Magic in Europe

Cunning folk and grimoires, alchemy, runes and seidr, the fairy faith, the witch trials, and the folk calendar of fire and fertility. 817 entries on EveryJaadu so far.

Places of magic

Rites of the region

Midsummer and St John's Eve herbs and fires Walpurgis Night and May Day fires Samhain and Halloween divination games First-footing at Hogmanay Witch bottle Knocking on wood and horseshoe customs The Sator square Icelandic galdrastafir Malocchio removal with oil and water Matiasma and ftou ftou

Countries

KindTradition Rite Charm Oracle Substance Being Figure Text Illusion Belief

PurposeProtection Healing Seeing and foretelling Luck and prosperity Love and attraction Cursing and harm Cleansing and purification Speaking with spirits and the dead Change and initiation Binding and oaths Power and authority Wonder and entertainment

WhoShamans Folk healers Priests and ritual specialists Witches, sorcerers and cunning folk Diviners and readers Mediums and the possessed Ceremonial magicians and alchemists Households and ordinary people Stage magicians Scholars and sceptics

BeliefHindu and Tantric Buddhist Jain Muslim and Sufi Jewish Christian Sikh Zoroastrian Shinto and Taoist Indigenous and shamanic African and Afro-diasporic Pagan and Neopagan Esoteric and occult Folk and village custom Secular and stage Other traditions

OccasionWeddings and betrothal Festivals Birth and childhood Death and remembrance Harvest, farming and weather New year Initiation and coming of age Illness and misfortune Journeys and voyages Everyday use

StandingLiving Revived Fading Historical Legendary Performed

OrderBest known A to Z Newest Living first

🇮🇹 ItalyLectisternium An ancient Roman ritual where couches were draped and meals served to gods.Rite · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead 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

🇬🇷 GreeceEleusinian MysteriesἘλευσίνια Μυστήρια Ancient Greek secret initiation rites honouring Demeter and Persephone at EleusisTradition · Change and initiation · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical

🇮🇪 Ireland and 4 moreWinter solstice The shortest day and longest night of the year, marked by rites of solar returnTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Protection Living

🇩🇪 Germany and 2 moreEaster FireOsterfeuer Bonfires lit at Easter to mark the Resurrection and spring renewalRite · Cleansing and purification · Power and authority Living

🇫🇷 France and 1 moreLaying on of handsסמיכה A physical gesture used across religions to convey authority, healing, or spiritual presence.Rite · Healing · 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

🇪🇬 Egypt and 4 moreAnimal sacrifice The ritual killing of livestock or wild animals as an offering to deitiesRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Historical 🇮🇪 IrelandFellowship of Isis𓊨𓏏𓁐𓌞𓋴𓅱𓂻𓐰𓏥 An international spiritual fellowship honouring the Divine Feminine and the goddess IsisTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation 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
Eleusinian Mysteries: No machine-readable author provided. Marsyas assumed (based on copyrig, Public domain, source
Winter solstice: Image by Przemyslaw " Blueshade " Idzkiewicz, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Easter Fire: Jürgen Eissink, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Laying on of hands: User:Lipsio, CC BY 3.0, source
Magic circle: John William Waterhouse, Public domain, source
Animal sacrifice: Wilfredor, CC0, source
Lectisternium: Classical Numismatic Group (CNG), Inc., www.cngcoins.com, CC BY-SA 3.0, source