In fiction a wish is a supernatural gift granting the recipient's unlimited request. The wish is usually a template for a morality tale, "be careful what you wish for" writ large. The Three Graces, here in a painting by Sandro Botticelli, were the goddesses of charm, beauty, nature, human creativity and fertility in Greek mythology. ... The supernatural refers to conscious magical, religious or unknown forces that cannot ordinarily be perceived except through their effects. ...

The template for most fictional wishes is The Book of One Thousand and One Nights, specifically the tale of Aladdin. Although in the tale of Aladdin the actual wishes were only part of the tale and his demands, while outrageous per se, were mainly variations on wealth (which is still often taken as the most 'common' request). The Book of One Thousand and One Nights (كتاب ألف ليلة و ليلة in Arabic or هزار و یک شب in Persian), also known as The book of a Thousand Nights and a Night, 1001 Arabian Nights, or simply the Arabian Nights, is a piece of medieval Arabic literature in... Aladdin in the Magic Garden, an illustration by Max Liebert from Ludwig Fuldas Aladdin und die Wunderlampe Aladdin (a corruption of the Arabic name Alauddin/Ala-ed-din, Arabic: علاء الدين) is one of the tales from The Arabian Nights and one of the most famous in Western culture. ...

Classically the wish provider is typically a spirit, jinni or similar entity. The entity is bound or constrained within an commonplace object (Aladdin's oil lamp for example) or a container closed with Solomon's seal. Releasing the entity from its constaint, usually by some simple action, allows the object's possessor to 'make a wish', that is present their demands to the entity. The Seal of Solomon is said to have given Sulayman power over the jinn. ... An oil lamp is a device used for lighting or for preserving a flame that is fueled by animal, vegetable or mineral oil. ... Solomon or Shlomo (Hebrew: שְׁלֹמֹה; Standard Hebrew: Šəlomo; Tiberian Hebrew: Šəlōmōh, meaning peace) in the Tanakh (Old Testament), is the third king of Israel (including Judah), builder of the temple in Jerusalem, renowned for his great wisdom and wealth and power, but also blamed for falling away from worshipping the...

The subservience of the, by necessity, extraordinarily powerful entity to the wishee is explained in a number of ways. The entity may be grateful to be 'free' of its constraint and the wish is a thank-you gift. The entity may be bound to obedience by its 'prison' or some other item in the wishee possesses. The entity may, by its nature, be unable to exercise its powers without an initiator.

Other wish providers are a wide variety of, more or less, inanimate objects. W.W. Jacob's Monkey's Paw being a well-known example. The manga Doraemon is a modern spin on this theme. The Monkeys Paw is a short story by W.W. Jacobs, written in 1902. ... Nobita and the Legend of the Sun King Poster Doraemon [1] (ドラえもん) by Hiroshi Fujimoto, a. ...

The number of wishes granted is variable. Aladdin had an unlimited number, but three is more common. Several authors have spun variations of the 'wish for more wishes' theme, although some sources see this wish as 'cheating'. In many stories the wording of the wish is extremely important - a common problem is either the granter of the wish being extremely literal or through malice granting the request in a manner designed to cause maximum distress (such as a request for wealth being granted through inheritance/insurance on the death of a loved one). Certain authors have also tried an 'always on' approach, the careless use of the word 'wish' in everyday conversation having, often unpleasant, consequences.

Wishes are often stated in this form: "I wish that... (thing wanted)." For example: "I wish that I was Asian, those people are soooooooo cool."