Devil- a religious and mythological character, the supreme spirit of evil, the ruler of Hell, inciting people to commit sin. Also known as Satan, Lucifer, Beelzebub, Mephistopheles, Woland; in Islam - Iblis. The younger devil in the Slavic tradition is called the devil and demons obey him; in English and German, demons are a synonym for the devil; in Islam, younger devils are called shaitans.
The history of the origin of belief in the devil
Belief in the devil is the most important component of the doctrine of Christianity, Judaism, Islam and a number of other religions.
Belief in the devil is not just a matter of history. The question of the existence of the devil has become the subject of a debate that has been and is being conducted by theologians. This issue was also raised during public speeches by leading church leaders, who, as a rule, defend the doctrine of the real existence of the devil as a personal being, which has a huge influence on everything that happens in the world. By referring to the devil, Satan, and “evil spirits” as the culprits of all world disasters, the real culprits of the disasters were shielded. Therefore, it is necessary to talk about how the belief in the devil arose, what place it occupies in the system of some religious teachings. The belief in the existence of evil supernatural beings (devils, demons) is of just as ancient origin as the belief in the existence of good ones - gods.
Early forms of religion are characterized by ideas about the existence in nature of many invisible supernatural beings - spirits, good and evil, useful and harmful to humans. It was believed that his well-being depended on them: health and illness, success and failure.
Belief in spirits and their influence on people’s lives still constitutes the most important element of some religions. Belief in good and evil spirits, characteristic of primitive religions, in the process of the evolution of religious beliefs took on the character of belief in gods and demons, and in some religions, for example in Zoroastrianism, ideas about the struggle between evil and good principles in nature and society. The good principle is represented by the creator of heaven, earth, and man; he is opposed by the god of the evil principle and his assistants. There is a constant struggle between them, which in the future should end with the end of the world and the defeat of the evil god. This system had a huge influence on Christianity and Judaism. In the process of changes that have taken place over thousands of years in human society, religious beliefs have also changed, and a system of ideas and ideas of modern religions has emerged. Modern religions often include, in modified form, many of the primitive beliefs, in particular the belief in good and evil spirits.
Of course, in modern religions the belief in good and evil gods is very different from the belief of primitive man, but the origins of these ideas should undoubtedly be sought in the beliefs of the distant past. The ideas about good and evil spirits also underwent “further processing”: on the basis of these ideas, in changed social conditions, with the formation of a social and political hierarchy in society, a belief arose in the main good god and his assistants, on the one hand, and the main evil god ( Satan) and his assistants - on the other.
If belief in spirits arose spontaneously as one of the early forms of religion, then belief in the devil in the process of evolution of religion was largely the result
creativity of church organizations. One of the main original sources of the teachings of Judaism, Christianity and Islam about God and the devil was the Bible. Just as the biblical god became the main god of these religions, so the devil, who is spoken of in the Bible, became next to God, and the evil spirits of primitive religions - the fruits of popular imagination - became devils, brownies, merman, etc. However, it is worth noting that a large role in creating the image of the devil. Belief in the devil occupies an essential place in Christian theology. “The Church could not do without Satan, just as without God himself; it was vitally interested in the existence of evil spirits, for without Satan and the host of his servants it would be impossible to keep believers in obedience.” Belief in the devil as a real being - the source of all evil in the world, influencing the lives of individuals and all of humanity, is preached by churches of all religions today just as it was hundreds of years ago.
Devil in Christianity
In the Old Testament
In its original meaning, “Satan” is a common noun, meaning one who hinders and interferes. Satan first appears as the name of a specific angel in the book of the prophet Zechariah (Zechariah 3:1), where Satan acts as an accuser in the heavenly court.
According to Christian tradition, the Devil first appears on the pages of the Bible in the book of Genesis in the form of a serpent, who seduced Eve with the temptation to taste the forbidden fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, as a result of which Eve and Adam sinned with pride and were expelled from paradise, and are doomed to earn their bread in by the sweat of hard labor. As part of God's punishment for this, all common snakes are forced to “walk on their bellies” and eat “the dust of the ground” (Gen. 3:14-3:15).
The Bible also describes Satan as Leviathan. Here he is a huge sea creature or a flying dragon. In a number of books of the Old Testament, Satan is called the angel who tests the faith of the righteous (see Job 1:6–12). In the book of Job, Satan questions Job's righteousness and invites the Lord to test him. Satan is clearly subordinate to God and is one of his servants (bnei Ha-Elohim - “sons of God”, in the ancient Greek version - angels) (Job 1:6) and cannot act without his permission. He can lead nations and bring down fire on the Earth (Job 1:15-17), as well as influence atmospheric phenomena (Job 1:18), and send diseases (Job 2:7).
In the Christian tradition, Satan is attributed to Isaiah’s prophecy about the king of Babylon (Is. 14:3-20). According to the interpretation, he was created as an angel, but having become proud and wanting to be equal to God (Is. 14:13-14), he was cast down to earth, becoming after the fall the “prince of darkness,” the father of lies, a murderer (John 8:44) - the leader of a rebellion against God. From the prophecy of Isaiah (Is. 14:12) the “angelic” name of Satan is taken - הילל, translated as “Light-Bearer”, lat. Lucifer).
In the New Testament
In the Gospel, Satan offers Jesus Christ: “I will give you the power over all these kingdoms and the glory of them, for it has been given to me, and I give it to whomever I want” (Luke 4:6).
Jesus Christ says to the people who wanted Him dead: “Your father is the devil; and you want to do the lusts of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning and did not stand in the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks his own, for he is a liar and
the father of lies” (John 8:44). Jesus Christ saw the fall of Satan: “And he said to them: I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning” (Luke 10:18).
The Apostle Paul indicates the habitat of Satan: he is “the prince of the power of the air” (Eph. 2:2), his servants are “the rulers of the darkness of this world,” “the spirits of wickedness in high places” (Eph. 6:12). He also claims that Satan is capable of externally transforming himself (μετασχηματίζεται) into an angel of light (άγγελον φωτός) (2 Cor. 11:14).
In the Revelation of John the Evangelist, Satan is described as the devil and “a great red dragon with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems” (Rev. 12:3, 13:1, 17:3, 20:2). He will be followed by a part of the angels, called in the Bible “unclean spirits” or “angels of Satan.” Will be cast down to earth in battle with the archangel Michael (Rev. 12:7–9, 20:2,3, 7–9), after Satan tries to eat the baby who is to become the shepherd of the nations (Rev. 12:4–9 ).
