All entries

2,161 entries so far, best known first. 3,219 more are on the list to be written. Narrow by region, kind, purpose, practitioner, belief world, occasion or how alive it is.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

RegionSouth Asia Southeast Asia East Asia Central Asia and the Caucasus Middle East North Africa Sub-Saharan Africa Europe North America Latin America and the Caribbean Oceania

KindTradition Rite Charm Oracle Substance Being Figure Text Illusion Belief

PurposeProtection Healing Seeing and foretelling Luck and prosperity Love and attraction Cursing and harm Cleansing and purification Speaking with spirits and the dead Change and initiation Binding and oaths Power and authority Wonder and entertainment

WhoShamans Folk healers Priests and ritual specialists Witches, sorcerers and cunning folk Diviners and readers Mediums and the possessed Ceremonial magicians and alchemists Households and ordinary people Stage magicians Scholars and sceptics

BeliefHindu and Tantric Buddhist Jain Muslim and Sufi Jewish Christian Sikh Zoroastrian Shinto and Taoist Indigenous and shamanic African and Afro-diasporic Pagan and Neopagan Esoteric and occult Folk and village custom Secular and stage Other traditions

OccasionWeddings and betrothal Festivals Birth and childhood Death and remembrance Harvest, farming and weather New year Initiation and coming of age Illness and misfortune Journeys and voyages Everyday use

StandingLiving Revived Fading Historical Legendary Performed

PeopleMuslims (remove)

OrderBest known A to Z Newest Living first

🇹🇷 Turkey and 5 moreEvil eye A curse caused by an envious look and the charms used to block itBelief · Protection · Cursing and harm Living

🇮🇳 India and 5 moreSpirit possession A global belief that spirits or demons can take control of a person's body and mindBelief · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Living

🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreAzazelעזאזל A desert place and fallen angel linked to the Yom Kippur scapegoat ritualFigure · Cursing and harm · Cleansing and purification Historical

🇮🇷 Iran and 4 moreJinnجِنّ Supernatural beings in Islamic and pre-Islamic Arabian belief, capable of shapeshifting and living in society.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Living

🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreQareenقرين A spiritual companion or double assigned to every human in Islamic beliefBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Living

🇩🇪 Germany and 5 moreYellow badgeJudenstern A marked garment worn by Jews under laws of distinction and humiliation across centuries.Charm · Cursing and harm Historical 🇾🇪 YemenʿAnāqأناق بنت آدم A monstrous daughter of Adam in Islamic extra-Quranic traditionFigure · Cursing and harm Historical

🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreCurse of Ham A biblical story used to justify slavery and racial discriminationBelief · Cursing and harm Historical

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

Qareen: عامر شاہین, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Spirit possession: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
Jinn: VenusFeuerFalle, CC0, source
Azazel: Louis Le Breton, Public domain, source
Curse of Ham: Ксенофонтов Иван Степанович. Ksenofóntov Iván Stepánovich (1817-1875), Public domain, source
Evil eye: FocalPoint, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Yellow badge: Edited version of original photo by Rama, CC BY-SA 3.0, source

All entries

Photo credits on this page

The weekly digest