Are Demons at work, when we are supposedly Obsessed or Possessed?

Like other members of my family I pursue goals with passion, and surprise myself and others by often succeeding. Could this have something to do with what my wife describes as our obsessive nature?

What do we really mean by obsessed? Is obsession a bad thing?

Permit me to throw some light.

Obsession, from Latin 'obsidere' (to besiege), is a form of insanity caused, according to an invading spirit which takes over a being. 

Obsession is when the invading spirit takes control from outside and is the opposite of possession wherein the invading spirit seizes control from within.

Both these phenomenon have been noted throughout history and in every society. Because obsession and possession are generally considered bad every religion has often stepped in offering solutions and treatments to rid people of the influence of spirits.

Historical Background.

The oldest literary remains from every part of the world are filled with numerous references to possession and their solution. 

In sacred Jewish writings - Saul, who was "troubled with an evil spirit from God" only to be relieved by the music of David's harp (1 Sam. 16:14-16). 

In Christian writing, Jesus regularly healed by casting possessing spirits out of the mentally ill and examples of   Jesus' driving the legion of demons into the swine (thus demonstrating their existence apart from the psychology of the possessed individual). Then there is Paul's driving out of the divining spirit who possessed a young woman of Thyatira (thus associating spirit possession with fortune-telling).

Plato, in the Republic, not only speaks of demons of various grades, but mentions a method of treating and providing for those obsessed by them. Sophocles and Euripides described the possessed, and mention of the subject is also found in Herodotus, Plutarch, Horace, and many other classical writers.

Whether a being can be taken over by an invading spirit or not is a matter of personal experience and open to never ending debate. One thing is certain that many people particularly in the name of religion have done many cruel things like forceful performance of some rites, torturing or even burning people alive as a solution to the perceived obsession and possession by an individual.

Numerous religions also support good possession, wherein there seems to occur a voluntary possession of members by what is believed to be a deity, a spirit, or a deceased person. This is supposedly to peer in the past or in the future for answers or to tackle current matters from beyond time and space.

There are other angles to this matter. 

Sometimes when people achieve success or possess beauty and wealth but no one to protect or support them, they are often accused of being possessed and then plundered by unscrupulous elements in society.

The powers that be in every society feel threatened and therefore detest anyone who challenges or attempts to change the status quo. Hence accusations of being possessed by evil spirits are used to control and destroy people who dare to be different. Courageous, brilliant, intensely focussed individuals who are anything but 'normal' are more likely to be targeted. 

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Success in any matter requires sincerity, passion and commitment. 

These qualities usually devolve to us from our family and teachers and sometimes influenced by our friends and associates. If someone has these traits in good measure, he or she is neither obsessed nor possessed, simply gifted.

ps.

A note of caution. Just obsession is not enough. Success with  a dash of luck, also necessitates that we acquire either in ourselves or in our team members, competency, skill, talent, etc. 

Obsession And Possession - Encyclopedia.com