Jesus Christ completely and finally defeated Satan by taking on the sins of people, dying for them, and rising from the dead (Col. 2:15). On the Day of Judgment, Satan will fight the Angel who holds the key to the Abyss, after which he will be bound and cast into the Abyss for a thousand years (Rev. 20:2-3). After a thousand years, he will be released for a short time and after the second battle will be cast into the “lake of fire and brimstone” forever (Rev. 20:7-10).
Belief in the Devil in the Koran and Islam
Islam arose at the beginning of the 7th century. n. e. In the pre-Islamic religious beliefs of the Arabs, belief in spirits - genies, good and evil, occupied a large place. The famous Soviet Arabist E. A. Belyaev writes: “...Belief in genies, whom Arab fantasy represented as intelligent creatures created from smokeless fire and air, was almost universal. These creatures, like people, were divided into two sexes and endowed with reason and human passions. Therefore, they often left the desert deserts in which the imagination of the Arabs had placed them, and entered into communication with people. Sometimes this communication resulted in offspring..."
The pre-Muslim belief in the existence of jinn entered into the teachings of Islam. They and their activities are spoken of in the Koran, the holy book of Islam, and in traditions. Some of the jinn, according to the Koran, surrendered themselves to Allah, while others abandoned him (LXXII, 1, 14). The number of jinn is very large. In addition to Allah, the jinn are controlled by King Sulaiman (Solomon): by the command of Allah, “they make for him whatever he wishes” - altars, images, bowls, tanks, cauldrons (XXXIV, 12).
In the period preceding Islam, the religions of neighboring peoples, mainly Christianity and Judaism, spread among the Arabs. Many biblical stories, for example about the creation of the world and man (about Adam and Eve and others), were included in the Koran in a slightly modified form; some characters from the Bible also appear in the Koran. Among them are Musa (Moses), Harun (Aaron), Ibrahim (Abraham), Daud (David), Isaac (Isaac), Isa (Jesus) and others.
The commonality of Muslim religious ideas with biblical ones was facilitated by the fact that, as Engels noted, the main content of the religious and tribal traditions of the ancient Jews and ancient Arabs “was Arabic or, rather, general Semitic”: “the Jewish so-called holy scripture is nothing more than a record ancient Arab religious and tribal traditions, modified by the early separation of the Jews from their neighbors - related but remaining nomadic tribes."
The demonology of the Koran is very similar to the biblical one. Along with the army of jinn, the head of the demons Iblis occupies a place in the teachings of Islam. All the evil in the world comes from him. According to the teachings of Islam, “when Adam appeared, Allah ordered the angels to worship him. All the angels obeyed, except Iblis (corrupted diabolos), the devil (sheitan, from “satan”; borrowed from Judaism). Iblis, created from fire, refused to bow to the one created from dust. Allah cursed him, but he received a reprieve that will last until the Last Judgment. He uses this delay to seduce people starting with Adam and Eve. At the end of time, he, along with the demons who serve him, will be cast into hell."
In Islam, the devil turns out to be either a single being, an adversary almost equal to God, or a collection of subordinate spirits of darkness. “The image of the devil, like the image of Mohammed, stands at the center of religious consciousness.”
Associated with the belief in demons is the belief that people are “possessed” by them. Islam, like Judaism and Christianity, promotes savage ideas about demons possessing people and their expulsion by the servants of Allah. “Folk beliefs attribute evil deeds to demons in both the East and the Muslim West. As in the Christian Middle Ages, an evil spirit is expelled from a possessed person (majnun). Spells, amulets and talismans serve to ward off or pacify these forces of darkness, which are especially dangerous to life during childbirth and to newborns.”
Thus, in Islam, as in Judaism and Christianity, belief in a good God is inextricably linked with belief in evil spirits - demons and the devil.
In Slavic mythology
In the pantheon of Slavic gods, evil forces are represented by several spirits; there is no single god of evil. After the advent of Christianity among the Slavs, the word demon became synonymous with the word devil, which, from the 11th century in Rus', Christians began to collectively call all pagan deities. The younger devil stands out - the devil, to whom demons obey. The word demon was translated in Greek in the Bible. δαίμον (demon), however, in the English and German Bibles it was translated by the word devil (English devil, German teufel), and is a foreign synonym for demon to this day.
In Christian folk mythology, long-standing and stable ideas have developed about the appearance of devils, or rather their bodily image, since devils are also evil spirits. The idea of the devil retained remnants of Indo-European mythology, overlaid with the later Christian idea that all pagan deities were demons and personified evil, and mixed with Judeo-Christian ideas about the Devil and fallen angels. In ideas about the devil, there is a similarity with the Greek Pan - the patron of cattle breeding, the spirit of fields and forests, and Veles (Baltic Vyalny). However, the Christian devil, unlike his pagan prototypes, is not the patron of cattle breeding, but is a pest of people. In beliefs, devils take the form of animals of the old cult - goats, wolves, dogs, ravens, snakes, etc. It was believed that devils have a generally humanoid (anthropomorphic) appearance, but with the addition of some fantastic or monstrous details. The most common appearance is identical to the image of ancient Pan, fauns and satyrs - horns, tail and goat legs or hooves, sometimes wool, less often a pig's snout, claws, bat wings, etc. They are often described with eyes burning like coals. In this form, devils are depicted in numerous paintings, icons, frescoes and book illustrations in both Western and Eastern Europe. In Orthodox hagiographic literature, devils are described primarily in the form of Ethiopians.
Fairy tales tell that the devil serves Lucifer, to whom he instantly flies to the underworld. He hunts human souls, which he tries to obtain from people by deception, induction, or contract, although such a plot is rare in Lithuanian fairy tales. In this case, the devil usually ends up being fooled by the hero of the fairy tale. One of the famous ancient references to the sale of the soul and the image of the character contains the Gigantic Codex of the early 13th century.
Satanism
Satanism is not a homogeneous phenomenon, but a concept that denotes several heterogeneous cultural and religious phenomena. Protestantism can serve as a good analogy for understanding this phenomenon. Protestants, in principle, also do not exist in nature: people who consider themselves to be part of this branch of Christianity will be either Lutherans, Baptists, Pentecostals, and so on.
We can talk about at least five terms that are used when trying to define Satanism. With the exception of the very concept of “Satanism”, these are: anti-Christianity, devil-worship (or devil-worship), Wicca, magic and even neo-paganism in general. Somewhere between these concepts that we will describe is “real” Satanism.
Devil worship
The term “devil worship” refers to the worship of Satan in the form in which this image is recorded in Christianity, primarily medieval. Researchers do not designate such worship of the forces of evil as “Satanism.” Devil worship is, in a sense, one of the Christian inversions. In any value system there is a place for anti-values - what in Christian civilization we call sins, in modern ethics - misdeeds, mistakes, and in modern depth psychology - the “terrible and dark” unconscious. In any of these systems, inversion is possible, when anti-values take the place of values.
