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.
🇹🇷 Turkey and 5 moreEvil eye
A curse caused by an envious look and the charms used to block itBelief · Protection · Cursing and harm Living
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreKolamகோலம்
A daily geometric floor drawing made with rice flour at the home entrance in South IndiaTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇩🇪 Germany and 7 moreWalpurgis NightWalpurgisnacht
A spring vigil marking the eve of Saint Walpurga's feast day with bonfires and student festivalsRite · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇸🇳 Senegal and 5 morePentagramπεντάγραμμον
A five-pointed star figure used across history for protection, ritual, and cosmologyCharm · Protection · Binding and oaths Living
🇲🇽 Mexico and 3 moreFolk saint
Unofficially recognized holy figures venerated by local communities for intercession and miraclesBelief · Protection · Healing Living
🇳🇿 New Zealand and 5 moreTapu
A Polynesian concept of sacred restriction and spiritual prohibitionTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreAncestor veneration in China中國傳統宗法性宗教
Rites for dead kin who are thought to watch over the familyTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇯🇵 JapanMount Osore恐山
A volcanic pilgrimage site in Japan believed to be a gateway to the underworldTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇲🇽 Mexico and 5 moreSanta MuerteNuestra Señora de la Santa Muerte
A female skeletal folk saint in Mexico and the Americas, worshipped for protection, healing, and safe passage.Tradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇺🇦 Ukraine and 5 moreMugwortчорнобиль (chornóbyl')
An aromatic herb used in folk medicine, cooking, and magical protection across Eurasia.Substance · Protection · Healing Living
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreConcealed shoes
Shoes hidden in building structures as folk charms for protection and fertilityCharm · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇪🇸 Spain and 5 moreSt John's Eve
A Christian vigil marked by bonfires and plant gathering on the summer solstice eveRite · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreAncient Egyptian religion
Polytheistic worship, divine kingship, and funerary rites along the NileTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 7 moreSaint Andrew's Day
A Christian feast day marked by national holidays in Scotland and Romania, and folk divination across Europe.Rite · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreSnake worship
Veneration of serpents as divine or ancestral beings across global culturesTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇷🇺 Russia and 4 moreFolk Orthodoxyнародное православие
A blend of Eastern Orthodox doctrine and pre-Christian pagan beliefs in Slavic communitiesTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇨🇳 China and 4 moreKitchen God灶君
The Chinese hearth deity who reports domestic conduct to the Jade EmperorBeing · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇪 Ireland and 5 moreCairn
A human-made stack of stones used as a marker, memorial, or religious symbol across many cultures.Tradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇹🇭 Thailand and 1 moreGhosts in Thai cultureผี (phi)
A wide range of spirits and ghosts found in Thai folklore and popular belief.Belief · Protection · Cursing and harm Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreNavagrahaनवग्रह
A group of nine celestial deities in Hinduism that govern fate and astrologyTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇬🇷 Greece and 5 moreBay Laurelδάφνη
An aromatic Mediterranean plant used in cooking and as a symbol of victory and purification.Substance · Protection · Cleansing and purification Living
🇮🇳 IndiaKumkumकुङ्कुमम्
A red powder made from turmeric and lime, used in Hindu markings and ritualsSubstance · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇺🇸 United States and 4 moreRainmaking
Efforts to induce rain through technology, ritual, or prayer.Tradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇬🇧 United KingdomEvil eye bead (sample)Nazar boncuğu
A blue glass bead hung to turn aside envy.Charm · Protection Living
🇹🇼 TaiwanKuai Kuai culture乖乖文化
A Taiwanese custom of placing obedient snacks on machines to ensure smooth operationBelief · Protection Living
🇮🇪 IrelandStatue rubbing
A tourist custom of touching statues to attract luck, love, or a return visit.Belief · Luck and prosperity · Love and attraction Living
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreFalun Gong法轮功
A Chinese cultivation practice blending meditative exercises with moral principlesTradition · Healing · Protection Living
🇯🇵 Japan and 4 moreHousehold deity
A spirit or minor god believed to guard a home and its family members.Being · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇯🇵 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
🇺🇸 United StatesBaseball superstition
Rituals and beliefs held by players and fans to influence game outcomesBelief · Luck and prosperity · Protection Living
🇯🇵 JapanYakudoshi厄年
Traditional Japanese ages believed to bring bad luck and the rituals used to ward them offBelief · Protection Living
🇧🇬 Bulgaria and 5 moreApocryphal prayer
A folk prayer text blending church forms with apocrypha and incantations for protection and healingText · Protection · Healing Living
🇸🇪 Sweden and 1 moreTroll crosstrollkors
A carved or bent iron sigil used in Sweden and Norway to ward off harmful magic and creatures.Charm · Protection Revived
🇲🇬 MadagascarFady
Malagasy cultural taboos regulating daily life and ancestor relationsBelief · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇱 Israel and 4 moreChaiחי
A Hebrew word and symbol meaning 'alive', used as an amulet and in Jewish culture.Charm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇩🇪 Germany and 3 moreDrude
A Germanic nightmare spirit and the pentagram charm used to keep it outBeing · Cursing and harm · Protection Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaSuperstition in India
Common beliefs and rituals across India that influence daily life and major eventsBelief · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇪🇬 Egypt and 5 moreWorship of heavenly bodies
Veneration of stars, planets, and the sky as divine forces or deitiesTradition · Protection · Power and authority Historical
🇨🇭 SwitzerlandSegen
A German term for blessing, charm, or spell rooted in Christian and folk traditions.Belief · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇮🇷 Iran and 2 moreSuperstitions in Muslim societies
Beliefs in supernatural forces and charms found across the Islamic worldTradition · Protection · Healing Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Kolam: mckaysavage, CC BY 2.0, source
- Kuai Kuai culture: 總統府, CC BY 2.0, source
- Navagraha: Kiran891, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Bay Laurel: Forest and Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0 us, source
- Kumkum: Thamizhpparithi Maari, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Rainmaking: George Catlin, Public domain, source
- Walpurgis Night: Luis Ricardo Falero, Public domain, source
- Pentagram: Tomruen, Attribution, source
- Folk saint: Sergio Serrano, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Statue rubbing: Matthias Rosenkranz, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Baseball superstition: Johnmaxmena2, CC BY 4.0, source
- Ancestor veneration in China: Three huntings, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Mount Osore: Douglas P Perkins ( Douglaspperkins ( talk )), CC BY 3.0, source
- Santa Muerte: Not home, Public domain, source
- Falun Gong: longtrekhome, CC BY 3.0, source
- Mugwort: Prahlad balaji, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Drude: Ramessos, Public domain, source
- Concealed shoes: Edmund Patrick, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Superstition in India: Ji-Elle, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- St John's Eve: Jules Breton, Public domain, source
- Chai: BASWIM, CC BY 3.0, source
- Superstitions in Muslim societies: Unknown author, CC0, source
- Ancient Egyptian religion: Moh hakem, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Saint Andrew's Day: Henryk Siemiradzki, Public domain, source
- Troll cross: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Snake worship: Alexandermcnabb, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Household deity: Claus Ableiter, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Worship of heavenly bodies: Jean-Pierre Dalbéra, CC BY 2.0, source
- Folk Orthodoxy: Лобачев Владимир, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Fady: Robin Taylor, CC BY 2.0, source
- Cairn: Andrew Bossi, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Evil eye: FocalPoint, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Ghosts in Thai culture: Heinrich Damm ( User:Hdamm , Hdamm at de.wikipedia.org ), CC BY 2.0, source