All entries
2,266 entries so far, best known first. 3,044 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
🇬🇷 GreecePasiphaëΠασιφάη
A Cretan queen and solar goddess cursed with lust for a bull, mother of the MinotaurFigure · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇬🇷 GreecePhoebeΦοίβη (Phoíbē)
A Titaness of prophecy and the original keeper of the Delphic oracleFigure · Seeing and foretelling Legendary
🇭🇹 Haiti and 3 moreNago lwa
A Haitian Vodou nation of masculine spirits rooted in Yoruba traditionsBeing · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇭🇹 HaitiBoum'ba Maza
A family of water spirits in Haitian Vodou ritesBeing · Luck and prosperity · Healing Living
🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreAmphiarausἈμφιάραος
A Greek seer and hero who became a healing oracle after being swallowed by the earth.Figure · Healing · Seeing and foretelling Legendary
🇬🇷 GreeceBranchusΒράγχος
A mortal lover of Apollo who became a prophet and founded an oracle cult in ancient Greece.Figure · Seeing and foretelling · Healing Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanKayu ura粥占
A Japanese Shinto divination ritual using rice or bean gruel to predict the harvest.Rite · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living
🇨🇳 ChinaSuperstition in China
A broad category for folk beliefs and rituals dismissed as backward by modern Chinese authoritiesBelief · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇬🇧 United KingdomBluecap
A blue flame spirit of English mines that guides miners and warns of dangerBeing · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇺🇸 United States and 3 moreAlaska Native religion
Traditional spiritual practices of the Inuit, Yupik, and Aleut peoples of AlaskaTradition · Healing · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇺🇸 United StatesJoy of Satan Ministries
An occult movement combining theistic Satanism with esoteric and extraterrestrial loreTradition · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇸🇾 SyriaMoleosophy
Divination by reading the shape and place of moles on the bodyOracle · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreWedding superstitions
Folk beliefs and omens tied to marriage customs across many culturesBelief · Protection · Luck and prosperity 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
🇲🇿 Mozambique and 1 moreNdau witchcraft and sorcery
A system of spirit belief and traditional healing among the Ndau people of Mozambique and ZimbabweTradition · Healing · Protection Living
🇲🇽 MexicoMercado de Sonora
A Mexico City market known for herbal medicine and occult goodsTradition · Protection · Love and attraction Living
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 4 moreIlluminates of Thanateros
An international group dedicated to practical chaos magic and experimental ritual workTradition · Power and authority · Change and initiation Living
🇬🇧 United KingdomQueen of Elphame
The elfin queen of Faerie from Lowland Scotland and Northern England folkloreFigure · Cursing and harm · Healing Historical
🇮🇱 IsraelBabalon
A Thelemic goddess of fertility, ecstasy, and spiritual transformation.Being · Change and initiation · Power and authority Living
🇮🇪 IrelandFand
An otherworldly woman in Irish mythology who becomes the lover of the hero CúchulainnFigure · Love and attraction Legendary
🇮🇩 IndonesiaNini Pelet
A West Javanese sorceress legend linked to Mount Ciremai and the origin of the word for love charmsFigure · Love and attraction · Power and authority Legendary
🇨🇦 CanadaChasse-galerieLa Chasse-galerie
A French-Canadian folktale about lumberjacks who fly a canoe to visit lovers on New Year's EveFigure · Love and attraction · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇬🇧 United KingdomTam Lin
A Scottish ballad about a fairy knight rescued by his mortal lover on Hallowe'enFigure · Love and attraction · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇳 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
🇮🇳 IndiaFakirفقير
An Islamic ascetic who seeks spiritual neediness and devotion to God.Tradition · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇩 IndonesiaKeong Emas
A Javanese legend about a princess turned into a golden snailFigure · Love and attraction Legendary
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreLegend of the White Snake白蛇傳
A Chinese folktale about a snake spirit who becomes human to love a mortal manFigure · Love and attraction · Cursing and harm Historical
🇫🇮 Finland and 1 moreVäinämöinen
An ancient Finnish demigod and master singer from the Kalevala epicBeing · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇨🇳 China and 3 moreSwan maiden
A folk motif where a man steals a bird-woman's feather cloak to force marriage.Figure · Love and attraction · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇺🇸 United States and 3 moreBuilders of the Adytum
A Western mystery school teaching tarot and Qabalah through correspondenceTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇯🇵 JapanDatsue-ba奪衣婆
A Japanese underworld figure who strips clothes from spirits at the river of deathBeing · Cursing and harm Historical
