Magic in East Asia
Taoist talismans, the I Ching and feng shui, onmyodo and the omamori, and the mudang of Korea. 308 entries on EveryJaadu so far.
Places of magic
Kyoto 5Beijing 3Edo 3Mount Tai 3Shikoku 3Akita 2Asakusa 2Guangdong 2Himeji Castle 2Kifune Shrine 2Kumano Sanzan 2Mount Hiei 2Mount Ōmine 2Mukden 2Nagano Prefecture 2Sado Island 2Sendai 2Seoul 2Shimane Prefecture 2Aikoku Station 1Aizu region 1Akishino-dera 1Amami Ōshima 1Amoy 1Anyang 1Aojiang 1Aomori prefecture 1Ariake Sea 1Asagaya 1Awaji Island 1
Rites of the region
Writing and burning a fu talismanJoss paper and the Hungry Ghost offeringKau cim and jiaobeiThe I Ching and the yarrow stalksFeng shui placementSetsubun bean-throwingHarai, the Shinto rite of purificationOmamori and ofuda renewalOmikuji fortune slipsGut, the Korean shaman rite
Countries
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
🇨🇳 China and 3 moreTang-ki童乩 (tóngjī); 乩童 (jītóng)
A Chinese folk-religion medium whose body a deity is held to take overTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Seeing and foretelling Living
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreBagua八卦
A set of eight trigram symbols from China used in divination, cosmology, and feng shui.Tradition · Seeing and foretelling · Protection Living
🇨🇳 China and 3 moreZi Wei Dou Shu紫微斗數
A Chinese natal astrology system mapping stars across twelve life palacesTradition · Seeing and foretelling Living
🇯🇵 JapanAbe no Seimei安倍 晴明
A historical court official turned legendary Japanese onmyōji and folk heroFigure · Protection · Seeing and foretelling Legendary
🇯🇵 JapanItakoイタコ
Blind women in Japan who train to channel spirits and communicate with the dead.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Seeing and foretelling Fading
🇨🇳 China and 5 moreChinese fortune telling算命 (Suànmìng)
Reading faces, palms, birth hours and places to map a person's luck through lifeTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living
🇯🇵 JapanOnmyōdō陰陽道
A Japanese system of divination and calendar science rooted in yin-yang philosophyTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Protection Revived
🇨🇳 China and 4 moreQimen Dunjia奇門遁甲
An ancient Chinese divination system mapping time and space for strategic decision-makingOracle · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Revived
🇯🇵 JapanYutaユタ
Okinawan folk shamans who guide families through spirits and fortune-tellingTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreChinese shamanism巫教 (Wūjiào)
Spirit-mediums of China who dance and trance to carry messages between people and godsTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Seeing and foretelling Living
🇨🇳 ChinaMien shiang面相
A Chinese practice of reading character and fate through facial featuresBelief · Seeing and foretelling · Healing Historical
🇨🇳 ChinaFlying Star Feng Shui
A Chinese feng shui school that charts a building's nine squares for good and bad qiTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Onmyōdō: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Bagua: TarcísioTS at Portuguese Wikipedia, Public domain, source
- Itako: User Geomr~commonswiki self upload, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Chinese fortune telling: Lai Afong, Public domain, source
- Chinese shamanism: No machine-readable author provided. +上帝+ assumed (based on copyright, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tang-ki: Bunkichi Chang, CC BY 2.0, source
- Flying Star Feng Shui: Unknown author, Public domain, source