Magic in Latin America and the Caribbean

Vodou, Santeria, Candomblé and Obeah, curanderismo and brujeria, Andean offerings to the earth, and Amazonian plant healing. 147 entries on EveryJaadu so far.

Places of magic

Rites of the region

Limpia with an egg Day of the Dead ofrenda Santeria initiation (kariocha)Candomblé ebo offering Haitian Vodou service Andean despacho and pago a la Pachamama A curanderismo healing session Ayahuasca ceremony Obeah in Jamaica

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

🇵🇪 Peru and 5 morePalo Santo Aromatic wood used in South American ritual cleansing and folk medicineSubstance · Cleansing and purification · Healing Living

🇲🇽 MexicoCalavera A sugar or clay skull used in Mexican Day of the Dead celebrations.Charm · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Luck and prosperity Living 🇧🇷 Brazil and 1 moreQuimbanda An Afro-Brazilian religion focused on male and female street spirits for worldly mattersTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇦🇷 Argentina and 2 moreSan La Muerte A skeletal folk saint venerated in South America for protection and favorsTradition · Protection · Healing Living

🇦🇷 Argentina and 5 moreGauchito Gil A folk saint from Argentina who protects the poor and outcastsBeing · Protection · Healing Living

🇬🇹 GuatemalaMaximónRi Laj Mam A Maya folk saint and trickster deity venerated in the Guatemalan HighlandsBeing · Protection · Healing 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 🇧🇷 Brazil and 1 moreSaciSaci-pererê A one-legged prankster of Brazilian folklore who hides in dust devils and wears a magic red cap.Figure · Luck and prosperity · Cursing and harm Living 🇯🇲 Jamaica and 3 moreDuppy A Caribbean term for a ghost or malevolent spirit, rooted in West African folklore.Being · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Living 🇻🇪 VenezuelaDjucu A warm sea nut used as a lucky charm in the CaribbeanCharm · Luck and prosperity Living

🇭🇹 HaitiHaitian CarnivalKanaval A major Caribbean festival of music, dance, and satire leading to Mardi Gras in HaitiTradition · Wonder and entertainment · Luck and prosperity Living 🇸🇻 El SalvadorChasca A spirit of the water in Salvadoran folklore who blesses respectful fishermenFigure · Protection · 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.

Maximón: Sapfan (Jan Pesula), Public domain, source
Folk saint: Sergio Serrano, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Santa Muerte: Not home, Public domain, source
Haitian Carnival: User:Doron, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Palo Santo: Haplochromis, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Calavera: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source