Protection
Warding off the evil eye, spirits, illness and bad luck: amulets, wards and thresholds.
Protection is the most widespread aim of magic. People hang, wear, bury, burn and recite things to keep out the evil eye, harmful spirits, illness and bad luck. The blue nazar, the hamsa, the horseshoe, the red thread, the Japanese omamori and the Ethiopian protective scroll all serve it. This page covers what is guarded, who is thought to need guarding, and how different societies see the practice. It is a good place to start with the subject.
What is guarded
The most guarded are the vulnerable and the valued: newborns, brides, pregnant women, livestock, new houses and travellers. Doorways, windows and crossroads get special care, since they are where inside meets outside. Practices include hanging a lemon and chillies in India, a horseshoe in Britain and Ireland, an eye-bead in Turkey, a mezuzah on Jewish doorposts and a spirit house in Thailand. Beyond doors, people protect journeys, wells, boats and herds, and the guarded thing is usually whatever the family can least afford to lose.
Against what
The danger named varies. In the Middle East and Mediterranean it is the evil eye, a harm said to come from envy or praise. In sub-Saharan Africa it is often witchcraft or a rival's sorcery. In Europe it was witches, fairies and the devil, and in East Asia hungry ghosts and ill-fortune. Protective practice therefore tells a researcher what a community fears and who it suspects. Some marks are drawn in chalk, paint or henna and renewed each year, and others are made once and left to fade.
Faith and the objects
Religions deal with protective objects in different ways. Many Muslim scholars accept verses of the Quran recited for protection and disapprove of beads or knots believed to work by themselves. Catholic Christians use blessed medals, holy water and the sign of the cross. Sikhism rejects talismans, while Buddhist monks bless protective threads and tattoos in Thailand and Cambodia. Official teaching often differs from practice in the village, where one household may wear a charm quietly and say a prayer at the same time.
Scholars and the market
Psychologists suggest protective objects ease anxiety and give a sense of control. Sceptics note that no test has shown them to prevent harm. Commerce is large: charms are mass-produced, and some sellers charge heavily for items promised to ward off disaster. Anyone in real danger or illness should turn to practical help first. Believers usually say the protection is a matter of trust and care, and many say the object matters less than the intention and the community that stands behind it.
Protection on EveryJaadu
The entries written up so far, best known first.
🇫🇷 FranceLady of the LakeDame du Lac
A water spirit who raises knights and captures wizards in Arthurian talesFigure · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇳🇴 Norway and 1 moreHuldra
A seductive forest spirit of Scandinavian folklore with a hidden animal tail.Being · Protection Legendary
🇷🇺 Russia and 4 moreBaba Yaga
A complex Slavic witch figure who lives in a moving hut and flies in a mortar.Figure · Cursing and harm · Protection Legendary
🇬🇷 Greece and 3 moreHellhound
A mythological canine that guards the underworld or serves demonic forces across global folkloreBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇪 IrelandPúca
A shape-shifting spirit of Celtic folklore that brings fortune or mischiefBeing · Luck and prosperity · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇬🇧 United KingdomBrowniebrùnaidh
A nocturnal household spirit from Scottish folklore that performs chores in exchange for offerings.Being · Protection · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇷🇺 Russia and 3 moreLeshyлеший
A forest spirit from Slavic folklore who guards the woods and misleads travelers.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇭🇷 Croatia and 5 moreVilavila (Serbian: вила), víla (Bulgarian: ви́ла)
Slavic nature spirits known for healing, storms, and deadly dancesBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇪 Ireland and 5 moreFairy
A European spirit with magical powers and human form found in folklore and artBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇭🇺 HungaryTáltos
A Hungarian mythic figure with supernatural powers who acts as a spiritual mediator.Being · Healing · Seeing and foretelling Legendary
🇮🇪 IrelandThe MorríganMórrígan
An Irish goddess of war, fate, and sovereignty who appears as a crow or shape-shifter.Figure · Seeing and foretelling · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇨🇿 Czech Republic and 4 moreGolemגּוֹלֶם
An animated clay figure from Jewish folklore created to serve or protectBeing · Protection · Power and authority Legendary
🇬🇷 GreeceAegisαἰγίς
A mythical shield or skin of Zeus and Athena, symbolizing divine protectionBeing · Protection · Power and authority Legendary
🇪🇸 SpainBasajaun
A hairy forest lord of Basque myth who protects livestock and teaches human skillsBeing · Protection · Power and authority Legendary
🇷🇴 RomaniaZână
A Romanian woodland spirit linked to Diana that guides travelers and blesses children.Being · Protection · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇪🇪 EstoniaThe Dragon of the NorthPõhja konn
A legendary frog-like monster from Estonian folklore, later reimagined as a cultural guardian.Figure · Cursing and harm · Protection Legendary
🇸🇪 SwedenAskafroa
A Scandinavian tree spirit believed to guard the ash and demand appeasement.Being · Cursing and harm · Protection Legendary
🇸🇪 SwedenRå
Guardian spirits of nature in Scandinavian folkloreBeing · Protection Legendary
🇷🇺 Russia and 2 moreSupernatural beings in Slavic religion
Mythic entities of nature, death, and fate in Slavic folklore and belief.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreMinoan Genius
A composite creature from Bronze Age Crete, often shown as a libation bearer or sacrificial attendant.Being · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
🇷🇴 RomaniaMuma Pădurii
A forest spirit in Romania who protects nature and punishes those who harm itBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇱🇹 Lithuania and 1 moreAšvieniai
Twin horse deities of Baltic mythology who pull the sun chariotBeing · Protection Legendary
🇮🇹 ItalyWinged lion
A mythological creature combining a lion's body with bird wings, used in heraldry and art.Being · Protection · Power and authority Legendary
🇸🇪 SwedenSjörå
A Swedish lake spirit that rewards kindness and drowns the disrespectfulBeing · Protection · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇫🇷 France and 1 moreDames Blanches
Spectral women in French folklore who demand dances or warn of dangerBeing · Cursing and harm · Protection Legendary
🇬🇷 GreeceSoterΣωτήρ
A Greek daimon of safety and deliverance from harmBeing · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
🇬🇧 United KingdomJoan the Wad
A Cornish pixie queen linked to fire and fortuneFigure · Luck and prosperity · Protection Legendary
🇦🇹 Austria and 3 moreSalige Frau
A blissful Alpine spirit who guides farmers and guards mountain gameFigure · Protection · Healing Legendary
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Golem: user Thander, Public domain, source
- Lady of the Lake: Internet Archive Book Images, No restrictions, source
- Supernatural beings in Slavic religion: Bartolomeo Giuliano, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Winged lion: Rjcastillo, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Huldra: Bernard Evans Ward, Public domain, source
- Baba Yaga: Ivan Bilibin, Public domain, source
- Hellhound: Louis Le Breton, Public domain, source
- Púca: Wirt Sikes, Public domain, source
- Brownie: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Leshy: Γραφέας, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Vila: Scan by NYPL, Public domain, source
- Fairy: Henry Fuseli, Public domain, source
- Ašvieniai: Wojsyl , 2005, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Basajaun: Airiartmed2, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- The Dragon of the North: Ivo Kruusamägi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Salige Frau: various, Public domain, source
- Aegis: Unknown creator, Public domain, source
- Minoan Genius: Zde, CC BY-SA 3.0, source