Must a husband say "Ma sha' Allah" when praising his wife to avoid the evil eye, or is that considered excessive?
The evil eye is real, and it often originates from an envious individual. A person might even cast the evil eye upon themselves unintentionally, simply out of admiration. If any of you sees something that he admires, he should pray for blessings upon it, based on the saying of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him: "The evil eye is real, and if anything were to precede divine decree, the evil eye would precede it." And his saying: "If one of you sees something in himself, his wealth, or his brother that he admires, he should pray for blessings upon it, for the evil eye is real." It is part of the Sunnah to say "Allahumma barik fiha" (O Allah, bless it) when admiring something, as the evil eye can even be cast by a man upon his own wife. The saying "Mashallah, la quwwata illa billah" (What Allah wills, there is no power except with Allah) when admiring something is weak and has no authentic basis.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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