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
馃嚪馃嚭 Russia and 5 moreSlavic religion
The pre-Christian beliefs of the Slavic peoples before their conversion to Christianity.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Healing Revived
馃嚠馃嚬 Italy and 3 moreRenaissance magic
A 15th and 16th century revival of magical arts blending philosophy, astrology, and hidden knowledge.Tradition 路 Power and authority 路 Seeing and foretelling Historical
馃嚛馃嚜 Germany and 2 moreFranz Anton Mesmer
A German physician who proposed a universal fluid of natural energy and founded mesmerism.Tradition 路 Healing Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United KingdomCharmer
English folk healers who used gifts or verses to treat natural ailments without chargeTradition 路 Healing Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 4 moreCunning folk
European practitioners of folk medicine and helpful magic from the Middle Ages to the twentieth centuryTradition 路 Protection 路 Healing Historical
馃嚬馃嚪 Turkey and 1 moreTurkish folkloreT眉rk halk k眉lt眉r眉
A rich body of oral tales, jokes, and rituals from Turkey and the Turkic worldTradition 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚞馃嚪 Greece and 5 moreVotive offering
Objects left in sacred places to honor a deity or fulfill a vow, never to be recovered.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚠馃嚜 Ireland and 5 moreHoly well
A water source revered for healing and ritual across pagan and Christian traditionsTradition 路 Healing 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 1 moreNicholas Culpeper
An English herbalist and astrologer who translated medical texts into English for the poor.Text 路 Healing 路 Power and authority Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 1 moreScottish folkloreBeul-aithris na h-Alba
The myths, creatures and beliefs of the Scottish people, recorded from ancient times to the present.Tradition 路 Seeing and foretelling 路 Protection Living
馃嚠馃嚬 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 路 Healing 路 Seeing and foretelling Historical
馃嚫馃嚜 Sweden and 3 moreRunic magic
The use of ancient Germanic letters for spells, divination, and protectionTradition 路 Protection 路 Seeing and foretelling Living
馃嚛馃嚜 Germany and 5 moreBiodynamic agriculture
An organic farming system with esoteric roots and spiritual practicesTradition 路 Healing 路 Power and authority Living
馃嚞馃嚪 Greece and 1 moreMedical astrology
An ancient practice linking planetary movements to the human body and diseaseTradition 路 Healing Historical
馃嚠馃嚬 ItalyIatromathematics
A seventeenth-century Italian school that applied mechanics and astrology to medicineTradition 路 Healing Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 1 moreNeopagan witchcraft
Modern pagan traditions that practice magic and draw on historical witch beliefs.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 1 moreMagic in Anglo-Saxon Englandgaldorcr忙ft
Healing charms and protective rituals practiced by early English tribesTradition 路 Healing 路 Protection Historical
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 2 moreAetherius Society
A new religious movement blending theosophy, UFO claims, and spiritual healing to aid humanity.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚠馃嚬 ItalySegnature
An Italian folk healing rite using gestures and prayers to cure illness and remove cursesRite 路 Healing 路 Protection Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Biodynamic agriculture: Martist, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Medical astrology: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Bald's Leechbook: Unknown, the Internet Archive scan is low quality, and some of the tex, Public domain, source
- European witchcraft: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Nicholas Culpeper: Richard Gaywood, Public domain, source
- Medieval European magic: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Renaissance magic: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Segnature: SeAnstapa, CC0, source
- Aetherius Society: Hjamesberglen, CC0, source
- Franz Anton Mesmer: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Cunning folk: Midnightblueowl at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Turkish folklore: Biser Todorov, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Votive offering: Walter J. Pilsak, Waldsassen ( W.J.Pilsak at de.wikipedia ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Holy well: The Speckled Bird, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Slavic religion: Alphonse Mucha, Public domain, source