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.

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

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

🇬🇧 United KingdomBarghest A mythical black dog from Northern England that foretells death and haunts the countryside.Being · Seeing and foretelling · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇬🇧 United KingdomTylwyth Teg Welsh mythological beings linked to the fairy folk of neighboring traditionsBeing · Luck and prosperity · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇺🇸 United StatesPukwudgie A short forest spirit from Algonquian lore, known for mischief and danger.Being · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Legendary

🇯🇵 Japan and 2 moreTamamo-no-Mae玉藻前 A nine-tailed fox spirit from Japanese legend who possessed emperors and concubines across Asia.Figure · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary

🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreEach-uisge A fierce water spirit of the Scottish Highlands and Irish shores that takes the form of a horse.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇮🇪 IrelandBansheebean sí A female spirit in Irish folklore who wails to herald the death of a family member.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇨🇱 ChileTrauco A small forest spirit from Chiloé mythology known for seducing women and causing pregnancyBeing · Love and attraction · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇬🇭 GhanaObayifo A vampire-creature of Ashanti folklore that glows at night and hunts for prey.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇮🇪 Ireland and 3 moreChangeling A substitute left by supernatural beings in place of a stolen human child or adultBeing · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity 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

🇯🇵 Japan and 1 moreRokurokubiろくろ首 A Japanese spirit with a stretching neck or a flying headBeing · Cursing and harm · Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary 🇲🇾 Malaysia and 1 moreOrang Minyak A slippery ghost from Malay folklore that abducts women and is covered in black grease.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇫🇷 France and 4 moreMorgan le FayFée Morgane An Arthurian enchantress known for her shifting role as healer and adversaryFigure · Healing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇫🇷 France and 5 moreRevenant An animated corpse or spirit that returns from the grave to haunt the livingBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇿🇦 South AfricaGrootslang A legendary serpent from South Africa said to guard diamonds in a deep cave.Being · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary

🇵🇪 Peru and 1 moreChullachaqui A one-footed forest spirit of the Amazon that lures or challenges humansBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary

🇯🇵 JapanHyakki Yagyō百鬼夜行 A Japanese folklore concept of a night parade of supernatural creaturesBelief · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇯🇵 JapanAshiya Dōman蘆屋道満 A legendary Heian onmyōji known for his rivalry with Abe no Seimei and his use of cursesFigure · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary

🇬🇷 GreeceMedeaΜήδεια A sorceress and princess of Colchis who aids Jason and uses magic for revenge.Figure · Cursing and harm · Healing Legendary 🇵🇭 PhilippinesEkek A winged creature from Philippine myth that hunts pregnant women at nightBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇿🇦 South AfricaLightning bird A vampiric spirit of the Zulu people that serves witches and strikes with thunder.Being · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary 🇹🇿 TanzaniaPopobawa A shapeshifting spirit of Zanzibar blamed for night attacks and mass panicBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇿🇦 South AfricaMamlambo A South African river spirit linked to wealth and reported cryptid sightingsBeing · Luck and prosperity · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇬🇧 United KingdomAfanc A lake monster from Welsh mythology that dwells in dark waters and preys on the unwary.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇨🇴 Colombia and 1 moreTunda A shapeshifting entity from the Pacific coast of Colombia and Ecuador that lures people into the forest.Figure · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇷🇺 Russia and 4 moreRusalkaрусалка A water spirit of Slavic folklore, often linked to drowned women and seasonal ritesBeing · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Legendary

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

🇬🇷 Greece and 3 moreHellhound A mythological canine that guards the underworld or serves demonic forces across global folkloreBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇬🇧 United KingdomCŵn Annwn Spectral hounds of the Welsh otherworld that hunt souls and signal deathBeing · Cursing and harm · Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary

🇮🇪 IrelandBadb An Irish war goddess who appears as a crow to sow fear and predict death in battle.Being · Cursing and harm · Seeing and foretelling Legendary