A person looks at a dualistic picture of the world and comes to the conclusion that he does not want to be “good”, and for a number of reasons - aesthetic, biographical, psychological, and so on - he is attracted to the world of anti-values. But anti-values can only be taken from the world where they are created, and in this regard, the devil-worshipper, although he is not a Christian, exists in the Christian system of thought. He may recognize a number of Christian dogmas, but in his mind they mutate. For example, he may believe that the devil will win in the end, and then we can talk about hidden Zoroastrianism in its very simplified version. But it is important to understand that the logic of devil worship is the logic of the Christian worldview turned inside out.
Wicca
Wicca is an independent tradition that can be mislabeled with the term “Satanism” and is often confused with neo-paganism in general. Its founder, Gerald Gardner, reformed the European witchcraft and magic tradition associated with covens, reformulating it into a standardized complex implicated in religious polytheism. When a Wiccan priest and priestess speak to a god and goddess, they are admitting the existence of magic as the control of supernatural forces. Wicca is a religion first and a magical practice second. Wiccans can worship different gods who personify the forces of nature, some human abilities, or the functions of the world. But at the same time, Wiccans will try to maintain harmony and will not worship only dark forces.
Anti-Christianity
The backbone of anti-Christianity consists of people from whose point of view Christianity cannot give anything good. Christian values do not suit them. There is no God as the Christian tradition describes him. But anti-Christianity is not atheism, but rather an attempt to point out the negative role of Christianity in history or the modern world and, because of this, abandon the Christian worldview and the world of Christian values.
The image of Satan/the devil, which in anti-Christianity expresses the rejection of Christian values, is in fact not affiliated with Christian teaching. In this case, people, using the language developed by tradition, call their personal ideas with Christian terms “devil” and “Satan”. These can be dark gods, dark forces, spirits. For example, for the world of the series “Charmed” this situation will not seem strange or illogical: there are angels, there are demons and there is no God, because in this world he is completely unnecessary.
In the case of anti-Christianity, we are not talking about Christian inversion. The meaning of this movement is to preach the ideals of absolute freedom, including from ethics. To simplify, we can say that it is from anti-Christianity that what we today can define as Satanism grows. But in Satanism, the idea of the effectiveness of magic is added to the ideals of anti-Christianity. Although it is impossible to say that all Satanists are magicians, anti-Christian Satanists may well engage in magical practices (unlike followers of the new age, who believe in magic, but almost never practice it themselves) and rely here on the gigantic heritage of first hermetic and then the occult European tradition.
Church of Satan
Anton Sandor LaVey, the founder of the Church of Satan, made an attempt to commercialize Satanism and develop it along the lines of the interesting religious tradition that already existed at that time - Wicca, described above.
LaVey saw the potential of Satanism as a religion and created his own “commercial” version. First of all, we are talking about the Church of Satan - the Church of Satan with its original center in San Francisco, which turns 50 years old in 2016. In many ways, of course, this is an artistic project. Thus, famous cultural figures are members of the church, for example, singer Marilyn Manson.
After the opening of the Church of Satan, the number of Satanic organizations began to grow. But the really existing well-known satanic organizations are either commercial, artistic, or semi-criminal, such as the Temple of Seth Michael Aquino, and, of course, largely atheistic. A huge number of atheists with a good sense of humor, with the idea of challenging generally accepted ideals, organize Satanic temples and enter into controversy in the market of religious discourse - primarily in the United States.
The Satanic Bible and the texts of Aleister Crowley
The textual tradition of Satanism is fixed around two poles. The first is the texts of Aleister Crowley. We can say that the figure of Crowley exists in the format of “magician, occultist, and in some sense also a Satanist.” That is, it is impossible to say that Crowley is primarily a Satanist: it would simply be inaccurate. At the same time, Crowley was a Satanist not in the sense of “devil worshiper,” but precisely in his respect for the ideal of absolute freedom, which for Crowley is expressed in the image of not only Satan, but also the dark demonic principle in general. Crowley's demonology and himself are a separate huge topic that does not completely coincide with Satanism and modern culture.
The second pole is the texts of Anton Sandor LaVey. First of all, this is the “Satanic Bible,” which many unjustifiably call “black,” but LaVey has other texts that are less well known. LaVey’s “The Satanic Bible” is a unique, perhaps even poetic, view of the world, preaching the value of absolute freedom in a completely anti-Christian, although not too harsh, denial of the values of the Christian world. It contains commandments, stories - everything that should be in a text that is supposed to be considered sacred. Although, since LaVey conceived the church as partly a commercial, partly an artistic project, Satanists usually do not have any special reverence for the “Satanic Bible”.
In addition, there are a large number of occult texts that often act as a “substrate”: from Papus’s Practical Magic to Eliphas Levi’s Doctrine and Ritual of High Magic. This is a large body of literature. There is also modern literature - various textbooks on black and white magic, including in Russian. It cannot be said that people who identify themselves as Satanists seriously study this entire literary complex.
Transformation of the image in culture
The first surviving images of Satan date back to the 6th century: a mosaic in San Appolinare Nuovo (Ravenna) and a fresco in the Church of Bauite (Egypt). In both images, the Devil is an angel whose appearance is not fundamentally different from other angels. Attitudes towards Satan changed dramatically at the turn of the millennium. This happened after the Council of Cluny in 956 and the development of methods to bind believers to their faith through influence on the imagination and intimidation (Augustine also recommended depicting Hell “for the education of the ignorant”). In general, until the 9th century, the Devil was usually depicted in a humanoid form; in XI he began to be portrayed as half-man and half-animal. In the XV-XVI centuries. artists led by Bosch and van Eyck brought the grotesque to the image of the Devil. The hatred and fear of Satan that the church instilled and demanded required him to be portrayed as disgusting.
From the 11th century In the Middle Ages, a situation arose that was marked by the creation of sufficient conditions for the formation of the cult of the devil. Medieval dualistic heresies became a powerful catalyst realizing these conditions. The “age of the devil” begins, marked by a decisive turning point in the development of European religiosity, the peak of which falls in the 16th century - a time of widespread popular demon mania and witchcraft.
The hard life of the common people of the Middle Ages, squeezed between the oppression of the barons and the oppression of the church, drove entire classes of people into the arms of Satan and into the depths of magic, seeking relief from their endless misfortunes or revenge - to find, albeit terrible, but still an assistant and friend. Satan is a villain and a monster, but still not the same as the baron was to the medieval tradesman and villan. Poverty, hunger, serious illnesses, backbreaking work and cruel torture have always been the main suppliers of recruits to the Devil's army. There is a well-known sect of Lollards who preached that Lucifer and the rebel angels were expelled from the kingdom of heaven for demanding freedom and equality from the despot god. The Lollards also claimed that the Archangel Michael and his retinue - the defenders of tyranny - would be overthrown, and the people who obeyed the kings would be condemned forever. The terror brought down on diabolical art by church and civil laws only exacerbated the creepy charm of diabolism.
