Festivals: practices that mark them
Samhain, Nowruz fire, Day of the Dead, Walpurgis night and the other days of the magic calendar.
Festivals are the days when a community performs its magic in public. Samhain and Halloween, Walpurgis night, Midsummer, Beltane, Day of the Dead, Nowruz fire-jumping, Diwali, Chinese Ghost Festival, Obon in Japan, Songkran, Carnival and the Burning Man gathering all combine religion, play and custom. This page asks what they do for communities and how they have changed. Many of them are tied to the moon or the sun, and they set the shared calendar of a village or a nation.
Fire, the dead and the season
Festivals cluster around turning points of the year. Fire is common: bonfires on Midsummer in Europe, Chaharshanbe Suri in Iran, Holika in India. The dead return in many: Samhain in Ireland, Obon in Japan, the Day of the Dead in Mexico, the Hungry Ghost Festival in China. In each, offerings of food, light and welcome are set out. Many involve masks, drums, processions and a shared meal, so that rites for protection and fertility become collective events open to the whole village.
Order and inversion
Many festivals allow a licensed breach of the rules. Carnival turns social order upside down, and masquerades in West Africa, such as Egungun among the Yoruba, bring ancestors to the village in cloth. Anthropologists see this as a way to renew order. Some, such as Holi, blur class lines for a day, though real divisions often persist. Within each festival there is usually a night when the dead or the spirits are thought to be close, and a day of celebration after it.
Church and state
Authorities have banned, absorbed and taxed festivals. The Church placed All Saints on the first of November and recast older rites. Puritan England banned Christmas for a time. Communist states discouraged ancestor and spirit festivals, while modern governments often list them as cultural heritage and promote them for tourism. Mexico's Day of the Dead was inscribed by UNESCO in 2008. Many are marked by a day of rest, a shared meal and the lighting of lamps or fires, and children often take a lively role.
Spectacle and respect
Large festivals bring crowds, risk and commerce. Halloween is now a global market, and parts of the Day of the Dead have been staged for visitors and film. Communities often ask guests to behave as guests, especially at rites for the dead or at sacred sites. Safety around fire, crowds and costume deserves care. Anthropologists observe that festivals teach each new generation what the community values, and that changes in a festival often show changes in the community.
Festivals on EveryJaadu
The entries written up so far, best known first.
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
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreDongyue Dadi東嶽大帝
The Chinese mountain god of Mount Tai who rules lifespans and underworld recordsBeing · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇨🇭 SwitzerlandMagic circle
A ritual boundary drawn or visualised to create sacred space and protectionTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇬🇹 Guatemala and 3 moreMaya religion
The living spiritual practices of the Maya peoples, shaped by centuries of contact with Catholicism.Tradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇸🇳 Senegal and 1 moreSerer religionA ƭat Roog
The traditional faith of the Serer people, centred on the supreme deity Roog and ancestral veneration.Tradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇨🇳 China and 5 moreGhost FestivalZhongyuan Festival; Yulanpen Festival
A festival to feed wandering spirits and guide them home during the seventh lunar month.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreSnake worship
Veneration of serpents as divine or ancestral beings across global culturesTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇧🇷 Brazil and 5 moreSanto Daime
A Brazilian syncretic religion using ayahuasca for spiritual work and healingTradition · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇬🇷 Greece and 5 moreVotive offering
Objects left in sacred places to honor a deity or fulfill a vow, never to be recovered.Tradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇳🇬 NigeriaOsun-Osogbo Sacred GroveOsun-Osogbo
A sacred forest in Nigeria dedicated to the river goddess Osun, celebrated with an annual festival.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇲🇽 MexicoAztec religion
The polytheistic and monistic belief system of the Aztec Empire in central MexicoTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 5 moreSacred dance
Movement used in worship to honour deities, heal communities, or connect with the spirit world.Tradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago and 5 moreSpiritual Baptist
An Afro-Caribbean Christian faith blending African traditions with Baptist worshipTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇮🇳 IndiaKavu
Sacred forest patches in South India that protect local deities and wildlifeTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇯🇵 JapanShinto shrine神社 (jinja)
A structure housing kami deities within the Shinto tradition of JapanTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 IndiaSarnaism
A tribal faith centered on nature worship and sacred groves in eastern IndiaTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreAncestor worship
Rites of respect for the dead that maintain family bonds and seek spiritual guidanceTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇺🇸 United States and 3 moreSandpainting
A ritual art of pouring colored sand to create temporary images for healing or spiritual teachingTradition · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇧🇷 Brazil and 2 moreCandomblé
An Afro-Brazilian religion blending West African spirits with Catholic imageryTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Healing Living
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreDiyaदीया
A small oil lamp used in prayers and festivals across the Indian subcontinentTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreDurga Pujaদুর্গাপূজা
A ten-day autumn festival honouring the goddess Durga and her victory over evil.Tradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇬🇷 Greece and 2 moreGreco-Roman mysteriesμυστήρια
Secret religious schools of the ancient Mediterranean for initiates onlyTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇷 GreeceEleusinian MysteriesἘλευσίνια Μυστήρια
Ancient Greek secret initiation rites honouring Demeter and Persephone at EleusisTradition · Change and initiation · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇭🇹 Haiti and 1 moreOungan
A male priest in Haitian Vodou who leads rituals and serves as a medium for spirits.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Healing Living
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreGardnerian Wicca
An initiatory neopagan tradition tracing its lineage to Gerald Gardner and the New Forest covenTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living
🇯🇵 JapanMiko巫女
A Shinto shrine priestess and traditional female medium in JapanTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇯🇵 JapanShugendō修験道
