Skip to content

FestivalsDay of the Dead Festival Divination"Divining with the Elements: A Conversation about Astrology" with KL Mays and Alice Sparkly Kat Stage magicWhat Was Halloween Like 100 Years Ago?DivinationThe GPT Oracle: 1 in 10 Americans are reviving the pagan practice of prophecy Living traditionsVoodoo and the School System in Haiti FestivalsFour Delightful Children’s Books About Día de los Muertos/Day of the Dead FestivalsCasa de México in Madrid unveils 2026 Day of the Dead altar inspired by Michoacán and Agustín Lara FestivalsDay of the Dead in Chicago: a celebration of (after) life CharmsHow Christian Amulets Preserved Ancient Roman Traditions Despite Religious Change Witch-huntsEverything you need to know about Halloween season in Salem FestivalsDay of the Dead Festival Divination"Divining with the Elements: A Conversation about Astrology" with KL Mays and Alice Sparkly Kat Stage magicWhat Was Halloween Like 100 Years Ago?DivinationThe GPT Oracle: 1 in 10 Americans are reviving the pagan practice of prophecy Living traditionsVoodoo and the School System in Haiti FestivalsFour Delightful Children’s Books About Día de los Muertos/Day of the Dead FestivalsCasa de México in Madrid unveils 2026 Day of the Dead altar inspired by Michoacán and Agustín Lara FestivalsDay of the Dead in Chicago: a celebration of (after) life CharmsHow Christian Amulets Preserved Ancient Roman Traditions Despite Religious Change Witch-huntsEverything you need to know about Halloween season in Salem

EveryJaadu

Living practices

Practised today by communities who hold it as their own.

Living
Revived
Fading
Historical
Legendary
Performed

RegionSouth Asia Southeast Asia East Asia Central Asia and the Caucasus Middle East North Africa Sub-Saharan Africa Europe North America Latin America and the Caribbean Oceania

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

OrderBest known A to Z Newest Living first

🇲🇽 Mexico and 5 moreWitchcraft in Latin AmericaBrujería A syncretic blend of Indigenous, African, and European magical practices across Latin AmericaTradition · Protection · Healing Living

🇸🇸 South Sudan and 1 moreAzande witchcraft A Zande belief that certain people harm others by an inherited power, judged by oraclesBelief · Cursing and harm · Seeing and foretelling Living

🇮🇳 IndiaWitch-hunts in India Violent persecution of people accused of witchcraft, mostly women, in rural IndiaBelief · Cursing and harm Living

🇨🇭 SwitzerlandMagic circle A ritual boundary drawn or visualised to create sacred space and protectionTradition · Protection · 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.

Witchcraft in Latin America: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
Azande witchcraft: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
Witch-hunts in India: Granger, Public domain, source
Magic circle: John William Waterhouse, Public domain, source

The weekly digest

Every Monday: seven entries you may not know, what is on the calendar this week, and one rite drawn step by step.