title: Religious beliefs, possession States, and spirits: three case studies from sri lanka.
abstract: We describe three patients from different religious backgrounds in Sri Lanka whose possession states were strongly influenced by their religious beliefs. Patient A was a Buddhist who claimed to have special powers given by a local deity named Paththini. Patient B was a Catholic who experienced spirits around her whom she believed were sent by Satan. Patient C was a Muslim and believed she was possessed by spirits. The religious beliefs also influenced the help-seeking behaviour and the rituals or treatments to which they responded.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychological Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, 08 Colombo, Sri Lanka.
authors.forename: Raveen
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hanwella
authors.forename: Varuni
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: de Silva
authors.forename: Alam
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Yoosuf
authors.forename: Sanjeewani
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Karunaratne
authors.forename: Pushpa
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: de Silva