Exorcism is the practice of
evicting spiritual entities from a person or an area they are believed to have possessed.
Depending on the spiritual beliefs of the exorcist, this may be done by
causing the entity to swear an oath, performing an elaborate ritual, or simply by commanding it to depart
in the name of a higher power. The practice is ancient and part of the belief
system of many cultures and religions.
Requested and performed exorcisms had begun to decline in the Western
world by the 18th century and occurred rarely until the latter half of the 20th
century when the public saw a sharp rise due to the media attention exorcisms
were getting. There was “a 50% increase in the number of exorcisms performed
between the early 1960s and the mid-1970s.
EXORCISM IN DIFFERENT RELIGION
CRISTIANITY
In Catholic
Christianity, exorcisms are performed in the name of Jesus Christ. A distinction is made between a formal
exorcism, which can only be conducted by a priest during a baptism or with the
permission of a Bishop, and "prayers of deliverance" which can be
said by anyone. The Catholic rite for a formal exorcism, called a "Major
Exorcism", is given in Section 13 of the Ritual. The Ritual lists guidelines for conducting an exorcism,
and for determining when a formal exorcism is required. Priests are instructed to carefully determine that the nature of the
affliction is not actually a psychological or physical illness before
proceeding.
In Catholic practice the person performing
the exorcism, known as an exorcist, is a consecrated priest. The
exorcist recites prayers
according to the rubrics of the rite, and may make use of religious
materials such as icons and sacramental’s. The
exorcist invokes God—specifically the Name of Jesus—as well as members of the Church
Triumphant and the Archangel
Michael to intervene
with the exorcism. According to Catholic understanding, several weekly
exorcisms over many years are sometimes required to expel a deeply entrenched
demon.
In general, possessed persons are not regarded as evil in themselves, nor wholly responsible for
their actions. Therefore, practitioners regard exorcism as a cure and not some
kind of punishment. The Catholic rite usually take this into account, ensuring
that there is no violence to those possessed, only that they be tied down if
deemed necessary for their own protection and that of the practitioners.
1.2.2HINDUISM
Beliefs and practices pertaining to the practice of exorcism are
prominently connected with Hindus. Of the four Vedas (holy books of the Hindus), the Atharva Veda is said to contain the secrets related
to magic and alchemy. The basic
means of exorcism are themantra and the yajna used
in both Vedic and Tantric traditions. Vaishnava traditions also
employ a recitation of names of Narasimhaand reading
scriptures, notably the Bhagavata Purana aloud.
According to Gita Mahatmya of Padma Purana, reading the 3rd, 7th and 9th
chapter of Bhagavad Gita and mentally offering the result to
departed persons helps them to get released from their ghostly situation. Kirtan, continuous playing of
mantras, keeping scriptures and holy pictures of the deities (Shiva, Vishnu, Hanuman, Brahma, Shakti, etc.) (especially of Narasimha)
in the house, burning incense offered during a Puja, sprinkling
water from holy rivers, and blowing conches used in puja are other effective practices.
A complete description of birth and death and also about the human soul
are explained in Katō Upanishad, a part of Yajur Veda. A summary of this is
also available as a separate scripture called Kāttakaṃ.
1.2.3 ISLAM
In Islam there is very clear concept of
exorcism. Many Muslims believe in the concept of a malevolent Devil. Belief in Jinn, or 'genies', is also
widespread in the Islamic world.
A related belief is that every person is
assigned one's own special jinnī, also called aqarīn (also called a hamzaad in India &
Pakistan), of the jinn that whisper to people's souls and tell them to submit
to evil desires. The notion of a qarīn is not universally accepted amongst
all Muslims, but it is generally accepted that devil whispers in human minds, and he
is assigned to each human being. Islamic exorcisms consist of the
treated person lying down, while a white-gloved therapist places a hand on a
patient’s head while chanting verses from the Quran. The drinking of holy water may also take place.
Specific verses from the Quran are recited, which glorify God (e.g. The Throne Verse (Arabic: Ayatul Kursi), and invoke God's help. In some cases, the call
for daily prayers is also read, as this has the effect of repelling non-angelic
unseen beings or the jinn.
The Islamic prophet Muhammad taught his followers to read the last three suras from
the Quran, Surat al-Ikhlas (The Fidelity), Surat al-Falaq (The Dawn) and Surat al-Nas (Mankind).
1.2.4JUDAISM
Josephus reports exorcisms performed by administering
poisonous root extracts and others by making sacrifices. The Dead Sea
Scrolls mention that
exorcisms were done by the Essene branch
of Judaism.
In more recent times, Rabbi Yehuda Fetaya authored the book Minchat
Yahuda, which deals extensively with exorcism, his experience with
possessed people, and other subjects of Jewish thought. The book is written in
Hebrew and was translated into English.
Rabbi Gershon Winkler of New Mexico explains that the procedure for a Jewish
exorcism is intended not only to drive away the possessing force, but to help
both the possessor and the possessed in an act of healing. The Jewish exorcism
ritual is performed by arabbi who has
mastered practical Kabbalah. Also present is a minyan (a
group of ten adult males), who gather in a circle around the possessed person.
The group recites Psalm 91 three times, and then the rabbi blows a shofar (a ram's horn).
The shofar is blown in a certain way, with
various notes and tones, in effect to "shatter the body" so that the
possessing force will be shaken loose. After it has been shaken loose, the
rabbi begins to communicate with it and ask it questions such as why it is
possessing the body of the possessed. The minyan may pray for it and perform a
ceremony for it in order to enable it to feel safe, and so that it can leave
the person's body.
No comments:
Post a Comment