Perfect for Hallowe'en: haunting accounts of real-life exorcisms through the centuries,from ancient Egypt and the biblical Middle East to colonial America and twentieth-century South AfricaLevitation. Feats of superhuman strength. Speaking in tongues. A hateful,glowing stare. The signs of spirit possession have been documented for thousands of years and across religions and cultures,even into our own time. Unsettling and chilling,The Penguin Book of Exorcisms brings together the most astonishing accounts: Saint Anthony set upon by demons in the form of a lion,a bull and a panther,who are no match for his devotion and prayer; the Prophet Muhammad casting an enemy of God out of a young boy; fox spirits in medieval China and Japan; a headless bear assaulting a woman in sixteenth-century England; the possession of an entire convent of Ursuline nuns in a French town; a Zulu woman who daily floated to a height of five feet; the exorcism in Earling,Iowa,in 1928 that inspired the film The Exorcist; a Filipina girl'bitten by devils'; and a rare example of a priest's letter requesting permission of a bishop to perform an exorcism - after witnessing a boy walk backwards up a wall. . .
Publisher: Penguin Books LtdISBN: 9780143135470Number of pages: 336Weight: 247 gDimensions: 196 x 129 x 15 mm
MEDIA REVIEWS
Suitably chilling reading for Halloween...Shows in illuminating detail how the belief in demonic possession stretches back more than 2,500 years
Gripping...Thoroughly researched...(with a) descriptive flare in rendering the'goblinlike entities,'jealous demons,and evil spirits...This is a boon for anyone curious about exorcism and its wide-ranging,spiritually diverse legacy
Spellbinding...Gripping...Fascinating...Demons,devils,dybbuks,jinn,zar and Chinese fox-spirits abound in accounts dating back to ancient times....The editor's introductions are sharp and cogent....(For) readers hungry for illumination - and a touch of terror
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