A Japanese mountain ascetic path blending Esoteric Buddhism, Shinto, and folk ritualsTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇲🇳 Mongolia and 2 moreMongolian shamanismBöö mörgöl
The animistic and shamanic ethnic religion of the Mongol peoples, centered on sky worship and ancestral spirits.Tradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇯🇵 JapanKagura神楽
A Shinto ritual dance where performers embody deities to purify and welcome spiritsTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 1 moreBoriBòòríí
A traditional Hausa spirit possession system and healing practice in West AfricaTradition · Healing · Luck and prosperity Living
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreAlexandrian Wicca
A British Neopagan tradition founded in the 1960s by Alex and Maxine SandersTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
🇲🇱 MaliDogon religion
The traditional spiritual beliefs of the Dogon people of MaliTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇩 IndonesiaNyepiᬜᬾᬧᬶ
A Balinese day of total silence, fasting, and self-reflection to mark the new year.Rite · Cleansing and purification · 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
🇸🇳 Senegal and 5 moreMaraboutmurābiṭ
A Muslim religious leader and teacher in West Africa, often linked to Sufi brotherhoods.Tradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 IndiaKamakhya Templekamakhya mondir
A Hindu temple in Assam known for its yoni shrine and the Ambubachi Mela festivalTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇮🇪 Ireland and 1 moreLughnasadhLúnasa
A Gaelic harvest festival marking the beginning of the grain gathering seasonTradition · Luck and prosperity · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇵🇪 Peru and 2 moreInca religion
The polytheistic beliefs and rites of the Inca Empire across the AndesTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇱🇰 Sri Lanka and 1 moreKataragama templeකතරගම / கதிர்காமம் முருகன் கோயில்
A Sri Lankan shrine shared by Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and VeddasTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇸🇪 SwedenTemple at Uppsala
A Norse religious centre described in medieval texts and debated by modern scholarsTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Historical
🇧🇯 Benin and 5 moreVodun art
Religious sculpture and temple painting from West African Vodun traditionsTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇭🇹 HaitiVodou veve (sample)Vèvè
Ground drawings that call the lwa.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇮🇳 IndiaSanamahismꯁꯅꯥꯃꯍꯤ ꯂꯥꯏꯅꯤꯡ
The polytheistic ethnic religion of the Meitei people of Manipur, IndiaTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇱🇦 Laos and 3 moreTai folk religionສາສະໜາຜີ
Spirits, ancestor rites, and soul-calling ceremonies of the Tai peoplesTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago and 4 moreTrinidad Orisha
A syncretic Afro-Caribbean faith blending Yoruba spirit work with Christian and other traditions in Trinidad.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Healing Living
🇮🇪 IrelandFellowship of Isis𓊨𓏏𓁐𓌞𓋴𓅱𓂻𓏥
An international spiritual fellowship honouring the Divine Feminine and the goddess IsisTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living
🇹🇷 Turkey and 4 moreSufi whirlingSemazen
A spinning meditation practiced by Sufi dervishes to reach spiritual connection through music and movement.Rite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living
🇲🇽 MexicoEntheogenics and the Maya
Hallucinogenic substances used by the Maya for spiritual rituals and healingTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Healing Historical
🇭🇹 HaitiChristian-Vodou
The blending of Haitian Vodou and Roman Catholicism into a single spiritual practiceTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Serer religion: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Sanamahism: Kayia N, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Maya mythology: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Tai folk religion: ( เทวประภาส มากคล้าย ), Tevaprapas, Public domain, source
- Kavu: Ashwin.appus, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Shinto shrine: No machine-readable author provided. Fg2 assumed (based on copyright c, Public domain, source
- Sarnaism: বুদ্ধি, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ancestor worship: Lyn Gateley, CC BY 2.0, source
- Egungun: Ìṣẹ̀ṣeAssembly, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Sandpainting: Mnolf, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Candomblé: André Koehne, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Diya: Suyash Dwivedi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Durga Puja: Subhrajyoti07, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Greco-Roman mysteries: Varrese Painter, Public domain, source
- Eleusinian Mysteries: No machine-readable author provided. Marsyas assumed (based on copyrig, Public domain, source
- Oungan: Anthony Karen, CC BY 4.0, source
- Gardnerian Wicca: Midnightblueowl ( talk ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Miko: Chris Gladis, Flickr user MShades, CC BY 2.0, source
- Shugendō: 唐山健志郎 (Kenshiro Karayama), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Mongolian shamanism: Enrique Bendicho, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kagura: Elstner Hilton, Public domain, source
- Bori: Tremearne, A. J. N. (Arthur John Newman), 1877-1915, Public domain, source
- Dogon religion: Unknown author, CC BY 3.0, source
- Nyepi: Matt Croxson, Public domain, source
- Ancestor veneration in China: Three huntings, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Marabout: Jan Broekhuijse, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kamakhya Temple: JyotiPN, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Lughnasadh: Mountainash333, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Inca religion: Chronicler Martín of Murúa (Cronista Martín de Murúa), Public domain, source
- Kataragama temple: Ghostface Buddha, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Folk Catholicism: Calvin Hennick, for WBUR Boston, CC BY 3.0, source
- Temple at Uppsala: Olaus Magnus, Public domain, source
- Vodun art: Fraipont, Gustave (1849-1923), Public domain, source
- Magic circle: John William Waterhouse, Public domain, source
- Dongyue Dadi: H2v5o68z, CC0, source
- Ghost Festival: Chong Fat, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Snake worship: Alexandermcnabb, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Santo Daime: Tonelada, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Votive offering: Walter J. Pilsak, Waldsassen ( W.J.Pilsak at de.wikipedia ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove: Cheeka 2.0, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Aztec religion: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Sacred dance: Jorge Barrios, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Spiritual Baptist: N Chadwick, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Sama: myself, Public domain, source