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

OrderBest known A to Z Newest Living first

🇧🇴 Bolivia and 5 moreKallawaya An itinerant group of traditional Andean healers known for their medicinal plant knowledge and ritual practicesTradition · Healing · Protection Living 🇮🇳 IndiaPanchagavya A fermented mixture of five cow products used in Hindu rituals and Ayurvedic traditions.Substance · Cleansing and purification · Healing Living

🇮🇳 India and 1 moreNavagrahaनवग्रह A group of nine celestial deities in Hinduism that govern fate and astrologyTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇮🇳 IndiaWitch-hunts in India Violent persecution of people accused of witchcraft, mostly women, in rural IndiaBelief · Cursing and harm Living

🇧🇴 Bolivia and 2 moreYatiri A lightning-struck healer in Aymara communities who restores balance with nature and ancestorsTradition · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living

🇨🇱 Chile and 1 moreCultrunkultrung A ceremonial drum central to Mapuche spiritual practice and identity in Chile and ArgentinaTradition · Healing · Protection Living

🇮🇳 IndiaNechung Oracleགནས་ཆུང་ཏ་བླ་མ The official prophetic medium and spiritual advisor to Tibet's Dalai LamaOracle · Seeing and foretelling · Protection Living

🇮🇳 IndiaBhuta KolaBhūta Kōla A Tulu folk dance and ritual where spirits are channelled into human performersTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living

🇵🇪 Peru and 1 moreApu Sacred mountain spirits in Andean tradition that protect communities and control natural resourcesBeing · Protection · Healing Living

🇮🇳 India and 2 moreBhootभूत A restless spirit of the dead in South Asian belief and folkloreBeing · Cursing and harm · Protection Living 🇮🇳 IndiaApeswari sabha An Assamese healing rite where village women invoke a goddess to cure illnessRite · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living 🇮🇩 IndonesiaAbada A two-horned mythical beast from Central African and Southeast Asian loreBeing · Healing · Luck and prosperity Legendary

🇮🇷 Iran and 2 moreSuperstitions in Muslim societies Beliefs in supernatural forces and charms found across the Islamic worldTradition · Protection · Healing Living

🇵🇪 Peru and 2 moreTsentsak Invisible darts used by Amazonian shamans for healing and sorcerySubstance · Cursing and harm · Protection Living 🇮🇳 IndiaTarakeshwaraतारकेश्वर (Tārakeśvara) A form of Shiva who guides souls to liberation through sacred mantrasFigure · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka and 1 moreSanni Yakumaසන්නි යකුම A traditional Sinhalese exorcism ritual featuring eighteen masked dances to banish illness-causing demons.Rite · Healing · Cursing and harm Living

Photo credits on this page

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

Bhoot: Anilbhardwajnoida, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Navagraha: Kiran891, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Witch-hunts in India: Granger, Public domain, source
Yatiri: EEJCC, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Cultrun: Universidad Nacional de La Plata, CC BY 3.0, source
Nechung Oracle: Christopher Michel, CC BY 2.0, source
Superstitions in Muslim societies: Unknown author, CC0, source
Bhuta Kola: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Apu: Cecilia Sacsa, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Sanni Yakuma: Michael Gunther, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Tsentsak: Veton PICQ, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Kallawaya: Unknown author, Public domain, source

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Photo credits on this page

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