Hindu and Tantric: magic in this belief world

Mantra, yantra, tantra, puja and the folk goddess cults of India and Nepal.

Hindu practice holds a very large range of ritual: Vedic fire offerings, mantra and yantra, tantra, temple puja, astrology, and the village goddess cults of India and Nepal. Many Hindus would call this worship, not magic, while scholars note that charms, spells and rites of power run through the tradition from the Atharvaveda onward. This page covers the range and the tensions inside it. Hindu communities live in every continent, and their rites differ by language and household.

Mantra, yantra and tantra

A mantra is a sacred sound or phrase, a yantra a diagram, and tantra a family of ritual traditions that use both. Tantric practice is varied: some is household devotion, some is initiatory work under a guru, and some has been sensationalised abroad as sex magic, a picture most practitioners reject. Knowledge is passed through initiation, and many texts are closed to outsiders. Initiation into a mantra is usually given by a guru or family teacher, and the same sound may be said to work only when received in the right way.

Folk and village practice

Beyond the temple, villages have healers, exorcists and mediums who work with goddesses and spirits. Practices against the evil eye include the lemon and chillies, black dots and a rite of waving salt and chillies before a child. Jyotisha, Indian astrology, is consulted for weddings, names and business, and is taught in some universities, which scientists have criticised. Healers and goddess shrines, such as those of Sitala for smallpox and fever and of Bhagavati in Kerala, draw crowds who seek relief and protection.

Gender, caste and law

Access follows caste and gender. Priesthood is largely male and Brahmin, though women lead some rites, and low-caste and Dalit practitioners lead many village cults. Accusations of witchcraft, in India often called dayan or dain, have killed people in states such as Jharkhand and Assam, and several states have passed laws against witch-hunting. Maharashtra and Karnataka have anti-superstition laws. Hindu reformers have also attacked such practice: the Arya Samaj, founded in 1875, opposed idol worship and ritual excess, and rationalist groups in India campaign against godmen who claim miracles.

Diaspora and commerce

Overseas, communities keep household rites and temple worship, and pandits conduct weddings by video. Yoga and tantra are now global industries, and Western teachers have sold forms far from their roots, while Indian reformers and some Hindus object. Scholars point to centuries of overlap between Hindu, Buddhist, Jain and Islamic traditions of charms and healing. Hindu temples in Britain, North America and Southeast Asia now host priests trained in India, and some rites have been adapted to the calendar of working life.

Hindu and Tantric on EveryJaadu

The entries written up so far, best known first.

RegionSouth Asia Southeast Asia East Asia Central Asia and the Caucasus Middle East North Africa Sub-Saharan Africa Europe North America Latin America and the Caribbean Oceania

KindTradition Rite Charm Oracle Substance Being Figure Text Illusion Belief

PurposeProtection Healing Seeing and foretelling Luck and prosperity Love and attraction Cursing and harm Cleansing and purification Speaking with spirits and the dead Change and initiation Binding and oaths Power and authority Wonder and entertainment

WhoShamans Folk healers Priests and ritual specialists Witches, sorcerers and cunning folk Diviners and readers Mediums and the possessed Ceremonial magicians and alchemists Households and ordinary people Stage magicians Scholars and sceptics

OccasionWeddings and betrothal Festivals Birth and childhood Death and remembrance Harvest, farming and weather New year Initiation and coming of age Illness and misfortune Journeys and voyages Everyday use

StandingLiving Revived Fading Historical Legendary Performed

OrderBest known A to Z Newest Living first

🇪🇬 Egypt and 3 moreAmulet A portable object worn or carried to ward off harm and invite fortuneCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇫🇷 France and 3 moreReliquary A container for sacred remains or objects, crafted across many faithsCharm · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living

🇨🇳 China and 5 moreSky lantern天燈 A paper hot air balloon lifted by flame to carry wishes and blessingsRite · Luck and prosperity · Protection Living

🇰🇭 Cambodia and 3 moreSak Yantសាក់យ័ន្ត A Southeast Asian tattoo tradition using sacred geometry for protection and powerTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇮🇹 Italy and 5 moreRelic An object or body part kept to honor a holy person and mark their connection to the divineCharm · Protection · Healing Living

🇸🇾 Syria and 5 moreBaetyl A sacred stone, often a meteorite, believed to house a deity in ancient Near Eastern and Mediterranean traditions.Charm · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical

