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

🇮🇳 India and 1 morePishachaपिशाच (piśāca) A flesh-eating demon from Indian religions, feared for possession and madness.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇮🇳 India and 5 moreHoliहोली A Hindu spring festival marked by coloured powders and bonfires to celebrate love and virtue.Tradition · Love and attraction · Cursing and harm Living

🇮🇳 IndiaWitch-hunts in India Violent persecution of people accused of witchcraft, mostly women, in rural IndiaBelief · Cursing and harm Living

🇮🇳 India and 3 moreYakshiniयक्षिणी Some guard, some haunt: female nature spirits of Hindu, Buddhist and Jain loreBeing · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇮🇳 India and 1 moreYoginiयोगिनी A female master of yoga and tantra, or a fierce goddess aspect in Indian temples.Tradition · Power and authority · Protection Historical 🇮🇳 IndiaPashupata Shaivismपाशुपत An early Hindu ascetic school focused on liberation through ritual and devotion to ShivaTradition · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical

🇮🇳 IndiaChödགཅོད A Tibetan Buddhist ritual that uses fear and self-offering to sever attachment to the selfTradition · Cursing and harm · Change and initiation Living

🇮🇳 India and 4 moreTantraतन्त्र An esoteric yogic tradition from India focusing on ritual, mantra, and body-based spiritual practices.Tradition · Power and authority · Change and initiation Living

🇮🇳 India and 1 moreNavagrahaनवग्रह A group of nine celestial deities in Hinduism that govern fate and astrologyTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇮🇳 India and 5 moreSpirit possession A global belief that spirits or demons can take control of a person's body and mindBelief · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Living 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreDaayanदायन A vengeful female spirit from Indian folklore, often blamed for misfortune and witchcraft accusations.Being · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Living 🇵🇪 Peru and 1 morePishtacoñañaq; kharisiri An Andean bogeyman said to steal human fat for oil and medicineBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Living 🇮🇳 IndiaAlakshmiदेवी अलक्ष्मी A Hindu goddess of misfortune and the shadow opposite to LakshmiBeing · Cursing and harm Living

🇮🇳 India and 2 moreBrahmarakshasaब्रह्मराक्षसः A cursed Brahmin spirit in Hindu lore, feared for harm and venerated in temples.Being · Cursing and harm · Protection Living

🇮🇳 India and 3 moreDakiniḍākinī A goddess figure in Hinduism and Buddhism, ranging from flesh-eating demoness to enlightened energy.Being · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical

🇮🇳 India and 6 moreChurel A female revenant of South Asian folklore, feared for luring men awayBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇮🇳 India and 5 moreBhairavaभैरव A fierce manifestation of Shiva and a Buddhist protector deity worshipped across South and East Asia.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Living

🇮🇳 IndiaKaliकाली A fierce Hindu goddess of time and destruction, worshipped as a protective mother.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Living

🇮🇳 IndiaParashuramaपरशुराम (Paraśurāma) The warrior sage of Hinduism who wields a divine axe to restore cosmic balance.Being · Power and authority · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇮🇳 India and 2 moreBhootभूत A restless spirit of the dead in South Asian belief and folkloreBeing · Cursing and harm · Protection Living 🇮🇳 India and 1 morePichal periਪਿੱਛਲ ਪੈਰੀ A backward-footed female spirit of northwestern South Asia and Central AsiaBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇮🇳 India and 5 moreAsian witchcraft A broad overview of magical practices and persecution across Asian culturesTradition · Cursing and harm · Protection Living

🇮🇳 IndiaIndrajalaइन्द्रजाल A Sanskrit term for illusion and conjuring, linking stage magic to Hindu philosophy.Belief · Wonder and entertainment · Cursing and harm Historical

🇮🇳 India and 1 moreRavanaरावण (Rāvaṇa) A ten-headed demon king of Lanka and a devoted follower of Shiva in Hindu tradition.Figure · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary

