Waswas

Spirit possession is an unusual or altered state of consciousness and associated behaviors purportedly caused by the control of a human body by spirits, ghosts, demons, or gods. The concept of spirit possession exists in many cultures and religions, including Buddhism, Christianity,Mark 5:9, Luke 8:30 Haitian Vodou, Hinduism, Islam, Wicca, and Southeast Asian, African, and Native American traditions. Depending on the cultural context in which it is found, possession may be considered voluntary or involuntary and may be considered to have beneficial or detrimental effects on the host.

In a 1969 study funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, spirit possession beliefs were found to exist in 74% of a sample of 488 societies in all parts of the world, with the highest numbers of believing societies in Pacific cultures and the lowest incidence among Native Americans of both North and South America. As Pentecostal and Charismatic Christian churches move into both African and Oceanic areas, a merger of belief can take place, with "demons" becoming representative of the "old" indigenous religions, which the Christian ministers attempt to exorcise.

Abrahamic traditions

Christianity

From its beginning, Christianity has held that possession derives from the Devil, i.e. Satan, his lesser demons, the fallen angels. In the battle between Satan and Heaven, Satan is believed to engage in "spiritual attacks", including demonic possession, against human beings by the use of supernatural powers to harm them physically or psychologically. Prayer for deliverance, blessings upon the man or woman's house or body, sacraments, and exorcisms are generally used to drive the demon out.

Some theologians, such as Ángel Manuel Rodríguez, say that mediums, like the ones mentioned in Leviticus 20:27, were possessed by demons. Another possible case of demonic possession in the Old Testament includes the false prophets that King Ahab relied upon before re-capturing Ramoth-Gilead in 1 Kings 22. They were described to be empowered by a deceiving spirit.

The New Testament mentions several episodes in which Jesus drove out demons from persons. Whilst most Christians believe that demonic possession is an involuntary affliction, some biblical verses have been interpreted as indicating that possession can be voluntary. For example, Alfred Plummer writes that when Devil entered into Judas Iscariot in John 13:27, this was because Judas had continually agreed to Satan's suggestions to betray Jesus and had wholly submitted to him.

The New Testament indicates that people can be possessed by demons, but that the demons respond and submit to Jesus Christ's authority:

It also indicates that demons can possess animals as in the exorcism of the Gerasene demoniac.

Catholicism

Roman Catholic doctrine states that angels are non-corporeal, spiritual beings with intelligence and will. Fallen angels, or demons, are able to " demonically possess" individuals without the victim's knowledge or consent, leaving them morally blameless.

The ''Catholic Encyclopedia'' says that there is only one apparent case of demonic possession in the Old Testament, of King Saul being tormented by an "evil spirit" ( 1 Samuel 16:14), but this depends on interpreting the Hebrew word "''rûah''" as implying a personal influence which it may not, so even this example is described as "not very certain". In addition, Saul was only described to be tormented, rather than possessed, and he was relieved from these torments by having David play the lyre to him.

Catholic exorcists differentiate between "ordinary" Satanic/demonic activity or influence (mundane everyday ''temptations'') and "extraordinary" Satanic/demonic activity, which can take six different forms, ranging from complete control by Satan or demons to voluntary submission:
# Possession, in which Satan or demons take full possession of a person's body without their consent. This possession usually comes as a result of a person's actions; actions that lead to an increased susceptibility to Satan's influence.
# Obsession, which includes sudden attacks of irrationally obsessive thoughts, usually culminating in suicidal ideation, and which typically influences dreams.
# Oppression, in which there is no loss of consciousness or involuntary action, such as in the biblical Book of Job in which Job was tormented by Satan through a series of misfortunes in business, material possessions, family, and health.
# External physical pain caused by Satan or demons.
# Infestation, which affects houses, objects/things, or animals; and
# Subjection, in which a person voluntarily submits to Satan or demons.

In the Roman Ritual, true demonic or Satanic possession has been characterized since the Middle Ages, by the following four typical characteristics:
# Manifestation of superhuman strength.
# Speaking in tongues or languages that the victim cannot know.
# Revelation of knowledge, distant or hidden, that the victim cannot know.
# Blasphemous rage, obscene hand gestures, using profanity and an aversion to holy symbols, names, relics or places.

The '' New Catholic Encyclopedia'' states, "Ecclesiastical authorities are reluctant to admit diabolical possession in most cases, because many can be explained by physical or mental illness alone. Therefore, medical and psychological examinations are necessary before the performance of major exorcism. The standard that must be met is that of moral certitude (''De exorcismis'', 16). For an exorcist to be morally certain, or beyond reasonable doubt, that he is dealing with a genuine case of demonic possession, there must be no other reasonable explanation for the phenomena in question".

Official Catholic doctrine affirms that demonic possession can occur as distinguished from mental illness, but stresses that cases of mental illness should not be misdiagnosed as demonic influence. Catholic exorcisms can occur only under the authority of a bishop and in accordance with strict rules; a simple exorcism also occurs during baptism.

