counter-magic
nounUK /ˈkaʊntəˌmadʒɪk/
Etymology From counter- + magic.
1
Magic used to counteract or protect against a spell or enchantment.
- After 1736 when the possibility of formal prosecution was no longer open, villagers turned to informal violence, counter-magic and the occasional lynching.1971, Keith Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, Folio Society, published 2012, page 563:
- Particularly in Catholic areas, countermagic could employ sacred objects such as holy water or consecrated wafers, or the recitation of particular prayers.2003, William E Burns, Witch Hunts in Europe and America: An Encyclopedia, page 58:
1 more example
- The Lisu of the northern Thai highlands feared witchcraft acutely but relied on service magicians or private counter-magic to keep them at bay.2017, Ronald Hutton, The Witch, Yale University Press, published 2018, page 25: