All entries
569 entries so far, best known first. 5,896 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
OccasionWeddings and betrothalFestivalsBirth and childhoodDeath and remembranceHarvest, farming and weatherNew yearInitiation and coming of ageIllness and misfortuneJourneys and voyagesEveryday use
PeopleAymara (remove)
🇵🇪 Peru and 1 moreSupay
An Andean spirit of the underworld who balances life and death forcesBeing · Cursing and harm · Protection Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 2 moreLibation
The ritual pouring of liquid as an offering to spirits or the deadRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇵🇪 Peru and 1 morePishtacoñañaq; kharisiri
An Andean bogeyman said to steal human fat for oil and medicineBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Living
🇵🇪 Peru and 5 morePachamama
The Andean mother goddess of space-time and the earthBeing · Protection · Healing Living
🇵🇪 Peru and 1 moreApu
Sacred mountain spirits in Andean tradition that protect communities and control natural resourcesBeing · Protection · Healing Living
🇪🇬 Egypt and 2 moreLibation
The ritual pouring of liquid as an offering to spirits or the deadRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇵🇪 Peru and 1 morePishtacoñañaq; kharisiri
An Andean bogeyman said to steal human fat for oil and medicineBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Living
🇵🇪 Peru and 5 morePachamama
The Andean mother goddess of space-time and the earthBeing · Protection · Healing Living
🇵🇪 Peru and 1 moreApu
Sacred mountain spirits in Andean tradition that protect communities and control natural resourcesBeing · Protection · Healing Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Libation: Arkady Zarubin ( Аркадий Зарубин ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Pachamama: Penarc, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Apu: Cecilia Sacsa, CC BY-SA 4.0, source