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.
RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
WhoShamansFolk healersPriests and ritual specialistsWitches, sorcerers and cunning folkDiviners and readersMediums and the possessedCeremonial magicians and alchemistsHouseholds and ordinary peopleStage magiciansScholars and sceptics
BeliefHindu and TantricBuddhistJainMuslim and SufiJewishChristianSikhZoroastrianShinto and TaoistIndigenous and shamanicAfrican and Afro-diasporicPagan and NeopaganEsoteric and occultFolk and village customSecular and stageOther traditions
🇨🇳 China and 5 moreQingming Festival清明节
A spring day for sweeping graves, feeding the dead and honouring ancestorsTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇯🇵 Japan and 3 moreObonお盆
A Japanese Buddhist festival honoring the spirits of ancestors through dance and offeringsTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Luck and prosperity Living
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreConcealed shoes
Shoes hidden in building structures as folk charms for protection and fertilityCharm · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇧🇴 BoliviaThe Witches' MarketMercado de las Brujas
A La Paz market where Aymara women and yatiri sell ritual items for Pachamama offeringsTradition · Luck and prosperity · Protection Living
🇨🇳 China and 2 moreMenshen門神
Guardian figures pasted to doors in Chinese folk religion to protect homes from evil.Belief · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇯🇵 Japan and 2 moreTanabataたなばた (七夕)
A Japanese celebration of star-crossed lovers and written wishesTradition · Luck and prosperity · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇰🇷 South Korea and 1 moreDaeboreum대보름
A Korean lunar holiday marking the first full moon with nut-cracking and field firesTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇬🇧 United KingdomMari LwydY Fari Lwyd
A Welsh winter custom featuring a horse skull carried through villages for song and hospitality.Rite · Luck and prosperity · Wonder and entertainment Revived
🇩🇪 Germany and 5 moreStraw bearStrohbär
A carnival figure wrapped in straw that visits homes for gifts and marks the turning of seasons.Tradition · Luck and prosperity · Cursing and harm Living
🇹🇭 ThailandSongkranสงกรานต์
The Thai solar New Year marked by water rituals and sand pagodasTradition · Cleansing and purification · Luck and prosperity Living
🇵🇪 Peru and 5 morePalo Santo
Aromatic wood used in South American ritual cleansing and folk medicineSubstance · Cleansing and purification · Healing Living
🇪🇬 Egypt and 3 moreEx-voto
A gift left in a shrine to mark a vow kept or a miracle receivedCharm · Protection · Healing Living
🇯🇵 JapanKami神
Spirits and deities of Shinto, found in nature, ancestors, and placesBeing · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇨🇳 China and 5 moreSky lantern天燈
A paper hot air balloon lifted by flame to carry wishes and blessingsRite · Luck and prosperity · Protection Living
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreAdder stone
A naturally perforated stone used as a protective talisman in European folkloreCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 5 moreEleguaÈṣù-Ẹlẹ́gbára
A Yoruba deity of crossroads and messenger who opens all spiritual pathsBeing · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇭🇹 HaitiGedeGuédé
A family of spirits in Haitian Vodou who guard the dead and grant fertility.Being · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇮🇩 IndonesiaPenjorᬧᬾᬜ᭄ᚚᚚᭀᬃ
A curved bamboo pole marking prosperity in Balinese Hindu ceremonyTradition · Luck and prosperity · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreDiyaदीया
A small oil lamp used in prayers and festivals across the Indian subcontinentTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇪🇬 Egypt and 5 moreTalisman
An object believed to channel specific forces for protection, healing, or influence.Charm · Protection · Healing Historical
🇯🇵 Japan and 3 moreManeki-neko招き猫
A Japanese figurine of a beckoning cat believed to bring luck and prosperityCharm · Luck and prosperity · Protection Living
🇯🇵 JapanDaruma doll達磨
A round Japanese talisman that rights itself when knocked overCharm · Luck and prosperity · Power and authority Living
🇧🇴 Bolivia and 1 moreEkekoIqiqu
An Andean deity of abundance and prosperity, central to the Alasitas festival.Being · Luck and prosperity · Power and authority Living
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 2 moreEshuÈṣù
A Yoruba spirit of crossroads, messengers and the balance between joy and sorrowBeing · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇵🇪 Peru and 1 moreQuyllurit'iQoyllur Rit'i
A syncretic Andean pilgrimage celebrating the Pleiades and the Lord of Star SnowTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇺🇸 United States and 4 moreFortune-telling
A practice of predicting future events or personal details through various methods and tools.Rite · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreDurga Pujaদুর্গাপূজা
A ten-day autumn festival honouring the goddess Durga and her victory over evil.Tradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇨🇳 China and 2 moreOnomancy
Divination based on the letters, numbers, or written strokes of a person's nameOracle · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living
🇷🇺 Russia and 5 moreSlavic religion
The pre-Christian beliefs of the Slavic peoples before their conversion to Christianity.Tradition · Protection · Healing Revived
🇮🇳 India and 1 morePitru Pakshaपितृ पक्ष
A sixteen-day Hindu period for honoring ancestors through food offerings and death ritesTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇳 IndiaAkshaya Tritiyaअक्षय तृतीया
A Hindu and Jain spring festival marking a day of inexhaustible merit and new beginnings.Tradition · Luck and prosperity · Protection Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreNakshatraनक्षत्रम् (Nakṣatram)
