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.
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 1 moreMedieval European magic
A broad category of ritual and natural practices in the Middle Ages, blending healing, divination, and religious belief.Tradition · Healing · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇬🇷 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
🇩🇪 GermanyAGLAאגלא
A Hebrew magic word used in Jewish and medieval European charmsBelief · Protection Historical
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- AGLA: Stephan Michelspacher, Public domain, source
- Winter solstice: Image by Przemyslaw " Blueshade " Idzkiewicz, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Magic circle: John William Waterhouse, Public domain, source
- Jiangshi: Dick Thomas Johnson, CC BY 2.0, source
- Tutelary deity: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Golem: user Thander, Public domain, source
- Medieval European magic: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Votive offering: Walter J. Pilsak, Waldsassen ( W.J.Pilsak at de.wikipedia ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source