Historical practices
Documented in the past; no continuous living tradition today.
- Living
- Revived
- Fading
- Historical
- Legendary
- Performed
RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
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
馃嚞馃嚬 Guatemala and 1 moreMaya mythology
The reconstructed tales of the Maya people about gods, heroes, and the creation of the world.Tradition 路 Seeing and foretelling 路 Power and authority Historical
馃嚟馃嚬 HaitiBois Ca茂man
The sacred site where enslaved Africans planned the Haitian Revolution through a Vodou ceremony.Rite 路 Cursing and harm 路 Power and authority Historical
馃嚨馃嚜 Peru and 1 moreViracochaWiraqucha
The supreme creator deity of the Andes, associated with the sea and civilization.Being 路 Power and authority 路 Wonder and entertainment Historical
馃嚙馃嚪 BrazilMacumba
A term for Afro-Brazilian spiritual practices, often carrying negative connotations of sorceryBelief 路 Healing 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚨馃嚜 Peru and 2 moreInca religion
The polytheistic beliefs and rites of the Inca Empire across the AndesTradition 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
馃嚟馃嚬 Haiti and 3 moreVoodoo doll
A pin-stuffed figure linked to magic in popular culture, not Haitian VodouCharm 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚥馃嚱 Mexico and 5 moreObsidian
Volcanic glass used for sharp tools, mirrors, and ritual divinationSubstance 路 Cursing and harm 路 Seeing and foretelling Historical
馃嚥馃嚱 Mexico and 2 moreChild sacrifice
The ritual killing of children to appease deities or restore cosmic order in ancient culturesRite 路 Cursing and harm 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
馃嚨馃嚜 Peru and 1 moreSupay
An Andean spirit of the underworld who balances life and death forcesBeing 路 Cursing and harm 路 Protection Historical
馃嚙馃嚪 BrazilThe Hairy LegPerna cabeluda
A Brazilian urban legend of a detached leg that attacks people at nightFigure 路 Cursing and harm 路 Wonder and entertainment Historical
馃嚚馃嚤 Chile and 3 moreGualichu
An evil spirit feared in Mapuche and Tehuelche traditions, and a word for bad luckBeing 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚛馃嚧 Dominican Republic and 5 moreZemi
A Ta铆no deity or ancestral spirit housed in a carved object used for worship and protectionBeing 路 Protection 路 Healing Historical
馃嚥馃嚱 MexicoTeotlaqualli
A hallucinogenic paste used by Aztec priests and healers in the pre-Columbian era.Substance 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Healing Historical
馃嚘馃嚪 ArgentinaLegendary creatures of the Argentine Northwest region
Myths and spirits from the Andean highlands of ArgentinaBeing 路 Protection 路 Cursing and harm Historical
馃嚨馃嚘 PanamaPanama Creature
A decomposing sloth carcass mistaken for a monster in PanamaBeing Historical
馃嚥馃嚱 MexicoEntheogenics and the Maya
Hallucinogenic substances used by the Maya for spiritual rituals and healingTradition 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Healing Historical
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Maya mythology: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Black magic: https://www.flickr.com/photos/eliogarcia/ (nick in flickr:creo que soy, CC BY 2.0, source
- Viracocha: Pattych ( talk ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Inca religion: Chronicler Mart铆n of Mur煤a (Cronista Mart铆n de Mur煤a), Public domain, source
- Panama Creature: Christian Mehlf眉hrer, User:Chmehl, CC BY 2.5, source
- Zemi: Unknown author, CC0, source
- Obsidian: Krassotkin, CC0, source
- Child sacrifice: Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, Public domain, source
- The Hairy Leg: Di贸genes Montenegro, Public domain, source