Cursing and harm
Curses, hexes and sorcery as people describe and fear them, with the counter-magic against them.
Cursing and harm are the part of magic that societies fear most. This page describes curses and sorcery as beliefs, and the social role of fear and accusation, and does not give instructions. The evil eye, the curse tablets of the Greek and Roman world, Hebrew and Arabic writings on harmful magic, sorcery in Melanesia and Africa, and the European witch are all part of this subject. Most of the harm recorded is that done to people accused.
What is believed
Many cultures hold that envy, anger or hostile ritual can bring illness, loss or death to a victim. The beliefs differ: in the Mediterranean, the evil eye needs no intent. In Azande society, studied by Evans-Pritchard, witchcraft was an inherited substance that explained why misfortune struck one person and not another. Greek and Roman lead curse tablets, often addressed to gods of the underworld, show the belief was written down in antiquity.
Accusation as social force
Where harm is feared, accusation follows. Anthropologists have shown that charges of witchcraft often follow tension inside a family or village, such as inheritance, jealousy or a sudden death. Accusers are usually in conflict with the accused, who is more likely to be old, poor, widowed or marginal. The belief can enforce norms and also destroy people. People also fear being accused, since an accusation can arrive without warning and can follow a family for generations.
Persecution and its present
European and colonial American witch trials, from the fifteenth to the eighteenth century, put tens of thousands to death, including the Salem trials of 1692. The practice has not ended. Mobs and families still attack accused people in parts of Africa, India, Papua New Guinea and elsewhere, and Saudi Arabia has executed people for sorcery. Albino people have been killed for body parts in East Africa. Several states are drafting or enforcing laws against accusation itself.
Counter-magic and scholarship
Where harm is feared, so is protection: amulets, cleansing, and a specialist who can say who sent it. Scholars see curses as a language of grievance, and psychologists have documented the nocebo effect, in which belief in harm can bring on real distress. A person who is afraid should seek medical and social help, and talk to someone they trust. People who believe they have been cursed should be helped to find practical support, including from health services, and not left alone with fear.
Cursing and harm on EveryJaadu
The entries written up so far, best known first.
馃嚫馃嚜 Sweden and 2 moreMj枚lnirMj谦llnir
The hammer of the Norse thunder god Thor, used as a weapon and for blessingsBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Protection Historical
馃嚛馃嚜 GermanyAlp
A Germanic spirit that presses on sleepers and drinks milkBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚪馃嚭 Russia and 4 moreLady MiddayPoludnitsa
A Slavic noon spirit who watches over fields and punishes those who work during the hottest hours.Being 路 Cursing and harm 路 Protection Historical
馃嚪馃嚭 Russia and 2 moreUpi贸r褍锌褨芯褉
A demonic spirit from Slavic and Turkic folklore that is believed to return from the dead to feed on the living.Being 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚪馃嚧 Romania and 2 moreStrigoi
A Romanian undead spirit linked to witchcraft and vampirismBeing 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United KingdomGwyllion
Welsh spirits that lead travellers astray and are feared in mountain folkloreBeing 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚠馃嚫 Iceland and 1 moreNornsnornir
Fate-weaving figures from Norse myth who shape human destiny and tend the world tree.Being 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United KingdomBoggart
A malevolent household spirit from northern English folkloreBeing 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚛馃嚜 Germany and 3 moreMare
A spirit that sits on sleepers to cause nightmares and physical distressBeing 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United KingdomWirry-cow
A Scottish folk figure representing a frightening object or spiritBeing 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚪馃嚭 Russia and 3 moreChort褔褢褉褌
A Slavic demon spirit with horns and hooves, known in folklore as a trickster or minor evil force.Being 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚪馃嚧 Romania and 2 moreStrix蟽蟿蟻委尉
A classical bird of ill omen that evolved into a term for witches and vampires across Europe.Being 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚝馃嚪 FranceTitivillus
A medieval demon who collects scribal errors and liturgical mistakes in a sack.Being 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚨馃嚤 Poland and 3 moreStrzyga
A female demon in Polish folklore, linked to owls and vampiric traitsBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Protection Historical
馃嚪馃嚭 Russia and 4 moreFiery serpents芯谐薪械薪薪褘泄 蟹屑械泄
A pan-Slavic spirit of fire and wind, seen as a demon or a household helperBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚞馃嚪 GreeceGello螕蔚位位蠋
A Greek demon of infancy and a class of beings blamed for infant death.Being 路 Cursing and harm 路 Protection Historical
馃嚨馃嚤 PolandBoginka
Female spirits of wild nature in Polish pagan mythologyBeing 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚨馃嚤 PolandTopielec
