THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SATANIC CULT INVOLVEMENT: AN ...

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An important characteristic of possession states is that they are not merely mental
phenomena, but find powerful expression in somatic manifestations. Subject five, for
example, emphasises the somatic correlates of his possession experience: "I experienced
a tough physical battle too. I'd break out in cold sweats ... the sweat was ghastly, it was
abnormal. It was slimy and stank like hell. I also had severe stomach cramps, and my
mouth would bleedfor no reason". During the course of an exorcism ceremony, subject
five recalls: "The demons shrieked in agony. They picked my body up offthe bed and
threw it around the room. My body squirmed and wriggled. I shrieked, coughed, and
vomited up slime". These somatic phenomena lose their paranormal and mysterious
status when we bear in mind Brooke's (1991) contention that "the body is the incarnation
of psychological life" (p. 88), and that "each complex is an incarnate intentionality" (p.
127). This formulation undercuts the Cartesian dualism that has tended to bedevil
psychoanalytic and Jungian thought: "The psyche is not ontologically separate from the
body, but is the body's experience; correlatively, the body is not to be understood as the
'anatomical' body but as the bodily materiality of psychological life" (Brooke, 1991, p.
84). For this reason, it is hardly surprising that possession by a disavowed part ofthe self
is so dramatically incarnated.
15.3.5 Motives for leaving Satanism and experience of this process
Although the early stage of subjects' satanic careers were powerfully gratifying, they all
became progressively disenchanted. Persecutory anxiety replaced the earlier state of
hypomanic inflation, culminating in either successful or unsuccessful attempts to flee the
cult. The factors responsible for subjects' decision to leave are summarised and
illustrated below:
(1) The perception that cult relationships are not benevolent, but based on rutWess
competition for power and status, undermines the idealised surrogate family fantasy. In
subject six's words: "There is constant fear of other Satanists, as the only loyalty they
know is to Lucifer himself Hatred and jealousy towards each other is always driVing