Definition and Characteristics of Demons and Demonic Possessions - Research Paper Example

? Demons and Demonic Possession There is indeed more truth than fiction in accounts of demonic possessions one cansee in movies like The Exorcist or The Last Exorcism. Demons and demonic possessions have long been regarded as valid and real accounts based on evidence from anthropology, history and even from the Bible. However, one does not stop at this to know what is true about these phenomena. In fact, the real truth is that, as proven by past and present data from psychological research, the existence of demons and the experience of demonic possessions are nothing but mere physical manifestations of conflicts in someone’s psychological make-up. Definition and Characteristics of Demons and Demonic Possessions The term “demonic possession” belongs only to one of the two supposed major types of possession states, the other one being those “occurring within the context of religious experiences” (Ferracuti et al. 525-526). In fact, a possession trance is defined as “the presence of a single or episodic altered state of consciousness, in which a person’s customary identity is replaced by a new identity attributed to the influence of a spirit or deity” (525). This means that possession is just as simple as a spirit taking over the physical body and directing it. Nevertheless, there may be two major types of possession depending on nature – the pathologic type, which are known as demonic possessions and the ones often depicted in movies as the devil inhabiting bodies of people; and the religious type, which are particularly found in “ritual ceremonies” (526) and are normally characterized as having “a valid individual and social function” (526). Demonic possessions, due to the fact that they are necessarily pathologic, and physically and mentally damaging, are therefore a more urgent subject for discussion compared to the religious type. These possessions usually last from five minutes to two hours. (527) The possessing agent, or the evil spirit, that is believed to inhabit the physical body of the possessed victim would usually have a number of characteristics. First, they are usually identified as male and are therefore relatively more sexual, aggressive, intense and agitated (527), thus causing these manifestations of behavior in the victim. The agent is also of a different moral character from the possessed (527). In most cases, the possessing agent is believed to cause the victim to vomit, cough and spit and at the same time roar, growl and bark (527). This is perhaps one of the most remarkable characteristics of one possessed by an evil spirit. The victim also displays “facial expressions of anger and hate” (527) and would angrily or sarcastically curse God (527). Moreover, the agent is also lucid and clear about its identity and intention as it often states its identity, curses God and expresses “disgust for the body it had possessed” (527). Lastly, there is usually a rolling of the eyes and a deepening of the voice in the victim (527). Nevertheless, most demonic possessions would usually begin with “unexplainable nausea and vomiting” and “constant difficulty in praying” (527). Nevertheless, demonic possession does not happen to everyone but to a chosen select few. What qualities then characterize these people who end up being possessed? One of these qualities is a previous diagnosis and treatment of a psychological disorder or schizophrenia (529). These people are also very much engrossed in paranormal experiences, have complex personalities, and have an impaired sense of reality (525). Nevertheless, most of these people are believed to have two distinct characteristics from those not possessed: they have “recurrent depression episodes” and they “used to belong to ritualistic satanic groups” (528). As these people are possessed, it then follows that the best and most immediate solution is to seek a solution. The solution is usually exorcism or casting out of the demon, as described in the Catholic document Ritual Romanum in 1614 (Craighead & Nemeroff 346). Although the length of the entire treatment with exorcism is from 3 months to a little over four years (527), the more important aspect of the exorcising act is the exorcist himself. According to the Canon Law of the Catholic Church, specifically Canon 1172, “No one can perform exorcisms legitimately upon the possessed unless he has obtained special and express permission from the local ordinary” (Beal et al. 1405). Moreover, the person who must perform the exorcism must be one who possesses “piety, knowledge, prudence, and integrity of life” (1405). The exorcist can therefore be the local parish priest. (Ferracuti et al. 527) Historical and Anthropological Evidence The demon that is believed to cause possessions and is usually cast out by exorcism is actually often demonstrated as a mythological being that is “part Homo sapiens, part wild beast, [and] always walks upright” (Mack & Mack xxi). The demon is also known to have “recognizably human features [but] too many fingers, no bones, no skin, or perhaps several heads” (xxi). Moreover, the demon may naturally possess “a…tail, hooves or talons, batlike wings, and intense heliophobia” or fear of light (xxii). Despite this horrific appearance of the demon, evidence from folk culture shows that the devil undergoes an “inverse transformation” (xxii) or a process where it assumes the appearance of “a handsome prince or beautiful maiden” (xxii). The demon then, through its disguise, instantly lures the unsuspecting human (xxii). This basic ability of the demon is known as “shape-shifting” (xxii), where it transforms into someone or something which is “highly desirable” to the victim (xxii). Through shape-shifting, demons can in fact appear as “smoke…animals, grains of sand, flickering lights, blades of grass, or