The first type is usually associated with teenagers and is characterized by the movement of objects in the presence of a specific person. Without this person, it manifests itself in no way. The second type can affect people of any age, but is more common among adults. This type manifests itself in the most bizarre ways: teleportation of objects, levitation of the human body, and strange voice messages. Many of the physical phenomena associated with this type of poltergeist activity defy the laws of physics.
According to Douglas Scott Rogo, the demonic type of poltergeist may be completely unrelated to any individual, existing independently. Much of the same phenomenon can also be observed in the second type of poltergeist, as in the phenomenon of demonic possession. Are these phenomena related, or two sides of the same coin?
According to the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, the researcher explains, demonic entities can manifest themselves through two symptoms: “invasion” and possession. “Invasion” refers to the phenomena observed in cases of ghosts, haunted houses, and poltergeists: unexplained sounds, smells, noises, and the movement of various objects. Possession, on the other hand, manifests itself in the possessed person convulsing and shouting obscenities. These two symptoms can sometimes occur simultaneously.
The belief that demons or devils can inhabit the souls and bodies of people is widespread throughout almost the entire globe. Even in the most diverse cultures, the symptoms of this syndrome are strikingly similar, for example, in the United States and China: the same symptoms of demonic malaise syndrome—a sense of the influence of some diabolical external force, shouting blasphemies, and manifestations of supernatural powers—are common.
Even the rituals of exorcism, or exorcism, used by the Catholic Church and Taoist practices are remarkably similar. The practice of exorcism is common among Christians, Muslims, Hindus, and other religions. And in the canonical texts of Indo-Tibetan medicine, one can find detailed descriptions of the ritual of “gdon” therapy—methods for treating the aberrant, malevolent behavior of nature spirits capable of possessing a person. These methods include kamlaniye (shamanic rituals), prayers, ritual chanting, and passes.
The Orthodox priest, Father Evgeny, explained that rituals of exorcism have been known since the New Testament, which describes, for example, Christ healing the Gadarene demoniac. Later, in the 16th century, the ritual of healing the possessed was included in the service book of Metropolitan Peter Mogila of Kyiv, who compiled and founded the rite of exorcism. Catholicism uses the ritual of exorcism, that is, the expulsion of devils, devils, demons, demons, and other similarly vile creatures, united by the common concept of “evil spirits.”
In cases of demonic possession and in cases of poltergeist activity, both the possessed and the host often exhibit the same supernatural abilities, such as the ability to recognize things that cannot be known by any known means or the ability to move objects without touching them.
Here is how the Roman Catholic Church’s teaching describes the symptoms of true possession:
– the possessed speak in languages ​​unknown to them or understand languages ​​that they have never learned;
– they predict the future or exhibit the ability of telepathy and clairvoyance;
– they display incredible physical strength or abilities that are not typical for their age;
– They can demonstrate any of the most evil manifestations attributed to demonic entities (this includes some of the poltergeist manifestations).
As with many ancient cases, modern manifestations of possession often feature poltergeist symptoms, such as the 1928 case of a 44-year-old woman possessed in Iowa, USA. She had suffered from symptoms of demonic possession since the age of fourteen, when she developed an overwhelming aversion to religious objects. This was compounded by an aversion to all sacred objects.
Soon, she began hearing taunting voices mocking her. A psychiatric examination revealed the girl to be normal. She could understand foreign languages, distinguish between consecrated and unconsecrated food, and admitted that the devil himself spoke through her. She suffered like this until the age of 44, when she was ordered to undergo an exorcism at Father Steiger’s church.
The ritual was performed by Father Theophilus, the exorcist himself. He had barely uttered the first words of the exorcism formula when the possessed woman was instantly torn from the hands of the guards holding her. Her body flew through the air and literally stuck to the wall high above the door! Fear gripped those present. Only Father Theophilus remained. He ordered her removed from the wall. But this was accomplished with great difficulty, despite the fact that the smooth wall offered no support for her.
When she was removed, the ritual was resumed. Immediately, noises, howls, and voices began to echo throughout the church. They clearly weren’t coming from the possessed woman’s mouth, but they were literally terrorizing the nuns. The possessed woman’s entire body suddenly began to swell to incredible sizes (just like Esther Cox’s during the poltergeist outbreak in Amherst, USA, in 1878).
But this was only the beginning of the manifestation of demonic forces that began to be observed in the house of Father Steiger and in the houses of some other participants in the ritual.
Steiger’s father’s house began to experience strange knocking sounds, which eventually turned into loud bangs. And one day, he nearly died after experiencing some strange intrusion into his consciousness while driving.
However, the rituals of exorcism proceeded as usual. After twenty-three days, the possession was broken. However, the possession later returned, but was easily dispelled by another exorcist.
A connection between possession and poltergeist activity is discovered in those rare cases where the poltergeist host begins to exhibit symptoms of possession. A typical case of this kind occurred in 1949 in Georgetown, USA.
A thirteen-year-old boy became the host, and then the victim, of first an “invasion,” and then a possession. It all began with a game of séance. Soon, knocking and scratching began, continuing into the night. Loud cracking sounds were heard around an icon of Christ. After ten days, the sounds ceased, but three days later they resumed in the boy’s room, in the form of creaking and footsteps on the floor. The family believed it was the spirit of their recently deceased relative making himself known.
