Role of the talismans in modern Pakistan

Taweez are traditional amulets worn by a Pakistani regardless of religious background or industry. A talisman is placed on an object and it blesses it with supernatural powers to gain good luck, attract wealth or increase health. They protect against scourges that make the harvest-rich land inaccessible like locust, pest and lightning storms etc. They create employment among tribe members and create wealth for citizens in terms of the production of agricultural products. Some scholars say that the importance of amulets and talismans to tribal communities is because they protect a tribe from harm and spread their power into every corner of their territory. The continuous crisis with wealth, trade, politics, economics has resulted in believer’s increase of relying on their taweez to provide them a relief from uncertainties, gain power against entices and ward off the evil eye. In ancient times, people were considered to become financially wealthy if they had one and prosperity followed them throughout their lives and it’s believed that those who don’t carry a taweez won’t be blessed with wealth.

However, when taweez are worn on the body or hung around homes or stores for good luck and protection against negative forces (especially for shop owners) many people see this practice as an idiotic waste since they don’t understand how these talismans work. A taweez contains Quranic verses and have been blessed with Islamic spiritual power. The process of blessing a taweez usually involves reciting verses from the Quran or other Islamic texts, and sometimes the names of Allah. Many traditional Muslims find it to be sinful to purchase a taweez from someone who does not have the knowledge or authority to do so, for example purchasing one from a non-Muslim.

Towards beginning of the 20th century old practices were gradually disappearing due to influence from Western culture. Western education received prominence over traditional Islam meaning that many people did not believe in ummah and taweez anymore.

One representative case includes Talisman for Mohabat that was given to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif ahead of the 2013 general election. This taweez reportedly helped him win the elections by summoning piety and votes for him. There are also a number of other taweez cases that have been reported, but the instances cannot be verified and it is unclear whether they were successful. Pakistan’s National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Science and Technology issued a report in 2015 stating that there are approximately 6,000 taweez shops in Pakistan, with some employees making as much as Rs 12,000 per month. In January 2017, a Pakistani NGO “Razvee” filed a petition to ban taweez in Pakistan.

A study was conducted by Future Factor as well as Tks Factsheet which surveyed over 100 experts, marketing professionals, journalists, branding specialists and Islamic scholars from a variety of countries. The results showed that approximately 45% percent stated they believed in the power of taweez amulets. Ahmed Siddiqui is a famous belief expert and onetime talisman maker in Shahab Brewery, He says, ‘A talisman made on very high quality materials provides people satisfaction as well as benefits like protection from the animosity from others or illness, most of these sites work only if people believe in them’. Mirza Wakil, a great Urdu poet, advised his followers to wear taweez in order to ward off evil spirits and the negative effects of black magic. He also composed many spiritual songs for this purpose.

There is a huge Islamic talisman market in Pakistan. The availability of legal, inexpensive taweez has led to a rise of the custom made ones, by amateurs and professionals. Many of the amateurs are unaware of the dangers associated with offering talismans and charms to others. With so many amateurs offering their products in public, it makes them vulnerable to frauds and other scams.