News
MuseumsEl Paso Museum of History explores Mexican spiritual traditionWitch-hunts12 of the Creepiest Places Where History Meets FolkloreStage magicLegendary master magician Lance Burton to bring tricks to Fox Cities PACWitch-huntsWitching Hour in Salem and Beyond—The 12 Scariest Things to Do on Halloween NightMuseumsThis Week in Moab: Magic for Seekhaven and a New Museum Show, October 19–25DivinationThe Secret Romani History of TarotLiving traditionsMalou Beauvoir Introduces OUR VODOU Book 2, Celebrating Haiti's Heritage Through Children's StorytellingDivinationInside Seattle's witchy side: Tarot, crystals and a little local magicFestivalsMoreno family’s Day of the Dead celebration returns to the Village Green Nov. 1Stage magicThe Houdini Séance, once a Petaluma tradition, rises from the graveMuseumsEl Paso Museum of History explores Mexican spiritual traditionWitch-hunts12 of the Creepiest Places Where History Meets FolkloreStage magicLegendary master magician Lance Burton to bring tricks to Fox Cities PACWitch-huntsWitching Hour in Salem and Beyond—The 12 Scariest Things to Do on Halloween NightMuseumsThis Week in Moab: Magic for Seekhaven and a New Museum Show, October 19–25DivinationThe Secret Romani History of TarotLiving traditionsMalou Beauvoir Introduces OUR VODOU Book 2, Celebrating Haiti's Heritage Through Children's StorytellingDivinationInside Seattle's witchy side: Tarot, crystals and a little local magicFestivalsMoreno family’s Day of the Dead celebration returns to the Village Green Nov. 1Stage magicThe Houdini Séance, once a Petaluma tradition, rises from the grave
EveryJaadu

All entries

2,682 entries so far, best known first. 2,205 more are on the list to be written. Narrow by region, kind, purpose, practitioner, belief world, occasion or how alive it is.

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
KindTraditionRiteCharmOracleSubstanceBeingFigureTextIllusionBelief
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
OccasionWeddings and betrothalFestivalsBirth and childhoodDeath and remembranceHarvest, farming and weatherNew yearInitiation and coming of ageIllness and misfortuneJourneys and voyagesEveryday use
StandingLivingRevivedFadingHistoricalLegendaryPerformed
OrderBest knownA to ZNewestLiving first
🇭🇹 Haiti and 2 moreBokorbòkò A Haitian Vodou practitioner said to serve spirits for both protection and harmTradition · Protection · Cursing and harm Living 🇳🇬 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 🇭🇹 Haiti and 1 moreOungan A male priest in Haitian Vodou who leads rituals and serves as a medium for spirits.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Healing Living 🇧🇷 Brazil and 5 moreSanto Daime A Brazilian syncretic religion using ayahuasca for spiritual work and healingTradition · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living 🇳🇬 Nigeria and 4 moreOrishaÒrìṣà Divine spirits of the Yoruba religion and their diasporic descendants in the Americas.Being · Protection · Healing Living 🇧🇷 Brazil and 2 moreCandomblé An Afro-Brazilian religion blending West African spirits with Catholic imageryTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Healing Living 🇧🇯 Benin and 2 morePapa Legba A loa who stands at the crossroads and opens the gate between people and spiritsBeing · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living 🇭🇹 Haiti and 2 moreManbo A female priestess in Haitian Vodou who leads rituals and healing workTradition · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living 🇳🇬 NigeriaIfa divination (sample)Ifá A system of verses and divining chains.Tradition · Seeing and foretelling · Healing Living 🇭🇹 HaitiVodou veve (sample)Vèvè Ground drawings that call the lwa.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living 🇧🇯 BeninMawu-Lisa A dual creator spirit of the Gbe peoples, uniting sun and moon in one agender beingBeing · Power and authority Living 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic and 1 moreDominican VudúVudú Dominicano A syncretic Afro-Caribbean religion on Hispaniola with its own spirit lineages and titles.Tradition · Protection · Love and attraction Living 🇨🇺 Cuba and 1 moreInitiation in Santeríakariocha The seven-day ceremony that makes a person a full practitioner of the Caribbean religion.Rite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living 🇧🇷 Brazil and 1 moreCandomblé Angola A branch of Candomblé in Brazil honouring Nzambi and the divinities called NkisiTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living 🇧🇷 Brazil and 1 moreIjexá A Yoruba-derived rhythm central to Candomblé ritual and Brazilian carnival musicTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living 🇺🇸 United StatesChurch of Lukumi Babalu Aye A Santería congregation in Florida that won a landmark Supreme Court case on religious freedomTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living 🇧🇷 BrazilCasa das MinasQuerebentã Toi Zomadonu A historic Tambor de Mina temple in Brazil with roots in the Kingdom of DahomeyTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living 🇧🇷 BrazilMãe-de-santo A woman priest in Candomblé, Umbanda and QuimbandaTradition · Power and authority Living 🇳🇬 Nigeria and 4 moreOshosiỌ̀ṣọ́ọ̀sì A Yoruba orisha of hunting, forests and food, honoured in West Africa and BrazilBeing · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living 🇭🇹 Haiti and 3 moreNago lwa A Haitian Vodou nation of masculine spirits rooted in Yoruba traditionsBeing · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living 🇭🇹 HaitiRada lwa A family of cool-tempered spirits in Haitian VodouBeing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living 🇧🇷 BrazilIle Maroia LajiIlê Maroiá Lájié An old Candomblé house in Salvador, with roots traced to a Yoruba kingdomTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living 🇭🇹 Haiti and 1 morePetwo A family of hot and volatile spirits in Haitian VodouBeing · Power and authority · Cursing and harm Living 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago and 1 moreTrinidadian Vodunu A West African Vodun tradition practiced in Trinidad and Tobago with Catholic elementsTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living 🇺🇸 United States and 2 moreNew Orleans Voodoo Revival A late-20th-century religious movement in New Orleans blending Haitian and Cuban traditions with local history.Tradition · Protection · Healing Living 🇭🇹 Haiti and 1 moreHaitian Vodou and homosexuality The place of LGBTQ people in Hait Vodou practice and beliefTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living 🇭🇹 HaitiBoum'ba Maza A family of water spirits in Haitian Vodou ritesBeing · Luck and prosperity · Healing Living 🇧🇯 BeninXeviosoXɛviosò A Fon and Ewe thunder god held to judge wrongdoers with lightningBeing · Cursing and harm · Cleansing and purification Living

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

The weekly digest

Every Monday: seven entries you may not know, what is on the calendar this week, and one rite drawn step by step.