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In Christianity, exorcism is the ritual of casting out demons, and it dates back as far as the mid-13th century. Pictured is Father Candido Amantini (1914–1992), Rome's chief exorcist who often saw up to 80 people a day.
See also: Is exorcism fact or fiction?
These bell-carrying dancers with tall hats and fur vests are known as Joaldunak. During carnival celebrations in northern Spain, Joaldunak from neighboring villages Zubieta and Ituren visit each other to perform a ritual dance to ward off evil spirits and awaken the coming spring.
They typically wear illuminated hats with little scenes on them, round bells, and masks.
Near the northeastern village of Urnaesch in Switzerland, men dress up as "Chlaeuse," figures that scare away evil spirits, during the traditional "Sylvesterchlausen."
An effigy of the demon Ghantakarna is burnt in the ancient city of Bhaktapur, Nepal, symbolizing the destruction of evil and driving away evil spirits.
A patient suffering with mental illness is pictured inside a treatment room in the Hodan district of Mogadishu, Somalia, where a hyena is believed to exorcise evil spirits that cause mental illness.
In Luzon, Spain, the carnival celebrations involve people dressed as "Diablos de Luzon," who are covered in a mixture of soot and oil, and adorn their heads with black-stained bull horns, to parade throughout the village with cowbells clanging around their waists to expel evil spirits. They often carry fake teeth made out of raw potatoes for an added effect, and they dance around Luzon and smear black grease on revellers' faces.
In Tokyo, amateur sumo wrestlers each hold a baby while a referee makes faces and noises to make them cry. The baby who cries the loudest wins, and the ritual is thought to ward off evil spirits.
In Luzon, the only people free from the attack of the "Diablos" are the "Mascaritas," which are people who dress up in traditional women's clothing with their faces covered with a white cloth. This carnival tradition is thought to have pre-Christian origins.
Revellers dressed as Basque Lamia, with long hair and big combs, can also be seen alongside the Joaldunak in northern Spain's ritual to ward off evil spirits.
In the village of Navalacruz, Spain, the traditional carnival characters "Harramachos" wear cowbells, animal antlers, and agricultural decor, and walk through the town to ward off evil spirits and awaken spring.
This baby crying contest is also believed to aid the healthy growth of the children.
Playing with fireballs is a celebrated Bulgarian ritual for Sirni Zagovezni, the first Sunday before Great Lent. Huge bonfires are also set to chase away evil spirits.
The traditional exorcism ritual in Egypt, dating back to ancient times, is called the Zar. It's a dance of frenzied movements set to captivating percussive music and has long been part of Egyptian culture's form of driving away evil spirits and negative energy.
Carnival in the city of Strumica, Macedonia marks Trimery, an Orthodox Christian holiday when evil spirits are chased away with dance rituals and elaborate costumes.
The Panguni Uthiram festival, pictured here in Ahmedabad, India, is observed in the Tamil month of Panguni and is celebrated in honor of the Hindu god Muruga. Devotees make offerings to Muruga that they believe will protect them from evil spirits.
During traditional Corpus Christi celebrations in Castrillo de Murcia, Spain, men dressed in red and yellow costumes representing the devil, known as El Colacho, jump over babies on a mattress.
The northern Spanish town has reportedly used this unusual method of protecting its young from evil spirits for centuries.
In Croatia, it's traditional for bell ringers known as "Zvoncari" to walk through different villages and create a lot of noise to scare away evil spirits of winter. They typically wear white pants and striped shirts, a sheepskin over their shoulders, and a big animal-looking mask.
The annual Bun Festival in Hong Kong is a traditional ritual that combines praying to the gods to drive away plague and evil spirits. Pictured here, people collect mock buns on a tower during a bun-scrambling competition as part of the festival.
Wassailing is an ancient English tradition intended to wake the apple tress and scare away evil spirits, ensuring that there will be a good harvest the following autumn.
On the shores of the Straits of Malacca, Malaysia, the "Wang Kang" (royal barge) is burned to symbolize the evil spirits collected from the community that will be shipped to the unknown aboard the burning boat.
In the religious ceremony known as "Da Gui" (beating ghost), Tibetan monks dress up as Buddhist characters to celebrate the Tibetan New Year.
The ceremony, which involves a lot of costumes, is held annually to expel evil spirits from monasteries.
In Guatemala City, devil pinatas are sold in advance of the annual "Burning of the Devil," where people set fire to effigies and trash as a symbolic cleansing of evil spirits.
"Los Pintados" (Painted Ones) in Mexico cover themselves in oil and ash, and wear masks to ward off evil spirits during a Lent time festival that dates back to the 17th century.
Part of the festival includes the chance to walk over burning coal.
The Dammaduwa celebrations in Sri Lanka are celebrated annually in March, and last from night until morning. The performances are believed to give good fortune and prosperity to the village as well as keep evil spirits away.
The image of the phallus has been historically used in Bhutan, since as far back as the 15th century, to ward off evil spirits and malicious gossip.
A shaman in the administrative center of the Republic of Tuva in Southern Siberia, Russia conducts a spiritualistic session to exorcise a client and cleanse them of evil energy.
Much of the world subscribes to the belief in the dichotomy of good and evil, so it makes sense that most cultures have some form of ushering in the former and casting out the latter. Over the centuries, traditions, rituals, and festivals have developed and adapted to keep these ancient practices alive.
The most fascinating part of these rituals is how creative various cultures' approaches can be to warding off evil spirits, from jumping over babies to putting up phallic images around town. Click through to take a visual tour of some of the most stunning and most head-scratching practices to cast out evil.
Fascinating ways different cultures ward off evil spirits
From dances, burning effigies to lighting lamps
LIFESTYLE Culture
Much of the world subscribes to the belief in the dichotomy of good and evil, so it makes sense that most cultures have some form of ushering in the former and casting out the latter. Over the centuries, traditions, rituals, and festivals have developed and adapted to keep these ancient practices alive.
The most fascinating part of these rituals is how creative various cultures' approaches can be to warding off evil spirits, from jumping over babies to putting up phallic images around town. Click through to take a visual tour of some of the most stunning and most head-scratching practices to cast out evil.