A system of lunar mansions used in Hindu and Buddhist astrology to map the sky.Tradition · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living
🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreHydromancy
Divination using water to reveal the future or judge legitimacy.Oracle · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇨🇳 China and 3 moreTasseography
A divination method that reads fortunes in the sediment of tea or coffee cupsOracle · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living
🇯🇵 Japan and 1 moreAinu religion
The animist spiritual beliefs and ritual practices of the Ainu people of Japan and RussiaTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇬🇪 Georgia and 2 moreGeorgian mythologyქართული მითოლოგია
The pre-Christian beliefs of the Kartvelian peoples in the South CaucasusTradition · Protection · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreSnake charming
A street performance using a gourd flute to make snakes swayIllusion · Wonder and entertainment · Luck and prosperity Fading
🇮🇷 Iran and 3 moreIranian folkloreفولکلور ایرانی
The oral legends, heroes, and spirits of Greater IranTradition · Protection · Seeing and foretelling Living
🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreOjibwe religion
The traditional spiritual practices of the Ojibwe people of North AmericaTradition · Healing · Luck and prosperity Living
🇬🇹 GuatemalaMaximónRi Laj Mam
A Maya folk saint and trickster deity venerated in the Guatemalan HighlandsBeing · Protection · Healing Living
🇦🇷 Argentina and 5 moreGauchito Gil
A folk saint from Argentina who protects the poor and outcastsBeing · Protection · Healing Living
🇲🇽 Mexico and 3 moreFolk saint
Unofficially recognized holy figures venerated by local communities for intercession and miraclesBelief · Protection · Healing Living
🇪🇬 EgyptSham Ennessimشم النسيم
An Egyptian spring holiday marked by picnics, colored eggs, and salted fishTradition · Luck and prosperity · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇬🇹 Guatemala and 3 moreMaya religion
The living spiritual practices of the Maya peoples, shaped by centuries of contact with Catholicism.Tradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇬🇹 Guatemala and 1 moreTzolkʼinAj Ilabal Qʼij
A 260-day cycle used by the Maya for divination and ritual timingTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living
🇲🇽 MexicoAztec religion
The polytheistic and monistic belief system of the Aztec Empire in central MexicoTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇳🇬 NigeriaOsun-Osogbo Sacred GroveOsun-Osogbo
A sacred forest in Nigeria dedicated to the river goddess Osun, celebrated with an annual festival.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreĒostre
An Anglo-Saxon goddess linked to spring and the dawn, whose name became Easter.Being · Luck and prosperity Historical
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Maya mythology: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- San La Muerte: Sergio Serrano, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Qingming Festival: Jacklee ., CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Obon: Batholith, Public domain, source
- Concealed shoes: Edmund Patrick, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Menshen: Taiwankengo, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tanabata: Laika ac, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Daeboreum: hojusaram, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Mari Lwyd: Thomas Christopher Evans (Cadrawd), Public domain, source
- Straw bear: Photo: Andreas Praefcke, CC BY 3.0, source
- Songkran: ผู้สร้างสรรค์ผลงาน/ส่งข้อมูลเก็บในคลังข้อมูลเสรีวิกิมีเดียคอมมอนส์ - เ, CC BY 3.0, source
- Palo Santo: Haplochromis, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Ex-voto: JTSH26, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kami: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Sky lantern: Richy, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Adder stone: Ansgar Koreng, CC BY-SA 3.0 de, source
- Elegua: Sailko, CC BY 3.0, source
- Gede: Calvin Hennick, for WBUR Boston, CC BY 3.0, source
- Penjor: Chainwit., CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Diya: Suyash Dwivedi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Talisman: Sasha India, CC BY 2.0, source
- Maneki-neko: Su--May, CC BY 2.0, source
- Daruma doll: Crisco 1492, Public domain, source
- Eshu: Sailko, CC BY 3.0, source
- Fortune-telling: Taras Shevchenko, Public domain, source
- Durga Puja: Subhrajyoti07, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Onomancy: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Slavic religion: Alphonse Mucha, Public domain, source
- Pitru Paksha: Firoz Shakir, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Akshaya Tritiya: Fgndgndgnr, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Nakshatra: Kishorekumar 62, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Hydromancy: Roger McLassus, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tasseography: User:MochaSwirl, Public domain, source
- Ainu religion: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Georgian mythology: Mostafameraji, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Snake charming: Paris75000, Public domain, source
- Iranian folklore: Hossein Mirkamali, CC BY 4.0, source
- Ojibwe religion: Ryan Hodnett, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Maximón: Sapfan (Jan Pesula), Public domain, source
- Sham Ennessim: Ikonact, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tzolkʼin: Lacambalam, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Aztec religion: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove: Cheeka 2.0, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ēostre: Johannes Gehrts (1855–1921), Public domain, source
- Quyllurit'i: AgainErick, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Ekeko: Ciudades, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- The Witches' Market: Dan Lundberg, CC BY-SA 2.0, source