THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SATANIC CULT INVOLVEMENT: AN ...

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that he and his demons were helplessly vulnerable to potential attack by more powerful
Satanists (71). This experience reveals the existence of a weak, vulnerable self aspect,
which co-existed with the destructive subpersonality. This self representation was
permanently threatened by bad internal objects, and their projected manifestation in S's
perception ofothers as powerful potential assailants.
14.7.4. Experience of demonic possession
Voluntary demonic possession, through sexual intercourse with satanic witches, as well as
ritual demonic invocation, was a routine aspect of cult life (76). When invoked, the
demons would manifest themselves, and cult participants would verbally assent to
accepting the demons into them (77). Drug ingestion and the hypnotic suggestion of the
invocation rituals facilitated the personification of, and introjective identification with,
previously split-off and projected destructive aspects of S's personality. These were
subsequently experienced to be demonic alien entities, which S then invited into his being,
thereby becoming a receptacle for bad objects. S consequently experienced himself to be a
host, who was used and controlled by his demonic inhabitants, and thus not responsible for
his destructive behaviour (83). S initially believed that he exercised control over his
demons, but later realised that the demons controlled him, and used him for their own
destructive ends (75). He would hear the internal voices of demons directing his
behaviour (80) and, when drinking, taking drugs or fighting, S's "demons" would induce
uncontrollable aggressive outbursts in him (79). He felt afraid and estranged from himself
when the possessing demonic entities took over his personality, controlling his body and
actions (81). While possessed, S's cognitive functioning would be impaired, and he could
not clearly recall his demonically-induced behaviour after the event (84). Despite the
anxiety occasioned by S's inability to control his demonic inhabitants, he continued to
invite them inside him in order to obtain more supernatural power (82). All these
possession phenomena suggest the primitive fantasy of being controlled by dissociated,
destructive parts of S's own mind, resulting in hallucinations, delusions of influence, selfalienation,
and amnestic episodes.
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