the western, scientific point of view is ignorant and impotent to deal with demonic possession … they don’t even acknowledge that such a thing could happen.
My own experience in both the East and the West is that certain experiences respond better to Exorcism, and certain ones respond better to some sort of Psychiatric treatment.
Neither seems to me to be the absolutely correct approach and the other the incorrect one. Just different in view and methods, and therefore more or less effective in different circumstances.
And a further method of dealing with some of these situations is with spiritual practice, which can also resolve the situation in appropriate ways.
how and in what way in Chod is the body offered to the demons? And how do they feast upon them?
Historical Chodpa practicing Chod
There is a limit to what I can say in response to this, as the sadhana itself is covered by Samaya, so you would need the empowerments to practice Chod, and then you would receive the instructions which would clear up your questions. However, I can talk in very general terms, and hope that that will suffice.
Well, in Chod practice the body (and other dharmas) are offered in terms of visualisation, or imagination, if you prefer that term. By which I mean that in the course of the sadhana one visualises giving away your own body in order to satisfy all the beings that you are karmically connected with.
In the process, one works with one’s attachment to your body, which is a very deep seated attachment. And, one works with one’s attachment to a sense of self, which is even more fundamental.
In practicing these acts of compassion and generosity (mentally giving one’s body to be devoured by those who wish to devour it), one develops on the path. Of course, one also maintains a view of emptiness throughout.
External and internal demons
What is actually meant here by demon? Is it some kind of a beast? Or an evil spirit?
In the context of Chod practice, as I mentioned in my original post, demons are designated in two terms, both as seemingly ‘externally’ existing beings, and in terms of seemingly ‘internal’ mental states. In both cases the demons are to be pacified.
Chod is used to exorcise places and people, to clear away harmful spirits and demons, and it is also used to develop realisation of the nature of mind.
Do evil spirits exist?
Forgive me for not answering directly, but could I ask you a question in turn? Do you exist? Perhaps you could share your response to this, as I believe it to be a useful basis from which to answer your question.
The snowball of habit and action
Of course there are people who are constantly wicked? But from Buddhist view how do they function?
Actions breed consequences. When a being commits an unskilful act, then the tendency to commit further unskilful acts becomes that little bit stronger. We are creatures of habit, as they say. It’s rather like our actions cut a groove in a turning piece on a potters wheel … each time the unskilful action is made, the groove is cut into the piece, making us more likely to follow that groove the next time a similar circumstance arises.
Speaking relatively, the Dharma path consists of replacing our constantly unskilful actions or habits with skilful or positive habits and actions. Each time we do that we set in motion a chain of events that makes it that little bit easier to do further skilful actions. Until the point where we break through the chain of habits and realising the nature of mind, we no longer act from habit, nor create future habits (karma).
Snowball Effect painting
Vomiting razor blades
Is it true that your sister-in-law vomitted razor blades? I cannot believe it because how is such a thing possible?
Well, I wasn’t personally there, but have no reason to doubt what my wife saw. When living in Malaysia, I had friends who regularly saw spirits and ghosts, as common-place as people where I live now see dogs or cats. People becoming possessed, either intentionally or not, was common-place too.
My own experience is that the East is quite different from the West in a sense, that people view the world differently and experience it differently. One’s views and experience of the world is a product of one’s karma and past experience.
Coming back to live in the UK again now, I certainly experience the world here as being what used to be called ‘Godless’ – a very much less animate and vibrant world, in terms of the inhabitancy of the same space by beings of different types.
Do you exist?
If you feel so inclined, I’d be very interested to hear your response to my question ‘do you exist’, and hope this will prove a useful basis for intestigating your experience futher. Asking questions about what exists is one of the key means to develop ones view and provide the basis for direct experience of the nature of mind.
if anyone can explain exorcism from the Buddhist point of view? And also things like black magic and voodoo and stuff like that?
Exorcism – I guess this generally refers to the removal of some sort of ‘spirit’ or being which is either possessing another being, or is around a person or particular location. In either case, it is seen as an unwanted guest who there is a desire to remove.
