Spirits, creatures and beings

Djinn, fairies, orisha, golems and the other powers that magic deals with.

A feather: used in cleansing and blessing in some traditions, worn as a sign of office, and carried as a charm.

Beings are the powers that magic deals with: spirits, ancestors, gods, djinn, fairies, orisha, nats, kami, demons, golems, ghosts and the many kinds of household and landscape spirit. People in most cultures have described a world shared with unseen others, who may help, trouble or ask for respect. This page covers what these beings are said to be and the very different ways communities relate to them. They are always described here as what communities believe, not as established fact.

Different kinds of beings

A being can be a god with a priesthood, such as an orisha served in Yoruba religion, Cuba and Brazil. It can be an ancestor, honoured in China, Africa and Mexico. It can belong to a place, such as the kami of Shinto, the Thai phi or the Burmese nats. It can be a trouble-maker, like the djinn of Arabic and Islamic tradition, formed from smokeless fire, or the fairies of Ireland, whom people avoided naming.

Relationship, not command

In many traditions, a person does not command a being but enters a relationship with it, through offerings, promises and respect. Possession and mediumship are forms of that relationship, as in Vodou, Candomblé, Korean mudang rites and Sufi gatherings. In ceremonial magic of the European grimoires, by contrast, the magician summons spirits by name and authority, which the Church condemned as demon-raising. The same being may be loved in one household and feared in the next, and a spirit helpful to its servant can be harmful to a stranger.

Religions and renaming

Dominant religions often absorbed beings by relabelling them. Christian missionaries called many African and Indigenous spirits demons. Islam reads the djinn as real creatures, some of whom are Muslim, and Hindu and Buddhist traditions fold local deities into their own pantheons. Pagan and fairy beliefs were sometimes recast as the devil's work, which fed witch trials in Europe. Churches and mosques have sometimes divided beings into good and evil in ways the older traditions did not, so that a neutral local spirit became a demon on the day a missionary arrived.

Harm and interpretation

Belief in harmful spirits has been used to accuse people. Children in parts of West and Central Africa have been branded as witches possessed by evil spirits, and some have been abused by pastors or families in the name of deliverance. Scholars read spirit beliefs as ways to make sense of illness, loss and conflict, and many communities see them simply as neighbours. That is why accusations tied to spirit beliefs fall hardest on children and the vulnerable, and why many agencies train local leaders to challenge them.

Being 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

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

BeliefHindu and Tantric Buddhist Jain Muslim and Sufi Jewish Christian Sikh Zoroastrian Shinto and Taoist Indigenous and shamanic African and Afro-diasporic Pagan and Neopagan Esoteric and occult Folk and village custom Secular and stage Other traditions

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

🇬🇹 GuatemalaMaximónRi Laj Mam A Maya folk saint and trickster deity venerated in the Guatemalan HighlandsBeing · Protection · Healing Living

🇦🇷 Argentina and 5 moreGauchito Gil A folk saint from Argentina who protects the poor and outcastsBeing · Protection · Healing Living

🇧🇷 Brazil and 2 moreMapinguari A hairy Amazonian monster with a belly mouth and backwards feetBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇭🇹 HaitiGedeGuédé A family of spirits in Haitian Vodou who guard the dead and grant fertility.Being · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living

🇭🇹 HaitiErzulieÈzili A family of spirits in Haitian Vodou representing love, beauty, and protective fury.Being · Protection · Love and attraction Living

🇭🇹 Haiti and 2 moreLwa Spirits in Haitian Vodou that mediate between people and the creator god.Being · Protection · Healing Living 🇧🇷 BrazilPomba Gira An Afro-Brazilian spirit of love and desire worshipped in Umbanda and QuimbandaBeing · Love and attraction · Power and authority Living

🇵🇪 Peru and 1 moreViracochaWiraqucha The supreme creator deity of the Andes, associated with the sea and civilization.Being · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Historical

🇧🇴 Bolivia and 1 moreEkekoIqiqu An Andean deity of abundance and prosperity, central to the Alasitas festival.Being · Luck and prosperity · Power and authority Living 🇵🇪 Peru and 1 moreSupay An Andean spirit of the underworld who balances life and death forcesBeing · Cursing and harm · Protection Historical

🇨🇱 ChileTrauco A small forest spirit from Chiloé mythology known for seducing women and causing pregnancyBeing · Love and attraction · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇭🇹 Haiti and 1 moreEzili DantorÈzili Dantò A fierce mother spirit in Haitian Vodou who protects the marginalized and demands loyalty.Being · Protection · Love and attraction Living

🇧🇷 BrazilBoitatá A fiery serpent of Brazilian folklore that guards forests or frightens childrenBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Living

🇵🇪 Peru and 1 moreChullachaqui A one-footed forest spirit of the Amazon that lures or challenges humansBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary 🇧🇯 Benin and 2 morePapa Legba A loa who stands at the crossroads and opens the gate between people and spiritsBeing · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living

🇵🇷 Puerto Rico and 5 moreChupacabrachupacabras A legendary creature said to drain livestock of blood, emerging from Puerto Rico in the mid-1990sBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇧🇷 Brazil and 2 moreCurupira A backwards-footed forest guardian from Brazilian indigenous myth who punishes loggers and misleads travelers.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇲🇽 MexicoChaneque Mexican folklore sprites that guard nature and homesBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇲🇽 Mexico and 2 moreAluxaluxo'ob A small Maya spirit believed to guard fields and cause mischief if offended.Being · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇵🇪 Peru and 5 morePachamama The Andean mother goddess of space-time and the earthBeing · Protection · Healing Living