The Renaissance destroyed the canonical image of the devil as an ugly monster. The demons of Milton and Klopstock retain, even after their fall, a considerable share of their former beauty and greatness. The 18th century finally humanized Satan. P.B. Shelley, regarding the influence exerted by Milton’s poem on the world cultural process, wrote: “Paradise Lost” brought modern mythology into the system... As for the Devil, he owes everything to Milton... Milton removed the sting, the hooves and the horns; endowed him with the greatness of a beautiful and formidable spirit - and returned it to society.
A culture of “demonicism” began in literature, music, and painting. Since the beginning of the 19th century, Europe has been fascinated by its anti-divine forms: the demonism of doubt, denial, pride, rebellion, disappointment, bitterness, melancholy, contempt, selfishness and even boredom appears. Poets depict Prometheus, Dennitsa, Cain, Don Juan, Mephistopheles. Lucifer, Demon, Mephistopheles become favorite symbols of creativity, thought, rebellion, and alienation. In accordance with this semantic load, the Devil becomes handsome in the engravings of Gustave Doré, illustrating Milton’s “Paradise Lost,” and later in the paintings of Mikhail Vrubel... New styles of depicting the Devil have spread. One of them is in the role of a gentleman of the gallant era, in a velvet tunic, a silk cloak, a hat with a feather, and a sword.
Saint John Chrysostom, in the second conversation about the beggar Lazarus and the rich man, narrates what happened in his time: “The demons say: I am the soul of such and such a monk. Of course: I don’t believe this precisely because the demons say it. They deceive those who listen to them. For this reason, Paul commanded the demon to remain silent, although he spoke the truth, so that he would not turn this truth into an excuse, would not subsequently mix lies into it, and would not attract trust to himself. The devil said: these men are the servants of the highest God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation (Acts 14:17): The Apostle, upset by this, commanded the inquisitive spirit to come out of the girl. And what did the evil spirit say when it said: these men are the servants of the Most High God? But since the majority of those who do not know cannot thoroughly judge what is said by demons, the Apostle decisively rejected any trust in them. You belong to the number of the rejected, the Apostle says to the demon: you do not have the right to speak freely; be silent, be numb. It is not your business to preach: that is left to the Apostles. Why are you stealing something that is not yours? shut up, outcast. So Christ, when the demons said to Him: “We know You who You are” (Mark 1:24), very strictly forbade them, thereby prescribing a law for us, so that we should not trust the demon under any pretext, even if he said that fair. Knowing this, we must resolutely not trust the demon in anything. If he says something that is fair, we will run and turn away from him. We must learn sound and saving knowledge not from demons, but from Divine Scripture." Further in this conversation, Chrysostom says that the souls of both the righteous and sinners, immediately after death, are taken from this world to another, some to receive crowns, others to executions. The soul of the beggar Lazarus, immediately after death, was lifted up by the Angels into the bosom of Abraham, and the soul of the rich man was cast into the fires of hell. In conversation 28 on Matthew, Chrysostom will tell that in his time some demoniacs said: I am the soul of so-and-so. “Truly this is a lie.” and the deception of the devil,” adds the great Saint. It is not the soul of the deceased who cries out this, but a demon who is pretending to deceive his listeners."
Rev. John Climacus explains that the future is unknown to demons, but they, being spirits and therefore able to quickly move over long distances, announce what has already happened at a distance from a person, or what they know as spirits, for example, about people’s illnesses, or, knowing the present, proclaim at random what may happen in the future:
“Demons of vanity are prophets in dreams. Being cunning, they infer the future from present circumstances and announce it to us, so that, upon the fulfillment of these visions, we are surprised and, as if already close to the gift of insight, are elevated in thought. Those who believe the demon, for those he is often a prophet; and whoever despises him, before him he always turns out to be a liar. As a spirit, he sees what happens in the air and, for example, noticing that someone is dying, he predicts this to the gullible through a dream. Demons do not know anything about the future by foresight, but it is known that doctors can predict death. He who believes in dreams is not at all skilled, and he who has no faith in them is wise. Therefore, he who believes in dreams is like a man who runs after his shadow and tries to grab it.”
Rev. John Climacus:
“Among the unclean spirits there are those who at the beginning of our spiritual life interpret the Divine Scriptures for us. They usually do this in vain hearts and, even more so, in those trained in external sciences, so that, by seducing them little by little, they will finally be plunged into heresies and blasphemies. We can recognize this demonic theology, or, better to say, fighting against God, by the confusion, by the discordant and unclean joy that happens in the soul during these interpretations.”
4. Demons do not know our thoughts
They don't know the location of our hearts, they cannot read our thoughts, they cannot see the thoughts of our hearts, they are open only to God, but from our words, actions, views, demons discern our inner structure and judge whether we are inclined towards virtue or sin only by our behavior.Evagrius of Pontus:
“Demons do not know our hearts, as some people think. For the one who knows the heart is “the knowledgeable mind of man” (Job 7:20) “and he created their hearts alone” (Psalm 33:15). But that is from the words that are spoken , then by any movements of the body, they recognize many of the movements occurring in the heart. Let us assume that in a conversation we denounced those who slandered us. From these words, the demons conclude that we treat them unlovingly, and take a reason from this instill in us evil thoughts against them, having accepted which, we fall under the yoke of the demon of memory malice, and this one then incessantly instills in us vengeful thoughts against them... evil demons observe with curiosity our every movement and leave nothing unexplored that can be used against us - neither getting up, nor sitting, nor standing, nor walking, nor speaking, nor looking - everyone is curious, “all day long learning from us with flattery” (Psalm 37:13), so that during prayer they disgrace the humble mind and its blessed one turn off the light."
“A sign of spiritual passions becomes either a spoken word or a movement of the body, thanks to which [our] enemies find out whether we have their thoughts within ourselves and are tormented by them, or, having cast out these thoughts, we are concerned about our salvation. For God alone, who created us, knows our mind, and He does not need [external] signs in order to know what is hidden in [our] heart.”
Ancient patericon:
Abba Matoi said: Satan does not know by what passion the soul is conquered. He sows, but does not know whether he will reap. He sows thoughts of fornication, slander, and other passions; and depending on what passion the soul shows itself to be inclined to, it invests it.
