All entries
2,636 entries so far, best known first. 2,296 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
🇵🇭 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
🇲🇲 MyanmarNatနတ်
Spirits venerated in Myanmar alongside Buddhism, including deified humans and nature guardians.Tradition · Protection · 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
🇰🇭 Cambodia and 3 moreSak Yantសាក់យ័ន្ត
Sacred geometric tattoos from Southeast Asia believed to grant protection and powerTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇩 Indonesia and 2 moreDukun
A traditional healer and spirit medium in Indonesian folk practiceTradition · Healing · Seeing and foretelling Living
🇵🇭 PhilippinesWitchcraft in the Philippinespangkukulam
Indigenous beliefs about sorcery and malevolent magic in the PhilippinesTradition · Cursing and harm · Healing Living
🇻🇳 Vietnam and 2 moreThiên Y A Na
A Vietnamese goddess worshipped in folk religion and Đạo Mẫu through spirit mediumshipBeing · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇵🇭 PhilippinesAnito
Indigenous Philippine spirits and the carved figures that represent themBeing · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead 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
🇮🇩 IndonesiaNyi Roro KidulRatu Laut Selatan
The spirit queen of Java's southern coast and guardian of the Indian OceanBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Living
🇻🇳 VietnamĐạo Mẫu
A Vietnamese shamanic tradition honouring mother goddesses through ritual performance.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇲🇾 Malaysia and 1 morePawang
A shaman from Indonesia and Malaysia who commands spirits, weather, and wild animals.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Living
🇮🇩 IndonesiaBarongᬩᬭᭀᬂ
A lion-like spirit king of Balinese mythology who battles the witch-queen Rangda in ritual dance.Being · Protection · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇹🇭 Thailand and 1 moreGhosts in Thai cultureผี (phi)
A wide range of spirits and ghosts found in Thai folklore and popular belief.Belief · Protection · Cursing and harm Living
🇲🇲 MyanmarBurmese folk religionNat Worship
Animistic worship of nature spirits and ancestors in Myanmar, often practiced alongside Buddhism.Tradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇩 IndonesiaSanghyangᬲᬂᬳ᭄ᬬᬂ (Tari Sanghyang)
A Balinese sacred dance where performers enter trance to host spiritual entitiesIllusion · Speaking with spirits and the dead 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
🇱🇦 Laos and 3 moreTai folk religionສາສະໜາຜີ
Spirits, ancestor rites, and soul-calling ceremonies of the Tai peoplesTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇮🇩 IndonesiaBarongᬩᬭᭀᬂ
A lion-like spirit king of Bali who battles the witch queen Rangda in dance and mythBeing · Protection Living
🇻🇳 VietnamMẫu Thượng Ngàn林宮聖母
A forest goddess in Vietnamese indigenous religion, ruler of the Forest PalaceBeing · Power and authority Living
🇮🇩 Indonesia and 2 moreHantu
A Malay and Indonesian term for spirits of the dead or nature beingsBeing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇻🇳 VietnamFour PalacesTứ Phủ
A Vietnamese spiritual system where mediums channel four elemental goddesses.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇩 Indonesia and 1 moreSandung
A house-shaped ossuary for the bones of the deceased among Dayak peoples in Borneo.Charm · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇮🇩 IndonesiaSunda Wiwitanᮞᮥᮔ᮪ᮓ ᮝᮤᮝᮤᮒᮔ᮪
A folk religion of the Sundanese people in western Java, IndonesiaTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇻🇳 VietnamThe Four ImmortalsTứ bất tử
Four chief spirits of the Vietnamese Red River Delta pantheonBeing · Power and authority Living
🇮🇩 IndonesiaMarapu
Ancestral religion of Sumba and Flores in IndonesiaTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇮🇩 IndonesiaTaiganja
A bronze amulet of Central Sulawesi shaped like a keyhole, worn for status and protectionCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Sunda Wiwitan: Greenland4, Public domain, source
- The Four Immortals: Vietnamese artist, Public domain, source
- Pawang: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tagalog religion: The original uploader was Rodsan18 at English Wikipedia . ( Original t, CC BY 2.5, source
- Barong: Michael Gunther, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ghosts in Thai culture: Heinrich Damm ( User:Hdamm , Hdamm at de.wikipedia.org ), CC BY 2.0, source
- Burmese folk religion: Wagaung ( talk ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Sanghyang: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tai folk religion: ( เทวประภาส มากคล้าย ), Tevaprapas, Public domain, source
- Burmese zodiac: Photo Dharma, CC BY 2.0, source
- Nat: Emily Khine, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Taiganja: sailko, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Mẫu Thượng Ngàn: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Sak Yant: Mikhailovich, CC BY 3.0, source
- Dukun: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Thiên Y A Na: Lưu Ly ( thảo luận ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Anito: Frederic H. Sawyer, Public domain, source
- Sandung: Wibowo Djatmiko ( Wie146 ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Vietnamese folk religion: Unknown (traditional painting dated back to the 17th century), Public domain, source
- Nyi Roro Kidul: Gunawan Kartapranata, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Barong: Skha, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Đạo Mẫu: Vũ Tiến Lâm, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Marapu: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source