Why are hitting, probing the throat, and smashing statues wrong in exorcism, and how should we judge such methods?

These are unacceptable. Probing the throat cannot expel demons or ghosts, and injuring someone through blows in the name of exorcism is not correct. At that time, Sheng Zhen Men had performed exorcism and addressed spirit attachment for over a decade without ever probing anyone’s throat, and people could still recover health. Someone claiming exorcism requires continuous beating is probably deceiving people and may themselves carry powerful negative energy.

One deeply saddening report concerned an adult son behaving unusually after returning late at night and going days without eating or drinking. The family said doctors had not helped, so they suspected spirit attachment. Three relatives restrained him in the shrine room: his father held his hands and back, his brother pinned his feet, and his mother controlled his head and put her hand in his mouth to remove all saliva, believing this would restore normality. After about half an hour he became unresponsive and died after being taken to hospital, from suffocation. The three were investigated for injury causing death and later sentenced after the court found a shared delusion. On appeal, the mother said she initially took him to two hospitals without psychiatric departments. Other reports said she had not actively pursued medical consultation and used folk methods instead. On the program, we felt she surely had not intended to kill her child, yet such an accident left us at a loss. We also noted that a hand near the throat can obstruct breathing and create alarm; pinned hands and feet would increase fear further.

Why imagine removing all saliva would restore someone? Some on the program could not understand the reasoning. Miao Yuan speculated that they might have treated saliva as a symbol of unseen negative energy. No one knew where the method came from. Participants wondered whether the mother had seen online throat-probing exorcism videos or whether southern or central Taiwanese elders had seen similar temple practices. Shengyuan also recalled online demonstrations of making people vomit by probing their throats. These were only unverified possibilities.

Vomiting itself does not equal exorcism. In exorcism, people may indeed vomit, which we understand as a response to positive and negative energies meeting after positive energy enters. Divine energy must be involved for that vomiting to count as exorcism; merely inducing it through a physical technique does not qualify. Drunk young people inducing vomiting after a nightclub visit, or people doing so to lose weight, are simply making themselves vomit. That differs from divine, positive energy entering the body and pushing negative energy out. Copying visible vomiting by forcefully probing a throat is only brute force. If that expelled demons, brushing our teeth more deeply would suffice.

Some also claim a statue containing something harmful must be smashed or cut with a knife. Their theory is that no deity will inhabit a statue previously occupied by a ghost, so violence must subdue it. We found this illogical. If smashing a statue works, what about a haunted house? Would someone with a ghost have to be killed? The unseen world has its logic; the same principle should not change simply with location. Unseen beings are energy bodies, like air or scent, not literally confined within wood. Breaking a statue merely detaches the being from that object. It does not destroy, resolve, remove it from the world, or send it where it belongs. An exorcism film likewise showed an evil spirit moving elsewhere after the pig it inhabited was killed.

Even if the initial premise is correct and something harmful is present, violent treatment itself becomes negative energy. In human society, even if someone committed a crime, everyone cannot punch them in anger without breaking the law themselves. The spirit world extends from human intentions and is not entirely unlike ours. What humans cannot rightly do is even less fitting for deities. Divine nature is compassionate and seeks to help even beings in hell and harmful demons or spirits. Our bodies are received from our parents and should not be damaged. Is it not strange for a claimed divine spokesperson to injure someone’s throat?

A person with spiritual power can invoke it through an incantation without violence. Put plainly, violent methods suggest someone cannot deal with the situation and resorts to reckless action. Genuine power and energy should accomplish the work without blows. The most capable need only speak, while those lacking wisdom resort to force. Screaming under blows does not show a ghost submitting; it shows a person in pain. We also said violent exorcism lacks empathy for another’s bodily suffering. Someone seeking help already suffers in body, mind, and spirit. We would not add physical pain to address it.

A participant asked a direct question: if hitting with a stick made demons leave, could everyone not become an exorcist? This illustrated that exorcism does not rely on beating.