Rev. John Cassian the Roman quotes the words of Abba Serenus:
“There is no doubt that unclean spirits can know the qualities of our thoughts, but from the outside, learning about them by sensory signs, that is, from our disposition or words and activities to which they see us more inclined. But they cannot know those thoughts at all , which have not yet been revealed from the hiddenness of the soul.And those thoughts that they inspire are recognized not by the nature of the soul itself, that is, not by the internal movement hiding, so to speak, in the brain, but by the movements and signs of the external person; for example, when they induce gluttony, if they see that a monk is looking out the window or at the sun with curiosity, or carefully asking about the hour, then they will know that he has a desire to eat.”
St. Isidore Pelusiot:
“The devil does not know what is in our thoughts, because it exclusively belongs to the power of God alone, but he catches thoughts by bodily movements. Will he see, for example, that another is looking inquisitively and saturating his eyes with alien beauties? Taking advantage of his structure, he immediately excites such a person to commit adultery. Will he see the one overcome by gluttony? He will immediately vividly present to him the passions generated by gluttony and will serve to bring his intentions into action. Encourages him to robbery and unjust acquisition."
Elder Paisiy Svyatogorets to the question:
“Geronda, does Tangalashka know what’s in our hearts?”
“One more thing! It was not enough that he knew the hearts of people. Only God knows the hearts. And only to the people of God does He sometimes reveal for our good what is in our hearts. Tangalashka knows only the deceit and malice that he himself implants in those who serves him. He doesn’t know our good intentions. Only from experience does he sometimes guess about them, but here, in most cases, he makes a mistake!”
Rev. John Climacus also writes that demons do not know our thoughts:
“Do not be surprised that demons secretly often implant good thoughts in us, and then contradict them with other thoughts. These enemies of ours only intend to convince us with this cunning that they also know the thoughts of our hearts.”
“The Holy Scripture distinguishes demonic possession both from possession and from natural mental illnesses (Matthew 4:24, 9:32-34; Mark 1:34; Luke 7:21, 8:2). Due to the extreme complexity of human nature, it is difficult to accurately explain the essence of possession. It is clear, however, that it is different from simply demonic influence, in which a dark spirit tries to incline the will of a person to sin. Here a person retains power over his actions, and the temptation that finds him can be driven away by prayer. Possession is also different from that obsession in which the devil takes possession of the mind and will of a person.
Apparently, when possessed, an evil spirit takes possession of the nervous-motor system of the body - as if infiltrating between its body and soul, so that a person loses control over his movements and actions. It should be thought, however, that when possessed, the evil spirit does not have complete control over the powers of the soul of the possessed: they only turn out to be unable to manifest themselves. The soul remains to a certain extent capable of independently thinking and feeling, but is completely powerless to control the organs of the body.
Without control of their body, the possessed are victims of an evil spirit that has enslaved them, and therefore are not responsible for their actions. They are slaves of the evil spirit.
Possession can take different external forms. Sometimes the possessed rage and destroy everything around them, terrifying those around them. At the same time, they often display superhuman strength, such as the Gadarene demoniac, who broke any chains with which they tried to bind him (Mark 5:4). At the same time, those possessed by demons inflict all sorts of injuries on themselves, such as, for example, the demon-possessed youth who, on new moons, threw himself into fire and then into water (Matthew 17:15). But often demonic possession is expressed in a quieter form, when people temporarily lose their natural abilities. So, for example, the Gospels tell about a demon-possessed mute who, as soon as the Lord freed him from the demon, began to speak normally again; or, for example, a crumpled woman who was able to straighten up after the Lord freed her from the devil. The unfortunate woman was in a bent position for 18 years (Luke 13:11).
What leads to demonic possession and who gives the right to an evil spirit to take possession of a person and torment him? ...in all the cases known to him, the cause of demonic possession was a passion for the occult...
In our time, a time of retreat from Christianity and an ever-increasing passion for the occult, more and more people are beginning to fall under the violence of evil spirits. True, psychiatrists are embarrassed to admit the existence of demons and, as a rule, demon possession is classified as a natural mental illness. But a believer must understand that no medicines or psychotherapeutic agents can drive away evil spirits. The power of God is needed here.
Here are the distinctive signs of demonic possession that distinguish it from natural mental illnesses.
Aversion to everything sacred and related to God: Holy Communion, the cross, the Bible, holy water, icons, prosphora, incense, prayer, etc. Moreover, the possessed feel the presence of a sacred object even when it is hidden from their sight: it irritates them, makes them sick, and even leads them into a state of violence.
Possession differs from demonic possession in that during possession the devil takes possession of the very mind and will of a person. When possessed, the devil enslaves a person’s body, but his mind and will remain relatively free, although powerless. Of course, the devil cannot enslave our mind and will by force. He achieves this gradually, as the person himself, through his aversion from God or sinful life, falls under his influence. We see an example of devilish possession in Judas the traitor. The words of the Gospel: “Satan entered into Judas” (Luke 22:3) do not speak of demonic possession, but of the enslavement of the will of the traitorous disciple.
…People possessed by the devil are not just religious ignoramuses or ordinary sinners; these are people whose “the god of this world has blinded their minds” (2 Cor. 4:4) and uses them to fight God. The possessed are the pitiful victims of the evil one, the possessed are his active servants.”
However, everything can be even more complicated, the action of the spirits of evil depends on the circumstances, on the direction of the person’s will. So, Elder John Krestyankin wrote to his spiritual son, who accepted the priesthood: “You received demonic possession when you were still interested in rock music.”
That is, obsession did not prevent him from believing in God, but became an insurmountable obstacle to serving at the Throne. Elder John Krestyankin wrote directly about this:
“I’ll tell you right away - banish the thought of ordination from yourself once and for all. Even if you are tempted by such offers. Experience shows that those who came to the Throne from rock music cannot serve for salvation. I receive so many letters from such unfortunate people, but help comes to them only after they depose themselves. Some cannot stand at the throne at all, and some sink to the bottom of hell with iniquities that they did not even do before taking the priesthood. So keep that in mind."
In another letter he wrote about a woman believer:
“Dear in the Lord A.!
I will repeat the words of Father I. in relation to your wife: her illness - of a spiritual nature - is obsession. We get sick easily, especially when we voluntarily and willingly invite a dark force into our lives, but in order to drive it out, this requires long and hard work.
Leaving her previous occupations, L. took a step towards the Church, but she brought her fellow resident into the Church with her, and he dictates her behavior, which is called delusion, and with it she again departs from God. Be sure to go with your wife to Father I., since he laid the foundation for her formation in the faith. Strengthen your spirit and patience in prayer.”
Thus, the following conclusions can be drawn.
Possession is the power of a demon over the body, possession is his power over the soul.
