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
🇮🇳 IndiaEcheneis
A legendary fish said to hold back ships and influence legal proceedingsBeing · Cursing and harm · Love and attraction Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaPinglak
A lion from the Panchatantra whose friendship with a bull is destroyed by cunning advisorsFigure · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaBuru
A fierce swamp creature from Apatani founding narrativesBeing Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaCausal plane
A high spiritual realm in Theosophy and New Age cosmologyBelief · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living
🇮🇳 IndiaPandi
A legendary race of giant-eared people from ancient geographic textsBeing · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaChromandi
A legendary race of hairy people with dog teeth from medieval bestiariesFigure Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaDrishti bommai
A fearsome doll hung at homes and vehicles to ward off the evil eye in South India.Charm · Protection Living
🇮🇳 IndiaTawajjuh
A Sufi practice of transmitting spiritual energy from a master to a studentTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreMahanam Sampradayaমহানাম সম্প্রদায়
A Bengali Krishnaite monastic order focused on chanting and humanitarian serviceTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇵🇪 Peru and 2 moreTsentsak
Invisible darts used by Amazonian shamans for healing and sorcerySubstance · Cursing and harm · Protection Living
🇮🇳 IndiaQutbقطب
A Sufi spiritual leader who acts as the unseen axis of a cosmic hierarchy.Figure · Power and authority Historical
🇵🇰 Pakistan and 2 moreNa'atنعت
Urdu and Bengali verses praising the Islamic prophet MuhammadText · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 IndiaShamanism in Ayyavazhi
A divination practice within the Hindu denomination of Ayyavazhi in South India.Rite · Seeing and foretelling · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 IndiaNaeviology
A divination method that reads the future from moles and scarsOracle · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaChedipeचेदिप
A witch-vampire spirit of the Godavari region that drains men and feeds on sorrowBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaFakirفقير
An Islamic ascetic who seeks spiritual neediness and devotion to God.Tradition · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 IndiaEpic cycles of incarnations in MoirangMoirang Shayon
A Meitei mythic cycle tracing the repeated lives and deaths of divine lovers across generations.Figure · Love and attraction Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaHoroscope
A diagram of planetary positions at a specific moment, used for divination and personality analysis.Belief · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 IndiaPranaप्राण
A Sanskrit concept of vital energy found in yoga and AyurvedaBelief · Healing · Power and authority Living
🇳🇵 Nepal and 1 moreKiratism
The indigenous animist and shamanic religion of the Kirati peoples in Nepal and IndiaTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreFire (classical element)
A classical substance of heat and transformation in Greek, Indian, and Western esoteric traditionsSubstance · Change and initiation · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreCintāmaṇiचिन्तामणि
A wish-fulfilling jewel from Hindu and Buddhist traditionsSubstance · Healing · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaIndus worm
A giant carnivorous river creature from ancient Greek accounts of the IndusBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreWerecat
A feline shapeshifter found in global folklore and occult beliefBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreQayyumقیوم
A supreme spiritual rank in the Naqshbandi Sufi orderTradition · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaChillaچله
A forty-day solitary retreat of fasting and meditation in Sufi traditionRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreDeity yoga
A Vajrayana meditation on embodying a chosen Buddha figure to realize emptinessTradition · Change and initiation · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 IndiaEtheric body
A subtle energy layer said to sustain the physical form and connect it to higher states.Being · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaBramrachokh
A demon in Kashmiri myth that mimics a light to lead travellers astrayBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreVarahiवाराही (Vārāhī)
A Hindu mother goddess with a sow face, worshipped in Tantric rites for protection and powerBeing · Protection · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 IndiaKeśin
A Vedic hymn describing long-haired ascetics who travel on the wind and share a cup with Rudra.Tradition · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaHenjunaha and LairoulembiHensunaha Lailoulempi
A Meitei epic of lovers who die and return from the underworld through devotion.Figure · Love and attraction Legendary
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreBlack Orlov
A black diamond linked to a legend of theft and tragic deathsCharm · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaTarakeshwaraतारकेश्वर (Tārakeśvara)
A form of Shiva who guides souls to liberation through sacred mantrasFigure · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living
