Apotropaic magic is a ritual observance that is intended to turn away evil. It can be as elaborate as the use of magical ceremonies or spells, or a simple as the vaguely superstitious carrying or wearing of a "good luck" token or "charm" (perhaps on a charm bracelet), crossing one's fingers or knocking on wood. A ritual is a set of actions, performed mainly for their symbolic value, which is prescribed by a religion or by the traditions of a community. ... For other uses, see Evil (disambiguation). ... The Sorceress by John William Waterhouse Magic and sorcery are the influencing of events, objects, people and physical phenomena by mystical or paranormal means. ... Part of the ceremony of the Changing of the Guard in Whitehall, London. ... The spell is a magical act intended to cause an effect on reality using supernatural means of liturgical or ritual nature. ... The number 13 is often avoided in public buildings, also floors, doors and this Santa Anita Park horse stall. ... Good Luck!! is a 2003 Japanese television drama produced by TBS. Starring Takuya Kimura and Kō Shibasaki, Good Luck!! topped the Japanese drama ratings with a whopping 35% viewership in 2003. ... Founded in 2001, Charm Bracelet is a collaborative project of Portland, Oregon artists Brad Adkins and Christopher Buckingham. ... Knocking on wood, and the spoken expression knock on wood or touch wood are used as a charm to bring good luck or to avoid tempting fate after making some boast or similar statement. ...

"Apotropaic" is an adjective that means "intended to ward off evil" or "averting or deflecting evil" and commonly refers to objects such as amulets and talismans or other symbols. The word is of Greek origin: apotrope literally means "turning away" or averting (as in "averting the evil eye"). The Greeks propitiated the chthonic "Gods of Aversion"—the apotropaioi. Apotropaic is an adjective that means intended to ward off evil or averting or combating evil and commonly refers to objects such as amulets and talismans or other symbols. ... An amulet from the Black Pullet grimoire An amulet (from Latin amuletum, meaning A means of protection) or a talisman (from Arabic tilasm, ultimately from Greek telesma or from the Greek word talein wich means to initiate into the mysteries. ... Talisman can refer to: An amulet sometimes believed to have mystical, and amazing powers The Talisman board game from Games Workshop Talisman - Sacred Cities, Secret Faith by Graham Hancock and Robert Bauval Talisman (band) - a hard rock band. ... John Phillip, The Evil Eye (1859), a self-portrait depicting the artist sketching a Spanish gypsy who thinks she is being given the evil eye The evil eye is a widely distributed element of folklore, in which it is believed that the envy elicited by the good luck of fortunate... For other uses, see Chthon (disambiguation). ...

Apotropaic symbols

A 12th century "Sheela Na Gig" exposes her genitalia on the church at Kilpeck, Herefordshire

Among the Ancient Greeks the most widely-used image intended to avert evil was the Gorgoneion, the head of the Gorgon, with goggling eyes, fangs and protruding tongue. This Medusa's head was mounted on the shield of Athena herself.^[1] (11th century - 12th century - 13th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 12th century was that century which lasted from 1101 to 1200. ... A sex organ, or primary sexual characteristic, narrowly defined, is any of those parts of the body (which are not always bodily organs according to the strict definition) which are involved in sexual reproduction and constitute the reproductive system in an complex organism; namely: Male: penis (notably the glans penis... Kilpeck (Welsh: Llanddewi Cil Peddeg) is a Herefordshire village renowned for its Norman church, with striking stone carvings, particularly the arch above the south door. ... Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county and unitary district (known as County of Herefordshire) in the West Midlands region of England. ... In Greek mythology, the Gorgons (terrible or, according to some, loud-roaring) were vicious female monsters with sharp fangs and hair of living, venomous snakes. ... Helmeted Athena, of the Velletri type. ...

The ancient blue and white "Nazar boncuğu" symbol, a stylised eye, thought to avert the evil eye

Curiously, eyes were often painted to ward off the "evil eye". An exaggerated apotropaic eye was painted on Greek drinking vessels in the 6th century BC to ward off evil spirits while drinking. Fishing boats in some parts of the Mediterranean region still have stylised eyes painted on the bows. A Turkish budget airline has adopted the symbol (known as Nazar boncuğu or Nazar bonjuk) as a motif for the tailfin of its aeroplanes. John Phillip, The Evil Eye (1859), a self-portrait depicting the artist sketching a Spanish gypsy who thinks she is being given the evil eye The evil eye is a widely distributed element of folklore, in which it is believed that the envy elicited by the good luck of fortunate... (2nd millennium BC - 1st millennium BC - 1st millennium) The 6th century BC started on January 1, 600 BC and ended on December 31, 501 BC. // Monument 1, an Olmec colossal head at La Venta The 5th and 6th centuries BC were a time of empires, but more importantly, a time... Evil Spirits n. ... A fishing boat can range from two-person pleasure fishing boats up to 7-8 ton commercial fishers that can haul in over a billion fish at one time. ... The Mediterranean Sea is an intercontinental sea positioned between Europe to the north, Africa to the south and Asia to the east, covering an approximate area of 2. ... Boeing 737-700 of UK low cost carrier easyJet waiting for take off at Bristol A low-cost carrier or low cost airline (also known as a no-frills or discount carrier / airline) is an airline that offers generally low fares in exchange for eliminating many traditional passenger services. ... This article refers to the tool of travel. ...

