All entries
2,161 entries so far, best known first. 3,219 more are on the list to be written. Narrow by region, kind, purpose, practitioner, belief world, occasion or how alive it is.
RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
PurposeProtectionHealingSeeing and foretellingLuck and prosperityLove and attractionCursing and harmCleansing and purificationSpeaking with spirits and the deadChange and initiationBinding and oathsPower and authorityWonder and entertainment
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
馃嚟馃嚬 HaitiBaron Samedi
A Haitian Vodou spirit of the dead who also controls healing and resurrection.Being 路 Healing 路 Cursing and harm Living
馃嚟馃嚬 Haiti and 1 morePetwo
A family of hot and volatile spirits in Haitian VodouBeing 路 Power and authority 路 Cursing and harm Living
馃嚛馃嚥 DominicaBelie Belcan
A loa of justice and protection in Dominican Vud煤, linked to Saint Michael.Being 路 Protection 路 Cursing and harm Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Baron Samedi: markbenecke, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Folk Catholicism: Calvin Hennick, for WBUR Boston, CC BY 3.0, source
- Belie Belcan: Domfranciscorodrigues, CC BY-SA 3.0, source