When possessed the demon seizes control of the body, and it sometimes acts contrary to the desire and resistance of the person.
When possessed the demon takes possession of a person's soul, turning him into his voluntary slave. He dictates “arguments” to a person, which he accepts as the truth - and follows them voluntarily, or weakly, if he is still vaguely aware of his slavery to passion and the demon.
At the same time, there is no demon without obsession; it always begins this terrible business of enslaving a person.
How to distinguish demonic possession from mental illness?
Priest Rodion answers:
“In our soulless times, the number of those possessed and possessed by demons has increased sharply. A person who does not have the cover of divine grace, the intercession of a Guardian Angel, who constantly serves his passions and lusts, becomes an easy prey for fallen spirits. And all kinds of hobbies in the occult, magic, astrology, oriental teachings , extrasensory perception, UFOs, spiritualism, etc. - make a person’s soul open to the world of dark spirits, bind a demon helper to him, make him possessed or simply possessed by a demon, because they live in darkness and darkness, and do not bother their demon, obediently carrying out his will , which simply coincides with the desires of the perishing person. And as soon as such a person comes into contact with a shrine, for example, comes to a temple, he immediately begins to feel spiritual discomfort, especially during the liturgy of the Cherubic Song, sometimes he is simply thrown out of the temple.
More than once I had to visit psychiatric hospitals, where, along with the mentally ill, the possessed were also kept. Modern psychiatry, divorced from the Church, is unable to distinguish the patient from the possessed. For example, a simple incantatory prayer is read, for example, “May God rise again and His enemies be scattered...” People with mental disabilities, as a rule, react to this completely calmly, but those possessed begin to twist, bend in an arc; they scream and ask you to stop reading.”
In pre-revolutionary psychiatry, when doctors were believers, there was a test to distinguish a mentally ill person from a demoniac: seven glasses of water were placed in front of a person, and only one of them was with plain water, the rest were with holy water. The possessed person always, including when repeating the experiment and rearranging the glasses, always chose only a glass with plain water.
Casting out demons is a fairly popular topic. People who suspect not only possession, but also damage, the evil eye, or suffering from a serious physical illness, seek to be reprimanded - a special church rite for exorcism. Is this correct and what is exorcism in the Orthodox tradition - read the article.
In the article:
Exorcism of demons - the history of the rite of exorcism
Exorcism or exorcism is an important part of theological science. Nowadays, you can study at a Catholic university and receive a diploma as an exorcist. The ritual of expelling demons from a person is very ancient; it takes those interested in the problem back to the origins of Christianity.
The first exorcist, as stated in the Bible, was Jesus Christ. The most famous biblical tale of those that relate to the topic of the ritual says how Jesus Christ drove demons out of a man and infused them into the bodies of pigs. The possessed animals rushed into the abyss, which emphasizes the danger of the condition.
Initially, only Jesus Christ had the gift of casting out demons. Then the apostles received the skills (after the Holy Spirit descended on the disciples of the Son of the Lord). The followers of the apostles are the priests who received the gift. At all times, there were extremely few people capable of driving out the Devil.
Reprimands from demons were popular in the Middle Ages. There are several known real cases of exorcism in the last century, most with a tragic ending - the death of a priest or a possessed person. In Rus', the first written source of exorcism was the instructions on the expulsion of the Devil, dated back to the 14th century, by the Kyiv Metropolitan Peter Mohyla. Over the centuries, the demand for exorcists has not decreased, but the problem of instilling evil spirits in people still exists.
Where demons are cast out of people in Russia and Ukraine
Trinity-Sergius Lavra in the city of Sergiev Posad.
Priests from ancient monasteries have the blessing to conduct lectures. In Russia there is one holy place where reprimands are held - Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius in the city of Sergiev Posad. Previously, exorcisms were carried out in Optina Desert, but recently the monks received a ban on reprimanding. There are more such monasteries in Ukraine: Pochaev Lavra, Kiev-Pechersk Lavra and others.
Father Herman from the Trinity-Sergius Lavra- the most famous exorcist in Russia. At the moment, only he has permission to perform the ritual of exorcism. Father Herman’s reprimands are massive, which is why they are subject to harsh criticism from other priests.
There are known cases of healing during the service of Father Herman, but skeptics argue that hired actors played the role of the possessed. The opinion is confirmed by the fact that several times are often required if the demon is strong enough, and even the possessed who are bedridden are cured at one time when the clergy reprimands them.
Kiev-Pechersk Lavra.
In Ukraine, the most famous exorcist was Father Vasily Voronovsky from the Church of St. Michael in Lviv. Unfortunately, the minister died several years ago. Now exorcism sessions are held in many churches in Ukraine, including Kiev-Pechersk Lavra and the Cathedral of St. George in Lviv. The monastery in the village is very popular Kolodiivka Ternopil region. Rural exorcists work for free, considering exorcism their duty, but they do not answer questions about the rituals due to the ban.
TO Father Superior Varlaam from the Church of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary near Kiev They come not only from all over the country, but also from abroad. The priest has been conducting individual and group sessions for thirty years.
Father Varlaam claims that he distinguishes obsession from physical and mental illness. The church minister agrees that only those possessed by the Devil need reprimand, and not those suffering from damage, curses and physical illnesses. According to a Ukrainian exorcist, even babies who pay for the sins of their parents can be possessed.
How demons are cast out from a person in church
The rite of exorcism, or casting out demons, is modeled after the rite performed by Jesus Christ. The ritual is described in religious literature in some detail and has never changed, like the texts read many centuries ago to exorcise the evil spirit.
Jesus Christ was not only the first exorcist, but also the creator of the only true rite of exorcism in Orthodoxy and Catholicism.
The rite of exorcism in Orthodoxy is called reprimand. During the ritual, a person or group of people is crossed with the sign of the cross using a crucifix, applied to the body, fumigated with incense, sprinkled with holy water, and read a special prayer. An exorcist is a special rite for which the priest must obtain permission, which is extremely rare.
The prayer, with the purpose of reprimanding demons, is the longest in the canon of the Orthodox Church. Reading the text usually takes about twenty minutes. The words have not changed for several centuries.
It is impossible to come to church and immediately go to an exorcism session. A priest who agrees to take on a difficult and dangerous task must obtain permission from the bishop to conduct the ceremony. If there is no agreement, you can only read a prayer for the health of the sick person. In some cases this helps.
The priest must make sure that the matter is the machinations of Satan, and not mental illness. Some confessors know how to sense the presence of evil spirits, others do tests using holy water and a crucifix, which demons are afraid of. This fear and disgust is always noticeable to others. An individual conversation between a priest and a person suspected of possession is a mandatory part of identifying evil spirits.
