Historians and psychologists sometimes diagnose famous figures from the past using modern categories such as obsessive compulsive disorder. OCD involves intrusive, unwanted thoughts that cause distress, followed by compulsions that offer only temporary relief. In 1691 an English bishop described a similar pattern in people tormented by religious doubt, which he called religious melancholy. Psychologist Erik Erikson applied the OCD label to the Reformer Martin Luther in 1958, but much of his evidence came from Luther's associate Philipp Melanchthon rather than Luther himself. Critics argue that the religious and moral context of such suffering was different, and that its meaning cannot be mapped neatly onto a modern diagnosis.

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.