Welcome Willow.Sunshine and thanks for adding your detailed and thoughtful post. I will respond more but if I continue keeping Serge's sleeping hours I might start to look like him. :-0 Please keep posting and feel free to PM any of us too. :-)

Hello and welcome, Willow.Sunshine,

Thanks for posting. I'm glad this thread has been of help to you. It's great to hear you're recognizing the self-imposed UM thought control for what it is, and finding your way back to yourself and the real world. Thanks again for adding your voice to the discussion, and looking forward to heading more from you.

HDTH

Good point. Where is Serge and why are all his students fighting for him? Is he delluded or is this a well thought out business scheme. I am not sure, maybe both?

Hi Venus

I can't remember exactly what I wrote now... I am pretty sure I was thinking (yes thinking) that it was along the lines of what CP has mentioned about false choices. The students talk about being free to choose, but infact they aren't. You can either align gently and lovingly to fiery energy or you can align to evil pranic energy. Where is the choice in that? If you want to belong to the UM group, I would imagine you would want to conform to the way of livingness that Serge and all his "long time" students are preaching. How could you not?

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HowDoesItHappen
Hi all,

Firstly, thanks to Willow.Sunshine for adding a voice and sharing their experiences.

I just wanted to share a thought I had about the interactions with a UM devotee. It is easy to see them as the enemy when they are constantly attacking you. But I liken it to fighting child soldiers in a war (not that I have any idea what that is like so I'm probably just talking s***). If child soldiers are shooting bullets at you, trying to kill you, are they really the enemy?

Of course they're not. They are victims as much as the people they are aiming at are. They are manipulated into fighting another man's war. Much like our loved ones who have been manipulated into fighting one man's war. While that man sits in his castle, insulated by his family and inner circle.

I'm not sure how you measure cowardice, but that's got to be right up there.

And what are most wars waged for? Greed. One man's (and maybe the inner circle's) greed.

I'm not sure I agree with the school of thought that Serge is delluded. My opinion is that the whole system is too well designed with too many deceptions for the designer to not be acutely aware of his every action, and the motives of each action. To say that he actually believes any of what he preaches is taking away some of his resposibility for the evil he is propogating.

These are, of course, just my opinions, but I feel better putting them out there.

And do we have a current estimation on how many relationships have been destroyed by UM? We can probably add one more very soon. Unless I can pull a rabbit out of a hat. I recently pulled a hare out my arse, so you never know...

HDIH

Hi HDIH, I am sure Rock Biter might be able to shed some light on the true numbers of families split in some way or another by Serge and UM. This is a salient topic because it is what has driven us all here. Husbands, wives, children, sisters, brothers, friends. Any relationship that is torn apart because of UM is a causality that needs to be counted. This I believe would be every UM members family either overtly or potentially. So think thousands of families and relationships in trouble and hundreds split apart openly.

A counselor told me a few weeks back that any group that results in split families is by a cult. It doesn't matter what else they do or say. Someone else remarked that if a goal of the leader is to [surreptitiously or otherwise] demonize the partners or families of the members, then you have an evil cult. Serge certainly does both.

Imagine if UM promoted family unity, respecting each other and looking after those that you love? Even if it had the bizarre beliefs it does, and Serge was the crazy little dude he is, then we will still all be thinking it is annoying, but not a cult ( and he would be raking in more money with no end in sight)

However UM is actually all about creating division. As you point out, the constant choice of evil pranic living of fiery soulful living, with non members painted as pranic.

Furthermore, Serge works constantly to elevate the feminine and demonize the masculine. His books are peppered with negative masculine stereotypes pandering to womens fears.

Resistance by male partners to Serge working his way into their relationships is portrayed as 'jealousy' ' hardness' 'intellect' [which is pranic=evil]

Speaking too loud, looking cross, upset or emotional is an attack and is pranic or channeling energies to 'hook' them.

Love is spoken of, but is an ephemeral concept. Real love, which is full of emotions is eschewed in its favour.

Serge uses his young daughter, clearly her head full of the same strange ideas courtesy of good old twisted dad, to gather together women and reinforce his ideas which portray men as sex fiends ( interesting) only able to 'inject' bad energies, release themselves, and virtually rape their partners in pranic energy ( all the while with the sub text that Serge as a clear master is one of the only men able to 'make love' and have 'full body orgasms')

When men ( or women) seek to address these things with their partners, they are seen as 'imposing' and 'channeling' and 'loveless' and 'abusive'

When they ask for Serge's advice he cryptically speak of them being 'held back from their glory'

the stage is set...

Serge then gets them to retreats and spends hours speaking of 'doing the work' and those relationships holding you back and how to deal with those people.

The members rush home determined to 'do the work' and look upon their hapless families as loveless purveyors of prana. They are determined to make the final commitment to doing the work.

