Rituals & Rites

Protection, exorcism, and warding rites — documented from world folklore, alongside the malefic rites tradition records.

33 rituals

healinggeneralprobable

Albularyo healing (Filipino: albularyo / albulario)

Albularyo healing is a Filipino vernacular healing practice performed by an albularyo (folk healer). Situated within a syncretic cultural field that mixes indigenous animist beliefs and Roman Catholic devotion, it is used for folk medicine (herbal therapeutics) and for addressing culturally framed afflictions such as spirit possession, witchcraft/hexes (kulam/barang), and other misfortune.

Filipino folk medicine / syncretic indigenous–Catholic vernacular practice · Philippines

cleansinggeneralprobable

Bedikat Chametz

Bedikat Chametz is a traditional Jewish ritual performed before Passover to ensure one's home is free of leavened products (chametz), aligning with religious law and cultural practice.

Jewish · Global, predominantly practiced in Jewish homes around the world

othergeneralfolklore

Bòkò ritual (bòkò)

A ritual associated in English with the term 'bòkò' within Haitian Vodou; the available source is a general overview of Haitian Vodou and does not supply procedural details. The ritual is part of the syncretic African diasporic religion that developed in Haiti and may be invoked for a range of spiritual purposes in Vodou practice, but specific threats addressed by a 'Bòkò ritual' are not specified in the provided material.

Haitian Vodou · Haiti (Caribbean)

protectiongeneralprobable

Daily Havdalah spice box / Havdalah Protection

An entry titled "Daily Havdalah spice box" appears in a modern herbal handbook index under sections concerned with purification and protection. The provided sources do not supply the ritual text or detailed procedure; the title evokes the Jewish Havdalah besamim (spice) concept but no direct liturgical material or explicit link is given in the excerpt. The handbook grouping suggests the item is thematically associated with scent-based protection or cleansing against unspecified negativity.

contemporary herbal-spiritual (handbook entry; invokes Havdalah terminology) · not specified (handbook is in English; unspecified geographic provenance)

exorcismdemonprobable

Deliverance Prayer (English)

A contemporary Christian prayer approach for obtaining spiritual freedom from demonic influence, bondage, or related spiritual effects. Documented in both Catholic commentary on deliverance/exorcism and evangelical/charismatic deliverance models (notably the Unbound approach). Addresses demonic influence, spiritual bondage, and, in some contexts, possession.

Christian (Catholic commentary and evangelical/charismatic deliverance) · global / contemporary Christian contexts (no single geographic origin in provided sources)

protectiongeneralfolklore

Dorje Drolo protection practice (name not attested in supplied sources)

A putative protection practice framed within the broad category of Vajrayāna/Tibetan protector and amulet traditions. The provided sources do not document a ritual explicitly named "Dorje Drolo"; related materials discuss Kālacakra tantra as an anuttara-yoga lineage, Tibetan protector-deity controversy (Dorje Shugden/Dolgyal), and the use of gau (amulet) boxes containing sacred pills and diagrams for protection and worldly benefit.

Vajrayāna Buddhism / Tibetan Buddhism (putative placement based on related sources) · Tibetan cultural sphere (inferred from sources)

protectionevil-eyeprobable

Drishti Parihar (देक्ष्टि परिहार / drishti parihar)

Drishti Parihar is a named term found in South Asian references that is commonly associated in wider literature with remedial practices addressing 'drishti' or the evil eye. The supplied sources for this entry do not provide a documented ritual procedure, materials, or practitioner requirements; they only show a thesis title and an unrelated webpage.

South Asian (unverified in supplied sources) · South Asia (unspecified; attribution not documented in supplied materials)

exorcismpossessionfolklore

Dybbuk exorcism (דיבוק, dybbuk)

A Jewish folkloric/Kabbalistic exorcism aimed at causing a dybbuk — the dislocated soul of a dead person believed to possess the living — to depart the host. Originating in Jewish mythology and Kabbalistic-influenced folk practice, it addresses spirit possession by a dybbuk.

