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  The International Library of Psychology

  POSSESSION:

  DEMONIACAL AND OTHER

  Founded by C. K. Ogden

  The International Library of Psychology

  ANTHROPOLOGY AND PSYCHOLOGY

  In 6 Volumes

  I

  The Primitive Mind and Modern Civilization

  Aldrich

  II

  An Approach to the Psychology of Religion

  Flower

  III

  Possession: Demoniacal and Other

  Oesterreich

  IV

  Medicine, Magic and Religion

  Rivers

  V

  Psychology and Ethnology

  Rivers

  VI

  Psychology and Politics

  Rivers

  POSSESSION:

  DEMONIACAL AND OTHER

  Among Primitive Races, in Antiquity, the Middle Ages and Modern Times

  T K OESTERREICH

  First published in 1930

  by Routledge

  Reprinted in 1999, 2000, 2001

  by Routledge

  2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN

  Transferred to Digital Printing 2007

  Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group

  © 1930 T K Oesterreich, Translated by D Ibberson

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

  The publishers have made every effort to contact authors/copyright holders of the works reprinted in the International Library of Psychology. This has not been possible in every case, however, and we would welcome correspondence from those individuals/companies we have been unable to trace.

  These reprints are taken from original copies of each book. In many cases the condition of these originals is not perfect. The publisher has gone to great lengths to ensure the quality of these reprints, but wishes to point out that certain characteristics of the original copies will, of necessity, be apparent in reprints thereof.

  British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

  A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

  Possession: Demoniacal and Other

  ISBN 0415-20952-8

  Anthropology and Psychology: 6 Volumes

  ISBN 0415-21125-5

  The International Library of Psychology: 204 Volumes

  ISBN 0415-19132-7

  CONTENTS

  TRANSLATOR’S NOTE

  FOREWORD

  PART I

  THE NATURE OF THE STATE OF POSSESSION

  INTRODUCTION

  THE CONSTANT NATURE OF POSSESSION THROUGHOUT THE AGES

  CHAPTER

  I. SOURCES

  II. THE EXTERNAL SIGNS OF POSSESSION

  Changes in the physiognomy of the possessed

  Changes of voice

  Muscular strength

  Old descriptions

  III. THE SUBJECTIVE STATE OF THE POSSESSED

  i. THE SOMNAMBULISTIC FORM OF POSSESSION.

  Apparent substitution of the spiritual individuality operating in the organism

  Examples of dialogues with “possessing spirits,”

  Autobiography of one of these

  Somnambulistic possession without inner duplication

  Transformation of the personality

  The problem of division of the subject

  ii. THE LUCID FORM OF POSSESSION.

  Kerner’s and Eschenmayer’s cases

  The Janet-Raymond case

  Jeanne des Anges

  Father Surin

  Staudenmaier

  Caroline St.

  Fritz Algar

  Montan

  Possession and obsession

  Temptations

  Transformations of lucid possession

  Jeanne des Anges

  IV. THE GENESIS AND EXTINCTION OF POSSESSION. EXORCISM

  Autosuggestion and compulsive processes

  Fathers Surin, Tranquille, Lactance

  Kerner’s cases

  Causation of possession by medical treatment

  Expulsion of “possessing spirits,”

  The magic papyrus of Paris

  The Manuale Exorcismorum

  Exorcism in Japan

  Cure by simple autosuggestion

  A modern psychological exorcism by P. Janet

  The death through possession of Lactance

  Extension of the idea of exorcism

  Age and sex of the possessed

  Modern extensions of the idea of possession

  Unconscious possession

  Allied morbid states of the present day: psychasthenia

  Acute hysterical attacks

  History of psychic pathology

  PART II

  THE DISTRIBUTION OF POSSESSION AND ITS IMPORTANCE FROM THE STANDPOINT OF RELIGIOUS PSYCHOLOGY

  V. SPONTANEOUS POSSESSION PROPERLY SO CALLED AMONGST PRIMITIVE RACES

  Possession in Africa

  Amongst the Kabyle

  In Central Africa

  In Abyssinia

  In East Africa

  Amongst the Ba-Ronga of South-East Africa

  In South Africa

  In Asia

  Amongst the Bataks of the Malay Archipelago

  VI. SPONTANEOUS POSSESSION IN THE HIGHER CIVILIZATIONS

  (i.) IN THE PAST

  1. Antiquity.—The region of the Tigris and Euphrates

  Ancient Egypt

  Hellenistic Egypt

  Classical antiquity

  Primitive and classical Greece

  Late antiquity

  Early Christian times

  The Christians as exorcists

  Possession amongst the Jews

  The Old Testament: Saul

  The time of Jesus

  The last days of Judaism

  Possession in Ancient India

  2. The Middle Ages.—Cases from the life of St. Augustine

  Bernard of Clairvaux

  Henry the Saint

  The Kabbala

  In Syria

  In Northern Africa, 186.

