Power and authority
Magic as kingship, priesthood and status: the sorcerer-king, the court astrologer, the rainmaker.
Magic as power and authority is the use of ritual to make or hold rank: kings with sacred duties, court astrologers, rainmakers, chiefs who are said to hold spiritual force, and priests who keep a state religion. It includes the Egyptian pharaoh, the Mongol shamans at the court of the khan, the Chinese Taoist masters, the Zulu and Shona spirit mediums, and the astrologers who advised Mughal and European rulers. This page asks how magic and politics feed each other. Where this happens, magic is less about individual wishes and more about who is allowed to speak for the unseen.
Sacred rulers
In many kingdoms the ruler was believed to hold a power linked to harvest, rain or victory. Pharaohs performed rites to keep order, and the Divine Right of kings in Europe included the royal touch, a rite by which French and English monarchs touched people with scrofula. Chinese emperors held the Mandate of Heaven, which natural omens could confirm or withdraw. The Mongol khans consulted shamans and diviners. Kings also commissioned astrologers to choose coronation dates.
Advisers and rivals
Courts employed diviners, astrologers and mages. John Dee advised Elizabeth I, and Indian and Persian kings kept court astrologers. Such advisers also faced risk: in Rome, astrologers were expelled several times, and accusations of sorcery were used to remove rivals at courts from Byzantium to Ming China. Magic offered influence to people with little formal rank. Sorcery charges were used against queens and ministers in several courts, and the fall of a favourite was often explained by a spell.
Resistance and the state
Spirit mediums have led resistance. In Zimbabwe, the spirit mediums Nehanda and Kaguvi were central to the 1896 uprising against British rule, and Nehanda was hanged in 1898. In Kenya and Tanzania, the Maji Maji rebellion of 1905 drew on a water said to protect against bullets. Colonial states responded with witchcraft ordinances, which often banned healers and protected nobody. In Africa, chiefs are often described as guardians of a land and its rain, and ruling families have held rites for the whole community.
Modern politics
Some leaders consult astrologers or healers, and political use of the occult is reported from India to Latin America. Accusations of witchcraft are used against opponents and in land disputes. Scholars read these links as part of how power is made visible and legitimate. Citizens may wish to ask who benefits when magic is used in public life. Many states now regulate healers and diviners, or use them for public health messages, which shows how much influence they still have.
Power and authority on EveryJaadu
The entries written up so far, best known first.
🇸🇾 Syria and 5 moreBaetyl
A sacred stone, often a meteorite, believed to house a deity in ancient Near Eastern and Mediterranean traditions.Charm · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreLeviathanלִוְיָתָן (Livyaṯān)
A primordial sea monster from ancient Near Eastern myth and biblical textBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreAncient Egyptian religion
Polytheistic worship, divine kingship, and funerary rites along the NileTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇭🇹 HaitiBois Caïman
The sacred site where enslaved Africans planned the Haitian Revolution through a Vodou ceremony.Rite · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreLuoshu Square洛書
An ancient Chinese three-by-three magic square linked to geomancy and numerologyTradition · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇬🇷 Greece and 2 moreNumerology
The belief that numbers hold hidden meanings and influence human events.Belief · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇬🇷 Greece and 5 moreNecromancy
A form of divination that seeks to speak with the dead for hidden knowledge.Tradition · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreMagic and religion
A study of how ritual power and sacred belief overlap or separate across culturesBelief · Power and authority Historical
🇪🇬 EgyptHekaḥkꜣw
The ancient Egyptian deification of magic, medicine, and primordial creative powerBeing · Healing · Protection Historical
🇫🇷 France and 1 moreNostradamus
A French astrologer and physician known for a book of poetic propheciesText · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇪🇬 EgyptDjedḏd
An ancient Egyptian pillar symbol representing stability and resurrectionCharm · Protection · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇷 GreeceOmphalosὀμφαλός
A sacred stone marking the center of the world in Greek myth and oracle practiceCharm · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇷 Iran and 4 morePersian mythologyاسطورهشناسی ایرانی
Ancient Iranian myths of cosmic struggle between light and darknessBelief · Power and authority Historical
🇯🇵 JapanInugami犬神
A Japanese spirit of dog possession and folk sorceryBelief · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇷 Greece and 2 moreMagic in the Greco-Roman world
Private supernatural practices in ancient Greece and Rome, distinct from public state religion.Tradition · Protection · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇷 Iran and 3 moreDaeva𐬛𐬀𐬉𐬎𐬎𐬀
A Zoroastrian entity that evolved from rejected gods to personifications of evil.Being · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇩🇪 Germany and 2 moreOccultism in Nazism
The study of alleged magical links to the Nazi regime and the myths that surround themBelief · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇨🇦 CanadaSpoon bending
A magic trick and paranormal claim involving the deformation of metal cutleryBelief · Wonder and entertainment · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇷 GreeceGreek divination
Ancient methods of consulting deities for prophecy and omens in Greek cultureOracle · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇫🇮 FinlandVäki
A supernatural power in Finnish mythology found in nature and objectsBelief · Cursing and harm · Healing Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelJewish astrologyמַזָּלוֹת (mazzālôt)
A belief system within Judaism that celestial bodies influence earthly affairs and human destiny.Belief · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇳 India and 3 moreAstrology
