All entries
2,683 entries so far, best known first. 2,203 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
🇮🇶 Iraq and 4 moreAstrology
A system of divination that links human affairs to the positions of celestial bodiesTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇳 IndiaChakraचक्र
Meditation points in the subtle body used in Hindu and Buddhist yogaTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living
🇮🇳 IndiaHindu astrologyज्योतिष (Jyotiṣa)
A traditional Hindu system of astrology and timekeeping rooted in the VedasTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living
🇱🇰 Sri Lanka and 1 moreKataragama templeකතරගම / கதிர்காமம் முருகன் கோயில்
A Sri Lankan shrine shared by Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and VeddasTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreAncestor worship
Rites of respect for the dead that maintain family bonds and seek spiritual guidanceTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇪 Ireland and 4 moreWinter solstice
The shortest day and longest night of the year, marked by rites of solar returnTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Protection Living
🇮🇳 IndiaBhuta KolaBhūta Kōla
A Tulu folk dance and ritual where spirits are channelled into human performersTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇪🇬 Egypt and 5 moreSacred dance
Movement used in worship to honour deities, heal communities, or connect with the spirit world.Tradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreMandalaमण्डल
A sacred geometric design used in Indian religions for meditation and spiritual mapping.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇮🇳 IndiaLeft-Hand and Right-Hand Paths
Two distinct orientations in occult magic, dividing taboo-breaking from orthodoxy.Tradition · Change and initiation · Power and authority Living
🇲🇬 Madagascar and 4 moreGeomancy
A cross-cultural system of divination using earth, sand, and landforms to read the future or align spaces.Oracle · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 IndiaAkshaya Tritiyaअक्षय तृतीया
A Hindu and Jain spring festival marking a day of inexhaustible merit and new beginnings.Tradition · Luck and prosperity · Protection Living
🇮🇳 IndiaMahakaleshwar JyotirlingaMahākāleśvara
A sacred Shiva shrine in Ujjain, India, known for its south-facing idol and ancient origins.Tradition · Protection · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreAghoriअघोर
An ascetic monastic order of Shaivite sadhus known for antinomian rituals in cremation groundsTradition · Healing · Change and initiation Living
🇳🇬 NigeriaOsun-Osogbo Sacred GroveOsun-Osogbo
A sacred forest in Nigeria dedicated to the river goddess Osun, celebrated with an annual festival.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreShakta pithasशाक्त पीठ (Śākta Pīṭha)
Sacred shrines in Shaktism marking where parts of the goddess Sati fell to earth.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 India and 5 morePilgrimage
A journey to a sacred site for spiritual growth or religious dutyTradition · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇩 Indonesia and 4 moreKejawènꦏꦗꦮꦺꦤ꧀ (Kajawèn)
A Javanese tradition blending animism, Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam into a path of inner harmony.Tradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreDiyaदीया
A small oil lamp used in prayers and festivals across the Indian subcontinentTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇳 India and 3 moreTantraतन्त्र
Esoteric Hindu and Buddhist paths of mantra, ritual and yoga from first-millennium IndiaTradition · Power and authority · Change and initiation Living
🇯🇲 Jamaica and 5 moreObeah
A Caribbean tradition of ritual healing and spell-casting with African rootsTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇰🇭 Cambodia and 3 moreSak Yantសាក់យ័ន្ត
Sacred geometric tattoos from Southeast Asia believed to grant protection and powerTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreRangoliरंगोली
Floor art made with coloured powders and flowers to welcome guests and deitiesTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreDurga Pujaদুর্গাপূজা
A ten-day autumn festival honouring the goddess Durga and her victory over evil.Tradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreKalachakraདུས་ཀྱི་འཁོར་ལོ།
A Tibetan Buddhist tantric deity and system of yogic time cyclesTradition · Change and initiation · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇷 Iran and 7 moreNowruzنوروز
A spring equinox festival marking the new year across Persianate culturesTradition · Luck and prosperity · Cleansing and purification Living
🇻🇳 Vietnam and 1 moreVietnamese folk religiontín ngưỡng dân gian Việt Nam
A collection of local spirit worship and ancestral veneration in VietnamTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇮🇩 IndonesiaNyepiᬜᬾᬧᬶ
A Balinese Hindu holiday of total silence, fasting, and darkness marking the new year.Tradition · Cleansing and purification · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇩 IndonesiaOgoh-ogohᬳᭀᬕᭀᬄᬳᭀᬕᭀᬄ
Balinese statues paraded to symbolize and eliminate negative forces before the New YearTradition · Cursing and harm · Cleansing and purification Living
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 5 moreIfá
A Yoruba divination system using palm nuts to access spiritual guidanceTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 IndiaTheyyam
A ritual dance from Kerala where performers embody deities through elaborate costume and songTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living
🇨🇳 China and 5 moreGhost FestivalZhongyuan Festival; Yulanpen Festival
A festival to feed wandering spirits and guide them home during the seventh lunar month.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇮🇳 IndiaMuhurtamuhūrta
A Hindu unit of time used to select auspicious moments for rituals and daily practiceBelief · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇬🇷 Greece and 5 moreVotive offering
