Magic in Sub-Saharan Africa

Ifa divination and the orisha, sangomas and inyangas, nkisi figures, masquerades, spirit possession and the fear of witchcraft. 99 entries on EveryJaadu so far.

Places of magic

Rites of the region

Ifa divination Egungun masquerade Sangoma calling and bone-throwing Libation to the ancestors Nkisi nkondi power figures Mami Wata devotion Bori possession Famadihana, the turning of the bones Debtera amulet scrolls Rainmaking and the Rain Queen

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

🇿🇦 South AfricaSympathetic magic A magical principle based on imitation and contact to influence the worldTradition · Protection · Healing Historical 🇿🇦 South Africa and 5 moreMurder for body parts The killing of people to harvest body parts for traditional medicine or the illegal organ trade.Belief · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Living

🇿🇦 South AfricaGrootslang A legendary serpent from South Africa said to guard diamonds in a deep cave.Being · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary

🇳🇬 Nigeria and 5 moreIfá A Yoruba divination system using palm nuts to access spiritual guidanceTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living 🇿🇦 South Africa and 1 moreRain Queen A hereditary queen of the Balobedu people believed to control rainfall in South AfricaTradition · Protection · Power and authority Living

🇿🇦 South AfricaLightning bird A vampiric spirit of the Zulu people that serves witches and strikes with thunder.Being · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary

🇳🇬 Nigeria and 5 moreOgunÒgún A West African deity of iron, war and metalworking found in Yoruba and diaspora traditionsBeing · Protection · Cursing and harm Living

🇳🇬 Nigeria and 2 moreỌya A Yoruba orisha of storms and the dead, worshipped in Africa and the Americas.Being · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living

🇳🇬 Nigeria and 1 moreObatalaỌbatalá The Yoruba king of white cloth who is believed to have created humanity and presides over purity.Being · Protection · Healing Living

🇸🇳 Senegal and 5 morePentagramπεντάγραμμον A five-pointed star figure used across history for protection, ritual, and cosmologyCharm · Protection · Binding and oaths Living

🇸🇳 Senegal and 5 moreMaraboutmurābiṭ A Muslim religious leader and teacher in West Africa, often linked to Sufi brotherhoods.Tradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living 🇪🇹 EthiopiaPlanetary hours A system assigning celestial rulers to each hour of the day and weekTradition · Power and authority · Cursing and harm Historical

🇹🇬 TogoAkodessawa Fetish MarketMarché des Féticheurs A market in Togo selling ritual objects for Vodún practiceTradition · Power and authority · Healing Living

🇧🇯 Benin and 5 moreVodun art Religious sculpture and temple painting from West African Vodun traditionsTradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living

🇿🇦 South AfricaInkanyamba A storm serpent of South African folklore linked to tornadoes and river spiritsBeing · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary

🇮🇳 India and 5 moreSnake worship Veneration of serpents as divine or ancestral beings across global culturesTradition · Protection · Healing Living

🇸🇴 Somalia and 5 moreFrankincense An aromatic tree resin harvested for incense, perfume, and religious ritualSubstance · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living 🇧🇯 BeninMawu-Lisa A dual creator spirit of the Gbe peoples, uniting sun and moon in one agender beingBeing · Power and authority Living 🇲🇱 MaliBoli A charged fetish object of the Bambara people of MaliCharm · Cursing and harm · Seeing and foretelling Living 🇺🇬 UgandaKilling of disabled children in Uganda The ritual murder of disabled children in parts of Uganda for body parts and perceived benefitsRite · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical

🇸🇴 Somalia and 2 moreSalihiyyaالصالحية A Somali Sufi order founded by Sayyid Muhammad Salih, known for its strict stance against saint intercession and anti-coTradition · Power and authority Historical

Photo credits on this page

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

Sympathetic magic: Marie-Lan Nguyen, CC BY 2.5, source
Grootslang: Jeff McArthur (Guategeek), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Ifá: Toluaye, Public domain, source
Lightning bird: Photo by and (C)2007 Derek Ramsey ( Ram-Man ), CC BY-SA 2.5, source
Ogun: Chado07, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Ọya: Picture taken by Eurico Zimbres, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
Obatala: Isha, CC BY 3.0, source
Pentagram: Tomruen, Attribution, source
Marabout: Jan Broekhuijse, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Akodessawa Fetish Market: Alexander Sarlay, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Vodun art: Fraipont, Gustave (1849-1923), Public domain, source
Inkanyamba: Bjørn Christian Tørrissen, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Snake worship: Alexandermcnabb, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Salihiyya: Douglas James Jardine (1888-1946), Public domain, source
Frankincense: No machine-readable author provided. Gaius Cornelius assumed (based on, Public domain, source