If the clergy has recognized the presence of a demon, and permission to reprimand has been received, witnesses are selected from among close relatives and the ancient ritual is performed. Before the ritual begins, observers make a confession and receive a blessing to be present during the exorcism session. There are strict rules for selecting eyewitnesses: people should not become weapons in the hands of a demon, and the faint of heart are not allowed to see the terrible spectacle. Witnesses observe the ceremony and continuously read prayers.
After expelling the demon (more than one session may be required), you should fast, pray to both the patient and his relatives, order magpies and prayer services. If a person from whom a demon has been cast out does not change his lifestyle in accordance with Christian morality, the demon may return.
Casting out demons from a person - the dual opinion of priests
The opinion of representatives of the clergy regarding church reprimands is divided. Some clergy are convinced that they are doing something useful by casting out evil spirits from people during services. Confessors see benefit in their actions, because at almost every session there are possessed people who betray themselves by loud screams, convulsions and other signs of demonic possession.
Most clergy believe that the importance of exorcism is exaggerated. Church ministers are convinced that reprimands are a tribute to the occult fashion for fear of damage and the evil eye. At the sessions, they say, real possessed people are rarely present. There are rumors that those possessed in churches are hired actors, but eyewitnesses of their appearances in public deny this.
Carrying out mass reprimands is a gross violation of church rites. An exorcism is performed on only one person by a priest with permission. Presence at a session as a witness requires the blessing of a clergyman: you cannot go into the temple and see. Not everyone can be an observer of an exorcism - a strong nervous system, good physical and mental health, the absence of serious sins and belonging to close relatives of the possessed are required.
Mass reprimands, according to opponents among the clergy, are harmful. Every person is possessed by demons to some extent, but reprimand is needed only for people whose physical body has been taken over by evil spirits (at the extreme stage of possession). Many try to recover from illnesses, the evil eye and damage with the help of church rites, which is wrong. During the sessions, you can not only not get rid of your own negativity, but also “pick up” someone else’s.
A demon is considered an evil spirit. Christianity also identifies him with the devil, a terrible devil or an insidious demon. This image was created on the basis of the interpretations provided by the traditions of the church.
About the term
In the 11th century, one can hear for the first time that there is a special image in Christianity - a demon. Who is this? One could learn about this by reading the lines of “The Tale of Law and Grace” or in the epic telling about the campaign of Prince Igor and his regiment, written in the 12th century. Moreover, Christianity can be learned from many other works.
In fact, this was the name given to all images that had anything to do with paganism. The great Veles did not escape this nickname either. A demon (Christianity) is any entity whose existence contradicts the supremacy of God in the spiritual world. If you look at a 19th century Bible translation, you will also notice this term. In English, as well as in German, this word is perceived as a synonym for the word “devil”. The Slavs borrowed it from the inhabitants of the Indo-European territories, for whom it meant “fear.” The Greeks called the monkey that way.
According to the pagan Slavs, winter is the time of the reign of demons who send cold. They are also associated with the dark time of day. In a word, these creatures were credited with involvement in all natural phenomena that disturbed human peace and comfort.
From the church's point of view
According to the concept of Christianity, demons are spirits of evil, about whose habits you can learn a lot from stories or descriptions of the lives of saints. Also, when exploring this issue, it is worth paying attention to demons, gods of pagans and idols, which were classified in the same category. They were called the collective term "demon." Christianity in many stories presented him as the tempter of saints or those who went into the desert.
Of course, many stories end with the victory of good over these manifestations of evil forces. A demon can send illnesses, tempt a sinner, or plunge a soul into vice. Christianity claims that it is he who pushes a person from the righteous path. So the devil is very close to this image, who is also a malicious character who spoils people’s quiet lives.
Different views on the issue
There are widespread ideas that a person has not one body, but several: physical, astral, ethereal. It is believed that the world in which we live is just one level of everything that exists. There are lower circles in which for the most part these creatures and their victims live.
You can get there by abusing drugs or alcohol. When it comes to the so-called squirrel, which is different from a cute fluffy creature, we can say that a person destroys the barrier between worlds and is thrown into the arms of dark entities that feed on the negative emotions of their donor.
How to get rid of it?
A demon enters the soul and helps it to decompose. Christianity, as a cure for such an infection, offers to take the righteous path and live in accordance with the texts of the commandments. After all, there is nothing in the world that cannot be corrected, including this.
If an individual chooses to behave correctly, over time he will feel relief and purity. The main thing is to recognize your actions as unworthy, repent, and trust in the Spirit of God. To instill light or anger in the soul is everyone’s personal choice.
A demon is truly like an addiction to alcohol or tobacco. He can enslave the consciousness and change it, but if the personality turns out to be stronger and decides to throw off these shackles, everything is subject to it. It is believed that saints, martyrs, and also saints went through struggles with these creatures.
From antiquity to the present day
The presence of these creatures has been felt at all times. Even now, when people are no longer so superstitious, they continue to use the terms “enraged,” “possessed,” and the like. Exorcism, which included prayers and a list of rituals characteristic of a particular religion, was considered an effective procedure for expelling harmful entities.
Such actions began to be carried out in hoary antiquity, when they were an integral part of beliefs, as well as cults. Today obsession is equated with mental disorders. Many are simply trying to attract attention by creating the impression that they are possessed by a demon. The healing that occurred after the exorcism procedure was more like a placebo or ordinary suggestion than a direct result of the actions of the priest.
The Bible and what came before it
Even before Christianity arose, one could become acquainted with demons by studying shamanism. It was already there that it was explained in detail who they were and how to expel them. Although in the Christian tradition, of course, this is not recognized and they claim that Christ was the first to engage in exorcism. After all, it was he who somehow healed a man enslaved by a demon, freeing his soul.
Dark entities forced the victim to live in a coffin. One phrase was enough for Jesus to command the dark spirits to fly away and fly into the pigs. According to Christians, God endowed individual apostles and other saints with a special gift of expelling evil spirits. Nowadays, there are many lovers of mysticism looking for it on the pages of books and movie screens. There are many films on this topic.
Scientific approach
Medicine has its own opinion on this matter. It is believed that this is due to mental illness. Those who are usually considered possessed show all the signs of hysteria, mania, psychotic state, epilepsy, schizoid disorders, even
By the way, regarding the latter, it is curious that 29% of those who “took root” in the souls of such patients are demons. They can also be associated with monomania or paranoia.
From a point of view of faith
Much about exorcism can be gleaned from the Gospel. It is believed that after leaving a person, the spirit goes to wander in those places where there is no water. His goal is to find peace, which he fails to achieve. After this, he still returns to his home, which is the human soul.