  3. Modern times.—Luther

  The epidemics of possession

  The possessed and witches

  Zooanthropy

  The Age of Enlightenment

  The romantic period

  In France and England

  Russia

  Greece

  America

  (ii.) IN THE PRESENT.

  (The Catholic attitude

  Protestantism

  Spiritualism

  France

  Germany

  Russia

  The Jews of Eastern Europe

  America

  The Near East

  India

  Siam

  Burmah

  China

  Japan

  Egypt

  Arabia

  Abyssinia

  VII. ARTIFICIAL AND VOLUNTARY POSSESSION AMONGST PRIMITIVE PEOPLES. SO-CALLED SHAMANISM

  Autosuggestibility of primitive races

  Cases of death by autosuggestion

  Artificial and voluntary possession amongst primitives

  Masked dances

  Shamanism amongst the pigmies of the Malay Peninsula

  Amongst the Veddas of Ceylon

  Shamanism amongst primitive races of normal stature

  In Central Africa

  Tripolitania

  East Africa
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  The Malay Archipelago

  The Bataks of Sumatra

  Malacca

  The Tonga Islands

  First-hand testimony of a native

  Melanesia

  New Guinea

  The Fiji Islands

  America

  The masked dances of the South American Indians

  North American Indians

  The semi-civilizations of ancient America

  VIII. THE SHAMANISM OF THE NORTH ASIATIC PEOPLES IN ITS RELATIONSHIP TO POSSESSION

  Ancient accounts

  Gmelin

  Wrangel

  Castrén

  Pallas

  Choice of Shamans

  Their social importance

  True North Asiatic Shamanism not possession

  Radloff’s description

  Tschubinow

  IX. ARTIFICIAL AND VOLUNTARY. POSSESSION AMONGST THE HIGHER CIVILIZATIONS

  (i.) IN THE PAST (THE GRÆCO-ROMAN WORLD).

  Cassandra

  The Pythoness of Delphi

  Recent descriptions of her states of inspiration

  Ancient sources

  The problem of the chasm in the Adyton of the temple

  The psychological nature of the Pythoness’ state

  The part played by the priests

  The oracles

  History of the authority and influence of the oracle

  Relations between Christian antiquity and the Pythoness

  Later views

  The Sibyls

  The cult of Dionysos

  The “Bacchæ” of Euripides

  Religious fervour of the cult

  Divine possession in the Mysteries of Jamblichus

  The corybantism of the Phrygian cults, 344. Possession in the other oracles

  Plato’s theory of possession

  The Emperor Julian

  Possession in Egypt

  (ii.) IN THE PRESENT.

  In Asia

  Possession in the Hindu religion

  The “devil-dancers” of Southern India and Ceylon

  Burmah

  Siam

  China

  Early accounts

  Marco Polo

  Wu possession in the Chinese oracles and their kinship with that of Delphi

  “Spirit-hopping,”

  Mrs. Taylor’s account of Chinese possession

  Possession by snake-spirits

  Europe and America

  The spiritualist movement

  Alleged incarnations

  . Semi-somnambulism

  The Piper case

  Automatic writing and speech

  Extension of the idea of possession

  CONCLUSION

  General survey of the distribution and importance of possession

  Possession and rationalism

  The situation in the primitive world

  APPENDIX ON PARAPSYCHOLOGY

  Parapsychic states in primitive possession

  Amongst civilized races

  The problem of the parapsychic faculties of the Pythoness at Delphi

  The philology of neo-Shamanism in the light of tradition

  Recognition of parapsychic phenomena by German idealism and speculative theism

  Attitude of modern philologists and historians

  Dependence of philologico-historical criticism on the further development of parapsychology

  INDEX

  TRANSLATOR’S NOTE

  PROFESSOR OESTERREICH, the author of this work, has made a survey of the history of Possession from the most ancient times down to the present day and in all countries of the inhabited globe, together with an analysis of its nature and relationship to other phenomena, such as hysteria and the manifestations of spiritualism.

  The subject treated is a very fascinating one, to the general reader as well as to the student of psychology and ethnology. It would be difficult to see the human race in a more fantastic light than that cast by these stories of Possession. The work abounds, moreover, in suggestions for further research.

  As regards the text, the authorized French version has been followed in its occasional abbreviations of quotations given in the original work, and M. Sudre’s footnotes on spiritualism in France have also been inserted. The German text has, however, been used throughout for purposes of translation. All English quotations have been traced to source except one, which it has not been possible to discover, and classical extracts, many of which the author gives in the original, have either been translated or replaced by corresponding passages from English versions. The passages from the Bible are given in the Rev. Dr. Moffat’s well-known version, by the kind consent of Messrs. Hodder and Stoughton, its publishers.

  D. I.

  FOREWORD

  THIS book is the result of investigations which have been published in the first two issues (simultaneously produced) of the review Deutsche Psychologie. The present extensive work is not, however, a mere reprint; it is very much fuller than the original publications. As the subject-matter is gathered from widely scattered literary sources, some of which are difficult of access, so that the reader cannot be expected to examine them, I have not hesitated to quote freely, since first-hand knowledge of the texts cannot be replaced by any secondary account. The attention of classical philologists is especially directed to the passages concerning the oracle of Delphi (pp. 311 sqq.) and the cult of Dionysos (pp. 335 sqq.). I should think myself well rewarded for my labours if they for their part were induced to approach these two problems, which are of peculiar interest to the philosopher, from a fresh angle.

