Magic in Latin America and the Caribbean
Vodou, Santeria, Candomblé and Obeah, curanderismo and brujeria, Andean offerings to the earth, and Amazonian plant healing. 145 entries on EveryJaadu so far.
Places of magic
Bois Caïman 2Chiloé archipelago 2La Paz 2Port-au-Prince 2Quicaví 2Recife 2Rio de Janeiro 2Alto de Pinheiros 1Antigua Guatemala 1Araçoiaba da Serra 1Araucanía 1Aux Cayes 1Belém 1Belmont 1Boa Sorte 1Calama 1Cerro Azul 1Chiloé 1Colonia Merced Balbuena 1Company Villages 1Corrientes 1Cuero 1Cueva de Quicaví 1El Cibao 1Greater Buenos Aires 1Guanarito Municipality 1Guantánamo 1Guatemala City 1Huautla de Jiménez 1Jacmel 1
Rites of the region
Limpia with an eggDay of the Dead ofrendaSanteria initiation (kariocha)Candomblé ebo offeringHaitian Vodou serviceAndean despacho and pago a la PachamamaA curanderismo healing sessionAyahuasca ceremonyObeah in Jamaica
Countries
🇦🇬 Antigua and Barbuda 2🇦🇷 Argentina 25🇧🇸 Bahamas 5🇧🇧 Barbados 7🇧🇿 Belize 4🇧🇴 Bolivia 16🇧🇷 Brazil 66🇨🇱 Chile 27🇨🇴 Colombia 13🇨🇷 Costa Rica 3🇨🇺 Cuba 23🇩🇲 Dominica 11🇩🇴 Dominican Republic 9🇪🇨 Ecuador 8🇸🇻 El Salvador 4🇬🇩 Grenada 1🇬🇹 Guatemala 18🇬🇾 Guyana 10🇭🇹 Haiti 46🇭🇳 Honduras 4🇯🇲 Jamaica 17🇲🇽 Mexico 63🇳🇮 Nicaragua 2🇵🇦 Panama 3🇵🇾 Paraguay 10🇵🇪 Peru 27🇵🇷 Puerto Rico 5🇰🇳 Saint Kitts and Nevis 1🇱🇨 Saint Lucia 3🇻🇨 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1🇸🇷 Suriname 8🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago 14🇺🇾 Uruguay 7🇻🇪 Venezuela 11
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
🇲🇽 Mexico and 3 moreCurandero
A folk healer in Latin America and the United States who blends indigenous and Catholic traditions.Tradition · Healing · Protection Living
🇵🇪 Peru and 5 morePachamama
The Andean mother goddess of space-time and the earthBeing · Protection · Healing Living
🇺🇸 United States and 5 moreFlorida Water
A citrus perfume used in spiritual cleansing and folk healing across the Americas.Substance · Protection · Cleansing and purification 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
🇦🇷 Argentina and 5 moreGauchito Gil
A folk saint from Argentina who protects the poor and outcastsBeing · 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
🇭🇹 Haiti and 2 moreLwa
Spirits in Haitian Vodou that mediate between people and the creator god.Being · Protection · Healing Living
🇲🇽 Mexico and 5 moreWitchcraft in Latin AmericaBrujería
A syncretic blend of Indigenous, African, and European magical practices across Latin AmericaTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇨🇺 Cuba and 2 moreSanteríaRegla de Ocha
An Afro-Cuban religion blending Yoruba beliefs with Catholicism and SpiritismTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇯🇲 Jamaica and 5 moreObeah
A Caribbean tradition of ritual healing and spell-casting with African rootsTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇯🇲 Jamaica and 1 moreMyal
An Afro-Jamaican healing tradition rooted in Arawak and Akan spiritualityTradition · Healing · Protection Living
🇭🇹 Haiti and 2 moreManbo
A female priestess in Haitian Vodou who leads rituals and healing workTradition · 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
🇬🇹 GuatemalaMaximónRi Laj Mam
A Maya folk saint and trickster deity venerated in the Guatemalan HighlandsBeing · Protection · Healing Living
🇲🇽 Mexico and 3 moreFolk saint
Unofficially recognized holy figures venerated by local communities for intercession and miraclesBelief · Protection · Healing Living
🇨🇱 Chile and 1 moreMachi
Mapuche spiritual authorities and healers who bridge herbal knowledge and spirit realmsTradition · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇭🇹 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
🇨🇺 Cuba and 5 morePalo
An Afro-Cuban religion centered on spirit vessels and ancestral powerTradition · Healing · Cursing and harm Living
🇧🇷 BrazilMacumba
A term for Afro-Brazilian spiritual practices, often carrying negative connotations of sorceryBelief · Healing · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇵🇪 Peru and 1 moreQuyllurit'iQoyllur Rit'i
A syncretic Andean pilgrimage celebrating the Pleiades and the Lord of Star SnowTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇨🇱 Chile and 1 moreMapuche religion
The traditional spiritual practice of the Mapuche people of Chile and ArgentinaTradition · 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
🇲🇽 Mexico and 5 moreFolk Catholicism
Local religious customs that blend official Church teaching with indigenous or regional traditions.Tradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇭🇹 Haiti and 2 moreHaitian VodouVodou
