Luck and prosperity
Charms for fortune, success, a good harvest and a safe journey.
Luck magic aims at fortune, success, wealth and a safe passage. People keep lucky charms, perform money rites, pour offerings to a god of wealth, and avoid unlucky days. Examples include the Chinese lucky cat and the red packet, the Japanese daruma doll, the Indian worship of Lakshmi at Diwali, the European four-leaf clover and horseshoe, and the Hoodoo mojo bag. This page looks at what luck means and who profits from it.
Ideas of luck
Cultures differ on what luck is. In China, fortune is tied to fate, timing and the placement of objects, giving rise to feng shui and the choice of lucky numbers. In West Africa, success is linked to a person's destiny and the help of the orisha or ancestors. In Europe, luck came to be seen as chance, with charms to tilt it. Many societies see wealth as shared and fear that good fortune attracts envy. Merchants, farmers, gamblers and students are the usual customers, and the amounts asked of them range from a coin to a lifetime of savings.
Customs
Customs are domestic and mostly small. Merchants in Taiwan and China burn paper offerings and put out fruit at the start of the month. Fishers and sailors keep charms and avoid certain words. Gamblers, students and athletes have habits they will not break. Many rites involve giving something away, since reciprocity is thought to keep fortune moving. Lucky days are often chosen by calendar or astrologer, so that a shop opens, a wedding is held or a journey begins on a favourable date.
Schemes and scams
Luck is easy to sell. Lottery charms, gemstone bracelets and sellers who promise riches for a fee make money from hope. Fraud involving fake spiritualists who say a client's money is cursed and must be handed over is documented in many countries. Playing games of chance with charms may feel harmless, but anyone struggling with gambling should seek real help. Some wealth rites are public and religious, as with Diwali lamps for Lakshmi and the Lunar New Year offerings to the god of wealth, and some are private and quiet.
Scholars and sceptics
Psychologists have found that carrying a lucky charm can raise confidence and performance in some tasks, without changing the odds of chance. Economists study the role of luck in success. Religious authorities differ: some see lucky objects as idolatry, others as harmless custom, and prosperity churches around the world teach a faith-based version of the same hope. Those who struggle with debt or gambling harm should look for practical advice, since a charm does not change the odds or pay the bills.
Luck and prosperity on EveryJaadu
The entries written up so far, best known first.
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 7 moreSaint Andrew's Day
A Christian feast day marked by national holidays in Scotland and Romania, and folk divination across Europe.Rite 路 Seeing and foretelling 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚠馃嚬 ItalyFortunaFort奴na
The Roman goddess of luck and fate, shown with a wheel and a horn of plentyBeing 路 Luck and prosperity 路 Seeing and foretelling Historical
馃嚠馃嚬 ItalyWitches of Benevento
A medieval Italian legend of witches gathering under a walnut treeBelief 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚠馃嚜 Ireland and 3 moreChangeling
A substitute left by supernatural beings in place of a stolen human child or adultBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Legendary
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 3 moreFirst-footciad-chuairt
The first visitor on New Year's Day, believed to set the household's fortune for the year aheadTradition 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚪馃嚭 Russia and 2 moreCaul
A birth membrane kept as a talisman for luck and protection from drowningCharm 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚠馃嚪 Iran and 5 moreKnocking on wood
A gesture of tapping wood to ward off bad luck or prevent tempting fateBelief 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚞馃嚪 Greece and 5 moreBay Laurel未维蠁谓畏
An aromatic Mediterranean plant used in cooking and as a symbol of victory and purification.Substance 路 Protection 路 Cleansing and purification Living
馃嚞馃嚙 United KingdomBlack Shuck
A ghostly black dog from East Anglia folklore, often seen as a death omen or a terrifying apparition.Belief 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚠馃嚜 Ireland and 1 moreBrigid's crossCros Bhr铆de
A woven straw charm hung for protection, named after Ireland's patron saintCharm 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚞馃嚪 Greece and 2 moreNumerology
The belief that numbers hold hidden meanings and influence human events.Belief 路 Seeing and foretelling 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚠馃嚜 Ireland and 4 moreFour-leaf clover
A rare plant mutation believed to bring good luck and used as a symbol of fortune.Charm 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚛馃嚜 Germany and 1 moreWill-o'-the-wisp
A ghostly light in folklore that guides or misleads travellers over marshes and bogs.Belief 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚠馃嚬 ItalyBefana
An Italian witch-like figure who delivers gifts on Epiphany EveFigure 路 Luck and prosperity 路 Wonder and entertainment Living
馃嚞馃嚪 Greece and 5 moreCrossroads (folklore)
A junction between worlds where spirits are met and deals are madeBelief 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Cursing and harm Living
馃嚠馃嚜 Ireland and 4 moreWinter solstice
The shortest day and longest night of the year, marked by rites of solar returnTradition 路 Seeing and foretelling 路 Protection Living
馃嚛馃嚜 GermanyPied Piper of Hamelinder Rattenf盲nger von Hameln