What about Sheng Zhen Men’s tapping rods—is that hitting? The only tapping we actually use in exorcism is with these rods, intended to promote circulation of qi and blood, not strike ghosts. We described it as not painful, leaving people more refreshed, and hardly capable of killing someone. In practice, it lasts roughly a few minutes and is explained beforehand. Some traditional temples use straw mats. The speaker did not know the origin, but understood a possible meaning through grass’s living yang energy. Someone who had seen it said it did not hurt; another said even forceful straw-sandal blows were generally not very painful. Another episode also acknowledged that some Wangye deities traditionally used mats: there really was hitting, but unlike blows causing bleeding or holes. The speaker also admitted recipients might feel discomfort or some pain. However, anything causing pain, bleeding, vomiting blood, or injury is wrong and signals a problem. Why might people think it works? One explanation was that pain sometimes restores some reason, compared to pressing the philtrum when someone is near unconsciousness. People then mistakenly attribute recovery to exorcism through pain. Others speculated that someone whose throat was painfully probed might regain reason, or might never have been attached and simply claim recovery to stop the treatment.

There have been many similar reports of harm under exorcism claims. A grandmother said her grandson was possessed by her late husband and repeatedly beat the child, who died. A husband claimed his wife was possessed and killed her with ritual implements. A group beat believers under the name of “borrowing the body for exorcism.” A Malaysian report described a medium sitting on someone and repeatedly striking them until they stopped breathing. Regarding the husband, Shengyuan said this degree of violence was already problematic beyond simple exorcism. He personally wondered whether a marital argument had escalated, with one person labeled possessed, but this was only his thought and the report did not clarify it. Regarding the grandmother, he had not met those involved and reasoned only from principles: someone carried by negative emotions may blame possession to make their own behavior seem acceptable. Sheng Zhen Men instead places hands gently on the body to convey energy, without punching or attacking the person. The person is not what exorcism seeks to expel.

How should you judge someone offering exorcism? First, observe conduct rather than merely hearing the deity claimed behind them. You cannot see whether that deity is good or bad, but you can see the person’s behavior. A terrible temper and violent handling require caution. Second, free service does not establish correctness; these are separate matters. Third, question unreasonable or suspicious things thoroughly without embarrassment. If genuine, a teacher should be able to keep answering and make things clear. If answers remain muddled, consider whether you lack understanding or the other person is talking nonsense. Charging is normal because labor receives compensation, but assess the amount yourself, and the provider should explain the reason.

A reported fraud illustrates illogical explanations. Someone claiming to be a Catholic missionary and exorcist told a woman that a cross on her bedroom door had severed a demon’s arm-spirit, which would still find the room even if the cross was discarded. He later claimed her husband’s notebook contained a wealth-loss demon and a Bible contained a teenage spirit, demanded taking them for worship, and produced a missionary training contract requiring a deposit. Checking with the church revealed no such organization. Shengyuan and Dao Xuan compared a cross to a gun hanging on a wall: hanging there may not frighten a criminal, whereas aiming it does. In other words, an unactivated religious object does not launch attacks by itself; at most it guards or prevents. When an unwanted being is actually present, the usual approach is deliverance and asking it to leave. We found talk of sealing it and throwing it in a rubbish bin absurd and likely invented. The account was full of logical holes and could deceive only people with very little understanding.

Do not simply imitate either. Seeing a teacher’s method seem effective does not mean copying the script yourself is correct. If unfamiliar, ask professionals humbly rather than improvise. Household deities are like bodyguards protecting the family, but catching criminals requires police, not asking bodyguards to do it. Worshipping a deity at home therefore does not give someone exorcism ability.

If you or family genuinely seem unwell, the program advised seeing a doctor first before seeking folk approaches. Also consider places recently visited and whether any situation seemed unfavorable. If medical care has not resolved matters, check whether the right doctor was consulted and the problem properly investigated. Only if these steps still bring no improvement should a more experienced professional be sought for harmful unseen energy. Depression or a mental illness may genuinely be involved, and the problem can still be investigated. If seeking further understanding, consult several places and hear different views.

This does not mean all temples and teachers are bad. Many traditional religions and temples are very good; a minority unfortunately damage their reputation. Many teachers also resolve situations without dramatic actions. Sheng Zhen Men does not normally single others out for criticism, but shares what it considers appropriate views when asked.