🇮🇳 IndiaDaityaदैत्याः
A race of asuras in Hindu mythology descended from Kashyapa and DitiBeing Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaAbhijñāअभिज्ञा
A set of special insights and powers in Buddhist meditation.Belief · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Historical
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreAiravataऐरावत
A pristine white mythic elephant that carries the king of gods and controls the rains.Being · Power and authority · Protection Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaMaibi Jagoi
A shamanic ritual dance performed by Maibis during the Lai Haraoba ceremony in Manipur.Rite · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreDamnation
A state of divine punishment or separation from the sacred after deathBelief · Cursing and harm Living
🇮🇳 IndiaKhongjomnubi NonggarolKhongchomnupi Nongkalol
A Meitei puya with two stories of transformation and ascent to the sky.Text · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaSuperstition in India
Common beliefs and rituals across India that influence daily life and major eventsBelief · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreLock of hair
A piece of human hair kept for symbolic, sentimental, or superstitious reasons.Substance · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreNavaratnaनवरत्न
A nine-gem talisman set in gold or silver, linked to Hindu astrology and planetary worshipCharm · Protection · Healing Living
🇮🇳 IndiaBaakবাক
A shapeshifting water spirit from Assamese folklore that mimics humans and fears torn nets.Being · Cursing and harm · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇮🇳 IndiaHingchabiꯍꯤꯡꯆꯥꯕꯤ
A giantess figure from Meitei folklore who feeds on raw fleshBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇷 Iran and 2 moreSuperstitions in Muslim societies
Beliefs in supernatural forces and charms found across the Islamic worldTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreManba al-Ansabمنبع الانساب
A Persian manuscript tracing Sayyid lineage and Sufi practice in early modern IndiaText · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaSuperstitions in Sikh societies
Folk beliefs and rituals observed by some Sikhs despite theological prohibitions.Belief · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇳 IndiaDrishti bommai
A fearsome doll hung at homes and vehicles to ward off the evil eye in South India.Charm · Protection Living
🇮🇳 IndiaTawajjuh
A Sufi practice of transmitting spiritual energy from a master to a studentTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreMahanam Sampradayaমহানাম সম্প্রদায়
A Bengali Krishnaite monastic order focused on chanting and humanitarian serviceTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇵🇪 Peru and 2 moreTsentsak
Invisible darts used by Amazonian shamans for healing and sorcerySubstance · Cursing and harm · Protection Living
🇮🇳 IndiaQutbقطب
A Sufi spiritual leader who acts as the unseen axis of a cosmic hierarchy.Figure · Power and authority Historical
🇵🇰 Pakistan and 2 moreNa'atنعت
Urdu and Bengali verses praising the Islamic prophet MuhammadText · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 IndiaShamanism in Ayyavazhi
A divination practice within the Hindu denomination of Ayyavazhi in South India.Rite · Seeing and foretelling · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 IndiaNaeviology
A divination method that reads the future from moles and scarsOracle · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaChedipeचेदिप
A witch-vampire spirit of the Godavari region that drains men and feeds on sorrowBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaFakirفقير
An Islamic ascetic who seeks spiritual neediness and devotion to God.Tradition · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 IndiaEpic cycles of incarnations in MoirangMoirang Shayon
A Meitei mythic cycle tracing the repeated lives and deaths of divine lovers across generations.Figure · Love and attraction Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaHoroscope
A diagram of planetary positions at a specific moment, used for divination and personality analysis.Belief · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 IndiaPranaप्राण
A Sanskrit concept of vital energy found in yoga and AyurvedaBelief · Healing · Power and authority Living
🇳🇵 Nepal and 1 moreKiratism
The indigenous animist and shamanic religion of the Kirati peoples in Nepal and IndiaTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreFire (classical element)
A classical substance of heat and transformation in Greek, Indian, and Western esoteric traditionsSubstance · Change and initiation · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreCintāmaṇiचिन्तामणि
A wish-fulfilling jewel from Hindu and Buddhist traditionsSubstance · Healing · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaIndus worm
A giant carnivorous river creature from ancient Greek accounts of the IndusBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreWerecat
A feline shapeshifter found in global folklore and occult beliefBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreQayyumقیوم
A supreme spiritual rank in the Naqshbandi Sufi orderTradition · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaChillaچله
