All entries
2,212 entries so far, best known first. 3,117 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
🇨🇳 ChinaKui夔 (kuí)
A one-legged mountain spirit and ancient music master from Chinese mythologyBeing · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇨🇳 ChinaZouyu騶虞
A legendary Chinese creature said to appear only under benevolent ruleBeing · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanTesso鉄鼠
A Japanese yōkai born from a monk’s curse and the destructive power of ratsBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreFengli风狸 / 風狸
A legendary flying mammal from Chinese lore, said to carry a magic wand and resist death.Figure · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇯🇵 Japan and 1 moreKōshin庚申信仰
A Japanese folk belief involving vigils to prevent internal spirits from reporting human deeds to heavenBelief · Protection · Healing Living
🇨🇳 ChinaXirang息壤
A magical soil in Chinese mythology that expands to control flood watersSubstance · Protection Legendary
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreShuihu水虎
A legendary water creature from Chinese folklore, later adopted into Japanese myth.Being · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇰🇷 South KoreaEgg ghost달걀귀신
A headless Korean spirit shaped like an egg, said to bring death upon sightingBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇨🇳 ChinaPeaches of Immortality仙桃
Legendary Chinese fruits said to grant eternal life to deities and mortalsSubstance · Luck and prosperity · Change and initiation Legendary
🇨🇳 ChinaNine-headed bird九頭鳥
A mythical creature from ancient China that became a symbol of deceit.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanOsakabehime刑部姫
A yōkai spirit said to inhabit Himeji Castle and reveal its fate.Being · Seeing and foretelling Legendary
🇨🇳 China and 4 moreHuoshu火鼠
A legendary fire-resistant rat from Chinese folklore said to yield self-cleaning cloth.Being · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇨🇳 ChinaBenzhuism本主教
The indigenous patron worship of the Bai people in Yunnan, ChinaTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇰🇷 South KoreaKorean virgin ghost처녀귀신 (cheonyeo-gwisin)
A spirit of an unmarried woman who died with resentment in Korean folklore.Being · Cursing and harm · Binding and oaths Historical
🇨🇳 ChinaShangyang商羊
A mythical Chinese bird that predicts rain by dancing on one legBeing · Seeing and foretelling Legendary
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreFengxi封豨
A two-headed boar monster and ancient rain deity from Chinese mythBeing · Cursing and harm · Seeing and foretelling Legendary
🇨🇳 ChinaPanhu盤瓠
A dragon-dog origin myth of the Yao and She peoples in ChinaFigure · Speaking with spirits and the dead Legendary
🇰🇷 South KoreaSuunism수운교
A Korean ethnic religion focused on the Great Jade Emperor of Heaven and spiritual reconnection.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living
🇯🇵 JapanSakabashira逆柱
A reversed wooden pillar in Japanese folk belief, said to cause misfortune or ward off disasterBelief · Protection · Cursing and harm Historical
🇰🇷 South Korea and 1 moreDokkaebi도깨비
A one-legged supernatural being from Korean folklore, often linked to household objects and magical items.Being · Wonder and entertainment · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇹🇼 TaiwanMo-sin-a魔神仔
A short, furry forest demon from Taiwanese folklore said to lure travelers into the mountains.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇨🇳 ChinaPixiu貔貅
A winged lion-like creature from Chinese lore that guards wealth and wards off evil spirits.Being · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreKakuen玃猿 (Jué yuán)
A legendary ape-like creature from Chinese and Japanese folklore known for abducting humans.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanShichinin misaki七人ミサキ
A group of seven vengeful ghosts from Japan that appear near water and kill those who see them.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanKinoko木の子
A mountain spirit in Japan that looks like a small child and plays tricks on workers.Being Legendary
🇨🇳 ChinaShi尸
A living descendant who sat in place of a dead ancestor during ancient Chinese ritualsRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇯🇵 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
🇯🇵 JapanIkuchiゐくち
A legendary sea serpent from Japanese folklore that leaves oil on shipsBeing · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanAmorōnagu天降女子
A celestial maiden from Japanese folklore who descends to Earth for love or soulsFigure · Love and attraction Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanDatsue-ba奪衣婆