🇺🇸 United StatesChristian views on magic
A spectrum of Christian beliefs about magical practices, ranging from strict condemnation to esoteric integration.Belief · Cursing and harm · Protection Living
🇷🇺 Russia and 1 moreFourth Way
A spiritual path for inner development that does not require leaving ordinary lifeTradition · Change and initiation Living
🇺🇸 United StatesChurch of Light
An esoteric organization teaching astrology, alchemy, and magic as a way of life.Tradition · Power and authority · Change and initiation Living
🇨🇦 CanadaOak Island mystery
A centuries-old legend of buried treasure and unexplained engineering on a Canadian island.Belief · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇩🇪 GermanyThule SocietyThule-Gesellschaft
A German occult group that sponsored the early Nazi party and promoted racial mysticism.Tradition · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇯🇲 Jamaica and 4 moreJumbee
A shadowy spirit of the dead in Caribbean folklore, often linked to evil deeds.Belief · Cursing and harm Living
🇱🇹 Lithuania and 1 moreAšvieniai
Twin horse deities of Baltic mythology who pull the sun chariotBeing · Protection Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaSuperstition in India
Common beliefs and rituals across India that influence daily life and major eventsBelief · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇿🇦 South Africa and 1 moreSacred caves of the Basotho
Cave networks in South Africa and Lesotho used by the Basotho for ancestral rituals and healingTradition · Healing · Protection Living
🇮🇳 IndiaSanjhi
A festival and art form honoring a mother goddess through clay images and colored designsTradition · Love and attraction · Luck and prosperity Living
🇷🇺 RussiaVolkhovnikВолховник
A lost Old Russian divination book of omens and signsText · Seeing and foretelling · Healing Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomThe Cheltenham Ghost
A late nineteenth century English haunting investigated by the Society for Psychical ResearchBelief Historical
🇵🇭 PhilippinesAnggitay
A Philippine mythic creature with a woman's torso and a horse's lower body.Being Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanKeneō懸衣翁
A Japanese oni who judges souls by the weight of their clothes at the Sanzu RiverBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇵🇭 PhilippinesBungisngis
A one-eyed giant from Philippine folklore that laughs constantly and relies on hearing.Being Legendary
🇵🇱 PolandLucky JewŻyd z pieniążkiem
A Polish figurine of a Jewish man with a coin, used as a talisman for financial fortune.Charm · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇳 IndiaUchitta Bhagavathyഉച്ചിട്ട ഭഗവതി
A North Malabar goddess of fire and childbirth, performed as TheyyamBeing · Protection · Healing Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Louisiana Voodoo: I cropped, original authors are Ridpath, John Clark, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Bed of nails: Herbert Ponting, Public domain, source
- Ašvieniai: Wojsyl , 2005, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Fourth Way: Londonlinks, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Christian views on magic: Athanasius Kircher, Public domain, source
- Datsue-ba: Fred Cherrygarden, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Väinämöinen: Akseli Gallen-Kallela, Public domain, source
- Pasiphaë: ArchaiOptix, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Phoebe: Olivierw, Public domain, source
- Amphiaraus: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Branchus: Francesco Bini, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kayu ura: Yatukiyurei, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Superstition in China: Gary Todd, CC0, source
- Joy of Satan Ministries: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Moleosophy: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Wedding superstitions: Anonymous Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Ndau witchcraft and sorcery: Mycelium101, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Mercado de Sonora: AlejandroLinaresGarcia, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Babalon: William Blake, Public domain, source
- Chasse-galerie: Henri Julien, Public domain, source
- Tam Lin: Richard Webb, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Epic cycles of incarnations in Moirang: Bhudro Singh (AKA. Ningthoujam Bhadra), Public domain, source
- Keong Emas: Post of Indonesia, Public domain, source
- Legend of the White Snake: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Swan maiden: Walter Crane, Public domain, source
- Oak Island mystery: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Superstition in India: Ji-Elle, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Sacred caves of the Basotho: JMK, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Sanjhi: Veer jindal, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Lucky Jew: Silar, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Uchitta Bhagavathy: Sreejith K ( talk ), CC BY 3.0, source