Magic in South Asia

Mantra, yantra and tantra, the lemon and chillies hung against the evil eye, astrology, and temple healers and exorcists. 219 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

🇮🇳 IndiaBhuta KolaBhūta Kōla A Tulu folk dance and ritual where spirits are channelled into human performersTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living

🇮🇳 India and 2 moreKalachakraདུས་ཀྱི་འཁོར་ལོ། A Tibetan Buddhist tantric deity and system of yogic time cyclesTradition · Change and initiation · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living

🇮🇳 India and 1 morePitru Pakshaपितृ पक्ष A sixteen-day Hindu period for honoring ancestors through food offerings and death ritesTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Luck and prosperity Living

🇮🇳 India and 5 moreAncestor worship Rites of respect for the dead that maintain family bonds and seek spiritual guidanceTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living

🇮🇳 IndiaTarpanaतर्पण A Vedic offering of water and seeds to gods, sages, and ancestorsRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living

🇮🇳 India and 1 moreUpanayanaउपनयन A Hindu rite of passage marking a student's initiation into formal education and spiritual discipline.Rite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living

🇮🇳 India and 1 moreŚrāddhaश्राद्ध A Hindu rite of ancestor worship involving food offerings and fire ritualsRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Cleansing and purification Living

🇮🇳 IndiaTheyyam A ritual dance from Kerala where performers embody deities through elaborate costume and songRite · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living

🇮🇳 India and 2 moreHomaहोम A fire ritual found across Asian religions where offerings are burned as a votive exchange with the divine.Rite · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living 🇮🇳 IndiaVelichappaduവെളിച്ചപ്പാട് A Hindu temple oracle in Kerala who channels deities through trance and danceBeing · Seeing and foretelling · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living

🇮🇳 IndiaSanjhi A festival and art form honoring a mother goddess through clay images and colored designsTradition · Love and attraction · Luck and prosperity Living

🇮🇳 IndiaBappiriyan Theyyam A North Malabar ritual performance blending Hindu and Muslim mythic figuresRite · Wonder and entertainment Living

🇮🇳 IndiaShamanism in Ayyavazhi A divination practice within the Hindu denomination of Ayyavazhi in South India.Rite · Seeing and foretelling · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living

🇮🇳 IndiaKadangot Makkam A North Malabar goddess who became a deity after being killed by her brothers.Being · Protection · Love and attraction Living

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

Kadangot Makkam: Shagil Kannur, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Bappiriyan Theyyam: Sumalkv, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Theyyam: Shagil Kannur, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Ancestor worship: Lyn Gateley, CC BY 2.0, source
Tarpana: Biswarup Ganguly, CC BY 3.0, source
Upanayana: vinodbahal, CC BY 2.0, source
Shamanism in Ayyavazhi: Vaikunda Raja, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Homa: Vyacheslav Argenberg, CC BY 4.0, source
Bhuta Kola: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Śrāddha: Billjones94, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Kalachakra: Nabin K. Sapkota, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Pitru Paksha: Firoz Shakir, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Sanjhi: Veer jindal, CC BY-SA 3.0, source

Magic in South Asia

Places of magic

Rites of the region

Countries

Photo credits on this page

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