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
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreBelialבְּלִיַּעַל
A Hebrew term for worthlessness that evolved into a demon of darkness in Jewish and Christian texts.Being · Cursing and harm Historical
🇫🇷 France and 3 moreChristian Kabbalah
A Renaissance effort to read Christian theology into Jewish mysticismTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreAzazelעזאזל
A desert place and fallen angel linked to the Yom Kippur scapegoat ritualFigure · Cursing and harm · Cleansing and purification Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreShimon bar Yochaiשמעון בר יוחאי
A second-century sage of the Land of Israel and a central figure in Kabbalistic tradition.Figure · Power and authority Historical
🇪🇬 EgyptLucifer
A Latin name for the planet Venus that became an epithet for the Devil in Christian traditionFigure · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇹 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
🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreMagic and religion
A study of how ritual power and sacred belief overlap or separate across culturesBelief · Power and authority Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreJannes and Jambresיניס וימבריס
Named Egyptian magicians who opposed Moses in biblical traditionFigure · Cursing and harm Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 2 moreSibylline Oracles
A mixed collection of ancient prophecies attributed to pagan prophetesses but shaped by Jewish and Christian writers.Text · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreLeviathanלִוְיָתָן (Livyaṯān)
A primordial sea monster from ancient Near Eastern myth and biblical textBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇷🇴 Romania and 5 moreVampire folklore
Global legends of blood-drinking spirits and undead revenantsBelief · Cursing and harm · Protection Historical
🇪🇬 EgyptDemon
A supernatural entity believed to cause harm or possess humansBeing · Cursing and harm · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelJewish astrologyמַזָּלוֹת (mazzālôt)
A belief system within Judaism that celestial bodies influence earthly affairs and human destiny.Belief · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelAgrat bat Mahlatאגרת בת מחלת
A demon in Jewish tradition who rules over destructive spirits and night hours.Being · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreNehushtanנְחֻשְׁתָּן
A bronze serpent on a pole from the Hebrew Bible, once worshipped for healing before its destruction.Charm · Healing · Protection Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelPulsa diNuraפולסא דנורא
A Kabbalistic curse invoking destroying angels to block forgiveness and cause deathRite · Cursing and harm Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreCurse of Ham
A biblical story used to justify slavery and racial discriminationBelief · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreDream questionShe'elat Halom
A Jewish divination practice seeking prophetic answers through dreamsOracle · Seeing and foretelling · Healing Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreMahalathמָחֲלַת
A queen of demons in Jewish mysticism and the mother of AgratBeing · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreStone of Jacob
A biblical stone linked to a patriarch's vision and later claimed by Scottish coronation loreCharm · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreMicah's Idol
A carved image and silver idol from the Book of Judges, stolen by the Tribe of Dan.Belief · Power and authority Historical
🇩🇪 GermanyTransitus Fluvii
A 22-letter occult script built from Hebrew, set down by Agrippa in 1533Text Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreDivine retribution
Supernatural punishment by a deity in response to anger or wrongdoingBelief · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 5 moreJewish views on astrologyחָכְמַת הַמַּזָּלוֹת
A long-standing debate within Jewish thought about the influence of stars and planetsBelief · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelMelchom
A demon of hell and former Ammonite idol described in the Dictionnaire InfernalBeing · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelEisheth Zenunimאֵשֶׁת זְנוּנִים
A demonic epithet for Lilith in Kabbalah and Western esotericismFigure · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreStaff of Mosesmaṭṭeh
A walking stick with miraculous powers in Jewish and Islamic traditionCharm · Power and authority · Healing Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreSe'irimשעירים
Demons of Hebrew tradition linked to wild goats and ruined placesBeing · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇷 Iran and 5 moreAxis mundi
A concept describing a central point connecting the earthly and heavenly realms.Belief · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Historical
🇩🇪 GermanyAGLAאגלא
A Hebrew magic word used in Jewish and medieval European charmsBelief · Protection Historical
🇾🇪 Yemen and 1 moreDor Daimדור דעה
A Yemenite Jewish movement promoting rational theology and opposing Kabbalistic mysticismTradition Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 morePardesפרד״ס
A four-level method for interpreting Jewish scriptureText · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreBiblical numerology
A system of interpreting numbers in sacred texts as carrying symbolic meaning beyond their mathematical valueBelief · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelQlippothקְלִיפּוֹת
Impure spiritual forces in Jewish mysticism, opposites of the holy sefirotBeing · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelMessiah ben Josephמָשִׁיחַ בֶּן־יוֹסֵף
A Jewish eschatological figure who wages war and dies before the final age of peaceFigure · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreRighteous Priest
A messianic priestly figure in Jewish eschatology, identified with Shem and Melchizedek.Figure · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreSolomonשְׁלֹמֹה
A biblical king of Israel known for wisdom and temple building, later viewed as a magician.Figure · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreAzazelעזאזל
A desert place and fallen angel linked to the Yom Kippur scapegoat ritualFigure · Cursing and harm · Cleansing and purification Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreShimon bar Yochaiשמעון בר יוחאי
A second-century sage of the Land of Israel and a central figure in Kabbalistic tradition.Figure · Power and authority Historical
🇪🇬 EgyptLucifer