A medieval legend about a piper who leads children away from the town of HamelinFigure 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Legendary
馃嚫馃嚜 Sweden and 3 moreRunic magic
The use of ancient Germanic letters for spells, divination, and protectionTradition 路 Protection 路 Seeing and foretelling Living
馃嚜馃嚜 Estonia and 5 moreFern flower
A mythical bloom said to bring fortune and unlock secrets, found only on midsummer night.Belief 路 Luck and prosperity 路 Love and attraction Living
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 5 moreConcealed shoes
Shoes hidden in building structures as folk charms for protection and fertilityCharm 路 Protection 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
馃嚠馃嚜 Ireland and 5 moreCairn
A human-made stack of stones used as a marker, memorial, or religious symbol across many cultures.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚪馃嚭 Russia and 4 moreFolk Orthodoxy薪邪褉芯写薪芯械 锌褉邪胁芯褋谢邪胁懈械
A blend of Eastern Orthodox doctrine and pre-Christian pagan beliefs in Slavic communitiesTradition 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity 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
馃嚠馃嚜 IrelandStatue rubbing
A tourist custom of touching statues to attract luck, love, or a return visit.Belief 路 Luck and prosperity 路 Love and attraction Living
馃嚝馃嚪 France and 2 moreMelusineM茅lusine
A water spirit of French and Luxembourgish lore, known for her serpent form and the castles she built.Figure 路 Luck and prosperity 路 Power and authority Legendary
馃嚫馃嚠 Slovenia and 5 moreVesna袙械褋薪邪
A Slavic personification of spring and youth, known in myth and languageFigure 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
馃嚪馃嚧 Romania and 1 moreS芒nzian膬
Romanian fairies and a summer solstice festival of flowers and magicBeing 路 Protection 路 Love and attraction Living
馃嚦馃嚧 NorwayTycho Brahe daysTycho Brahes-dage
Scandinavian folklore dates believed to be unlucky for magic and businessBelief 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚘馃嚥 Armenia and 5 moreSpilling water for luck
A folk custom of pouring water to wish a traveler or worker a smooth journeyBelief 路 Luck and prosperity 路 Protection Living
馃嚠馃嚦 India and 5 moreSailors' superstitions
A global collection of omens, charms and taboos used by mariners to manage the risks of life at seaBelief 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚝馃嚪 France and 1 moreGold of Tolosa
A legendary treasure hoard seized by Rome and lost to historyBelief 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United KingdomCurse of Scotland
A nickname for a playing card linked to bad luck and Scottish historyBelief 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚪馃嚫 Serbia and 3 moreBo啪i膰袘芯卸懈褯
A Slavic figure linked to the new year and spring, whose name now marks ChristmasFigure 路 Luck and prosperity 路 Wonder and entertainment Historical
馃嚜馃嚫 SpainIndalo
A Bronze Age pictograph used as a protective house charm and lucky symbol in Almer铆a, SpainCharm 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚝馃嚪 FranceMagonia
A cloud realm of aerial sailors blamed for hail and stolen grain in medieval EuropeBelief 路 Cursing and harm 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United KingdomShoes on a table
A superstition that placing footwear on a table invites bad luck or disrespectBelief 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 5 moreWedding superstitions
Folk beliefs and omens tied to marriage customs across many culturesBelief 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚠馃嚬 ItalyIn bocca al lupo
An Italian idiom wishing good luck by invoking danger, with a response asking for the wolf's death.Belief 路 Luck and prosperity Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Fortuna: Charles Samuel, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Numerology: Pietro Bongo, Public domain, source
- Amniomancy: JC Brand, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Changeling: Henry Fuseli, Public domain, source
- Knocking on wood: The White House, Public domain, source
- Bay Laurel: Forest and Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0 us, source
- Imbolc: Culnacreann, CC BY 3.0, source
- Statue rubbing: Matthias Rosenkranz, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Winter solstice: Image by Przemyslaw " Blueshade " Idzkiewicz, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Pied Piper of Hamelin: Edmund Evans, Public domain, source
- Fern flower: Antoni Piotrowski, Public domain, source
- Melusine: GilPe, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Vesna: Viktor Vasnetsov, Public domain, source
- Strix: Prosthetic Head, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Concealed shoes: Edmund Patrick, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Curse of Scotland: James Gillray (died 1815), Public domain, source
- Gold of Tolosa: AchilleT, Public domain, source
- Sailors' superstitions: Siren Painter (eponymous vase), Public domain, source
- Will-o'-the-wisp: Hermann Hendrich, Public domain, source
- Befana: El 脕gora, Public domain, source
- Saint Andrew's Day: Henryk Siemiradzki, Public domain, source
- Crossroads (folklore): MiddleOfAfrica, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Four-leaf clover: Phyzome under the GFDL., CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Votive offering: Walter J. Pilsak, Waldsassen ( W.J.Pilsak at de.wikipedia ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Folk Orthodoxy: 袥芯斜邪褔械胁 袙谢邪写懈屑懈褉, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Cairn: Andrew Bossi, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Indalo: Ismael Olea, Public domain, source
- Witches of Benevento: Guglielmo della Porta, CC0, source
- Wedding superstitions: Anonymous Unknown author, Public domain, source
- S芒nzian膬: Saturnian, CC BY-SA 3.0, source