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
🇮🇳 IndiaPulimaranja Thondachan
A theyyam deity of North Malabar, born from a shapeshifter who became a leopard.Figure · Protection · Power and authority Living
🇻🇳 VietnamThe Four ImmortalsTứ bất tử
Four chief spirits of the Vietnamese Red River Delta pantheonBeing · Power and authority Living
🇷🇸 Serbia and 2 moreBibiBibijako Dive
A Romani holiday honoring a protective aunt figure for family and children's healthRite · Protection · Healing Living
🇻🇳 VietnamBà Chúa Xứ婆主處
A Mekong Delta goddess of prosperity, asked for trade, health and fertilityBeing · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇸🇾 SyriaArslan Tash amulets
Assyrian limestone charms found in Syria that ward off demons through inscribed prayersCharm · Protection Historical
🇪🇬 EgyptWadj amulet
A papyrus-shaped charm for eternal youth in the afterlifeCharm · Healing · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇭🇹 Haiti and 5 moreLoogaroo
A shapeshifting vampire of Caribbean folklore, feared for its blood-drinking habits.Being · Cursing and harm Living
🇮🇳 IndiaAshapura Mataआशापुरा माता
A Hindu goddess worshipped as the clan protector of Rajput and other communities in western India.Being · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇰🇷 South KoreaMengdu멩두
Brass ritual instruments central to Jeju Island shamanismCharm · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Fading
🇿🇦 South AfricaDivination bonesditaola (Sotho-Tswana), amathambo (isiZulu)
Bones and carved objects used by traditional healers in South Africa to foresee the futureSeeing and foretelling · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇩🇲 DominicaBelie Belcan
A loa of justice and protection in Dominican Vudú, linked to Saint Michael.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Living
🇮🇳 IndiaAbarimon
A mythical tribe with reversed feet, said to inhabit the Himalayas and run at extreme speeds.Figure · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇦🇱 Albania and 3 moreCross necklace
A pendant bearing the Christian cross worn as a sign of faith or protection.Charm · Protection · Power and authority Living
🇪🇸 SpainHuman sacrifice in the ancient Iberian Peninsula
Ancient ritual killings by Lusitanian and Vetton peoples for divination and warRite · Seeing and foretelling · Cursing and harm Historical
🇲🇱 Mali and 1 moreSandobele
A Senufo woman diviner who mediates between the village and bush spirits.Being · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇲🇳 MongoliaBlack shamanismХар бөө
A Mongolian shamanic tradition working with lower spirits and ancestral power.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Revived
🇯🇵 JapanTōfu-kozō豆腐小僧
A Japanese yōkai depicted as a child carrying a tray of tofu, popular in Edo period literature.Being · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaBaakবাক
A shapeshifting water spirit from Assamese folklore that mimics humans and fears torn nets.Being · Cursing and harm · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇬🇷 GreeceTrophoniusΤροφώνιος
A Greek hero turned subterranean oracle god at LebadeaFigure · Seeing and foretelling · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomNanny Rutt
A cautionary figure from Lincolnshire folklore who lures girls into the woodsFigure · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇵🇪 Peru and 3 moreMuki
A subterranean goblin of the Andes who guards mines and makes pacts with miners.Being · Power and authority · Luck and prosperity Living
🇩🇪 Germany and 1 moreNis PukNiß Puk
A legendary household spirit from Northern Germany and Denmark that helps or torments its owner.Being · Luck and prosperity · Protection Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanWanyūdō輪入道
A flaming wheel with a monk's head that steals souls in Japanese folkloreBeing · Cursing and harm · Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
🇺🇸 United StatesBaseball superstition
Rituals and beliefs held by players and fans to influence game outcomesBelief · Luck and prosperity · Protection Living
🇦🇱 AlbaniaLjubi
A multi-headed water demon from Albanian folklore linked to storms and sacrificeBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇳 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
🇧🇿 Belize and 3 moreSisimito
A bipedal cryptid of Central American folklore, said to live in the mountains and caves.Figure · Cursing and harm · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇬🇧 United KingdomTyphonian Order
A British Thelemic esoteric body working with dark occultism, kalas, and cosmic mythTradition · Change and initiation · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇯🇵 JapanOtoroshiおとろし
A Japanese yōkai with blue skin and tusks that guards temple gates and punishes the wicked.Being · Protection · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇯🇵 Japan and 1 moreHiderigami日照り神
A drought spirit from Chinese and Japanese folklore that brings dry weather.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇹 Italy and 3 moreSaint Valentine's Key