A Slavic water spirit of the drowned dead that pulls victims into lakes.Being 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚛馃嚜 Germany and 3 moreWiederg盲nger
A German term for a revenant or ghost that returns to the world of the living.Being 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚪馃嚭 RussiaHabernitsa
A noon demon of Slavic fields who punishes workers and causes pain.Being 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚛馃嚜 Germany and 4 moreNight ravennattravn
A nocturnal creature of European folklore, feared as a child-stealer or seen as a ghost in bird form.Being 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚝馃嚪 FranceYan-gant-y-tan
A Breton demon who carries five candles and is said to bring bad luck.Being 路 Cursing and harm 路 Wonder and entertainment Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United KingdomTrow
Nocturnal spirits of the Orkney and Shetland islands, known for mischief and musical abduction.Being 路 Cursing and harm 路 Wonder and entertainment Historical
馃嚝馃嚪 France and 1 moreDusios
A Gaulish spirit type later classified as an incubus demon by early Christian writersBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Power and authority Historical
馃嚝馃嚪 FranceMargot the fairy
Earthly fairies of Brittany known for dancing, building monuments, and testing human guests.Being 路 Luck and prosperity 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚦馃嚧 NorwayDeildegast
A Norwegian ghost bound to boundary stones it moved in lifeBeing 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚟馃嚭 Hungary and 1 moreS谩rk谩ny
A winged reptilian beast from Hungarian folklore, linked to weather and literary heroes.Being 路 Cursing and harm 路 Wonder and entertainment Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 1 moreBogle
A Northumbrian and Scots household spirit or ghost known for perplexing people.Being 路 Cursing and harm 路 Wonder and entertainment Historical
馃嚛馃嚜 Germany and 3 moreDrude
A Germanic nightmare spirit and the pentagram charm used to keep it outBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Protection Historical
馃嚛馃嚜 GermanyFeldgeist
German folk creatures tied to crops, weather and harvest ritualsBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚠馃嚬 ItalyMazap茅gul
A mischievous elf of Romagna with a red cap that steals sleep and braids horse manesBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United KingdomBiast Bhealach Odail
A shapeshifting spirit of a Scottish mountain passBeing 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚞馃嚪 GreeceMeilichios螠蔚喂位委蠂喂慰蟼
An ancient Greek chthonic spirit linked to Zeus and appeased through fire offerings.Being 路 Protection 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚪馃嚭 Russia and 5 moreFiredrakeognennyi zmei
A European dragon myth born from sightings of shooting stars and will-o'-the-wispsBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United KingdomHobgoblin
A household spirit from English folklore known for chores and mischiefBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United KingdomLazy Laurence
A mischievous English pixie who makes orchard workers lazy and gives them indigestionBeing 路 Protection 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚠馃嚫 IcelandSelkolla
A seal-headed woman from Icelandic folklore who clashed with a medieval bishop.Being 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚫馃嚜 Sweden and 1 moreStalloSt谩llu
A large, clumsy creature from S谩mi folklore that eats people and is often outwitted by humans.Being 路 Cursing and harm 路 Wonder and entertainment Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 1 moreElder Mother
A guardian spirit of elder trees in English and Scandinavian folkloreBeing 路 Protection 路 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.
- Stallo: John Bauer, Public domain, source
- Alp: Henry Fuseli, Public domain, source
- Changeling: Henry Fuseli, Public domain, source
- Upi贸r: 袙褨褖褍薪, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Norns: file: James Steakley ; artwork: Gustav Heidenreich, Public domain, source
- Boggart: Katolophyromai, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Strix: Prosthetic Head, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Titivillus: Andrewrabbott, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Strzyga: Filip Gutowski, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Gello: Filippino Lippi, Public domain, source
- Boginka: Walery Eljasz Radzikowski, Public domain, source
- Wiederg盲nger: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Yan-gant-y-tan: Louis Le Breton, Public domain, source
- Night raven: Kim Diaz Holm (den unge herr Holm), CC BY 4.0, source
- Dusios: Eric Hunt, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Mj枚lnir: M氓rten Eskil Winge, Public domain, source
- S谩rk谩ny: Albrecht D眉rer, Public domain, source
- Hobgoblin: Herbert Railton, Public domain, source
- Feldgeist: Zwoelefant, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Drude: Ramessos, Public domain, source
- Lady Midday: 袙褨褖褍薪, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Meilichios: Mark Landon, CC BY 4.0, source
- Firedrake: Ramesh Kumar R, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Chort: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Mare: Henry Fuseli, Public domain, source