Magic in Middle East

The evil-eye bead, the djinn, ruqyah and the talisman, Kabbalah and Jewish amulets, and the ancient Babylonian and Persian arts. 175 entries on EveryJaadu so far.

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

🇮🇳 India and 5 moreAstrology A divinatory practice that reads human fate through the positions of celestial bodies.Belief · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living

🇪🇬 Egypt and 3 moreAmulet A portable object worn or carried to ward off harm and invite fortuneCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living 🇮🇱 IsraelBanishing Ceremonial magic rites used to clear a space of spiritual influences before other workings.Rite · Cleansing and purification Living

🇮🇷 Iran and 7 moreNowruzنوروز A spring equinox festival marking the new year across Persianate culturesTradition · Luck and prosperity · Cleansing and purification Living 🇮🇷 Iran and 2 moreHaoma A divine plant and spirit in Zoroastrianism, linked to healing and ancient rituals.Substance · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living

🇲🇬 Madagascar and 4 moreGeomancy A cross-cultural system of divination using earth, sand, and landforms to read the future or align spaces.Oracle · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Living

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia and 1 moreDhikrذِكْر Islamic remembrance of God through repeated recitation and prayerRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living

🇮🇷 Iran and 5 moreKhidrالخضر A Qur'anic guide and saint believed to hold hidden wisdom and aid those in need.Being · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Living

🇪🇬 EgyptBarakahبركة A spiritual blessing power in Islam and Arabic ChristianityBelief · Protection · Power and authority Living 🇮🇷 IranPersian mysticism A spiritual tradition in Iran blending ancient beliefs with Sufi practice and poetic thought.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Living

🇹🇷 Turkey and 3 moreSamaسماع A Sufi ritual of listening, music, and whirling to reach spiritual ecstasyRite · 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.

Amulet: Anonymous ( Egypt ) Unknown author, Public domain, source
Astrology: Wilfredor, CC0, source
Nowruz: Katzenfee50, CC0, source
Geomancy: Jacopo188, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Khidr: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Dhikr: Eugène Baugnies, Public domain, source
Sama: myself, Public domain, source
Barakah: عامر شاہین, CC BY-SA 3.0, source

Magic in Middle East

Places of magic

Rites of the region

Countries

Photo credits on this page

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