All entries
2,635 entries so far, best known first. 2,304 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
🇮🇹 Italy and 2 moreAugury
A Roman rite of reading bird behavior to learn the will of the godsRite · Power and authority · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇪🇸 Spain and 5 moreSt John's Eve
A Christian vigil marked by bonfires and plant gathering on the summer solstice eveRite · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇪 Ireland and 1 moreLughnasadhLúnasa
A Gaelic harvest festival marking the beginning of the grain gathering seasonTradition · Luck and prosperity · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Augur: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Haruspicy: Lokilech, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Winter solstice: Image by Przemyslaw " Blueshade " Idzkiewicz, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- St John's Eve: Jules Breton, Public domain, source
- Magic circle: John William Waterhouse, Public domain, source
- Astragalomancy: Roland zh, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Lughnasadh: Mountainash333, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Easter Fire: Jürgen Eissink, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Slavic religion: Alphonse Mucha, Public domain, source
- Gorsedd stones: Robin Drayton, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Śuri: Marie-Lan Nguyen, Public domain, source