An Afro-Haitian religion blending West African traditions with Catholicism and FreemasonryTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇵🇪 PeruVegetalismo
A mestizo healing tradition in the Peruvian Amazon that draws power from plants and spirits.Tradition · Healing · Protection Living
🇫🇷 France and 5 moreKardecist SpiritismSpiritisme
A French spiritualist doctrine based on communication with spirits and reincarnation.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living
🇸🇷 SurinameWinti
An Afro-Surinamese tradition of spirit veneration and ancestral worshipTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇦🇷 Argentina and 2 moreSan La Muerte
A skeletal folk saint venerated in South America for protection and favorsTradition · Protection · Healing Living
🇵🇪 Peru and 5 morePalo Santo
Aromatic wood used in South American ritual cleansing and folk medicineSubstance · Cleansing and purification · 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
🇲🇽 MexicoMercado de Sonora
A Mexico City market known for herbal medicine and occult goodsTradition · Protection · Love and attraction Living
🇭🇹 HaitiBoum'ba Maza
A family of water spirits in Haitian Vodou ritesBeing · Luck and prosperity · Healing Living
🇲🇽 MexicoTeotlaqualli
A hallucinogenic paste used by Aztec priests and healers in the pre-Columbian era.Substance · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Healing Historical
🇲🇽 MexicoVelada
A Mazatec healing ceremony using sacred plants to commune with the divineRite · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇯🇲 Jamaica and 1 moreKromanti dance
A sacred Jamaican Maroon ceremony rooted in Asante traditions and ancestral possessionRite · Healing · Protection Living
🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago and 2 moreMama D'Leau
A river spirit of the Caribbean islands who protects aquatic life and heals people.Being · Healing · Protection Legendary
🇲🇽 MexicoMazatec shamanism
A Mazatec healing tradition centered on visionary plant ceremonies called veladasTradition · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇩🇴 Dominican Republic and 5 moreZemi
A Taíno deity or ancestral spirit housed in a carved object used for worship and protectionBeing · Protection · Healing Historical
🇲🇽 MexicoEntheogenics and the Maya
Hallucinogenic substances used by the Maya for spiritual rituals and healingTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Healing Historical
🇵🇪 PeruChakapa
A leaf rattle used by Amazonian healers in ayahuasca ceremonies and spirit cleansing rituals.Rite · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Chakapa: Mario Martín /Archivo Centro Takiwasi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Maya mythology: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Folk healer: calliopejen, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Haitian Vodou: Sam Fentress, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Louisiana Voodoo: I cropped, original authors are Ridpath, John Clark, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- European witchcraft: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Kardecist Spiritism: Coprosme, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Egungun: Ìṣẹ̀ṣeAssembly, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Winti: G. Glaser (Fotograaf/photographer)., CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Candomblé: André Koehne, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Pachamama: Penarc, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Lwa: Hector Hyppolite, Public domain, source
- Obeah: Various, published by David Nutt, Public domain, source
- Manbo: Aliceba, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Maximón: Sapfan (Jan Pesula), Public domain, source
- Folk saint: Sergio Serrano, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Machi: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Oungan: Anthony Karen, CC BY 4.0, source
- Palo: Burkhard Mücke, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Quyllurit'i: AgainErick, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Mapuche religion: Gary Todd, CC0, source
- Santa Muerte: Not home, Public domain, source
- Folk Catholicism: Calvin Hennick, for WBUR Boston, CC BY 3.0, source
- Palo Santo: Haplochromis, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Zemi: Unknown author, CC0, source
- Florida Water: Unknown artist(s), Public domain, source
- Santo Daime: Tonelada, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Santería: Jorge Royan, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Mercado de Sonora: AlejandroLinaresGarcia, CC BY-SA 4.0, source