I'm not convinced its spiritual. But it could be. When these thoughts plagued me the most, I was very serious in terms of my whole hearted belief in "spiritual warfare" of the Christian variety. I was raised a devote Christian by a devout Christian mother. All my friends were of a similar turn of thinking, and I regularly went to church, youth group, etc. I was your typical nondenominational Christian. My mother taught me to "cast down/out" the spiritual powers that ostensibly caused intrusive thoughts. I listened to sermons about how to do it. It helped some, but looking back it was more of a ritual that never really gave me emotional freedom. When you are taught to perceive your thought life as a battleground, little capacity exists to see the landscape of your inner self as anything but hostile and war torn. Perhaps it is, but I am not convinced of this now. Here's why: my intrusive thoughts took a new turn for the worse in my early adult years (18-20), and I began suffering from depression and anxiety. I was 70% convinced I lived in the Matrix, and this fear had numerous scenarios that included demonic powers. It impacted my ability to live day to day life, and so often I felt like an inescapable blight festered in my inner being, constantly growing. Sometimes I felt physically sick. Looking back, my condition was comparatively mild, but I felt like an emotional train wreck. I started seeing a counselor with a Phd (not that those with a masters are less qualified or helpful). After a few months of sessions involving cognitive behavioral therapy, some mild anti depressants, and eventually a my first job, I was back to normal. All this to say, I'm not convinced that my thoughts/emotions had any spiritual basis if therapy, pills, and a purpose in life got me back to normal. That being said, I realize that I am only one unique case. I dont discount the idea that spiritual realities might effect us on the day to day level, but I am skeptical. I've never witnessed a single unusual phenomenon that couldn't have some material explanation. And those I do meet who claim to have witnessed such things themselves, always seem like they have a biased tendency to believe in it in the first place. But I know thats not a good reason. You could say that about a skeptic as well. However, a skeptic does have scientific observation on their side, as I am not aware of any recognized studies involving paranormal phenomena that bore conclusive results. If the spiritual exists (which I [b]do[/b] think it [b]does[/b]), I dont believe you can ever find it by looking at material phenomena. tl;dr I dont reject the possibility that spiritual powers exist, and that they cause intrusive thoughts, but my personal experience and science (so far as I am aware) do not support the proposition that they are a causal factor.

Neato!! :D