Later, the manifestations became more pronounced. Clothes would disappear, then reappear in the strangest places. A chair with the boy sitting in it would tip over. In his presence, various objects would fly into the air and “float” around the room. He was also restless at school—objects would break loose there, too. The boy was dismissed from school, and his parents were forced to hire a private tutor. Doctors and psychologists who examined him found no abnormalities.
Soon, a new symptom began to appear: several times, he would rise into the air directly from the bed he was lying on, sometimes along with the mattress, and “float” in the air. This also happened in the hospital where he was admitted in hopes of being cured.
The concerned parents called in priests, who diagnosed possession. The boy was convulsing, jumping up and down on his bed, like a puppet controlled by strings. Sometimes he would fly off the bed and remain suspended in the air, completely unsupported. After six weeks, the seizures subsided.
After this, the boy seemed to take on a different personality. His boyish voice became low, hoarse, and threatening, constantly uttering obscenities. Painful scratches appeared on the skin of his abdomen. Lutheran priests who entered the house were thrown to the floor by an invisible force.
The boy’s parents turned to the Catholic Church, where a ten-week exorcism ritual was conducted by two Catholic priests. During the first sessions, the 40-kilogram boy leaped out of his bed with extraordinary agility, scattered the priests, and struck the exorcist’s hand with terrible force.
The boy’s body swelled to incredible proportions, his head moved like a snake’s, and his spittle struck the priests’ eyes with phenomenal accuracy. The air in the room where he lay became almost icy. Eventually, he began speaking Latin.
One witness recounts the following observation: one night, a boy broke free from the attendants’ grip and flew above the exorcist, who was standing some distance from the boy’s bed, holding a ritual book. The exorcist thought he was the object of the boy’s attack. But the boy needed the ritual book. And when he got his hands on it, he didn’t tear it, but rather, somehow, destroyed it. The book instantly turned into a cloud of confetti!
Eventually, the possession wore off as the exorcism sessions continued. The boy was restored to normal, but he remembered nothing of what he had endured. The former possessed man converted to Catholicism and lived a normal life, completely forgetting that he had once broken the bones of two attendants and nearly killed his mother.
But exorcism rituals don’t always end so “happily.” For example, according to the newspaper “Sun,” in a small Italian town in 1991, priest Guntano Villiotta died during an exorcism. He had been asked to exorcise a fifteen-year-old girl whose mother and grandmother suspected her of having relations with evil spirits.
Mr. Villiotta, as required, requested Bishop Franco Steza’s permission to perform an exorcism. However, he was refused permission due to his lack of experience in this dangerous undertaking. The lack of authorization did not deter the priest. He decided to perform the ritual at any cost and entered the unfortunate girl’s house with a cross and a Bible. The exorcism lasted two hours.
When the girl’s mother entered the room where the séance was taking place, she found the priest tortured with inhuman, extraordinary cruelty and force. “His body was literally torn to pieces!” the bishop declared. Immediately after the incident, the girl from whom the demon was being exorcised confessed: “During the séance, I heard some strange voice repeating the same phrase: ‘My name is the Devourer!'” The girl remembers the priest’s agony as he died, but doesn’t know how it happened.
But this case is an example of a kind of “pure” possession. Let’s return to cases where the symptoms of possession and poltergeist activity are mixed. The history of the possession phenomenon contains a number of such examples.
In 1776, several people in France simultaneously convulsed, “under the influence of the devil.” Their bodies swelled. Furniture moved spontaneously in their presence, and human voices were heard in animals.
In 1850, also in France, a woman suffered from convulsions and fits. She was thrown to the floor by an invisible force. Foam came from her mouth, and under the influence of the “devil,” she screamed obscenities. Unexplained thumping sounds were constantly heard around her, and her body would float in mid-air. She spoke in unknown languages.
Also in France, two brothers, aged seven and nine, suffered from possession between 1864 and 1869. They convulsed, spun around at incredible speeds, screamed obscenities, and expressed disgust for all objects of religious worship. Suddenly, they began speaking in unknown languages ​​and predicting the future. Objects and objects levitated in their presence.
Without multiplying the examples, we’ll simply note that similar cases are known from the 20th century. They demonstrate that the manifestations of both possession and poltergeist activity overlap in some cases. However, there are clear differences between “teenage” and demonic poltergeists. However, there are also similarities, such as the movement of objects, strange noises, and knocking. However, demonic poltergeists exhibit phenomena that are very rare and atypical for “teenage” poltergeists.
For example, so far, no “teenage” poltergeist has been observed to suddenly begin speaking in an unknown language. Furthermore, bodily levitation is very rare in “teenage” poltergeists. Demonic poltergeists are more likely to engage in skin punctures and dangerous “attacks” on their victims. These attacks are not only destructive but can also be deadly, lasting for years. “Teenage” poltergeists, on the other hand, typically live a short lifespan.
Fortunately, demonic poltergeists are much less common than “teenage” ones.
From the book “Don’t Look Them in the Eye.”