The doorways and windows of buildings were felt to be particularly vulnerable to evil. On churches and castles, gargoyles or other grotesque faces and figures such as Sheela Na Gigs and Hunky Punks would be carved to frighten away witches and other malign influences. For other uses, see Evil (disambiguation). ... St. ... Caernarfon Castle, Wales. ... A gargoyle adorning Dornoch Cathedral in Scotland In architecture, the gargoyle (from the French gargouille, originally the throat or gullet, cf. ... Mother Nature is surrounded by grottesche in this fresco detail from Villa dEste When commonly used in conversation, grotesque means strange, fantastic, ugly or bizarre, and thus is often used to describe weird shapes and distorted forms such as Halloween masks or gargoyles on churches. ... Sheela-na-Gigs or Sheela Na Gigs are grotesque figurative carvings of naked females displaying an exaggerated vulva. ... Hunky Punk is Somerset (West Country) dialect for grotesque carvings on the side of buildings (especially churches). ... Witchcraft, in various historical, religious and mythological contexts, is the use of certain kinds of alleged supernatural or magical powers. ...

Similarly the grotesque faces carved on Pumpkin lanterns (and their earlier counterparts, made from turnips, swedes or mangolds) at Halloween are meant to avert evil: this season was Samhain, the Celtic New Year and, as a "time between times", it was believed that souls of the dead and other dangerous spirits walked the earth at this time. (See also: Celtic calendar) Jack-o-lanterns may be carved with a friendly face, above, a menacing sawtooth scowl, or any look in between. ... Trinomial name Brassica rapa rapa L. The turnip (Brassica rapa var. ... Trinomial name Beta vulgaris var. ... This article is about the holiday. ... This article is about the Celtic holiday. ... This article is about the European people. ... For other uses, see New Year (disambiguation). ... The soul, according to many religious and philosophical traditions, is a self-aware ethereal substance particular to a unique living being. ... This page deals with the cessation of life. ... The term Celtic calendar is used to refer to a variety of calendars used by Celtic-speaking peoples at different times in history. ...

Mirrors and other shiny objects were believed to deflect the evil eye. Traditional English "Plough Jags" (performers of a regional variant of the mummers play) sometimes decorated their costumes (particularly their hats) with shiny items, even to the extent of borrowing silver plate for the purpose. A mirror, reflecting a vase. ... For the New Years Day parade in Philadelphia, see Mummers Parade. ... Sheffield plate is a layered combination of silver and copper that was used for many years to produce larger silver goods such as serving trays and teapots. ...

Symbols such as crucifixes, silver bullets, wild roses and garlic were believed to ward off or destroy vampires. A crucifix amidst the cornfields near Mureck in rural Styria, Austria A handheld crucifix A crucifix in front of the Holy Spirit Church in Košice, Slovakia A crucifix is a cross with a representation of Jesuss body, or corpus. ... The metaphor of the silver bullet applies to any straightforward solution perceived to have extreme effectiveness. ... Species Between 100 and 150, see list A rose is a flowering shrub of the genus Rosa, and the flower of this shrub. ... Binomial name Allium sativum L. Garlic (Allium sativum) is a perennial plant in the family Alliaceae and genus Allium, closely related to the onion, shallot, and leek. ... Philip Burne-Jones, The Vampire, 1897 This article deals with vampires in folklore and legends. ...

In Ireland and Britain, magpies are thought to bring bad luck and many people repeat various rhymes or salutations to placate them. Genera Pica Urocissa Cyanopica Cissa The magpies are medium to large, often colorful and noisy passerine birds of the crow family, Corvidae. ... Salutation can have several meanings. ...

In ancient Greece, phalli were believed to have apotropaic qualities. Often stone reliefs would be placed above doorways, but there were also many three-dimensional renditions erected across the Greek world. Most notable of these were the urban monuments found on the island of Delos. Grotesque, satyr-like beaded faces sometimes with the pointed cap of the workman appeared often over the doors of ovens and kilns, to protect the work from fire and mishap.^[2] Ancient Greece is a period in Greek history that lasted for around one thousand years and was extinguished by the newly-powerful Christianity. ... The island of Delos, Carl Anton Joseph Rottmann, 1847 The island of Delos (Greek: Δήλος, Dhilos), isolated in the centre of the roughly circular ring of islands called the Cyclades, near Mykonos, had a position as a holy sanctuary for a millennium before Olympian Greek mythology made it the birthplace of...