Jewish (folklore/Kabbalistic contexts) · Central and Eastern Europe (Jewish communities); broader Jewish diaspora

otherentityprobable

Egungun (Eégún, eégún)

Egungun is a Yoruba masquerade tradition from southwestern Nigeria and Benin in which costumed masked figures manifest the collective spirits of departed ancestors during communal festivals. It functions as ancestor reverence, public remembrance and celebration, and the giving of blessings for communal welfare rather than as an exorcism or targeted hostile-entity ritual.

Yoruba · West Africa (Nigeria and Benin)

protectiongeneralverified

Fulu (符籙; fu / fulu)

Fulu (fu, fulu) are talismanic inscriptions in the Taoist tradition: often non-phonetic (asemic) talismanic symbols and associated incantations that are written or painted on objects by Taoist practitioners. They are employed within Taoist ritual practice to address supernatural needs such as protection, warding, invocation of spirit-agents, and exorcism.

Taoism · China / East Asia

otherghostprobable

Ghost Festival / Hungry Ghost Festival (Zhongyuan Festival, 中元節 Zhōngyuán Jié)

The Ghost Festival or Hungry Ghost Festival, called Zhongyuan Festival in Taoism and Yulanpen Festival in Buddhism, is a traditional East and Southeast Asian festival held on the 15th night of the seventh lunar month. In the provided source it is identified with observances concerning ghosts or "hungry spirits." The single source locates the festival calendrically and in religious contexts but does not provide detailed ritual procedure.

Taoism (also attested in Buddhist contexts as Yulanpen; East and Southeast Asian folk-religious practice) · East and Southeast Asia

cleansinggeneralprobable

Griha Pravesh / Griha Shanti Puja (Grihapravesha / गृह प्रवेश)

A Hindu domestic ritual performed when moving into or inaugurating a home to ritually purify the dwelling, invite prosperity, and seek divine blessings. It addresses general negative or impure energies and coordinates with astrological timings and related Vastu/Navagraha rites. Variants and procedures differ regionally and by priestly tradition.

Hindu · Indian subcontinent (regional variants attested in Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, etc.)

cleansinggeneralprobable

Harae / Harai (祓/祓い — harae/harai)

Harae (harai) is the general term for ritual purification within Shinto, practiced in Japan to remove kegare (pollution/uncleanness) that arises from death, childbirth, disease, or accumulated daily impurity. It is carried out in shrine contexts and by local ritual specialists (including itinerant troupes such as Ise Dai-kagura) to purify persons, places, or objects and to seek blessing and protection from the kami.

Shinto · Japan

othergeneralprobable

Jesa (제사; jesa)

Jesa is a Korean family ancestral rite (제사, jesa) practiced in Korean society to commemorate deceased ancestors, express gratitude, and treat the ancestor as if still alive. It is scheduled most commonly on an ancestor's death anniversary and on major holidays, and addresses the social-religious obligation of ancestor veneration rather than a magical threat.

Korean domestic/folk ancestral practice (observed across religious identities in Korea; Protestants generally do not participate) · Korea

protectiongeneralprobable

Kupala Night (Ivana Kupala / Івана Купала)

Kupala Night (Ivana Kupala) is a Slavic midsummer folk festival with roots in pre-Christian solstice rites, commonly practiced in Ukraine, Poland, Czechia, Slovakia, Belarus, Russia and other Slavic areas. The festival combines fire, water, herbs and symbolic acts for purification, fertility, divination (especially for love), and communal protection during the liminal midsummer night. It often coincides with and has been influenced by the Christian feast of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist (St. John’s Eve).

Slavic folk (folk-pagan) with Christian syncretic influence · Eastern Europe and Central Europe (Ukraine, Poland, Czechia, Slovakia, Belarus, Russia, etc.)

exorcismpossessionprobable

Major Exorcism (Traditional Roman Catholic Rite) / Exorcismus maior (traditional)

A traditional Roman Catholic practice referred to in English as Major Exorcism (Exorcismus maior) aimed at evicting malevolent spiritual entities from persons or places. The provided sources treat exorcism broadly as a religious practice for removing demons, djinns, or other malevolent spiritual entities and situate the office of 'Exorcist' within clerical formation in at least one traditional seminary context.