A forty-day solitary retreat of fasting and meditation in Sufi traditionRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreDeity yoga
A Vajrayana meditation on embodying a chosen Buddha figure to realize emptinessTradition · Change and initiation · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 IndiaEtheric body
A subtle energy layer said to sustain the physical form and connect it to higher states.Being · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaBramrachokh
A demon in Kashmiri myth that mimics a light to lead travellers astrayBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreVarahiवाराही (Vārāhī)
A Hindu mother goddess with a sow face, worshipped in Tantric rites for protection and powerBeing · Protection · Power and authority Living
🇮🇳 IndiaKeśin
A Vedic hymn describing long-haired ascetics who travel on the wind and share a cup with Rudra.Tradition · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaHenjunaha and LairoulembiHensunaha Lailoulempi
A Meitei epic of lovers who die and return from the underworld through devotion.Figure · Love and attraction Legendary
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreBlack Orlov
A black diamond linked to a legend of theft and tragic deathsCharm · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaTarakeshwaraतारकेश्वर (Tārakeśvara)
A form of Shiva who guides souls to liberation through sacred mantrasFigure · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living
🇮🇳 IndiaDaityaदैत्याः
A race of asuras in Hindu mythology descended from Kashyapa and DitiBeing Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaAbhijñāअभिज्ञा
A set of special insights and powers in Buddhist meditation.Belief · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Historical
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreAiravataऐरावत
A pristine white mythic elephant that carries the king of gods and controls the rains.Being · Power and authority · Protection Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaMaibi Jagoi
A shamanic ritual dance performed by Maibis during the Lai Haraoba ceremony in Manipur.Rite · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreDamnation
A state of divine punishment or separation from the sacred after deathBelief · Cursing and harm Living
🇮🇳 IndiaKhongjomnubi NonggarolKhongchomnupi Nongkalol
A Meitei puya with two stories of transformation and ascent to the sky.Text · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaSuperstition in India
Common beliefs and rituals across India that influence daily life and major eventsBelief · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreLock of hair
A piece of human hair kept for symbolic, sentimental, or superstitious reasons.Substance · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreNavaratnaनवरत्न
A nine-gem talisman set in gold or silver, linked to Hindu astrology and planetary worshipCharm · Protection · Healing Living
🇮🇳 IndiaBaakবাক
A shapeshifting water spirit from Assamese folklore that mimics humans and fears torn nets.Being · Cursing and harm · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇮🇳 IndiaHingchabiꯍꯤꯡꯆꯥꯕꯤ
A giantess figure from Meitei folklore who feeds on raw fleshBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇷 Iran and 2 moreSuperstitions in Muslim societies
Beliefs in supernatural forces and charms found across the Islamic worldTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreManba al-Ansabمنبع الانساب
A Persian manuscript tracing Sayyid lineage and Sufi practice in early modern IndiaText · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaSuperstitions in Sikh societies
Folk beliefs and rituals observed by some Sikhs despite theological prohibitions.Belief · Luck and prosperity Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Mahanam Sampradaya: Neehar Haldar, CC0, source
- Bed of nails: Herbert Ponting, Public domain, source
- Vahana: Unknown Nepali, Public domain, source
- Kiratism: TheDreamSky ( talk ), CC BY 3.0, source
- Shamanism in Ayyavazhi: Vaikunda Raja, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Prana: Tamilmama, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Fire (classical element): Correogsk, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Cintāmaṇi: sailko, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Chilla: Indischer Maler um 1630, Public domain, source
- Deity yoga: Anonymous Unknown author, CC0, source
- Daitya: Unknown author, CC0, source
- Abhijñā: Gryffindor, Public domain, source
- Airavata: Unknown, India, Rajasthan, Amber, South Asia, Public domain, source
- Maibi Jagoi: Ramesh Lalwani, CC BY 2.0, source
- Damnation: Didier Descouens, Public domain, source
- Superstition in India: Ji-Elle, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Lock of hair: Unknown author, CC0, source
- Navaratna: Pradeep717, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Hingchabi: Bemni, N, CC0, source
- Superstitions in Muslim societies: Unknown author, CC0, source
- Superstitions in Sikh societies: jjron, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Drishti bommai: Chrissy starsi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Tsentsak: Veton PICQ, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Horoscope: Peter Presslein, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Epic cycles of incarnations in Moirang: Bhudro Singh (AKA. Ningthoujam Bhadra), Public domain, source