Speaking with spirits and the dead
Mediumship, ancestor rites, possession and the offerings made to the unseen.
Speaking with spirits and the dead is the aim of mediumship, ancestor rites, possession and necromancy. It runs from the spirit mediums of Korea and Brazil to Vodou possession, Chinese ancestor offerings, the Mexican Day of the Dead, Victorian spiritualism and the Witch of Endor of the Bible. It is a central practice in some living religions and a frequent target of fraud in others. This page covers who speaks to the dead and how they are judged.
Ways of contact
Methods differ. In possession, a spirit or deity is said to speak through the body of a medium, as in Vodou, Candombl茅, Haitian and Brazilian rites, and in Korean gut. In trance or dream, a shaman travels to the spirit world. In offerings and festivals, families feed and talk to ancestors, as in the Hungry Ghost month in China and the ofrenda in Mexico. Spiritualism added the seance and the table-rapping of the 1840s.
Who may
In many societies, women lead: Korean mudang, Okinawan yuta, Brazilian m茫es de santo and the Western spiritualist mediums of the nineteenth century, who found in mediumship a public role denied elsewhere. Elsewhere, the role is for elders and ancestors' descendants. Some traditions require initiation, and some say contact with the dead is not for outsiders to attempt. Spirits and ancestors are not always friendly: mediums report angry, hungry or lost beings, and rites exist for settling them, such as offerings for neglected ancestors in China and Vietnam.
Authority and fear
Religions disagree. Christianity, Judaism and Islam each forbid certain contact with the dead while honouring prayer for them. Spiritist movements around Kardec in Brazil and France treat communication as a doctrine. Colonial authorities banned possession cults in many places, often labelling them devil worship, and some Pentecostal churches today condemn them in the same terms. The rites are widely found in Africa too, where ancestors are consulted at the family shrine and are held to watch over the living.
Fraud, grief and study
Grieving people are vulnerable. Fraudulent mediums, from the Fox sisters, who confessed in 1888, to modern cold readers, have taken money by exploiting loss. Researchers point to cold reading and to the ideomotor effect behind the Ouija board. Many bereaved people also report real comfort from rites that keep a bond with the dead, and counsellors acknowledge that continuing bonds are common. Doctors and psychologists note that a grief reaction can include hearing or sensing the dead, which is common and not in itself a sign of illness.
Speaking with spirits and the dead on EveryJaadu
The entries written up so far, best known first.
馃嚠馃嚤 Israel and 5 moreTetragrammaton讬讛讜讛
The four-letter name of God in the Hebrew Bible, written as YHWH.Belief 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚝馃嚪 France and 1 moreLaying on of hands住诪讬讻讛
A physical gesture used across religions to convey authority, healing, or spiritual presence.Rite 路 Healing 路 Power and authority Living
馃嚚馃嚟 SwitzerlandMagic circle
A ritual boundary drawn or visualised to create sacred space and protectionTradition 路 Protection 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚠馃嚤 Israel and 3 moreCleromancy
A divination method that uses random chance to reveal divine willOracle 路 Seeing and foretelling 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚞馃嚪 Greece and 5 moreVotive offering
Objects left in sacred places to honor a deity or fulfill a vow, never to be recovered.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚥馃嚱 Mexico and 2 moreChild sacrifice
The ritual killing of children to appease deities or restore cosmic order in ancient culturesRite 路 Cursing and harm 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
馃嚝馃嚪 France and 5 moreKabbalah拽址讘指旨诇指讛
An esoteric school of thought within Judaism focused on the hidden meanings of scripture and the divine.Tradition 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Change and initiation Living
馃嚜馃嚞 Egypt and 5 moreSacred dance
Movement used in worship to honour deities, heal communities, or connect with the spirit world.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚫馃嚧 Somalia and 5 moreFrankincense
An aromatic tree resin harvested for incense, perfume, and religious ritualSubstance 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Power and authority Living
馃嚠馃嚜 Ireland and 5 moreBonfire
A large outdoor fire used in seasonal festivals and religious feasts across many culturesRite 路 Cleansing and purification 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚨馃嚫 Palestine and 1 moreRachel's TombQever Ra岣l; Qabr R膩岣ツ玪
A shared holy site near Bethlehem revered by Jews, Christians, and MuslimsTradition 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Protection Living
馃嚠馃嚤 Israel and 4 moreIsaac Luria讬执爪职讞指拽 讘谉 砖诇诪讛 讗砖讻谞讝讬 诇讜旨专职讬指讗
A sixteenth-century rabbi who founded modern Kabbalah through oral teachings in Safed.Text 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Change and initiation Living
馃嚠馃嚤 Israel and 5 moreTefillin转职旨驻执诇执旨讬谉
Black leather boxes containing Torah scrolls, worn by Jewish men during weekday prayers.Charm 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Protection Living