A metal key charm from Padua used for healing epilepsy and as a romantic tokenCharm · Healing · Love and attraction Living
🇪🇸 SpainLamialamiak
River and sea spirits of Basque folklore, known for their beauty and magical labour.Being · Power and authority Historical
🇸🇪 SwedenÁlfablót
A late autumn homestead ritual to elves and ancestors in pagan ScandinaviaRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Healing Historical
🇮🇪 Ireland and 1 moreManannán mac Lir
A sea god and otherworld king in Gaelic mythology who guards the hidden lands of the Tuatha Dé Danann.Being · Protection · Power and authority Legendary
🇮🇪 IrelandLughLú
A master craftsman and warrior of Irish myth who defeats a tyrant eyeFigure · Power and authority · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇬🇷 GreeceNecklace of Harmonia
A cursed golden adornment from Greek myth that brought ruin to the House of ThebesCharm · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇲🇽 MexicoAlicante
A mythical Mexican snake that steals milk and hypnotizes its victimsBeing · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇫🇷 FranceHoules fairyGwenn fadoù
Immortal coastal fairies of Brittany who live in sea caves and aid humansBeing · Protection · Healing Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomTeinddeachamh
A Scottish tithe for clergy and a fairy tribute to the devilTradition · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomBauchan
A Scottish domestic spirit known for its contradictory helpfulness and mischief.Being · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaTormaགཏོར་མ
Sculpted offerings of flour and butter used in Tibetan Buddhist ritualsTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇩🇪 Germany and 1 moreNutcracker doll
A carved wooden figurine of a soldier used to crack nuts and now a popular Christmas decorationCharm · Luck and prosperity Living
🇰🇷 South KoreaDurin-gut두린굿
A Jeju Island ritual to cure mental illness by exorcising a possessing spirit through danceRite · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Fading
🇮🇳 IndiaKuttichathanകുട്ടിചാത്തൻ
A guardian spirit of Malabar folklore known for illusions and household pranksBeing · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaKroniகுறோணி
A primordial evil spirit in Ayyavazhi mythology, split into fragments across ages.Being · Cursing and harm Living
🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreChurch of Satan
An atheistic religious body founded in 1966 that practices ritual magicTradition · Power and authority · Change and initiation Living
🇬🇷 GreeceCentaurideΚενταυρίδε (Kentauride)
A female centaur from Greek mythology, depicted in art and literature as a hybrid of woman and horse.Being · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇷🇴 Romania and 2 moreCaloian
A Romanian clay effigy ritual for rain and fertility, featuring a mock funeralRite · Luck and prosperity Fading
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Centauride: John La Farge, Public domain, source
- Church of Satan: Palnu ., CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Baseball superstition: Johnmaxmena2, CC BY 4.0, source
- Shamanism in Ayyavazhi: Vaikunda Raja, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Pulimaranja Thondachan: Uajith, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- The Four Immortals: Vietnamese artist, Public domain, source
- Bibi: Andrija12345678, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Bà Chúa Xứ: Phương Huy, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Arslan Tash amulets: National Museum of Aleppo, Public domain, source
- Loogaroo: A.F.Pannemaker, Public domain, source
- Ashapura Mata: Rossifummi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Mengdu: National Folk Museum of Korea, CC BY 4.0, source
- Divination bones: Mycelium101, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Belie Belcan: Domfranciscorodrigues, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Abarimon: Hartmann Schedel (1440-1514),, Public domain, source
- Cross necklace: paterm, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Human sacrifice in the ancient Iberian Peninsula: Manuel Parada López de Corselas User:Manuel de Corselas ARS SUMMUM, Ce, Public domain, source
- Muki: Arístides Herrera Cuntti at Spanish Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Nis Puk: R2D3LA, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Otoroshi: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Lamia: Josu Goñi Etxabe, Public domain, source
- Manannán mac Lir: Kenneth Allen, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Lugh: Peter Clarke, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Necklace of Harmonia: Marie-Lan Nguyen, Public domain, source
- Houles fairy: Minseong Kim, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Teind: Palickap, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Torma: John Hill, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Nutcracker doll: Raul654, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Durin-gut: Karaeng Matoaya, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Caloian: Costică Acsinte Archive, No restrictions, source