All entries
2,046 entries so far, best known first. 3,431 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
🇺🇦 Ukraine and 1 moreUkrainian folklore
The folk traditions of Ukraine and its ethnic communitiesTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Luck and prosperity Living
🇱🇹 Lithuania and 1 moreLithuanian mythologyLietuvių mitologija
The ancient polytheistic beliefs of the Baltic people, preserved in folklore and early chroniclesTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇬🇧 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 · Seeing and foretelling · Protection Living
🇬🇷 GreeceAncient Greek folklore
The oral stories, music and rituals of the ancient GreeksTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 3 moreWelsh mythologyY Chwedlau
The ancient legends of Wales and the Celtic Britons, preserved in medieval manuscripts.Tradition · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇪🇸 SpainFolklore of Spain
The oral traditions, legends, and folktales of the Iberian PeninsulaTradition · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇨🇿 Czech RepublicCzech folklore
The folk traditions of the Czech people, from seasonal rites to music and craft.Tradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇬🇧 United KingdomCornish mythology
The folk tales and legends of Cornwall, shared with Brittany and Wales.Tradition · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreSantoshi Mataसंतोषी माता
A Hindu goddess of contentment worshipped through a Friday ritual fast.Being · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇬🇷 Greece and 2 moreGreco-Roman mysteriesμυστήρια
Secret religious schools of the ancient Mediterranean for initiates onlyTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇷 GreeceEleusinian MysteriesἘλευσίνια Μυστήρια
Ancient Greek secret initiation rites honouring Demeter and Persephone at EleusisTradition · Change and initiation · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇺🇸 United States and 5 moreSatanism
A modern set of beliefs using the figure of Satan as a symbol or deity.Tradition · Power and authority · Cursing and harm Living
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreSoul cake
A spiced cake given to soulers during Allhallowtide to remember the dead.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Luck and prosperity Living
🇪🇪 Estonia and 1 moreEstonian mythologyeesti mütoloogia
The pre-Christian beliefs and legends of the Estonian peopleTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇪🇸 Spain and 1 moreBasque mythology
The ancient beliefs of the Basque people, preserved through legends and place names.Tradition Historical
🇩🇪 Germany and 3 moreRunesᚱᚢᚾᛟ
An ancient Germanic script used for writing and magical signs.Text · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreWheel of the Year
An annual cycle of eight seasonal festivals observed by modern pagans.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇮🇪 Ireland and 5 moreTrick-or-treating
A Halloween custom where costumed visitors ask for treats from homesTradition · Luck and prosperity · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇫🇷 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
🇬🇷 Greece and 5 moreNecromancy
A form of divination that seeks to speak with the dead for hidden knowledge.Tradition · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority 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
🇮🇪 Ireland and 1 moreBrigid's crossCros Bhríde
A woven straw charm hung for protection, named after Ireland's patron saintCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇭🇹 Haiti and 1 moreOungan
A male priest in Haitian Vodou who leads rituals and serves as a medium for spirits.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Healing Living
🇻🇺 VanuatuJohn Frum
A Melanesian cargo cult figure on Tanna Island who promises wealth and the return of American supplies.Figure · Luck and prosperity · Power and authority Living
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreGardnerian Wicca
An initiatory neopagan tradition tracing its lineage to Gerald Gardner and the New Forest covenTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living
🇺🇸 United StatesDianic Wicca
A female-only pagan tradition honoring the Goddess and women's experienceTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇷🇺 Russia and 7 moreSlavic Native FaithРодноверие
A modern polytheistic movement drawing on Slavic folklore, romanticism, and global spiritual traditions.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇭🇺 HungaryTáltos
A Hungarian mythic figure with supernatural powers who acts as a spiritual mediator.Being · Healing · Seeing and foretelling Legendary
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 3 moreHobby horse
A costumed character made from wood or cloth used in seasonal folk customs and processions.Illusion · Luck and prosperity · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 4 moreMummers' play
A folk drama featuring a fight and a resurrection, performed by amateur troupes in the British Isles.Rite · Luck and prosperity · Speaking with spirits and the dead Revived
🇨🇱 ChileCaleuche
A luminous ghost ship of Chilote mythology that sails the canals and seas of southern Chile.Figure · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇨🇳 China and 3 moreHmong folk religionKev Dab Qhuas
The ethnic religion of the Miao and Hmong peoples, centered on spirit worship and shamanic healing.Tradition · Healing · Protection Living
