Charms, amulets and talismans of the world

An eye: in this guide it stands for protection against envy and the evil eye, a belief found from the Mediterranean to South Asia.

Charms, amulets and talismans are things made or chosen to carry a purpose. The blue glass nazar in Turkey, the hamsa hand across North Africa and the Middle East, the Japanese omamori, the Haitian pwen, the Italian cornicello and the Hoodoo mojo bag all belong here. They are small, portable and personal, and found on every continent. This page looks at what they are said to do and how they are made, sold and understood.

Amulet or talisman

The two words are often used loosely. An amulet is usually said to protect by what it is, such as a blue bead against the evil eye. A talisman is made or empowered for a purpose, often with writing, a name or a date. Islamic, Jewish, Taoist and Hindu traditions all have written talismans: the Taoist fu, the Jewish kame'a, the Hindu yantra and the Muslim hirz. The common thread is that something small and personal is believed to hold a purpose on behalf of its owner.

Making and keeping

Many charms are made by specialists, then blessed or sold at a temple, shrine or market. Others are made at home, such as a red thread, a knotted cord, or a horseshoe nailed over a door. Practitioners usually say a charm should be kept clean, respected and not shown off. In Japan an omamori is returned to its shrine after a year. Charm makers are often women, jewellers, scribes or temple staff, and the person who makes a charm may not be the person who blesses it.

Faith and suspicion

Religious authorities disagree on charms. Some Islamic scholars allow Quranic verses carried as a reminder and reject objects held to work by themselves. Many Christian churches have blessed medals and scapulars while condemning amulets of folk origin. Sikh teaching rejects charms altogether. Anthropologists read them as ways to hold fear and uncertainty in a form a person can carry. Interpretation is divided within religions too, so one family may treat a bead as decoration while a neighbour treats it as a serious shield.

Market and appropriation

Charms are big business. Evil-eye beads sell as fashion on every high street, and the hamsa appears as a decoration far from its homes. Fakes are common, and some sellers promise outcomes in ways that amount to fraud, particularly in expensive gemstone or lottery charm schemes. Sacred designs used as a logo can offend the community they come from. Designers have taken eyes, hands and runes as motifs, and while many communities are glad to see them shared, others ask that sacred symbols not be turned into trivia or used by brands.

Charm 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

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

🇨🇳 China and 1 moreFulu符籙 Taoist talismans with cryptic symbols used for healing and protectionCharm · Healing · Protection Living

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

🇨🇳 China and 5 moreJoss paper金紙 Paper burned as money and goods for ancestors, gods and the deadCharm · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Luck and prosperity 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

🇯🇵 JapanOfudaお札/御札 (ofuda) Paper and wooden talismans from Japanese Shinto shrines and Buddhist templesCharm · Protection · Cleansing and purification 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

🇮🇱 IsraelUrim and Thummimהָאוּרִים וְהַתֻּמִּים Sacred lots used by the ancient Israelite High Priest to reveal divine judgment.Charm · Cursing and harm · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical 🇯🇵 JapanOmamori (sample)お守り A small shrine charm in a brocade pouch.Charm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

Charms, amulets and talismans