Reformed

The infliction of demonic torment upon an individual has been chronicled in premodern Protestant literature. In 1597, King James discussed four methods of daemonic influence upon an individual in his book Daemonologie:
# Spectra, being the haunting and troubling of certain houses or solitary places.
# Obsession, the following and outwardly torment of an individual at diverse hours to either weaken or cast diseases upon the body, as in the Book of Job.
# Possession, the entrance inwardly into an individual to beget uncontrollable fits, induce blasphemies,
# Faerie, being the influence those who voluntarily submit to consort, prophesy, or servitude.

King James attested that the symptoms derived from demonic possession could be discernible from natural diseases. He rejected the symptoms and signs prescribed by the Catholic church as vain (e.g. rage begotten from Holy Water, fear of the Cross, etc.) and found that the exorcism rites to be troublesome and ineffective to recite. The Rites of the Catholic Church to remedy the torment of demonic spirits were rejected as counterfeit since few possessed could be cured by them. James therefore declared the Protestant view of casting out devils, "It is easy then to understand that the casting out of Devils, is by virtue of fasting and prayer, and in-calling of the name of God, suppose many imperfections be in the person that is the instrument, as CHRIST himself teaches us (Mat. 7) of the power that false Prophets all have cast out devils".

In medieval Great Britain, the Christian church had offered suggestions on safeguarding one's home. Suggestions ranged from dousing a household with holy water, placing wax and herbs on thresholds to "ward off witches occult," and avoiding certain areas of townships known to be frequented by witches and Devil worshippers after dark. Afflicted persons were restricted from entering the church, but might share the shelter of the porch with lepers and persons of offensive life. After the prayers, if quiet, they might come in to receive the bishop's blessing and listen to the sermon. They were fed daily and prayed over by the exorcists, and, in case of recovery, after a fast of from 20 to 40 days, were admitted to the Eucharist, and their names and cures entered in the church records. In 1603, the Church of England forbade its clergy from performing exorcisms because of numerous fraudulent cases of demonic possession.

Baptist

In May 2021, the Baptist Deliverance Study Group of the Baptist Union of Great Britain, a Christian denomination, issued a "warning against occult spirituality following the rise in people trying to communicate with the dead". The commission reported that "becoming involved in activities such as Spiritualism can open up a doorway to great spiritual oppression which requires a Christian rite to set that person free".

Evangelical

In both charismatic and evangelical Christianity, exorcisms of demons are often carried out by individuals or groups belong to the deliverance ministries movement. According to these groups, symptoms of such possessions can include chronic fatigue syndrome, homosexuality, addiction to pornography, and alcoholism. The New Testament's description of people who had evil spirits includes a knowledge of future events (Acts 16:16) and great strength (Act 19:13-16), among others, and shows that those with evil spirits can speak of Christ (Mark 3:7-11). Some Evangelical denominations believe that demonic possession is not possible if one has already professed their faith in Christ, because the Holy Spirit already occupies the body and a demon cannot enter.

Islam

Various types of creatures, such as '' jinn'', '' shayatin'', '' ʻafarit'', found within Islamic culture, are often held to be responsible for spirit possession. Spirit possession appears in both Islamic theology and wider cultural tradition.

Although opposed by some Muslim scholars, sleeping near a graveyard or a tomb is believed to enable contact with the ghosts of the dead, who visit the sleeper in dreams and provide hidden knowledge. Possession by ''ʻafarit'' (a vengeful ghost) are said to grant the possessed some supernatural powers, but it drives them insane as well.

'' Jinn'' are much more physical than spirits, however, due to their subtle bodies, which are composed of fire and air (''marijin min nar''), they are purported to be able to possess the bodies of humans. Such physical intrusion of the jinn is conceptually different from the whisperings of the devils. Though not directly attested in the Quran, the notion of ''jinn'' possessing humans is widespread among Muslims and also accepted by most Islamic scholars. Since such ''jinn'' are said to have free will, they can have their own reasons to possess humans and are not necessarily harmful. There are various reasons given as to why a ''jinn'' might seek to possess an individual, such as falling in love with them, taking revenge for hurting them or their relatives, or other undefined reasons. At an intended possession, the covenant with the ''jinn'' must be renewed. Since ''jinn'' are not necessarily evil, they are distinguished from cultural concepts of possession by devils/demons. It has been argued that the concept of jinn-possession is alien to the Quran and derives from pagan notion of jinn.

In contrast to ''Jinn'', the '' shayatin'' are inherently evil. Iblis, the leader of the ''shayatin'', only tempts humans into sin by following their lower ''nafs''. Hadiths suggest that the demons/devils whisper from within the human body, within or next to the heart, and so "devilish whisperings" (Arabic: ''waswās'' وَسْوَاس) are sometimes thought of as a kind of possession. Unlike possession by ''jinn'', the whisperings of demons affects the soul instead of the body.

Judaism

Although forbidden in the Hebrew Bible

HOME


Content is Copyleft
Website design, code, and AI is Copyrighted (c) 2014-2017 by Stephen Payne


Consider donating to Wikimedia



As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases