ShalinLife: Handmade Pendant in Sterling Silver

Traditional Indian Jewellery demonstrates a great range of techniques, some of which are unique to the subcontinent, and which began to be transformed by contact with Europe in the nineteenth century.
Every religious community in India (including converted Christians) uses amuletic jewellery. Its purpose is apotropaic - to work on behalf of the possessor by helping him or her to cope with natural forces that affect his or her life in a positive or negative manner. Prophylactic and homeopathic amulets offer protection against particular illnesses; others render the wearer immune to the effects of witchcraft, the chance of accident, threats from the environment or predatory animals. A special category of amulets counteracts the malignant influence of the ever-present evil eye, and is commonly placed on children, who are believed to be especially subject to malign influences.