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.
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
馃嚙馃嚡 Benin and 2 morePapa Legba
A loa who stands at the crossroads and opens the gate between people and spiritsBeing 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Power and authority Living
馃嚨馃嚜 Peru and 5 morePachamama
The Andean mother goddess of space-time and the earthBeing 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚟馃嚬 HaitiGedeGu茅d茅
A family of spirits in Haitian Vodou who guard the dead and grant fertility.Being 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Protection Living
馃嚟馃嚬 Haiti and 2 moreLwa
Spirits in Haitian Vodou that mediate between people and the creator god.Being 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚥馃嚱 MexicoWerejaguar
A supernatural figure from Olmec art, blending human and jaguar traits.Being 路 Power and authority 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
馃嚟馃嚬 HaitiMarassa Jumeaux
The divine twins of Haitian Vodou, representing love, truth, and justice.Being 路 Love and attraction 路 Cursing and harm Living
馃嚛馃嚧 Dominican Republic and 5 moreZemi
A Ta铆no deity or ancestral spirit housed in a carved object used for worship and protectionBeing 路 Protection 路 Healing Historical
馃嚚馃嚧 ColombiaMohan
A forest spirit and ancestor soul in Colombian Indigenous folkloreBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
馃嚞馃嚲 Guyana and 1 moreBaccoo
A half-wood spirit from Guyanese and Surinamese folklore that serves as a mercenary or a haunting presence.Being 路 Cursing and harm 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
馃嚟馃嚬 HaitiRada lwa
A family of cool-tempered spirits in Haitian VodouBeing 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚟馃嚬 Haiti and 3 moreNago lwa
A Haitian Vodou nation of masculine spirits rooted in Yoruba traditionsBeing 路 Power and authority 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚨馃嚜 Peru and 5 morePachamama
The Andean mother goddess of space-time and the earthBeing 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚟馃嚬 HaitiGedeGu茅d茅
A family of spirits in Haitian Vodou who guard the dead and grant fertility.Being 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Protection Living
馃嚟馃嚬 Haiti and 2 moreLwa
Spirits in Haitian Vodou that mediate between people and the creator god.Being 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚥馃嚱 MexicoWerejaguar
A supernatural figure from Olmec art, blending human and jaguar traits.Being 路 Power and authority 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
馃嚟馃嚬 HaitiMarassa Jumeaux
The divine twins of Haitian Vodou, representing love, truth, and justice.Being 路 Love and attraction 路 Cursing and harm Living
馃嚛馃嚧 Dominican Republic and 5 moreZemi
A Ta铆no deity or ancestral spirit housed in a carved object used for worship and protectionBeing 路 Protection 路 Healing Historical
馃嚚馃嚧 ColombiaMohan
A forest spirit and ancestor soul in Colombian Indigenous folkloreBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
馃嚞馃嚲 Guyana and 1 moreBaccoo
A half-wood spirit from Guyanese and Surinamese folklore that serves as a mercenary or a haunting presence.Being 路 Cursing and harm 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
馃嚟馃嚬 HaitiRada lwa
A family of cool-tempered spirits in Haitian VodouBeing 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚟馃嚬 Haiti and 3 moreNago lwa
A Haitian Vodou nation of masculine spirits rooted in Yoruba traditionsBeing 路 Power and authority 路 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.
- Mohan: Sanjuan, Public domain, source
- Pachamama: Penarc, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Lwa: Hector Hyppolite, Public domain, source
- Folk Catholicism: Calvin Hennick, for WBUR Boston, CC BY 3.0, source
- Werejaguar: Ruben Charles, ( http://www.rubencharles.com ), CC BY 2.0, source
- Zemi: Unknown author, CC0, source