That is Serge's game. And as a narcissist he of course fails to see that he is actually cutting off his customer base by stripping them off the incomes they had before, but that is the price he pays in the juggle to run the business and to manipulate the world the way he wants it.

Time for more recruitment and to destroy more families....go forth students and spread the word of how your life has changed and become amazing.

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COncerned Partner

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HowDoesItHappen
Hi all,

Firstly, thanks to Willow.Sunshine for adding a voice and sharing their experiences.

I just wanted to share a thought I had about the interactions with a UM devotee. It is easy to see them as the enemy when they are constantly attacking you. But I liken it to fighting child soldiers in a war (not that I have any idea what that is like so I'm probably just talking s***). If child soldiers are shooting bullets at you, trying to kill you, are they really the enemy?

Of course they're not. They are victims as much as the people they are aiming at are. They are manipulated into fighting another man's war. Much like our loved ones who have been manipulated into fighting one man's war. While that man sits in his castle, insulated by his family and inner circle.

I'm not sure how you measure cowardice, but that's got to be right up there.

And what are most wars waged for? Greed. One man's (and maybe the inner circle's) greed.

I'm not sure I agree with the school of thought that Serge is delluded. My opinion is that the whole system is too well designed with too many deceptions for the designer to not be acutely aware of his every action, and the motives of each action. To say that he actually believes any of what he preaches is taking away some of his resposibility for the evil he is propogating.

These are, of course, just my opinions, but I feel better putting them out there.

And do we have a current estimation on how many relationships have been destroyed by UM? We can probably add one more very soon. Unless I can pull a rabbit out of a hat. I recently pulled a hare out my arse, so you never know...

HDIH

Hi HDIH, I am sure Rock Biter might be able to shed some light on the true numbers of families split in some way or another by Serge and UM. This is a salient topic because it is what has driven us all here. Husbands, wives, children, sisters, brothers, friends. Any relationship that is torn apart because of UM is a causality that needs to be counted. This I believe would be every UM members family either overtly or potentially. So think thousands of families and relationships in trouble and hundreds split apart openly.

A counselor told me a few weeks back that any group that results in split families is by a cult. It doesn't matter what else they do or say. Someone else remarked that if a goal of the leader is to [surreptitiously or otherwise] demonize the partners or families of the members, then you have an evil cult. Serge certainly does both.

Imagine if UM promoted family unity, respecting each other and looking after those that you love? Even if it had the bizarre beliefs it does, and Serge was the crazy little dude he is, then we will still all be thinking it is annoying, but not a cult ( and he would be raking in more money with no end in sight)

However UM is actually all about creating division. As you point out, the constant choice of evil pranic living of fiery soulful living, with non members painted as pranic.

Furthermore, Serge works constantly to elevate the feminine and demonize the masculine. His books are peppered with negative masculine stereotypes pandering to womens fears.

Resistance by male partners to Serge working his way into their relationships is portrayed as 'jealousy' ' hardness' 'intellect' [which is pranic=evil]

Speaking too loud, looking cross, upset or emotional is an attack and is pranic or channeling energies to 'hook' them.

Love is spoken of, but is an ephemeral concept. Real love, which is full of emotions is eschewed in its favour.

Serge uses his young daughter, clearly her head full of the same strange ideas courtesy of good old twisted dad, to gather together women and reinforce his ideas which portray men as sex fiends ( interesting) only able to 'inject' bad energies, release themselves, and virtually rape their partners in pranic energy ( all the while with the sub text that Serge as a clear master is one of the only men able to 'make love' and have 'full body orgasms')

When men ( or women) seek to address these things with their partners, they are seen as 'imposing' and 'channeling' and 'loveless' and 'abusive'

When they ask for Serge's advice he cryptically speak of them being 'held back from their glory'

the stage is set...

Serge then gets them to retreats and spends hours speaking of 'doing the work' and those relationships holding you back and how to deal with those people.

The members rush home determined to 'do the work' and look upon their hapless families as loveless purveyors of prana. They are determined to make the final commitment to doing the work.

That is Serge's game. And as a narcissist he of course fails to see that he is actually cutting off his customer base by stripping them off the incomes they had before, but that is the price he pays in the juggle to run the business and to manipulate the world the way he wants it.

Time for more recruitment and to destroy more families....go forth students and spread the word of how your life has changed and become amazing.

Cp this is a wonderful way to frame the insidious way Serge works... he builds Fences of the Mind around his minions.

I would like to add that I don't think he worries too much about cutting the women/partners off from the money source, the money will always be found to buy/spend/go where is needed.

For the Narcissist that Serge Benhayon really is, part of his drive also comes from having a head count on all the women/partners who have actually left their partners (we also have to count ALL types of relationships here as HDIH and Froddo will attest to) to sit at the feet of The One/Serge Benhayon. For any Narcissist and Serge Benhayon fits all the key indicators, having the POWER and adoration of (mainly) women and a few very immasculated (looking) men adoring your every word is EQUALLY as important as the money.