A Latin name for the planet Venus that became an epithet for the Devil in Christian traditionFigure · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇹 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
🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreMagic and religion
A study of how ritual power and sacred belief overlap or separate across culturesBelief · Power and authority Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreJannes and Jambresיניס וימבריס
Named Egyptian magicians who opposed Moses in biblical traditionFigure · Cursing and harm Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 2 moreSibylline Oracles
A mixed collection of ancient prophecies attributed to pagan prophetesses but shaped by Jewish and Christian writers.Text · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreLeviathanלִוְיָתָן (Livyaṯān)
A primordial sea monster from ancient Near Eastern myth and biblical textBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇷🇴 Romania and 5 moreVampire folklore
Global legends of blood-drinking spirits and undead revenantsBelief · Cursing and harm · Protection Historical
🇪🇬 EgyptDemon
A supernatural entity believed to cause harm or possess humansBeing · Cursing and harm · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelJewish astrologyמַזָּלוֹת (mazzālôt)
A belief system within Judaism that celestial bodies influence earthly affairs and human destiny.Belief · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelAgrat bat Mahlatאגרת בת מחלת
A demon in Jewish tradition who rules over destructive spirits and night hours.Being · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreNehushtanנְחֻשְׁתָּן
A bronze serpent on a pole from the Hebrew Bible, once worshipped for healing before its destruction.Charm · Healing · Protection Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelPulsa diNuraפולסא דנורא
A Kabbalistic curse invoking destroying angels to block forgiveness and cause deathRite · Cursing and harm Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreCurse of Ham
A biblical story used to justify slavery and racial discriminationBelief · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreDream questionShe'elat Halom
A Jewish divination practice seeking prophetic answers through dreamsOracle · Seeing and foretelling · Healing Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreMahalathמָחֲלַת
A queen of demons in Jewish mysticism and the mother of AgratBeing · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreStone of Jacob
A biblical stone linked to a patriarch's vision and later claimed by Scottish coronation loreCharm · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreMicah's Idol
A carved image and silver idol from the Book of Judges, stolen by the Tribe of Dan.Belief · Power and authority Historical
🇩🇪 GermanyTransitus Fluvii
A 22-letter occult script built from Hebrew, set down by Agrippa in 1533Text Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreDivine retribution
Supernatural punishment by a deity in response to anger or wrongdoingBelief · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 5 moreJewish views on astrologyחָכְמַת הַמַּזָּלוֹת
A long-standing debate within Jewish thought about the influence of stars and planetsBelief · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelMelchom
A demon of hell and former Ammonite idol described in the Dictionnaire InfernalBeing · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelEisheth Zenunimאֵשֶׁת זְנוּנִים
A demonic epithet for Lilith in Kabbalah and Western esotericismFigure · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreStaff of Mosesmaṭṭeh
A walking stick with miraculous powers in Jewish and Islamic traditionCharm · Power and authority · Healing Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreSe'irimשעירים
Demons of Hebrew tradition linked to wild goats and ruined placesBeing · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇷 Iran and 5 moreAxis mundi
A concept describing a central point connecting the earthly and heavenly realms.Belief · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Historical
🇩🇪 GermanyAGLAאגלא
A Hebrew magic word used in Jewish and medieval European charmsBelief · Protection Historical
🇾🇪 Yemen and 1 moreDor Daimדור דעה
A Yemenite Jewish movement promoting rational theology and opposing Kabbalistic mysticismTradition Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 morePardesפרד״ס
A four-level method for interpreting Jewish scriptureText · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreBiblical numerology
A system of interpreting numbers in sacred texts as carrying symbolic meaning beyond their mathematical valueBelief · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelQlippothקְלִיפּוֹת
Impure spiritual forces in Jewish mysticism, opposites of the holy sefirotBeing · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelMessiah ben Josephמָשִׁיחַ בֶּן־יוֹסֵף
A Jewish eschatological figure who wages war and dies before the final age of peaceFigure · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreRighteous Priest
A messianic priestly figure in Jewish eschatology, identified with Shem and Melchizedek.Figure · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreSolomonשְׁלֹמֹה
A biblical king of Israel known for wisdom and temple building, later viewed as a magician.Figure · Wonder and entertainment Historical
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Staff of Moses: John Everett Millais, Public domain, source
- Jewish astrology: Talmoryair, Public domain, source
- AGLA: Stephan Michelspacher, Public domain, source
- Demon: Martin Schongauer, Public domain, source
- Azazel: Louis Le Breton, Public domain, source
- Jiangshi: Dick Thomas Johnson, CC BY 2.0, source
- Shimon bar Yochai: איתי פרץ, Attribution, source
- Lotan: Gustave Doré, Public domain, source
- Lucifer: Gustave Doré, Public domain, source
- Medieval European magic: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Curse of Ham: Ксенофонтов Иван Степанович. Ksenofóntov Iván Stepánovich (1817-1875), Public domain, source
- Jannes and Jambres: Gerard Hoet, Public domain, source
- Micah's Idol: Avner, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Divine retribution: John Martin, Public domain, source
- Melchom: Louis Le Breton, Public domain, source
- Sibylline Oracles: Domenichino, Public domain, source
- Axis mundi: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Pardes: Anonymous (photo by Adrian Pingstone), Public domain, source
- Solomon: Simeon Solomon, CC0, source
- Nehushtan: Michelangelo, Public domain, source
- Stone of Jacob: Unknown author, Public domain, source