Everyday use: practices that mark them
Small habits kept at home: the horseshoe, the salt over the shoulder, the evil-eye bead.
Everyday magic is the small habits kept at home: the horseshoe, salt over the shoulder, knocking on wood, the evil-eye bead, a lucky number, a morning prayer, the red thread, a bowl of water at the door, a charm in the car. People keep them without making much of them. This page looks at what these habits are, why they last and where they fit alongside religion and science. It is the commonest magic of all.
What it looks like
Daily practice is ordinary. In India, a lemon and chillies hang at shops, and a rangoli drawn at a doorstep welcomes luck. In Turkey, a nazar hangs near the door. In Britain, people say touch wood. In Japan, a lucky cat sits in the shop window, and in Mexico an egg may be rolled over a child. Many of these customs use cheap, available things. Many habits are older than the people who keep them, and nobody can say who started them.
Why people keep them
Researchers describe such habits as low-cost ways to cope with uncertainty. They give a feeling of control, mark boundaries and bring people together at little risk. Studies of lucky charms show they can raise confidence. Most people hold small customs with a light touch, half serious and half playful, and would not say they believe in them. Practices come in several types: some are protective, some bring luck, some help the household keep track of time and weather, and some are no more than a habit of speech.
Names, religion and class
Customs are shared across religions with different explanations. The evil eye is feared by Muslims, Christians, Jews and Hindus in the Mediterranean and beyond. Religious reformers often attack such customs, and educated people sometimes mock them as rural. Women do most of the work of keeping them going, within the home. The home is also where these customs meet money, since shops sell everything needed, and some of the items on sale are made far from their cultural homes.
Shops and screens
Ordinary habits are now a market of charms, apps, horoscopes and online readers. Small purchases are harmless, but large payments for luck or protection are a warning sign of fraud. The customs also spread online, where they can lose their origin. Whether or not they work, they remain a way people say that they care about each other. In the end, the most common magic in the world is neither dramatic nor secret, and it is practised by people who have no wish to be called magicians.
Everyday use on EveryJaadu
The entries written up so far, best known first.
馃嚪馃嚭 Russia and 5 moreSlavic religion
The pre-Christian beliefs of the Slavic peoples before their conversion to Christianity.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Healing Revived
馃嚫馃嚜 Sweden and 5 moreMidsummerJ膩艈i; Jonin臈s; Jaanip盲ev; Enyovden; Litha; Juhannus
A summer solstice festival marked by bonfires, maypole dancing, and feasting across Europe.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚠馃嚪 Iran and 3 moreIranian folklore賮賵賱讴賱賵乇 丕蹖乇丕賳蹖
The oral legends, heroes, and spirits of Greater IranTradition 路 Protection 路 Seeing and foretelling Living
馃嚞馃嚬 GuatemalaMaxim贸nRi Laj Mam
A Maya folk saint and trickster deity venerated in the Guatemalan HighlandsBeing 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚜馃嚞 EgyptSham Ennessim卮賲 丕賱賳爻賷賲
An Egyptian spring holiday marked by picnics, colored eggs, and salted fishTradition 路 Luck and prosperity 路 Wonder and entertainment Living
馃嚢馃嚪 South KoreaJesa鞝滌偓
A Korean ancestral memorial rite involving food offerings and ritual bowsRite 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚠馃嚜 Ireland and 1 moreBeltaneBealtaine
A Gaelic festival marking the start of summer with protective bonfires and livestock ritualsTradition 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Revived
馃嚥馃嚱 Mexico and 5 moreSanta MuerteNuestra Se帽ora de la Santa Muerte
A female skeletal folk saint in Mexico and the Americas, worshipped for protection, healing, and safe passage.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚘馃嚬 Austria and 3 morePerchtaPercht
A Alpine goddess of winter who rewards diligence and punishes laziness during the twelve days after Christmas.Being 路 Luck and prosperity 路 Cursing and harm Revived
馃嚭馃嚫 United States and 1 moreGroundhog DayGrund'sau d氓k
A North American custom using a burrowing rodent to forecast the end of winterTradition 路 Seeing and foretelling 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚛馃嚜 Germany and 5 moreStraw bearStrohb盲r
A carnival figure wrapped in straw that visits homes for gifts and marks the turning of seasons.Tradition 路 Luck and prosperity 路 Cursing and harm Living
馃嚠馃嚜 Ireland and 5 moreCairn
A human-made stack of stones used as a marker, memorial, or religious symbol across many cultures.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚙馃嚪 Brazil and 1 moreQuimbanda
An Afro-Brazilian religion focused on male and female street spirits for worldly mattersTradition 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚘馃嚪 Argentina and 2 moreSan La Muerte
A skeletal folk saint venerated in South America for protection and favorsTradition 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚬馃嚪 Turkey and 1 moreTurkish folkloreT眉rk halk k眉lt眉r眉
A rich body of oral tales, jokes, and rituals from Turkey and the Turkic worldTradition 路 Protection 路 Healing Living
馃嚨馃嚜 Peru and 5 morePalo Santo
Aromatic wood used in South American ritual cleansing and folk medicineSubstance 路 Cleansing and purification 路 Healing Living
馃嚫馃嚦 Senegal and 5 moreAncestor veneration
Rituals of respect and offerings for the dead across many culturesTradition 路 Protection 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚠馃嚜 Ireland and 4 moreMay Day
A European spring festival marking the start of summer with flowers, poles and fire.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚪馃嚭 Russia and 4 moreFolk Orthodoxy薪邪褉芯写薪芯械 锌褉邪胁芯褋谢邪胁懈械
A blend of Eastern Orthodox doctrine and pre-Christian pagan beliefs in Slavic communitiesTradition 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚚馃嚦 China and 5 moreRegional forms of shamanism
A global overview of indigenous spirit-interaction practices across Asia and the Americas.Tradition 路 Healing 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚠馃嚦 India and 3 moreAstrology
A divinatory practice that links celestial positions to human affairs and earthly eventsTradition 路 Seeing and foretelling 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚪馃嚧 Romania and 5 moreM膬r葲i葯or
A red and white string charm worn in early spring to welcome the seasonTradition 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚭馃嚫 United StatesMarmot Day
An Alaskan holiday celebrating local marmots and frontier culture, replacing Groundhog Day.Tradition 路 Luck and prosperity 路 Wonder and entertainment Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Astrology: Wilfredor, CC0, source
- Midsummer: Kora27, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Iranian folklore: Hossein Mirkamali, CC BY 4.0, source
- Maxim贸n: Sapfan (Jan Pesula), Public domain, source
- Folk saint: Sergio Serrano, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Sham Ennessim: Ikonact, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Jesa: by Joseph Steinberg (Baltimoron in Korea) at Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Beltane: Stefan Sch盲fer, Lich, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Santa Muerte: Not home, Public domain, source
- Perchta: Holger Uwe Schmitt, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Turkish folklore: Biser Todorov, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Palo Santo: Haplochromis, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Marmot Day: Colin Canterbury/USFWS, Public domain, source
- Ancestor veneration: Thang Nguyen, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Regional forms of shamanism: Man Sing, Public domain, source
- May Day: Bryan Ledgard, CC BY 2.0, source
- Folk Orthodoxy: 袥芯斜邪褔械胁 袙谢邪写懈屑懈褉, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Groundhog Day: Anthony Quintano, CC BY 2.0, source
- Straw bear: Photo: Andreas Praefcke, CC BY 3.0, source
- Cairn: Andrew Bossi, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Slavic religion: Alphonse Mucha, Public domain, source