neighbors” (xxii). In short, by imitating the appearance of simple objects and those that are alluring, demons can inhabit the bodies of people with the latter possibly fully unconscious of this. Nevertheless, despite the evil of a demon in fooling a person, the responsibility of the latter somehow lies in his succumbing to the temptation. This seems to be where the connection lies, just like in victims of demonic possessions who have had connections with Satanism and satanic rituals in the past. (Ferracuti et al. 528) Despite the anthropological accounts of unconscious encounters with demons resulting in demonic possessions, references from ancient and medieval history somehow attribute demonic possession to rather conscious “pacts with the devil” (Crow 228). The prophet Isaiah, and the Christian writers Origen and Augustine all agree on the validity of the pact as a probable cause of demonic possession (228). In fact, in the Book of Isaiah, the prophet condemns the corrupt and evil rulers of Ephraim and Judah by saying “You boast ‘We have entered into a covenant with death with the realm of the dead we have made an agreement’” (Isaiah 28:15, New International Version). This means that a pact with the dead is a pact with hell or the devil, and is therefore considered a “covenant with death” or something that would kill the possessed victim in the end. The “covenant with death” is actually reminiscent of the Faust legend, where the man named Faust, who appears a disillusioned man, makes a pact with the devil to be given a twenty-four-year extension of his life. These 24 years are filled with so much knowledge and unbounded pleasure and adventure, but in the end, Faust is carried down by the devil to hell, as a fulfillment of the pact (Crow 230). Although Goethe wrote his early 19th century play Faust based on this legend, this story must have been an old Jewish legend first published in 1587 and with a possible actual subject in the person of astrologer, magician and alchemist Dr. Johann Faust who lived in Wurttemberg from 1480 until 1538 (230). It is therefore interesting to note that the method used by Faust to call forth the devil was “magic arts,” which probably involved the knowledge and application of alchemy and astrology (230). Other methods of invoking the devil especially during the Middle Ages include witchcraft, sorcery, and folk customs associated with devil-worship (231) as well as the use of crystal stones (Belanger 17) and even foods and drinks (Ritual and Magic 97). In fact, this is the reason why in the 14th century Pope Boniface VIII of the Catholic Church strengthened the power of the Inquisition to wipe out sorcerers and everyone who practiced black magic (Crow 231). Nevertheless, it is clear that in the past, the methods of calling forth the devil to effect a demonic possession mostly included a conscious pact with the devil through the black arts. However, the explanation for the current instances of demonic possession, which are rather unconscious, may lie in the theory of the scholastic writers Origen and Augustine. Both writers have actually theorized that these pacts with the devil are actually either “express or implied” (228). The former consists in “actually evoking the demon” while the latter in “merely expecting help from him” (228). It is also probable that this implied pact is at times unconscious and will therefore most likely trigger a series of psychological reactions and epileptic fits that would qualify as a demonic possession. Based on current psychological research done in Italy in 1996 most possessed victims are unaware of the possessions as it slowly progresses. (Ferracuti et al. 527) One documented account of demonic possession in the Renaissance is the case of the priest Urbain Grandier, who was burnt alive in 1634 for causing possessions (Crow 240). Just like data from current psychological research, the case of Grandier was rather more unconscious than conscious. Grandier, who often visited the nunnery of the Ursuline nuns in London, became disappointed when he was not assigned as the confessor of the nunnery when the original confessor died. What ensued after this disappointment was that the Mother Superior and the nuns began to behave in a “hysterical fashion” which was “utterly indecent” (240). Consequently, there was a trial and Grandier was sentenced to die at stake (240). This particular act of demonic possession may have been one of those considered by Origen and Augustine as an “implied” pact with the devil, where the one who invokes the evil spirit is believed to be able to do it unconsciously. Information from Indiana University also reveals a similar case with medical practitioners in ancient Mesopotamia. In this ancient geographic region in around 3000 BC, there were two types of medical practitioners. The first type was the “asu” or the usual physician for physical and physiological illnesses. This man usually treated wounds using fundamental antiseptic techniques such as “washing, bandaging and making plasters” (“Medicine in Ancient Mesopotamia”). However, the other type of medical practitioner, known as the “ashipu,” was actually a sorcerer. In fact, before the “asu” could give prescribe treatment to the patient, it was the “ashipu” who diagnosed the ailment. The job of the “ashipu” was to determine which particular god or demon caused the illness. If the cause can be remedied by the “asu,” the “ashipu” would recommend the patient to seek the former’s services. Otherwise, it was the “ashipu” himself who would drive out the spirit using “charms and magic spells” (“Medicine in Ancient Mesopotamia”). The fact that illnesses in ancient Mesopotamia are caused by demons must have also been instances of “implied” or unconscious pacts with the devil. Furthermore, these illnesses seemed to be milder forms of demonic possessions. Religious Views The Christian religion