In order for the painful procedure not to be repeated in a new circle, it is necessary that after expelling a demon, a person not only leaves a gaping hole in his soul, but fills it with light and goodness, which can be gleaned from prayer and thoughts about God.
In addition, in the scriptures one can find evidence that not only Jesus and the apostles practiced exorcism, but also Jewish exorcists. The Gospel describes a case when Jewish healers cast out a demon who forced its victim to suffer from sleepwalking. The main tools in this case are prayer and fasting.
In addition, this art was also conquered by ordinary people who were filled with faith. They used the name of the Lord. Also associated with demons and devils are bad thoughts, doubts and other side effects of distorted mental activity. Peace of mind is an integral component of happiness, the acquisition of which was also sometimes called
In Orthodoxy, the rite of exorcism is called reprimand. This ritual involves reading a special prayer, making the sign of the cross over the possessed person, and fumigating him with incense. The prayer casting out demons is the longest in the canon of the Orthodox Church - its duration is about 20 minutes. The text of the prayer has not changed for many centuries.
History of exorcism
In theological science, exorcism is the expulsion of evil spirits, minions of the Prince of Darkness, from the human body with the help of a certain religious ritual. This ritual is very ancient and dates back to the origins of Christianity.
The Gospel describes how Jesus Christ, wandering through Galilee, repeatedly cast out unclean spirits from the suffering. One of the most famous biblical stories regarding the practice of exorcism tells how Jesus cast out demons from a certain man and introduced them into a herd of pigs. Animals possessed by demons rushed into the abyss. "What is your name?" - the Savior asked the evil spirits before expulsion. “My name is Legion,” answered the demons. Thus, for the first time in Holy Scripture it is said that a person can be possessed by many demons.
In the beginning, only Jesus Christ possessed the gift of casting out demons. Subsequently, after the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles, they also received this gift. Theologians claim that it was through them, the founders of the Christian Church, that this ability passed on to their followers - the priests.
The number of people who actually knew how to cast out demons was apparently small at all times. However, in the Middle Ages, a huge number of priests appeared among the ministers of the Church, confident that they could do this, although in fact they could not help the possessed. Naturally, their activities could bring nothing but harm, and the “successes” in this field of the Inquisition led to the fact that the modern Catholic Church no longer officially resorts to exorcism.
Reporting is a matter for a specialist
In Rus', the oldest written source about exorcism is the instructions for expelling demons, set out in the breviary of Kyiv Metropolitan Peter Mohyla, which dates back to the 14th century. The Orthodox Church not only does not deny the exorcism of demons, but also actively practices it. True, the priests who know how to reprimand can be counted on one hand.
It is necessary to pay special attention to the fact that only a priest who has received a special blessing from the bishop has the right to reprimand, that is, cast out demons. The rest of the priests, if they want to help a person free himself from demonic power, read the usual prayer for health. In some cases it also helps.
Signs of obsession
Before taking someone close or acquaintance to a reprimand, people consult with a priest from their parish and receive his blessing. In addition, it is necessary to make sure whether a person is truly possessed; many signs of possession have been known since the first centuries of Christianity. Here are some of them.
A person possessed by a demon is afraid of church, feels bad during services and often loses consciousness. Sprinkling with holy water or touching the cross can cause him physical suffering. The same thing happens when he inhales incense.
A person possessed by demons will physically not be able to accept any of the Christian sacraments. The sound of the church bell gives him a headache. However, obsession may not be so obvious. There are cases when it manifested itself in systematic pain throughout the body, loss of consciousness and poor health outside the church.
A previously calm person can become unusually hot-tempered, irritable and even aggressive if he is possessed by demons. We can also talk about obsession if a person who was previously indifferent to alcohol and drugs suddenly goes all out and cannot stop.
Not to be confused with psychopathy?
It is not uncommon for obsession to be confused with mental illness. For example, symptoms characteristic of one type of schizophrenia may resemble the behavior of a person who has become a victim of dark forces. The patient is completely sure that he has been possessed by a demon, and even during a reprimand he can behave like one possessed. Priests also know about this phenomenon of the human psyche. Usually they come before the start of the service and talk with the sufferer over whom the ceremony is to be performed. An experienced priest can immediately see whether a person is possessed or mentally ill. The ritual is contraindicated for sick people because it can aggravate their condition.
How do priests distinguish a mentally ill person from a possessed person? Firstly, one of the abilities of people who know how to cast out demons is the ability to sense the presence of evil spirits in a person. Secondly, some priests have medical education and are familiar with the basics of psychiatry. In addition, many have been doing this difficult work for many years and almost every day, so their eyes, as they say, are trained.
In some churches, people who want to be chastised are interviewed to determine whether these people are truly possessed. But in the last few years there have been so many possessed people that priests simply do not have enough time for individual conversations.
Reprimand at the Lavra
Now the most famous place for demons in Russia is the Holy Sergius Lavra, located in the city of Sergiev Posad. This is one of the main centers of Russian Orthodoxy. Here rest the incorruptible relics of St. Sergius of Radonezh, revered in Rus' with special reverence. Every day hundreds of pilgrims from all over Russia and neighboring countries come to the Lavra to venerate the relics of the holy wonderworker. Someone wants to pay tribute, someone wants to ask for good health, and someone comes to the saint for advice. But there are also those who come to the Lavra hoping to get rid of demons.
Almost every day, the abbot of the monastic brethren of the Lavra, Archimandrite German, lectures. Invariably, several hundred sufferers gather for this special service. The ceremony is held in the small Church of John the Baptist, which is located on the territory of the Lavra temple complex. This church is small, so people sometimes even have to stand on the porch during services.
Father Herman is often ten to fifteen minutes late for a lecture. Experts in local customs say that he does this on purpose so that those who come will gain courage and strength: after all, reprimanding is not an easy ritual.
Before starting the lecture, Father Herman each time delivers an hour and a half sermon. “Sin is also a disease,” he says. - and the more we fall into sin, the weaker our spirit becomes, and the gates of our mind open to demons.”
And when Father Herman begins to reprimand, something terrible begins. The oppressive silence gives way to a cacophony of sounds, many of which have nothing in common with human voices. Some people squeal, others scream angrily, children sometimes begin to speak in low male voices. It happens that people bark, grunt, squirm, and roll on the floor.
Once a man was brought to the Lavra, possessed by a demon, who was so violent that he had to be chained to a bed and carried directly into the temple on it. After being told off, this man calmly got up and went home on his own.
Exorcism of demons is a rite that requires enormous physical and mental strength. After the reprimand, Father Herman looks as if he had been carrying heavy stones up the mountain all day. But the formerly possessed, having gotten rid of the demons that tormented them, feel the greatest relief.