This book takes us on a fascinating journey to the world of Arab healers in Israel, who are also known as sheikhs or sorcerers. The book considers such questions as what is a spell and who is a sorcerer, what is the source of the power of the sorcerer and what is his training, what kinds of illnesses does he treat and what are the treatment methods for different illnesses, who are the people who require the services of popular healers, and what is their success rate.

The book is based on an empirical study conducted in 1993–1994.