News
Witch-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 graveHistoryThe more archaeologists examine this temple find, the less it looks like ritual gear: inside the Thracian bronze puzzleCharmsA Man Took a Hidden Prayer to Jesus to His Grave—It Could Rewrite Christianity’s Origin StoryWitch-huntsFive Places Worth Visiting In Salem This Halloween SeasonWitch-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 graveHistoryThe more archaeologists examine this temple find, the less it looks like ritual gear: inside the Thracian bronze puzzleCharmsA Man Took a Hidden Prayer to Jesus to His Grave—It Could Rewrite Christianity’s Origin StoryWitch-huntsFive Places Worth Visiting In Salem This Halloween Season
EveryJaadu

All entries

2,660 entries so far, best known first. 2,250 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
🇨🇳 China and 2 moreFox spirit狐狸精 A shapeshifting creature from Chinese folklore that can take human form and live for centuries.Being · Cursing and harm · Love and attraction Legendary 🇯🇵 Japan and 2 moreTamamo-no-Mae玉藻前 A nine-tailed fox spirit from Japanese legend who possessed emperors and concubines across Asia.Figure · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary 🇨🇳 ChinaDenglong蹬龙 A Chinese mythical beast with mixed animal traits, often guarding imperial sites.Being · Protection · Power and authority Legendary 🇯🇵 JapanTesso鉄鼠 A Japanese yōkai born from a monk’s curse and the destructive power of ratsBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary 🇯🇵 JapanShuten-dōji酒呑童子 A demon leader of Japanese legend, slain by a warrior after a drinking trickBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇯🇵 JapanKiyohime清姫 A Japanese folktale about a woman who becomes a serpent after being rejected by a monkFigure · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇯🇵 JapanHitotsume-kozō一つ目小僧 A one-eyed child yōkai that startles people but is said to do no harmBeing · Protection Legendary 🇯🇵 JapanKeneō懸衣翁 A Japanese oni who judges souls by the weight of their clothes at the Sanzu RiverBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary 🇯🇵 JapanNuribotoke塗仏 A blackened corpse yōkai said to slip out of a neglected household altarBeing Legendary 🇯🇵 JapanUbume産女 The ghost of a mother who died in labour, and the child that turns to stoneBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary 🇯🇵 JapanNingyo人魚 A Japanese water creature with a human head or torso and a fish's bodyBeing · Luck and prosperity Legendary 🇯🇵 JapanSōjōbō僧正坊 The long-nosed king of Japan's tengu, said to dwell on Mount KuramaBeing · Power and authority Legendary

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.