  After the completion of the work I was obliged through considerations of space to renounce the idea of adding a table of relevant literature. Essential works are indicated by the notes.

  THE AUTHOR.

  TÜBINGEN,

  Early March, 1921.

  PART I

  THE NATURE OF THE STATE OF POSSESSION

  INTRODUCTION

  THE CONSTANT NATURE OF POSSESSION THROUGHOUT THE AGES

  THE book affording to us inhabitants of the European zone of culture our earliest glimpse of the states called “possession”1 is the New Testament. Bible stories often give, in fact, an accurate picture of these states, which were extremely frequent in the latter days of the ancient world. To the authors of the New Testament they were evidently very familiar, and their accounts, even should they be recognized as of little or no historical value, bear in themselves the stamp of truth. They are pictures of typical states exactly reproduced.2

  The following are a few quotations to refresh the reader’s memory:

  And as soon as he stepped out of the boat a man from the tombs came to meet him, a man with an unclean spirit who dwelt among the tombs; by this time no one could bind him, not even with a chain, for he had often been bound with fetters and chains and had snapped the chains and broken the fetters—nobody could tame him. All night and day among the tombs and the hills he shrieked and gashed himself with stones. On catching sight of Jesus from afar he ran and knelt before him, shrieking aloud, “Jesus, son of God most High, what business have you with me? By God, I adjure you, do not torture me.” (For he had said, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit.”) Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” “Legion,” he said, “there is a host of us.” And they begged him earnestly not to send them out of the country (Mark v 2–10).

  I will pass over the rest of the passage, the alleged entry of the devils into a herd of swine. The same story is to be found in Matthew vii 28–33 and in Luke viii 26–39.

  Some strolling Jewish exorcists also undertook to pronounce the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying: “I adjure you to the Jesus whom Paul preaches!” The seven sons of Sceuas, a Jewish high priest, used to do this. But the evil spirit retorted, “Jesus I know and Paul I know, but you—who are you?” And the man in whom the evil spirit resided leapt at them, overpowered them all, and belaboured them, till they rushed out of the house stripped and wound
ed (Acts xix 13–16).1

  Now there was a man with an unclean spirit in their synagogue, who at once shrieked out, “Jesus of Nazaret, what business have you with us? Have you come to destroy us? We know who you are, you are God’s holy One.” But Jesus checked it; “Be quiet,” he said, “come out of him.” And after convulsing him the unclean spirit did come out of him with a loud cry (Mark i 23–27).

  A man from the crowd answered him. “Teacher, I brought my son to you; he has a dumb spirit, and whenever it seizes him it throws him down, and he foams at the mouth and grinds his teeth. He is wasting away with it; so I told your disciples to cast it out, but they could not.” He answered them, “O faithless generation, how long must I still be with you? How long have I to bear with you? Bring him to me.” So they brought the boy to him, and when the spirit saw Jesus it at once convulsed the boy; he fell on the ground and rolled about foaming at the mouth. Jesus asked his father, “How long has he been like this?” “From childhood,” he said; “it has thrown him into fire and water many a time, to destroy him. If you can do anything, do help us, do have pity on us.” Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’! Anything can be done for one who believes.” At once the father of the boy cried out, “I do believe; help my unbelief.” Now as Jesus saw that a crowd was rapidly gathering, he checked the unclean spirit. “Deaf and dumb spirit,” he said, “leave him, I command you, and never enter him again.” And it did come out, after shrieking aloud and convulsing him violently. The child turned like a corpse, so that most people said, “he is dead”; but, taking his hands, Jesus raised him and he got up (Mark ix 17–27. Same story in Matthew xvii 14–21, and Luke ix 35–45).

  Then a blind and dumb demoniac was brought to him, and he healed him, so that the dumb man spoke and saw (Matt. xii 22).

  When he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath, there was a woman who for eighteen years had suffered weakness from an evil spirit; indeed she was bent double and quite unable to raise herself. Jesus noticed her and called to her, “Woman, you are released from your weakness.” He laid his hands on her, and instantly she became erect and glorified God (Luke xiii 10–13).

  Comparing these brief stories with accounts of the phenomena of possession in later times, we find what may be described as the perfect similarity of the facts extremely surprising, while our respect for the historic truth of the Gospels is enhanced to an extraordinary degree. Excluding the story of the herd of swine, the narratives are of an entirely realistic and objective character. In particular the succinct accounts of Jesus’ relation to these events, his success and failure together with that of his disciples, as well as the particulars of his cures,1 coincide so exactly with what we know of these states from the point of view of present-day psychology, that it is impossible to avoid the impression that we are dealing with a tradition which is veracious.