Willow congratulations a mind free.

HDIH I am very sorry to hear things are falling apart, Wilow sounds like the type of girl a loving caring man like you needs to be with, strong minded. Take care.

By the way for al those living in the Northern Rivers have you noticed just how many of the Universal Medicine cards are now missing from the waiting rooms of "Professionals" and are to be found in the bin?

Does anyone here think Serge will reinvent UM a bit. Just like politics they look at the polls and change policies. Do you think Serge will do that to keep the business running, or does he believe truely in what he is selling. Umm I wonder.

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lifetruetome
Does anyone here think Serge will reinvent UM a bit. Just like politics they look at the polls and change policies. Do you think Serge will do that to keep the business running, or does he believe truely in what he is selling. Umm I wonder.

He's always reinventing. Probably at it this minute. First, sanitizing his website of references to Esoteric Breast Massage and some of the other more whacked content, back pedalling on the Da Vinci claims etc. (A more extreme case was L. Ron Hubbard switching Dianetics/Scientology from a psychotherapeutic method to a religion after it was poorly received by psychiatry academia. Just add a wacked sci fi cosmology and you have a religion, including tax exempt status. Plus a lifelong grudge against psychiatry.)

Whether he believes his BS or not is immaterial. It's been working extremely effectively in meeting his narcisstic need for attention and validation, so he'd no longer even need to question it.

Serge has been constantly reinventing UM from the outset. How many here have wasted copious amounts of their waking hours trying to make sense of his hypocritical ever shifting waffle? It's real purpose is to keep shifting the goalposts for his mesmerised followers. For instance the ever changing dietary restrictions -- suddenly a food becomes more pranic because the earths energy shifts ettfreakingcettera, more hours spent reevaluating notions with zero substance. Less hours spent engaged in real life practicalities - attending to family and relationships, engaging one's intellect long enough to realize one is being duped. The followers can never get a firm handle on the teachings, can therefore never reach any kind of measurable attainment, and are kept striving (sleep deprived and malnourished) so they can never actually relax.

Mice in wheels.

lifetruetome, I forgot to mention the most obvious matter, UM's high profitability and how it relates to Serge's BS. lol...SB=BS...:-) Whether Serge believes his own bullshit by now doesn't matter. His bullshit is now officially an industry. A highly profitable one at that. The closest business model is Scientology, where hapless followers fork out more and more $ chasing higher and higher levels of imaginary, stage managed spiritual attainment, which no one else but those in the org can perceive.

To all who have left or are considering leaving Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine:

Please be well aware that the self development scene does have vultures circling around. I have encountered at least one guru recruiter at a 12 Step meeting. The 12 Traditions forbid using meetings to recruit for gurus human development courses or religions--but recruiters will try to do it anyway.

When a guru's business empire loses its reputation and members, others will move in and try to recruit former members into their own franchises and just might pose as your new best friend.

To give an analogy: dope dealers have been known to hang out near rehabilitation clinics. Jerry Stahl, in his searing memoir, Permanent Midnight, described struggling to stay clean from heroin. He was in a taxi cab and the driver saw the look of pain in Stahl's eyes. And offered him heroin. Stahl got hooked again.

Chemical relief - the drugs dealers

Emotional relief - the bliss/ecstacy dealers of the human development scene.

And both are ruthless and hang around exactly the scenes where people are working hardest to heal themselves.

Keep in mind that you were recruited by the Universal Medicine outreachers because you were in a valuable marketing demographic:

You cared about your own self development.
You have funds (or had them). If you still have funds, you are very fortunate.
You have the time to work on self development and live in an area where this is respected.

And, having left UM you are probably going to feel lonely and at some point miss the intensity and the companionship.

You will also have been used to being told what to do about every aspect of life - diet, symbol cards, when to go to bed, when to get up, whom to asssociate with, whom to stay away from. You may have big adjustments to make about re learning how to go out for night time entertainments.

What you will need to do is be careful about falling in with people who will, in the guise of offering you companionship, micromanage every bit of your life by telling you what to do and not do on a given day. Reading the newspaper astrology column may be a trigger.

The other huge adjustment after leaving UM is, if you want to avoid falling into another trap, learn or relearn how to have friends and relationships with people who dont make special claims and who do not mythologize themselves.

And as noted above, all of you as former members of UM, are seen by these recruiters as valuable property. People may want to learn how Serge established an empire over your imagination so they can learn his tricks.

You had time and money for Serge and UM - they will want to get time and money from you.

I have been an active writer on this message board for the past ten years and have witnessed several such situations.

If you need an advisor, get a counselor, even briefly, who is licensed by the state and whose license number is verifiable and whose above ground name is verifiable.