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.
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
🇪🇬 Egypt and 2 moreNatural magic
A historical tradition exploring hidden forces in the physical worldTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇷 Greece and 2 moreGreco-Roman mysteriesμυστήρια
Secret religious schools of the ancient Mediterranean for initiates onlyTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority 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
🇪🇬 EgyptHekaḥkꜣw
The ancient Egyptian deification of magic, medicine, and primordial creative powerBeing · Healing · Protection Historical
🇪🇹 EthiopiaPlanetary hours
A system assigning celestial rulers to each hour of the day and weekTradition · Power and authority · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇹 Italy and 3 moreRenaissance magic
A 15th and 16th century revival of magical arts blending philosophy, astrology, and hidden knowledge.Tradition · Power and authority · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇮🇶 IraqBabylonian astrology
The first organized system of celestial divination in the ancient Near EastTradition · Protection · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇯🇵 Japan and 1 moreKūkai空海
Founder of Shingon Buddhism who brought Vajrayana esoteric practices from China to Japan.Text · Power and authority · Protection Historical
🇮🇸 IcelandGaldergaldr
A Germanic incantation and the written charms derived from itText · Protection · Cursing and harm Historical
🇸🇪 SwedenTemple at Uppsala
A Norse religious centre described in medieval texts and debated by modern scholarsTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreJohn Dee
An English scholar and advisor to Elizabeth I who pursued angelic communication through scrying.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreGe Hong葛洪
A Jin dynasty scholar and alchemist who wrote key texts on Taoist immortality and early medicine.Text · Healing · Power and authority Historical
🇵🇱 Poland and 1 moreMichael SendivogiusMichał Sędziwój
A Polish alchemist who discovered oxygen and wrote on the 'food of life'Text · Power and authority · Change and initiation Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomHermetic Order of the Golden DawnOrdo Hermeticus Aurorae Aureae
A late-19th-century British magical order that shaped modern Western occultismTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Historical
🇩🇿 Algeria and 1 moreAhmad al-Buniأحمد البوني المالكي
A medieval Sufi scholar known for works on letter mysticism and talismansText · Power and authority · Seeing and foretelling 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
🇮🇶 Iraq and 3 moreAncient Mesopotamian religion
The polytheistic beliefs and practices of Sumer, Akkad, Assyria and Babylonia from 6000 BC to 500 ADTradition · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead 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
🇪🇸 Spain and 5 moreAlfonso X of Castileel Sabio
A medieval king who sponsored astronomical tables and translated works on magic and astrology.Text · Power and authority · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaPashupata Shaivismपाशुपत
An early Hindu ascetic school focused on liberation through ritual and devotion to ShivaTradition · 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
🇮🇳 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
🇬🇹 Guatemala and 1 moreMaya mythology
The reconstructed tales of the Maya people about gods, heroes, and the creation of the world.Tradition · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇫🇷 France and 2 moreÉliphas Lévi
A French writer who shaped modern occult thought and ceremonial magic.Text · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇿🇦 South AfricaSympathetic magic
A magical principle based on imitation and contact to influence the worldTradition · Protection · Healing Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaKapalikaकापालिक
A medieval Indian Shaivite ascetic order known for wearing skulls and transgressive ritualsTradition · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreNicholas Culpeper
An English herbalist and astrologer who translated medical texts into English for the poor.Text · Healing · Power and authority Historical
🇦🇺 AustraliaKurdaitchakwertatye
A ritual executioner and feathered shoes of the Arrernte people in Central Australia.Tradition · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇷 GreeceAncient Greek folklore
The oral stories, music and rituals of the ancient GreeksTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · 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
🇮🇷 Iran and 4 moreAstrology in the medieval Islamic worldعلم النجوم (Ilm an-Nujūm)
The study of celestial influences on earthly affairs within the medieval Islamic traditionTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇷 Iran and 1 moreMundane astrology
A branch of astrology that reads the horoscopes of nations and governments instead of individuals.Tradition · 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
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreShamanism in the Qing dynasty
State-managed rituals of the Manchu rulers and their shamansTradition · Protection · Healing Historical
🇪🇸 Spain and 3 moreJewish heraldry
Heraldic achievements used by Jewish communities in Europe and abroadTradition · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇹 Italy and 2 moreOsirian Egyptian OrderOrdine Osirideo Egizio
An Italian esoteric society tracing its roots to 18th-century Naples and ancient Hermetic traditions.Tradition · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead 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
🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreDianism
A 19th-century American practice of sexual contact without ejaculationTradition · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreQayyumقیوم
A supreme spiritual rank in the Naqshbandi Sufi orderTradition · 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
🇸🇴 Somalia and 2 moreSalihiyyaالصالحية
A Somali Sufi order founded by Sayyid Muhammad Salih, known for its strict stance against saint intercession and anti-coTradition · Power and authority Historical
🇺🇸 United States and 2 moreSolar Lodge
A California-based magical order active in the 1960s, known for its A∴A∴ curriculum and legal troubles.Tradition · Power and authority Historical
🇪🇸 SpainGuañameñe
A Guanche prophet and the highest priestly rank in pre-conquest TenerifeFigure · Seeing and foretelling · 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
🇮🇪 IrelandTailteann GamesÁenach Tailteann
Ancient Irish funeral games and assemblies held in County Meath to honor the dead.Rite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 4 moreAlchemy in the medieval Islamic world
The study of matter and spirit by scholars in the early Islamic CaliphateTradition · Change and initiation · Power and authority 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
🇲🇽 MexicoEntheogenics and the Maya
Hallucinogenic substances used by the Maya for spiritual rituals and healingTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Healing Historical
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Alfonso X of Castile: Otto Posse (1847-1921), Public domain, source
- Occultism in Nazism: Peretz Kaminsky, Public domain, source
- Maya mythology: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Rabisu: editor Austen Henry Layard , drawing by L. Gruner, Public domain, source
- Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa: Jean-Louis Durant (1654-1718), Public domain, source
- Kaula: Joshua Jonathan, CC0, source
- Jewish heraldry: Consulta Araldica, 1868, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Éliphas Lévi: Eliphas Lévi [1810-1875], Public domain, source
- Astrology: Wilfredor, CC0, source
- Sympathetic magic: Marie-Lan Nguyen, CC BY 2.5, source
- Nicholas Culpeper: Richard Gaywood, Public domain, source
- Kurdaitcha: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Greco-Roman mysteries: Varrese Painter, Public domain, source
- Necromancy: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Renaissance magic: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Kūkai: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Galder: Bengt A. Lundberg, CC BY 2.5, source
- Temple at Uppsala: Olaus Magnus, Public domain, source
- Shamanism in the Qing dynasty: A nineteenth-century team of editors., Public domain, source
- Dianism: Guillaume Seignac, Public domain, source
- John Dee: Unidentified painter, Public domain, source
- Ge Hong: Hannah, Public domain, source
- Michael Sendivogius: Łuszczkiewicz, Public domain, source
- Tailteann Games: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Ahmad al-Buni: Khalili Collections, CC BY-SA 3.0 igo, source
- Ancient Egyptian religion: Moh hakem, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Luoshu Square: An unknown Tibetan artist, Public domain, source
- Salihiyya: Douglas James Jardine (1888-1946), Public domain, source
- Mundane astrology: Andreas Cellarius, Public domain, source
- Worship of heavenly bodies: Jean-Pierre Dalbéra, CC BY 2.0, source
- Alchemy in the medieval Islamic world: An Islamic artist 739H/1339, probably in Baghdad, Public domain, source
- Magic in the Greco-Roman world: ArchaiOptix, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Yogini: Soumendra Barik, 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