ABSTRACT
In the circumstances which we have just discussed, possession plays a significant part in the enhancement of status. One result of possession by those spirits which we have classed as ‘peripheral’ is to enable people who lack other means of protection and self-promotion to advance their interests and improve their lot by escaping, even if only temporarily, from the confining bonds of their allotted stations in society. Onerous duties and obligations are cast aside as those concerned find refuge in clandestine cults which, since they are represented as cures, can be reluctantly tolerated by the established authorities.