Objects left in sacred places to honor a deity or fulfill a vow, never to be recovered.Tradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇵🇭 PhilippinesPhilippine mythology
The indigenous myths and spirits of the Philippines, shaped by centuries of trade and colonial contact.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇸🇳 Senegal and 5 moreAncestor veneration
Rituals of respect and offerings for the dead across many culturesTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇲🇲 MyanmarBurmese folk religionNat Worship
Animistic worship of nature spirits and ancestors in Myanmar, often practiced alongside Buddhism.Tradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇨🇭 SwitzerlandMagic circle
A ritual boundary drawn or visualised to create sacred space and protectionTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreHoliहोली
A Hindu spring festival marked by coloured powders and bonfires to celebrate love and virtue.Tradition · Love and attraction · Cursing and harm Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreNakshatraनक्षत्रम् (Nakṣatram)
A system of lunar mansions used in Hindu and Buddhist astrology to map the sky.Tradition · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living
🇯🇵 JapanShugendō修験道
A Japanese mountain ascetic path blending Esoteric Buddhism, Shinto, and folk ritualsTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇲🇲 Myanmar and 2 moreBurmese zodiacဇာတာ ရာသီခွင်
A traditional Burmese system of astronomy and astrology with lunar mansions and weekday signs.Tradition · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇩 IndonesiaPenjorᬧᬾᬜ᭄ᚚᚚᭀᬃ
A curved bamboo pole marking prosperity in Balinese Hindu ceremonyTradition · Luck and prosperity · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 India and 3 moreMaha Shivaratriमहाशिवरात्रि
A Hindu night of fasting and vigil dedicated to the deity ShivaTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 IndiaKamakhya Templekamakhya mondir
A Hindu temple in Assam known for its yoni shrine and the Ambubachi Mela festivalTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreKolamகோலம்
A daily geometric floor drawing made with rice flour at the home entrance in South IndiaTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇬🇷 Greece and 2 moreAstragalomancy
Divination by casting marked bones, carved rods, or numbered diceOracle · Seeing and foretelling · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇹🇭 Thailand and 7 moreSpirit house
A small shrine found across Southeast Asia to appease local protective spiritsTradition · Protection · 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.
- Holi: Jitenderasingh, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Sunda Wiwitan: Greenland4, Public domain, source
- Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove: Cheeka 2.0, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Astrology: Wilfredor, CC0, source
- Hindu astrology: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Tagalog religion: The original uploader was Rodsan18 at English Wikipedia . ( Original t, CC BY 2.5, source
- Kataragama temple: Ghostface Buddha, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Ancestor worship: Lyn Gateley, CC BY 2.0, source
- Winter solstice: Image by Przemyslaw " Blueshade " Idzkiewicz, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Bhuta Kola: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Sacred dance: Jorge Barrios, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Chakra: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Mandala: Marion Golsteijn, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Left-Hand and Right-Hand Paths: Eliphas Levi, Public domain, source
- Geomancy: Jacopo188, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Akshaya Tritiya: Fgndgndgnr, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga: Ashverse, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Burmese folk religion: Wagaung ( talk ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Magic circle: John William Waterhouse, Public domain, source
- Aghori: Retratistadelsur, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Nakshatra: Kishorekumar 62, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Shugendō: 唐山健志郎 (Kenshiro Karayama), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Burmese zodiac: Photo Dharma, CC BY 2.0, source
- Penjor: Chainwit., CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Maha Shivaratri: Navneesh Ramessur, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kamakhya Temple: JyotiPN, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kolam: mckaysavage, CC BY 2.0, source
- Astragalomancy: Roland zh, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Spirit house: Chainwit., CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Shakta pithas: Abhishek Chandra, Public domain, source
- Pilgrimage: Ali Mansuri, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Diya: Suyash Dwivedi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Tantra: Ms Sarah Welch, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Obeah: Various, published by David Nutt, Public domain, source
- Sak Yant: Mikhailovich, CC BY 3.0, source
- Rangoli: SreeramKalyan, CC0, source
- Durga Puja: Subhrajyoti07, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kalachakra: Nabin K. Sapkota, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Nowruz: Katzenfee50, CC0, source
- Vietnamese folk religion: Unknown (traditional painting dated back to the 17th century), Public domain, source
- Nyepi: Matt Croxson, Public domain, source
- Ogoh-ogoh: Simondodit, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ifá: Toluaye, Public domain, source
- Theyyam: Shagil Kannur, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ghost Festival: Chong Fat, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Votive offering: Walter J. Pilsak, Waldsassen ( W.J.Pilsak at de.wikipedia ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Ancestor veneration: Thang Nguyen, CC BY-SA 2.0, source