In world mythologies the eye is frequently the emblem of light, power and wisdom – and often more than just wisdom, representing also the ability to read events in the future. Conversely, stupidity and ignorance are sometimes personified in the form of a blind god, or evil in the form of a sightless witch. It is not coincidental that some of the words we use for supernatural experiences are ocular. A seer has not necessarily got acute physical sight (often quite the opposite) and we understand ‘a vision’ as being quite separate from ‘vision’. In religion the faithful ‘see the light’ and the sceptics are ‘blind to the faith’.

In this chapter I will explore the power of the eye. This is not just the power of seeing; it goes beyond that. Eyes have a forceful influence on society through mythology, religious symbolism and philosophy. That we are a sight-dominated species influences everything from what we wear to what we build. However, our environment has changed to such an extent that our eyes are no longer protected to the degree they once were in the time of primitive man. Sight on the one hand is simply one of the five senses, but there is also the other hand …

Mythical and mystic eyes

Research shows that way back in the neolithic period, in quite different parts of the world, an eye or a pair of eyes was the magic symbol that represented the goddess of fertility. These early cults may have had some influence on the mythology of ancient Egypt, where veneration of the eye reached an extraordinary level never quite matched anywhere else. A remnant of the Egyptian ‘eye cult’ survives on the back of a US dollar bill, which has an eye symbol on top of a pyramid.

Egypt

In Egyptian mythology the eye (all sorts of eyes) had a very special place, so much so that saying their beliefs were eye-dominated may not be too strong. The eyes and their mysterious gift of sight must have had a profound influence on the day-to-day lives of the ancient Egyptian people because eye symbols became associated with the wonders and mysticism of their complex and ever-evolving religion.