The Chod perspective on spirits or demons
There are a number of things here from a Buddhist point of view. One way to look at this is from that of the Chod practice, (which is my main practice, by the way, so I’m talking from personal experience here). If you are not familiar with this, it is a practice from the Tibetan Siddha Machig Labdron, which is based on the Prajnaparamita sutras, and which aims to ‘cut off’ demons.
These demons are seen as two-fold. Firstly, the sense of ‘external’ beings which it is desired to remove. And secondly, as mental defilements and obscurations which are desired to remove.
Chod and Machig Labdron
Relative Bodhicitta
To deal with the external demons case, which is more relevant to your email, here we work in terms of both Relative and Ultimate Bodhicitta. So, in terms of accepting the ‘reality’ of the appearance of the spirit or demon, our approach to them is one of relative Bodhicitta, in other words, of compassion. So rather than reacting with fear, or anger, or trying to push away the being, we open our hearts and use compassion. In Chod, we actually offer our bodies and other capacities to the demon to feast themselves on. So the key thing here at the relative level is that exorcism of the unwanted demon is through compassion and generosity for that being.
Ultimate Bodhicitta
Ultimately, the approach is in terms of Ultimate Bodhicitta, which refers to the realisation of emptiness. So they key to a permanent solution to the problem of the unwanted demon is that of seeing the ultimate nature of the demon and the situation, in other words to realise its emptiness. This is the most thorough and final solution, as it were.
So we can say that at a relative level we use compassion and generosity towards this being, whilst at an ultimate level, we realise the emptiness of the situation. As a result, in both cases, no harm comes to either ourselves, nor to the unwanted being.
Generally, if you live in a Buddhist countries, you will often find that a monk or lama is called in to clear a place or person of possession, usually through performing a ritual. It is said that the deeper the realisation of emptiness of the monk, then the more likely the result will be positive.
Possession vs Mental Illness
In terms of someone being possessed, and looking at it from a western psychological perspective, it is often said that what is called ‘possession’ in the east is a form of mental illness, or imbalance from a western perspective. Thus such things as schizophrenia get mentioned. The person is labelled as having visual or aural hallucinations.
Sometimes this can happen as a result of incorrect meditation methods, perhaps without the correct guidance, where someone goes quite far down a particular path of meditation without the necessary balancing factors.
Mental Illness
What is magic?
Black magic – is talked of as different from white magic, the former being magic used for ‘bad’ or ‘evil’ purposes. So what is magic? Generally I’d say it’s the ability to make things happen in physical world, through using mental and usually ritual activity.
The example can be given of Milarepa, who was able to bring down hail, and also cause a house to be brought down through his ritual and visualisation actions. In this case, a particular being was invoked to lend its power to the action desired.
Milarepa
In Kabbalistic magic which I have personal experience of, again you invoke a powerful being in order to make things happen. In a sense, the key here is that through magic the commonly accepted seeming ‘rules’ of the physical universe no longer seem to apply. So they break the rules of accepted science.
What is Voodoo?
Voodoo generally involves gaining control over another person, again through some ritual and mental actions. In Buddhist countries, spells can be quite popular. For example in Thailand, my wife’s sister had a spell placed on her, and she then vomited razor blades.
Voodoo spirit
Buddhist approach to black magic and voodoo
So how are black magic and voodoo explained from a Buddhist point of view? Well, all things are interconnected. The web of causes and conditions are infinite, so things that happen in one location can affect those in another remote location. Similarly, things in the mental realm can affect the physical realm. The ability to affect the physical realm, and other beings would seem to be connected to Siddhi powers, those things which are by-products of meditation practice.
As you progress in your practice, then the way things are starts to change for you. You are no longer limited by your perspective to affecting things as you used to. You gain the ability to make things happen which someone with lesser realisation cannot make happen.
These abilities are always seen as a by-product, not something to be actively pursued, and once gained, always to be used with Bodhicitta, for other beings’ welfare.