🇮🇳 India and 2 moreYantraयन्त्र A geometric diagram from Indian traditions used for worship and meditationTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living

🇮🇳 India and 5 moreBindiबिंदी A dot worn on the forehead to mark spiritual focus and cultural identityCharm · Protection · Power and authority Living

🇹🇭 Thailand and 7 moreSpirit house A small roofed shrine that shelters a place's protective spiritCharm · Protection Living

🇮🇳 IndiaKautuka A red or yellow ritual thread worn for protection in South Asian traditionsCharm · Protection Living

🇪🇬 EgyptDjedḏd An ancient Egyptian pillar symbol representing stability and resurrectionCharm · Protection · Power and authority Historical

🇮🇳 India and 1 moreDiyaदीया A small oil lamp used in prayers and festivals across the Indian subcontinentTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇪🇬 Egypt and 5 moreTalisman An object believed to channel specific forces for protection, healing, or influence.Charm · Protection · Healing Historical

🇮🇳 India and 5 moreCowrie A sea snail shell used as currency, divination tool, and charm across many culturesSubstance · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living

🇮🇹 Italy and 5 morePrecious coral A marine skeleton harvested for jewelry and worn as a protective charm in several culturesSubstance · Protection · Healing Living

🇹🇭 Thailand and 3 moreThai Buddha amuletsพระเครื่อง (phrakhrueang) Sacred Buddhist images and relics worn for protection, merit, and fortune in Thailand.Charm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇹🇭 Thailand and 1 morePalad khikปลัดขิก A Thai phallic amulet believed to bring luck and protectionCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreHypocephalus An ancient Egyptian disk placed under the head of the dead for protection and rebirthCharm · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical

🇪🇬 Egypt and 5 moreAmulet A portable object worn or carried to ward off harm and invite protection.Charm · Protection · Healing Living

🇪🇬 Egypt and 4 moreScarab An ancient Egyptian amulet and seal shaped like a dung beetleCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical 🇮🇩 IndonesiaIndonesian numismatic charmUang Gobog Coin-like amulets from Indonesia used for protection and ritual offerings.Charm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇻🇳 Vietnam and 2 moreVietnamese numismatic charmsBùa Việt Nam Coin-shaped charms used for protection, luck, and ritual in Vietnamese cultureCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical

🇨🇳 China and 1 moreTaoist coin charm道教品壓生錢 Chinese and Vietnamese numismatic charms used for protection and feng shuiCharm · Protection · Cursing and harm Historical 🇯🇵 Japan and 2 moreJapanese numismatic charm絵銭 Coin-shaped charms from Japan used for protection, luck, and blessings.Charm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇬🇷 Greece and 3 morePalladium A sacred image or object believed to guarantee the safety of a city or nationCharm · Protection Historical 🇮🇳 India and 2 moreBlack Orlov A black diamond linked to a legend of theft and tragic deathsCharm · Cursing and harm Historical

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

Cowrie: NOAA (Photo Collection of Dr. James P. McVey, NOAA Sea Grant Program), Public domain, source
Precious coral: Géry PARENT, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Amulet: Anonymous ( Egypt ) Unknown author, Public domain, source
Sak Yant: Mikhailovich, CC BY 3.0, source
Relic: MathieuGuy, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Baetyl: Jusepe de Ribera, Public domain, source
Yantra: Photo by Daniel Conrad (Chromacon), artwork by Daniel Conrad under dir, Public domain, source
Bindi: Vinay Sahay, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Palad khik: deror_avi, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Hypocephalus: rob koopman, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Diya: Suyash Dwivedi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Talisman: Sasha India, CC BY 2.0, source
Scarab: Rama, CC BY-SA 2.0 fr, source
Kautuka: Aditya.Asopa, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Djed: Anonymous ( Egypt ) Unknown author, Public domain, source
Spirit house: Chainwit., CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Taoist coin charm: Etnografiska Museet, CC BY 2.5, source
Vietnamese numismatic charms: Jean-Michel Moullec, CC BY 2.0, source
Palladium: Marie-Lan Nguyen ( Jastrow ), Public domain, source
Sky lantern: Richy, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Reliquary: Attributed to Jean de Toul, also written Jehan de Touyl in one source, CC0, source
Thai Buddha amulets: User:Mattes, Public domain, source