Spirit Possession

Possession in Demonolatry

In fiction

Spiritual possession, especially malign, has been a favorite theme of fictional works, especially in horror novelsand films. The novel and film The Exorcist may be the best-known examples of the latter. A version of benign possession is Deadman, a ghostly superhero who uses his possession ability in the cause of justice. Jericho, a member of the Teen Titans, could also take possession of someone else's body through eye contact (and was able to control their motor skills, and sometimes speech). Powerful fictional telepaths of the Marvel Universeparticularly X-Men characters such as Jean Grey and Professor X can possess other bodies.

Similarly, the animated hero Danny Phantom (half-ghost) and other ghosts in the series can 'overshadow' human beings, so-called presumably to avoid sounding occultic. Ino Yamanaka from Naruto uses Mind Body Switch Technique which transfers her own spirit to someone else's.Frank E. Peretti's books This Present Darkness and Piercing the Darkness deal heavily in demonic possession and spiritual warfare from an Abrahamic religious standpoint.

Spiritual possession, though not necessarily malign, also appears as a secondary theme in The Dune Chronicles, a series of novels written by Frank Herbert. The video game Geist's primary game mechanic revolves around possessing people, animals and objects in order to progress.
In fantasy literature, the term channelling is sometimes used in other ways, particularly to describe a person's ability to draw on some form of magical power. For example, the Wheel of Time series uses the term extensively (although it is by no means the only work to do so).

In the animated series South Park, Kenny was killed off for a year in Kenny Dies. Eric Cartman then drank his ashes thinking it was chocolate milk powder and became possessed by Kenny. Chef and Cartman's mom took him to Chef's Parents who exorcised Kenny. In the manga and anime series Shaman King, shamans team up with ghosts and spirits to achieve their goals. The greatest dreams of a shaman is to become the Shaman King, who is able to contact the Great Spirit (the spirit that every soul will eventually go back to) in order to be the savior of the world. Various magical and religious terms are spread through out the story but they merge into something explainable by the time the main plot arrives.

Often in the manga and anime Card Captor Sakura, characters are possessed by spirits, some examples include Rita by The Sword Clow Card, and Sakura herself in the movie by its main antagonist. In Lois Duncan's Stranger With My Face, Laurie is taught to project her soul from her body. Her sister Lea ends up taking over Laurie's body by projecting her soul. In the video game Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Princess Peach is possessed by the final boss, Shadow Queen. However, Mario and his friends defeat her and bring the princess to normal.

In the video game The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Princess Zelda is possessed for the first part of the final battle. She is returned to normal after Link defeats her. In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Tom Riddle (a younger Voldemort) possesses Ginny Weasley through his Horcrux diary, where he stores part of his soul, and makes her open the Chamber of Secrets and harm Muggle-borns. In the action cartoon Dragonball Z, the wizard Babidi is able to possess Vegeta by taking control of the evil tendencies within Vegeta's heart. Also, in Pokemon Battle Frontier, Ash touches a stone ball in an ancient temple, and is possessed by the spirit imprisoned inside, the King of Pokelantis.

Popular Culture

Many film and television shows have showcased spirit possession, including The Ghost Whisperer, starringJennifer Love Hewitt, about a young woman named Melinda Gordon who can see and talk to spirits. Throughout the course of each episode she helps them crossover into "the light." The third season prominantely showcases spirit possession as her life is endangered when her father becomes possessed by a ghost who wants revenge.