also bears witness to these illnesses believed to have been caused by the devil or by demons. In fact, the Gospel of Luke is replete with various accounts of people possessed by demons that have caused in the victim either a disease or an epileptic fit similar to modern documented cases of demonic possessions. In the Gospel of Luke, disease is often attributed to the presence of demons in the body of the affected person. When Jesus, taking a similar role as that of an ancient Mesopotamian “ashipu,” laid his hands on the sick people to cure their “various kinds of sicknesses” (Lk. 4:40), “demons came out of many people, shouting, ‘You are the Son of God!’” (Lk. 4:41). These demons, just like what modern psychology has determined, indeed are lucid and know God (Ferracuti et al. 527). In another passage, Jesus also healed many others with evil spirits (Lk. 7:21). However, in an earlier verse in the Gospel of Luke, Jesus heals a man in the synagogue who is “possessed by a demon, an impure spirit” (Lk. 4:33). This spirit, upon seeing Jesus, makes the man shout at the top of his voice, “Go away! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us?” (Lk. 4:34). This somehow parallels recent data from psychological research that state that a possessed person “roars, growls and barks” (Ferracuti et al. 527). Once more, two things can be concluded from these biblical accounts of demonic possession: the demons know God, and they cause in their victim either an illness or hysteria. Psychological Basis Anthropology, history and religion may have given us ample evidence on how demons inhabit the physical body of humans and may have provided us with sensible explanations on how these demonic possessions can possibly exist. Nevertheless, the fact remains that science alone can guarantee validity of evidence, and in the case of demonic possessions, this science is psychology. Based on a 1996 study conducted in the University of Rome Department of Psychiatry and Psychological Medicine, victims of demonic possessions demonstrated neurosis, resembling high-functioning Dissociative Identity Disorder, or DID (Ferracuti et al. 535). In fact, the possessions only seemed to “[fulfill] various needs for various persons [thus] giving them the opportunity to express behaviors or emotions that are denied or repressed” (536) when they are in a conscious state. Moreover, the study shows that most possessed victims were just depressed (532). An earlier study, in 1989, reveals that demonic possession is simply an act of a person “temporarily [losing] control over their behavior and voluntary actions [which are then interpreted as] involuntary happenings” (Spanos & Ward). Still, a much later study in Africa, in 2010, attributes demonic possession or the mass hysteria caused by it to “anxiety caused by political insurgence, and the pain and horror associated with the war” as well as to deeply-ingrained beliefs in the spirit world (Nakalawa et al. 46). Indeed, these scientific theories have labeled demonic possessions as mere psychological disturbances. Conclusion Demonic possessions are universally and traditionally believed to be caused by mythological beings known as demons. From the perspective of anthropology, these demons entice their victims through shape-shifting and eventually tempt them without their knowing it. Historical evidence, on the other hand, points out to the fact that demonic possessions may be either consciously effected or unconsciously initiated through pacts with the devil. Biblical evidence shows demonic possessions causing hysteria and diseases, and demons who know God. Nevertheless, it is current data from psychology that eventually shed light on the matter of validity of demons and demonic possessions. Past and recent psychological studies reveal that somehow demons are mere figments of the imagination and that demonic possessions are only expressions of repressed feelings, a loss of control over behavior, a long-standing anxiety caused by current problems or merely unconscious expressions of deep and often unconscious spiritual beliefs. Works Cited Beal, John P., Coriden, James A. & Green, Thomas J. New Commentary on the Code of Canon Law. New Jersey: Paulist Press, 2002. Print. Belanger, Michelle. Names of the Damned: The Dictionary of Demons. Minnesota:  Llewellyn Publications, 2010. Print. Craighead, W. Edward & Nemeroff, Charles B. The Concise Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology and Behavioral Science. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2004. Print. Crow, W. B. A History of Magic, Witchcraft and Occultism. London: The Aquarian Press, 1972. Print. Ferracuti, Stefano, Sacco, Roberto, & Lazzari, Renato. “Dissociative Trance Disorder: Clinical and Rorschach Findings in Ten Persons Reporting Demon Possession and Treated by Exorcism.” Journal of Personality Assessment 66:3 (1996): 525-539. Ulag.net. Web. Isaiah. New International Version. BibleGateway.com, 2011. Web. 25 Apr 2011. Luke. New International Version. BibleGateway.com, 2011. Web. 25 Apr 2011. Mack, Carol K. & Mack, Dinah. A Field Guide to Demons, Fairies, Fallen Angels, and Other Subversive Spirits. New York: Arcade Publishing Inc., 1998. Print. “Medicine in Ancient Mesopotamia.’” Indiana State University. Web. 23 Apr 2011. Nakalawa, L., Musisi, S., Kinyanda, E. & Okello, E.S. “Demon attack disease: a case report of mass hysteria after mass trauma in a primary school in Uganda.” African Journal of Traumatic Stress 1:1 (2010): 43-48. Peter Alderman Foundation Organization. Web. 24 Apr 2011. Ritual and Magic. Bristol: Orbis Publishing Ltd., 1997. Print. Spanos, Nicholas P. & Ward, Colleen A. “Hypnosis, demonic possession, and multiple personality: Strategic reenactments and disavowals of responsibility for actions.” Cross-Cultural and Research Methodology Series 12 (1989): 96-124. APA PsycNet. Web. 24 Apr 2011. Read More