🇺🇸 United States and 5 moreNight hag A supernatural being believed to sit on sleepers and cause paralysisBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇩🇪 Germany and 1 moreNachzehrer A German revenant believed to consume the living from beyond the graveBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇮🇸 Iceland and 3 moreDraugr A malevolent undead revenant from Nordic folklore, often guarding buried treasure.Being · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Legendary

🇮🇪 IrelandPúca A shape-shifting spirit of Celtic folklore that brings fortune or mischiefBeing · Luck and prosperity · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇷🇺 RussiaKikimoraКикимора A female house spirit in Slavic folklore that reflects the state of a home.Being · Cursing and harm · Protection Legendary

🇷🇺 Russia and 1 moreLikhoЛихо A Slavic spirit of bad luck and misfortune, often depicted as a one-eyed creature.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇷🇺 Russia and 3 moreLeshyлеший A forest spirit from Slavic folklore who guards the woods and misleads travelers.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇭🇷 Croatia and 5 moreVilavila (Serbian: вила), víla (Bulgarian: ви́ла) Slavic nature spirits known for healing, storms, and deadly dancesBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇨🇳 China and 2 moreFox spirit狐狸精 A shapeshifting creature from Chinese folklore that can take human form and live for centuries.Being · Cursing and harm · Love and attraction Legendary

🇮🇪 Ireland and 5 moreFairy A European spirit with magical powers and human form found in folklore and artBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇷🇺 Russia and 4 moreBaba Yaga A complex Slavic witch figure who lives in a moving hut and flies in a mortar.Figure · Cursing and harm · Protection Legendary

🇬🇧 United KingdomPuck A mischievous domestic sprite of English folklore known for practical jokes and household choresBeing · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Legendary 🇺🇦 Ukraine and 1 moreVedmakвядзьмак A Slavic male warlock or witch with shamanic roots and shape-shifting powersBeing · Healing · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇮🇳 India and 1 morePichal periਪਿੱਛਲ ਪੈਰੀ A backward-footed female spirit of northwestern South Asia and Central AsiaBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇲🇽 Mexico and 5 moreSihuanaba A shapeshifting spirit that lures men with beauty before revealing a monstrous faceBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇳🇴 Norway and 1 moreTroll cat A familiar spirit in Nordic folklore blamed for stealing milk and cream from farmsBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇺🇸 United States and 2 moreRougarou A lycanthrope legend from French-speaking communities in North AmericaBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇮🇸 IcelandRauðskinna A legendary Icelandic grimoire said to grant mastery over dark forces.Text · Power and authority · Cursing and harm Legendary

Photo credits on this page

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

Baba Yaga: Ivan Bilibin, Public domain, source
Trauco: Seo2 (Cristian), CC BY 2.0, source
Changeling: Henry Fuseli, Public domain, source
Grootslang: Jeff McArthur (Guategeek), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Chullachaqui: LLs, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Hyakki Yagyō: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Ashiya Dōman: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Medea: Frederick Sandys, Public domain, source
Lightning bird: Photo by and (C)2007 Derek Ramsey ( Ram-Man ), CC BY-SA 2.5, source
Chaneque: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Hellhound: Louis Le Breton, Public domain, source
Badb: Commonists, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Night hag: Henry Fuseli, Public domain, source
Draugr: Kim Diaz Holm, CC BY 4.0, source
Púca: Wirt Sikes, Public domain, source
Kikimora: Гиппиус Татьяна Николаевна (1877-1957), Public domain, source
Likho: Mhapon, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Leshy: Γραφέας, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Vila: Scan by NYPL, Public domain, source
Fox spirit: Chen Menglei, Public domain, source
Fairy: Henry Fuseli, Public domain, source
Rokurokubi: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
Sihuanaba: Orlando Callejas, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Rusalka: Andrey Shishkin, CC BY 3.0, source
Morgan le Fay: Frederick Sandys, Public domain, source
Wiedergänger: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Puck: Joseph Noel Paton, Public domain, source
Banshee: W.H. Brooke, Public domain, source
Rougarou: XxxJohnDoExxxx, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Tamamo-no-Mae: ウィキ太郎 Wiki Taro, Public domain, source
Each-uisge: John Allan, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Curupira: Sturm, CC BY-SA 4.0, source