Catholic · Western / global (Roman Catholic contexts)

cleansinggeneralprobable

Misogi (禊, misogi)

Misogi is a Shinto ritual of purification involving washing the entire body. It is rooted in Shinto practice and mythic background associated with sources like the Kojiki; the provided sources identify it generally as a cleansing rite rather than specifying a particular supernatural threat addressed.

Japanese Shinto · Japan

protectiongeneralprobable

Mojo bag (mojo, toby, conjure bag)

A mojo bag is an amulet from African American Hoodoo/rootwork traditions consisting of a small cloth bag—commonly flannel—containing herbs, roots, stones, oils, and/or personal items. It is used as a portable 'prayer in a bag' for protection, luck, and other individualized magical petitions rather than as an exorcism.

African American Hoodoo / conjure / rootwork · Southern United States; African American cultural context

othergeneralfolklore

Musok Gut (무속 굿, musok gut)

Musok Gut is a term for ritual practices in Korean shamanism (Musok). The provided source frames Musok as a vernacular/folk religious tradition with diverse, locally varying ceremonies; the excerpt does not provide a specific procedural description of any single gut or detail particular threats it addresses.

Korean shamanism (Musok) · Korea

healinggeneralprobable

Narayan Nagbali (Narayan Bali / Nag Bali)

Narayan Nagbali (often written Narayan Bali or Nag Bali) is a three-day Hindu remedial ritual performed at Trimbakeshwar in the Nashik District of Maharashtra, India. The ritual complex as described in the sources includes a Narayan bali component said to be performed to liberate souls of family members who met an untimely death, and a Nag bali component described as intended to absolve the sin of killing a king cobra.

Hindu · Trimbakeshwar, Nashik District, Maharashtra, India

protectiongeneralprobable

Ofuda (お札) — ofuda

Ofuda are shrine- or temple-associated Japanese amulets (term attested as an ofuda in available sources) connected in popular contexts with protective amulets sold at religious sites; they are used to provide general protection and good fortune against unspecified misfortune. Sources link omamori/ofuda to dedication to Shinto kami and Buddhist figures but do not supply a detailed blessing procedure.

Japanese folk-religious (Shinto/Buddhist contexts noted in sources) · Japan

wealth-pactfortunefolklore

Pesugihan

A Javanese pact for sudden wealth: riches granted by a spirit or a place in exchange for a tumbal — an offering that, in the tellings that matter, is a life.

Javanese folk practice (kejawen), with Balinese and wider Indonesian variants · Indonesia — Java, especially the south coast, Gunung Kawi and Mount Kemukus

othergeneralprobable

Phowa (Tibetan: phowa; consciousness transference)

Phowa is a tantric practice found in Hindu and Buddhist sources and adopted into Tibetan Vajrayāna systems (notably within formulations of the Six Yogas of Nāropa and in Nyingma and some Kagyu lineages). It is practiced at or in preparation for death to direct the dying person's consciousness through the crown (Brahmarandhra / Sahasrāra) so as to secure a favorable rebirth or liberation and to intervene in the bardo transition.

Tibetan Buddhism (within broader tantric contexts also found in Hindu tantra) · Tibet / Himalayan Vajrayāna cultural sphere

exorcismpossessionprobable

Roman Rite of Exorcism (English)

A Roman Catholic sacramental rite of the Roman Rite used to ask in the name of Jesus Christ that a person or object be protected against the power of the Evil One and withdrawn from his dominion. It is used within the Roman Catholic Church to address alleged demonic possession or demonic influence. The rite's effectiveness in tradition is presented as dependent on ecclesiastical authorization and the faith of the exorcist rather than on a fixed formula or strict sequence of actions.

Roman Catholic Church / Roman Rite · Worldwide (Roman Catholic diocesan practice)

exorcismpossessionprobable

Ruqyah (Arabic: الرقية, ruqyah)

Ruqyah is an Islamic spiritual healing/exorcism practice that uses Qur'anic recitation and supplication to address spiritual harms. Found across Muslim communities (documented in Indonesia and the UK, with wider presence in Muslim societies), it is employed against spiritual entities and malevolent influences such as jinn, shayṭān (devil), sihr (black magic), nazar (evil eye), and related curses or persistent negative patterns.