馃嚠馃嚤 Israel and 2 moreLag BaOmer诇址状讙 讘指旨注讜止诪侄专
A Jewish holiday marking the end of a mourning period with bonfires and outdoor playTradition 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Wonder and entertainment Living
馃嚠馃嚤 IsraelUrim and Thummim讛指讗讜旨专执讬诐 讜职讛址转只旨诪执旨讬诐
Sacred lots used by the ancient Israelite High Priest to reveal divine judgment.Charm 路 Cursing and harm 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
馃嚠馃嚤 IsraelWitch of Endor讗值芝砖侄讈转 讘址旨纸注植诇址转志讗止謻讜讘 讘职旨注值芝讬谉 讚止旨纸讜专
A biblical spirit-diviner summoned by King Saul to consult the prophet Samuel.Figure 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
馃嚬馃嚧 Tonga and 5 moreTabootapu
A cultural prohibition that marks something as forbidden or sacredBelief 路 Protection 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚝馃嚪 France and 3 moreChristian Kabbalah
A Renaissance effort to read Christian theology into Jewish mysticismTradition 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚠馃嚤 Israel and 2 moreUpsherin讗指驻旨砖注专谉 (opshern)
A first haircut ceremony for Jewish boys, marking the start of formal study.Rite 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Power and authority Living
馃嚨馃嚫 PalestineHekhalot literature住驻专讜转 讛讛讬讻诇讜转 讜讛诪专讻讘讛
Jewish visionary texts describing ascents to heavenly palaces and chariotsText 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Change and initiation Historical
馃嚠馃嚤 Israel and 2 moreMezuzah诪职讝讜旨讝指讛
A scroll of Torah verses placed in a case on Jewish doorpostsCharm 路 Protection 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚜馃嚞 EgyptDemon
A supernatural entity believed to cause harm or possess humansBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
馃嚬馃嚬 Trinidad and Tobago and 4 moreTrinidad Orisha
A syncretic Afro-Caribbean faith blending Yoruba spirit work with Christian and other traditions in Trinidad.Tradition 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Healing Living
馃嚠馃嚤 Israel and 4 moreAngel诪诇讗讱
A supernatural messenger or intermediary spirit found in many religious traditions.Being 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Protection Living
馃嚠馃嚤 Israel and 1 morePardes驻专讚状住
A four-level method for interpreting Jewish scriptureText 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
馃嚠馃嚤 IsraelSeder hishtalshelus住讚专 讛砖转诇砖诇讜转
A Kabbalistic cosmology mapping the descent of divine light through spiritual realms to the physical world.Belief 路 Power and authority 路 Wonder and entertainment Living
馃嚜馃嚞 EgyptMagical alphabet
Letter systems used in occult rituals and talismanic magicText 路 Protection 路 Power and authority Living
馃嚠馃嚤 IsraelShekhinah砖职讈讻执讬谞指讛
The divine presence of God dwelling among people in Jewish and Islamic thoughtBelief 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Power and authority Living
馃嚠馃嚤 Israel and 1 moreAna BeKoach讗谞讗 讘讻讞
A medieval Jewish liturgical poem linked to the 42-letter name of GodText 路 Power and authority 路 Protection Living
馃嚠馃嚤 Israel and 1 moreYom Hillula讬讜诐 讛讬诇讜诇讗
A joyous death anniversary for a saint in Jewish traditionRite 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚠馃嚪 Iran and 5 moreAxis mundi
A concept describing a central point connecting the earthly and heavenly realms.Belief 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Power and authority Historical
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Jewish mysticism: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Tetragrammaton: Lakisletter.gif : derivative work: Filii Henoch ( talk ), Public domain, source
- Yom Hillula: Jonathan Stein, Public domain, source
- Isaac Luria: Louski1, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Egungun: 脤峁ａ汗虁峁Assembly, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Tefillin: Brooklyn Museum, CC BY 3.0, source
- Lag BaOmer: Yoninah, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Urim and Thummim: Rijksmuseum, CC0, source
- Witch of Endor: Adam Elsheimer / John Kay, CC BY 4.0, source
- Taboo: Jonathan McIntosh, CC BY 2.0, source
- Upsherin: Vered Peer, CC BY 4.0, source
- Demon: Martin Schongauer, Public domain, source
- Angel: Unknown author, CC0, source
- Pardes: Anonymous (photo by Adrian Pingstone), Public domain, source
- Seder hishtalshelus: Daderot, Public domain, source
- Mezuzah: Adrian Grycuk, CC BY-SA 3.0 pl, source
- Laying on of hands: User:Lipsio, CC BY 3.0, source
- Magic circle: John William Waterhouse, Public domain, source
- Cleromancy: Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, Public domain, source
- Axis mundi: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Votive offering: Walter J. Pilsak, Waldsassen ( W.J.Pilsak at de.wikipedia ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Child sacrifice: Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, Public domain, source
- Magical alphabet: Francis Barrett, Public domain, source
- Kabbalah: Joseph ben Abraham Gikatilla, Paulus Riccius, Leonhard Beck, Public domain, source
- Sacred dance: Jorge Barrios, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Ana BeKoach: Baruch Zvi Ring (c. 1872 - 1927) Details on Google Art Project, Public domain, source
- Frankincense: No machine-readable author provided. Gaius Cornelius assumed (based on, Public domain, source
- Bonfire: S Marshall, CC BY 3.0, source
- Rachel's Tomb: Lane-Poole, Stanley, Public domain, source