated with prayers 
of a protective fashion, such 
as the Shema, the Birkat 
HaBayit (Blessing for the 
Home) or the Tefilat HaDerech 
(Traveler's Prayer).
From https://embassies.gov.
il/oslo/AboutIsrael/Culture/
Pages/Hamsa

DETROIT TIGERS

Gregory 
Soto’s hamsa

Gregory 
Soto