🇱🇰 Sri LankaMara A Buddhist figure representing the forces that block spiritual awakening and keep beings trapped in rebirth.Being · Cursing and harm · Binding and oaths Living

🇮🇳 IndiaMahishasuraमहिषासुर A bovine asura slain by the goddess Durga in Hindu myth and legendBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇵🇾 Paraguay and 2 moreKurupiCurupí A Guaraní forest spirit known for his elongated phallus and role as a protector or abductor.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇮🇳 India and 1 moreCrocotta A mythical dog-wolf of India and Ethiopia that mimics human voicesBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇧🇴 Bolivia and 1 moreAnchanchu A shapeshifting vampire of the Andes that drains blood and demands offerings from miners.Being · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary

🇮🇳 IndiaKeibu Keioiba A tiger-headed man from Manipur folklore who was once a priestFigure · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇮🇳 IndiaEcheneis A legendary fish said to hold back ships and influence legal proceedingsBeing · Cursing and harm · Love and attraction Legendary 🇮🇳 IndiaPinglak A lion from the Panchatantra whose friendship with a bull is destroyed by cunning advisorsFigure · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇮🇳 IndiaChedipeचेदिप A witch-vampire spirit of the Godavari region that drains men and feeds on sorrowBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇮🇳 IndiaIndus worm A giant carnivorous river creature from ancient Greek accounts of the IndusBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇮🇳 India and 5 moreWerecat A feline shapeshifter found in global folklore and occult beliefBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary 🇮🇳 IndiaBramrachokh A demon in Kashmiri myth that mimics a light to lead travellers astrayBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇮🇳 India and 2 moreBlack Orlov A black diamond linked to a legend of theft and tragic deathsCharm · Cursing and harm Historical

🇮🇳 India and 1 moreDamnation A state of divine punishment or separation from the sacred after deathBelief · Cursing and harm Living

🇮🇳 IndiaHingchabiꯍꯤꯡꯆꯥꯕꯤ A giantess figure from Meitei folklore who feeds on raw fleshBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary

🇮🇳 IndiaJvarasuraज्वारासुर A fever demon in Hindu lore who serves the pox goddess Shitala.Being · Cursing and harm · Healing Historical

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka and 1 moreSanni Yakumaසන්නි යකුම A traditional Sinhalese exorcism ritual featuring eighteen masked dances to banish illness-causing demons.Rite · Healing · Cursing and harm Living

🇵🇪 Peru and 2 moreTsentsak Invisible darts used by Amazonian shamans for healing and sorcerySubstance · Cursing and harm · Protection Living 🇮🇳 IndiaBaakবাক A shapeshifting water spirit from Assamese folklore that mimics humans and fears torn nets.Being · Cursing and harm · Wonder and entertainment Living

Photo credits on this page

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

Bhoot: Anilbhardwajnoida, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Holi: Jitenderasingh, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Spirit possession: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
Keibu Keioiba: Haoreima, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Crocotta: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Jvarasura: Suraj Belbase, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Kurupi: FrankOWeaver, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Tantra: William Clark, Public domain, source
Navagraha: Kiran891, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Brahmarakshasa: Chaitnyags, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Dakini: Didier Descouens, Public domain, source
Churel: Joe Mabel, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Indrajala: Abishekrl15156, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Kali: Raja Ravi Varma, Public domain, source
Parashurama: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Pishacha: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Bhairava: Saankav, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Mahishasura: Prakashsubbarao at English Wikipedia, Public domain, source
Ravana: Gita Press Gorakhpur, CC0, source
Anchanchu: Arizz4k, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Mara: Under the Bo, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Damnation: Didier Descouens, Public domain, source
Hingchabi: Bemni, N, CC0, source
Chöd: Christopher J. Fynn, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Asian witchcraft: Utagawa Kuniyoshi, Public domain, source
Sanni Yakuma: Michael Gunther, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Yogini: Soumendra Barik, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Tsentsak: Veton PICQ, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Yakshini: Brihaspati, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Witch-hunts in India: Granger, Public domain, source