Paddock Arts

The children learned about the origin of the Hamsa and studied the designs on several examples. The word " Hamsa " comes from the root word for the number five in Hebrew. The number five is considered to bring good luck .The number 5 also represents the 5 senses of our body.  The number 5 represented by the 5 fingers of an open human hand in a natural motion of the holding an open hand to ward off an oncoming enemy. The shape of the hand is a stop sign to the bad luck. It is commonly believed that both the Hamsa and the colors turquoise & blue are defenders against bad luck. Hamsa it is the most popular cameo for good luck and well being in the middle east.

 

The children brainstormed and explored different design layouts for their own Hamsa. They then created their own Hamsa using symbols to depict something they wanted to keep safe, something they wanted protection from, or something they wanted good luck at.