Good luck tokens and charms

Amulets for specific purposes on sale at a Shinto shrine in Japan

It is difficult to differentiate between items supposed to avert evil and items intended to attract good fortune. Download high resolution version (1024x768, 903 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (1024x768, 903 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Shinto() is the native religion of Japan and was once its state religion. ... Eastern Orthodox shrine Buddhist shrine just outside Wat Phnom. ...

Cast-off horseshoes are often nailed up over, or close by, doorways, normally with the ends pointing upwards (said "to collect good luck" or "to stop the luck falling out"; but see Oakham's horseshoes). Model horseshoes (of card or plastic) are given as good-luck tokens, particularly at weddings and small paper horseshoes feature in confetti. Modern horseshoes are most commonly made of iron and nailed onto the hoof. ... Arms of Rutland County Council Oakham is the county town of Rutland, England. ... Nubian wedding with some international modern touches, near Aswan, Egypt Preparing for the photographs, at a wedding in Thornbury Castle, England A traditional Japanese wedding ceremony A wedding is a ceremony which celebrates the beginning of a marriage. ... Confetti is made up of small pieces of paper or plastic which are usually thrown at celebrations, espescially weddings. ...

White heather is often sold by Irish travelling people and Roma "to bring good luck". (Frequently this turns out to be not heather but white sea-lavender (a species of Limonium.) Heather may be: In botany, the plant Calluna vulgaris, or, more loosely, various species of the closely related genera Erica and Cassiope, low evergreen shrubs (also called heaths). The term is also used to describe land which is vegetated with these plants; In apparel or textiles, interwoven yarns with a... The Roma People (singular Rom; sometimes Rroma, Rrom), sometimes called Romany Folk in the United Kingdom, often referred to as Gypsies or Gipsies, are a diverse ethnic group who live primarily in Southern and Eastern Europe, Western Asia, Latin America, the United States and the Middle East. ... Species include: Limonium perezii The Sea Lavenders, Sea lavenders or Statices are the genus Limonium of flowering plants, some members of which were formerly classified in a genus named Statice. ... Species include: Limonium perezii The Sea Lavenders, Sealavenders or Statices are the genus Limonium of flowering plants, some members of which were formerly classified in a genus named Statice. ...

Rush St Bridgets crosses were kept indoors in Ireland in both houses and animal houses to keep away illness for the year. Brigids cross, Brighids cross, or Brigits cross, or Crosóg Brigde(in gaelic) is an old Irish symbol, probably derivative of the pagan sunwheel. ...

See also

• Exorcism
• Peijainen

Saint Francis exorcised demons in Arezzo, fresco of Giotto Exorcism (from Late Latin exorcismus, from Greek exorkizein - to adjure) is the practice of evicting demons or other evil spiritual entities from a person of which they have possessed (taken control of). ... In Finland, Peijainen is the ritual burial of a bear that has been communally brought down and has died. ...

Notes

1. ^ Harrison, pp 196ff.
2. ^ Harrison, pp 187ff "The Ker as Gorgon".

References

• Frazer, Sir James, The Golden Bough,
• Graves, Robert, The White Goddess,
• Jane Ellen Harrison, Prolegomena to the Study of Greek Religion
• Roud, Steve (2004). A Pocket Guide to Superstitions of the British Isles. London: Penguin. ISBN 0-14-051549-6.

Sir James George Frazer (January 1, 1854, Glasgow, Scotland – May 7, 1941), was a Scottish social anthropologist influential in the early stages of the modern studies of mythology and comparative religion. ... The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion is a wide-ranging comparative study of mythology and religion by Scottish anthropologist Sir James George Frazer (1854–1941). ... Portrait of Robert Graves (circa 1974) by Rab Shiell Robert von Ranke Graves (24 July 1895 – 5 November 1955) was an English poet, scholar, and novelist. ... The author and poet Robert Graves study of the nature of poetic myth-making, The White Goddess, first published in 1948, and revised, amended and enlarged in 1966, represents a tangential approach to the study of mythology from a decidedly idiosyncratic perspective. ... Jane Ellen Harrison (September 9, 1850–April 5, 1928) was a ground-breaking English classical scholar and feminist. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• The Golden Bough: on-line text, 1922 abridged edition
• [1] Pictures of a revival team of Plough Jags
• The Lucky W Amulet Archive An exceptionally detailed archive of information about amulets and tokens