Islamic · multi-regional (documented examples: Indonesia, United Kingdom; practiced across Muslim communities)

cleansinggeneralprobable

Salp'uri (살풀이) — Korean mudang ritual

Salp'uri is a climactic cleansing ritual/dance within Korean shamanism (Musok/Muism) performed by a mudang (usually female) to 'wash away evil spirits.' It emerges from vernacular Korean shamanic practice and addresses general malevolent presences and spiritual contamination through song and dance.

Korean shamanism (Musok / Muism) · Korea

cursingpersonfolklore

Santet (Teluh / Tenung)

Indonesian sorcery worked at a distance to sicken, ruin or kill a named person — the archipelago's best-known form of black magic, and the accusation that has cost more lives than the practice itself.

Javanese, Sundanese and Madurese folk practice · Indonesia — reported across the archipelago, most strongly in Java and Madura

protectiongeneralprobable

Yellow Paper Talisman (黃帝陰符經 Huángdì Yīnfújīng — related Daoist talismanic terminology)

A descriptive entry summarizing talismanic objects and a Daoist text that share talismanic language in Chinese sources. Attested material includes Daoist coin/numismatic charms used as apotropaic objects and the Daoist scripture Huangdi Yinfujing (黃帝陰符經), which by its title references a 'hidden talisman' but is presented in sources as a text associated with astrology and Neidan rather than a documented paper talisman ritual. The supplied sources do not document a stepwise 'yellow paper talisman' ritual addressing a specific named threat.

Chinese Daoist/Taoist · China (with numismatic charm forms also attested in Vietnam in comparative sources)

othergeneralprobable

Zagovory (заговоры; zagovory)

Zagovory are Eastern Slavic verbal folk magic practices consisting of spoken incantations used to enchant objects or people. Originating in Eastern Slavic folklore and vernacular religion, they are employed broadly for protection, healing, blessing, and other practical aims by means of formulaic speech.

Eastern Slavic folk religion / vernacular magic · Eastern Europe (Eastern Slavic regions)

othergeneralprobable

Zhitro (Tibetan: zhi khro) — Shitro zab-chos zhi khro dgongs pa rang grol (also kar-gling zhi-khro)

Zhitro (zhi khro), also called Shitro zab-chos zhi khro dgongs pa rang grol and kar-gling zhi-khro, is a revealed cycle used within Tibetan Buddhism and Bön associated with terton Karma Lingpa and traditionally attributed to Padmasambhava. The corpus treats the intermediate state (bardo) after death, describing a mandala of 100 peaceful (zhi) and wrathful (khro) tantric deities believed to manifest to the deceased and providing teachings and practices concerning those post-mortem visions.

Tibetan Buddhism and Bön · Tibet / Himalayan Buddhist cultural sphere

protectiongeneralprobable

as-salāmu ʿalaykum (السلام عليكم) — Islamic greeting / recitation

A widely used Islamic greeting meaning "Peace be upon you" (as-salāmu ʿalaykum) and the broader practice of Qurʾānic recitation. The supplied sources present the phrase as a social and religious salutation within Islam and emphasize the centrality of Qurʾānic recitation, but do not document a formalized protective ritual or specify particular supernatural targets.

Islamic · global (Muslim communities worldwide)

protectiongeneralprobable

asubakacin / bwaajige ngwaagan (Dreamcatcher)

A handmade hoop with a woven web originating in Anishinaabe culture, commonly called a dreamcatcher or 'spider web charm.' It is traditionally hung over an infant's cradle or bed to protect the sleeper by snaring harmful dreams or nocturnal influences.

Anishinaabe (also noted in some Native American and First Nations cultures) · North America (Anishinaabe territories)

othergeneralfolklore

gris-gris

Gris-gris is identified in the provided sources as a 'voodoo talisman' called gris-gris. The same name, Gris-Gris, is also recorded as a popular local name for the tree Terminalia buceras in Haiti and Guadeloupe. The supplied material does not describe specific threats the talisman addresses.

voodoo (as identified in source) · Haiti and Guadeloupe (name-attestation); broader region not specified in provided sources