🇯🇵 Japan and 1 moreKuji-in九字印
A system of nine syllables and hand gestures used for protection and spiritual alignment in Japanese esoteric traditionsRite · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇫🇯 FijiFijian mythology
The traditional beliefs and stories of the indigenous people of FijiTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreMagic and religion
A study of how ritual power and sacred belief overlap or separate across culturesBelief · Power and authority Historical
🇯🇵 JapanMiko巫女
A Shinto shrine priestess and traditional female medium in JapanTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇯🇵 JapanTengu天狗
Japanese mountain spirits that evolved from ominous birds into protective forest guardians.Being · Cursing and harm · Protection Legendary
🇲🇳 Mongolia and 2 moreWind Horseརླུང་རྟ་
An East and Central Asian symbol of the soul, luck, and vital energyBeing · Luck and prosperity · Protection Living
🇧🇬 Bulgaria and 5 moreKukeriкукери
A costumed ritual in Bulgaria to chase away evil spirits and welcome springRite · Protection · Cursing and harm Living
🇮🇳 India and 4 moreDzi beadགཟི། (gzi)
An agate amulet worn in the Himalayas for protection against the evil eye.Charm · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇸🇪 Sweden and 1 moreNoaidi
A Sámi spiritual leader who mediated between the living and the spirit world using a drum.Being · Healing · Protection Historical
🇨🇳 China and 4 moreSky burialབྱ་གཏོར་
A Tibetan funerary rite where human remains are offered to scavenging birdsRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living
🇮🇳 India and 4 moreBonབོན།
The indigenous religion of Tibet and the Himalayas, preserving ancient rituals alongside Buddhist teachings.Tradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇵🇪 Peru and 1 moreViracochaWiraqucha
The supreme creator deity of the Andes, associated with the sea and civilization.Being · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇯🇵 JapanShugendō修験道
A Japanese mountain ascetic path blending Esoteric Buddhism, Shinto, and folk ritualsTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇯🇵 JapanKitsuneきつね
A Japanese fox spirit known for shapeshifting and trickeryBeing · Cursing and harm · Protection Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaAtharvavedaअथर्ववेद
The fourth Veda of Hinduism, containing spells, healing rites, and domestic rituals.Text · Protection · Healing Historical
🇮🇩 IndonesiaSanghyangᬲᬂᬳ᭄ᬬᬂ (Tari Sanghyang)
A Balinese sacred dance where performers enter trance to host spiritual entitiesIllusion · 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.
- Curse: Katsushika Hokusai, Public domain, source
- Ukrainian folklore: U.S. Army Europe Images, CC BY 2.0, source
- Lithuanian mythology: Prussian historian Christophorus Hartknoch (1644-1687), Public domain, source
- Welsh mythology: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Folklore of Spain: Mikipons, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Czech folklore: Biser Todorov, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Cornish mythology: waterborough, Public domain, source
- Santoshi Mata: Nishu0246, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Greco-Roman mysteries: Varrese Painter, Public domain, source
- Eleusinian Mysteries: No machine-readable author provided. Marsyas assumed (based on copyrig, Public domain, source
- Satanism: Alexandre Cabanel, Public domain, source
- Soul cake: Samantha, CC BY 2.0, source
- Estonian mythology: Jeannette Berkowitz (illustrator), Public domain, source
- Basque mythology: No machine-readable author provided. Asp. assumed (based on copyright, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Runes: Bengt Olof ÅRADSSON, CC BY 1.0, source
- Wheel of the Year: Sunblade1500, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Trick-or-treating: Toyah Anette B, Public domain, source
- Necromancy: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Medieval European magic: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Imbolc: Culnacreann, CC BY 3.0, source
- Oungan: Anthony Karen, CC BY 4.0, source
- John Frum: Tim Ross, CC BY 3.0, source
- Gardnerian Wicca: Midnightblueowl ( talk ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Dianic Wicca: Jean-Baptiste Tuby I (Italy, active France, Paris and Versailles, 1635, Public domain, source
- Slavic Native Faith: Union of Slavic Rodnover Communities (Союз Славянских Общин Славянской, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Hobby horse: Timkevan at English Wikipedia, Public domain, source
- Mummers' play: Aladjov, CC BY 3.0, source
- Hmong folk religion: Thomas Riccio, CC BY 4.0, source
- Miko: Chris Gladis, Flickr user MShades, CC BY 2.0, source
- Wind Horse: Clemensmarabu, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kukeri: Nenko Lazarov, CC BY 2.5, source
- Dzi bead: Benjwong, Public domain, source
- Noaidi: O. H. von Lode, Public domain, source
- Sky burial: FishOil at English Wikipedia, Public domain, source
- Bon: Jialiang Gao (peace-on-earth.org), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Viracocha: Pattych ( talk ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Shugendō: 唐山健志郎 (Kenshiro Karayama), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kitsune: Yoshitoshi, Public domain, source
- Atharvaveda: William Dwight Whitney / Charles Rockwell Lanman, Public domain, source
- Sanghyang: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source