A divinatory practice that links celestial positions to human affairs and earthly eventsTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreUraeusjꜥrt
An ancient Egyptian rearing cobra emblem of royal power and divine protectionCharm · Protection · Power and authority Historical
🇫🇮 Finland and 1 moreHiisi
A Finnic spirit of sacred places that evolved into a demonic giant in folkloreBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇷🇸 Serbia and 5 moreWolves in folklore, religion and mythology
A global survey of how cultures view the wolf as symbol, spirit or threatBelief · Power and authority · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇪 Ireland and 4 moreFairy Queen
A female ruler of fairies found in folklore, literature, and witchcraft trials across Europe.Figure · Power and authority Historical
🇫🇷 France and 1 moreDusios
A Gaulish spirit type later classified as an incubus demon by early Christian writersBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇸 Iceland and 3 moreDeal with the Devil
A cultural trope of trading one's soul for worldly favours in exchange for demonic aidBelief · Power and authority · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇶 Iraq and 3 moreUmayyad tradition of cursing Ali
A state policy to denounce Ali during communal prayers under the Umayyad CaliphateRite · Cursing and harm · Binding and oaths Historical
🇳🇿 New Zealand and 4 moreFeather cloak
A garment of feathers worn by royalty and gods across cultures to signal rank or enable flightCharm · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇮🇷 Iran and 5 moreAxis mundi
A concept describing a central point connecting the earthly and heavenly realms.Belief · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreMagical motto
A chosen name used by occultists to separate their spiritual identity from their everyday life.Belief · Power and authority Historical
🇨🇳 ChinaChinese sorcery scares
A series of moral panics in Imperial China driven by fears of magical harm and hair cuttingBelief · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 5 moreWorship of heavenly bodies
Veneration of stars, planets, and the sky as divine forces or deitiesTradition · Protection · Power and authority Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreOuroborosοὐροβόρος
An ancient image of a serpent eating its own tail, symbolizing cycles and wholenessFigure · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreFire (classical element)
A classical substance of heat and transformation in Greek, Indian, and Western esoteric traditionsSubstance · Change and initiation · Power and authority Historical
🇸🇪 Sweden and 4 moreSwastika (Germanic Iron Age)
A four-armed symbol found on Germanic artefacts from the Migration to Viking periods.Belief · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 5 moreJewish views on astrologyחָכְמַת הַמַּזָּלוֹת
A long-standing debate within Jewish thought about the influence of stars and planetsBelief · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaKeśin
A Vedic hymn describing long-haired ascetics who travel on the wind and share a cup with Rudra.Tradition · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇸🇪 Sweden and 4 moreSun cross
A cross inside a circle found in prehistoric art and modern political symbolsBelief · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇷 GreeceAstrology and astronomy
Two disciplines that shared a history before splitting into science and divinationTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇷 GreeceDaimonδαίμων
A Greek spirit or divine force that mediates between gods and humansBeing · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇩🇪 Germany and 1 moreReligious aspects of Nazism
The study of how Nazi ideology borrowed religious forms and esoteric beliefs to build a political movement.Tradition · Power and authority · 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.
- Occultism in Nazism: Peretz Kaminsky, Public domain, source
- Spoon bending: Sgerbic, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Greek divination: Berthold Werner, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Numerology: Pietro Bongo, Public domain, source
- Astrology: Wilfredor, CC0, source
- Fairy: Henry Fuseli, Public domain, source
- Div: Unknown Calligrapher, Public domain, source
- Jewish astrology: Talmoryair, Public domain, source
- Necromancy: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Nostradamus: After César de Notre-Dame, Public domain, source
- Djed: Anonymous ( Egypt ) Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Omphalos: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Uraeus: Bjørn Christian Tørrissen, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Wolves in folklore, religion and mythology: Unknown author, CC0, source
- Fire (classical element): Correogsk, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Dusios: Eric Hunt, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Feather cloak: Lusanaherandraton, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Deal with the Devil: Christoph, Public domain, source
- Daimon: François-André Vincent, Public domain, source
- Persian mythology: Raphael, Public domain, source
- Leviathan: Gustave Doré, Public domain, source
- Ancient Egyptian religion: Moh hakem, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Umayyad tradition of cursing Ali: Anwar Rizvi, CC BY 2.0, source
- Luoshu Square: An unknown Tibetan artist, Public domain, source
- Axis mundi: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Inugami: Sawaki Suushi (佐脇嵩之, Japanese, *1707, †1772), Public domain, source
- Worship of heavenly bodies: Jean-Pierre Dalbéra, CC BY 2.0, source
- Magic in the Greco-Roman world: ArchaiOptix, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ouroboros: Djehouty, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Baetyl: Jusepe de Ribera, Public domain, source
- Swastika (Germanic Iron Age): No machine-readable author provided. Bloodofox~commonswiki assumed (ba, Public domain, source
- Sun cross: National Museum of Denmark, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Astrology and astronomy: anonymous, Public domain, source
- Religious aspects of Nazism: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0 de, source