A Japanese underworld figure who strips clothes from spirits at the river of deathBeing · Cursing and harm Historical
🇯🇵 JapanKiyohime清姫
A Japanese folktale about a woman who becomes a serpent after being rejected by a monkFigure · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanHannya般若
A Noh theater mask depicting a jealous female spirit or demonessText · Cursing and harm Living
🇨🇳 ChinaNine-tailed turtle九尾龜
A legendary Chinese creature linked to divination and folkloreBeing · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇨🇳 ChinaDragon turtle龍龜 (Lóngguī)
A Chinese mythic creature with a dragon body and turtle shell, used as a Feng Shui charm.Figure · Luck and prosperity · Power and authority Living
🇯🇵 JapanBanchō Sarayashiki番町皿屋敷
A Japanese ghost story about a servant who dies unjustly and haunts her murderer by counting plates.Figure · Cursing and harm · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇨🇳 ChinaChinese sorcery scares
A series of moral panics in Imperial China driven by fears of magical harm and hair cuttingBelief · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical
🇨🇳 ChinaLuduan甪端
A mythical Chinese creature said to speak every language and travel vast distances in a single dayBeing · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanYama-uba山姥
A Japanese mountain spirit depicted as either a cannibalistic monster or a benevolent guardian.Being · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanDaigensuihō大元帥法
An Esoteric Shingon Buddhist rite for military defense and cursing enemiesRite · Cursing and harm · Protection Historical
🇯🇵 JapanMagatama勾玉
A curved Japanese bead used as jewelry, status symbol, and sacred object in Shinto.Charm · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇯🇵 JapanChīsai-ojisan小さいおじさん
A tiny Japanese cryptid said to bring luck when spotted in everyday placesFigure · Luck and prosperity Living
🇯🇵 JapanTsuchinokoツチノコ
A snake-like cryptid from Japanese folklore said to roll like a wheelBeing · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇰🇷 South KoreaGangcheori강철이
A fire-breathing dragon from Korean folklore that scorches the land in its wakeFigure · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanAmabieアマビエ
A prophetic sea creature from Japan that wards off disease with its imageFigure · Protection · Seeing and foretelling Legendary
🇰🇷 South KoreaMago Halmi마고할미
A giant creator goddess in Korean mythology associated with hemp weaving and the separation of heaven and earth.Figure · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇧🇹 BhutanVajravarahiརྡོ་རྗེ་ཕག་མོ། (Dorje Pakmo)
A wrathful female buddha in Tibetan Buddhism, depicted with a sow head and dancing posture.Being · Power and authority · Change and initiation Living
🇯🇵 JapanAyakashi妖
Water spirits and ghost lights in Japanese folkloreBeing · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇯🇵 JapanKyōka Hyaku Monogatari狂歌百物語
An 1853 Japanese picture book pairing yōkai illustrations with humorous kyōka poetryText · Wonder and entertainment Historical
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Fengli: Anonymous (1603), Public domain, source
- Tesso: Katsushika Hokusai, Public domain, source
- Korean virgin ghost: 국립국어원, CC BY-SA 2.0 kr, source
- Datsue-ba: Fred Cherrygarden, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kiyohime: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Hannya: Daderot, Public domain, source
- Zouyu: Chen Menglei, Public domain, source
- Kui: Dave Pape, Public domain, source
- Shuihu: Author: b. 1654, Public domain, source
- Peaches of Immortality: Anonymous ( China ) Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Benzhuism: G41rn8, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Nine-headed bird: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Pixiu: N509FZ, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Dragon turtle: Jonathan O'Donnell, CC BY 2.0, source
- Banchō Sarayashiki: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi, Okiku ,, Public domain, source
- Luduan: Gisling, CC BY 2.5, source
- Yama-uba: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Daigensuihō: Kamakura-period artist; photo by Kudo Risaburo (工藤利三郎), Public domain, source
- Magatama: Kakidai, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Amabie: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Vajravarahi: Foto: Andreas Praefcke, Public domain, source
- Shi: Jason Zou, Public domain, source
- Sakabashira: Unknown author, Public domain, source