🇲🇽 Mexico and 5 moreSihuanaba A shapeshifting spirit that lures men with beauty before revealing a monstrous faceBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago and 5 moreSoucouyant A shape-shifting vampire spirit of Caribbean folklore that sheds its skin to fly as a fireballBeing · Cursing and harm Living

🇲🇽 MexicoCamazotz A bat spirit of the Maya underworld linked to night, death, and sacrificeBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary 🇨🇴 ColombiaPatasola A Colombian jungle monster that lures men with beauty before revealing a one-legged formBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇲🇽 MexicoAhuizotlāhuitzotl A legendary Aztec water creature said to lure people to their deathsBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇧🇷 BrazilMinhocão A giant aquatic worm or fish from Brazilian folklore blamed for earthquakes and animal disappearancesBeing Legendary 🇯🇲 Jamaica and 3 moreDuppy A Caribbean term for a ghost or malevolent spirit, rooted in West African folklore.Being · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Living 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic and 1 moreCiguapa A back-footed forest spirit of the Dominican Republic known for seduction and jealousyBeing · Cursing and harm · Love and attraction Legendary 🇧🇷 BrazilBoiúna A powerful river serpent from Amazonian mythology that shifts shape to guard its watersBeing Legendary

🇵🇾 ParaguayAo Ao A Guarani mythic beast that hunts humans and frightens children in ParaguayBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇲🇽 MexicoWerejaguar A supernatural figure from Olmec art, blending human and jaguar traits.Being · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary 🇨🇱 Chile and 1 moreCuerotrülke wekufü An aquatic creature from Mapuche and Chilote myth that drags victims into the depths.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇧🇷 BrazilCapelobo A Brazilian monster with a long snout that feeds on blood and brainsBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇨🇱 Chile and 3 moreGualichu An evil spirit feared in Mapuche and Tehuelche traditions, and a word for bad luckBeing · Cursing and harm Historical 🇦🇷 ArgentinaLegendary creatures of the Argentine Northwest region Myths and spirits from the Andean highlands of ArgentinaBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Historical 🇩🇴 Dominican RepublicAnaisa Pye A Dominican loa of love and wealth, linked to Saint Anne.Being · Love and attraction · Luck and prosperity Living

🇩🇲 DominicaBelie Belcan A loa of justice and protection in Dominican Vudú, linked to Saint Michael.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Living 🇭🇹 Haiti and 3 moreNago lwa A Haitian Vodou nation of masculine spirits rooted in Yoruba traditionsBeing · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago and 1 moreDouen A faceless creature with backwards feet from Trinidad and Tobago folkloreBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇨🇱 ChilePincoya A Chilotan sea spirit whose dance predicts the catch of fish and seafood.Being · Luck and prosperity · Power and authority Legendary

🇵🇦 PanamaPanama Creature A decomposing sloth carcass mistaken for a monster in PanamaBeing Historical 🇨🇱 ChileWarlock of Chiloébrujo chilote A legendary network of sorcerers from the Chilean archipelago and their mythical powers.Belief · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary 🇧🇷 BrazilLobisomem A South American shape-shifter born from family fate or sin, often linked to the full moon.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇨🇱 Chile and 1 moreKalku A Mapuche sorcerer who works with negative powers and malevolent spiritsBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇬🇾 Guyana and 1 moreBaccoo A half-wood spirit from Guyanese and Surinamese folklore that serves as a mercenary or a haunting presence.Being · Cursing and harm · Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary

🇨🇴 ColombiaMohan A forest spirit and ancestor soul in Colombian Indigenous folkloreBeing · Cursing and harm · Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago and 2 moreMama D'Leau A river spirit of the Caribbean islands who protects aquatic life and heals people.Being · Healing · Protection Legendary 🇧🇿 BelizeTata DuendeNukuch Tat A thumbless forest spirit of Belizean folklore that protects animals and warns children.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Living

Photo credits on this page

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

Maya mythology: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Mohan: Sanjuan, Public domain, source
Pincoya: Paul Lowry, CC BY 2.0, source
Trauco: Seo2 (Cristian), CC BY 2.0, source
Ezili Dantor: Oficinalis, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Chullachaqui: LLs, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Chupacabra: Dick Langer, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Curupira: Sturm, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Chaneque: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Alux: Gary Todd, CC0, source
Pachamama: Penarc, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Lwa: Hector Hyppolite, Public domain, source
Maximón: Sapfan (Jan Pesula), Public domain, source
Folk saint: Sergio Serrano, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Viracocha: Pattych ( talk ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Boitatá: The ponta cabeça, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Sihuanaba: Orlando Callejas, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Folk Catholicism: Calvin Hennick, for WBUR Boston, CC BY 3.0, source
Ahuizotl: Infrogmation, New Orleans, Public domain, source
Ao Ao: Cowboymax, CC0, source
Werejaguar: Ruben Charles, ( http://www.rubencharles.com ), CC BY 2.0, source
Capelobo: Di (they-them), CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Belie Belcan: Domfranciscorodrigues, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Panama Creature: Christian Mehlführer, User:Chmehl, CC BY 2.5, source
Ekeko: Ciudades, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Erzulie: anonymous, Public domain, source
Mapinguari: Lauro Iyambae (@Aptix_4p0clix), CC0, source