QuoteGulab JamonQuotedrivingthecarI take yoga classes and go to a free meditation at a local non-profit yoga center. I checked everywhere and nowhere is it listed as a cult (and it's been around for a while). Just because some cults use meditation techniques does not mean all meditation or yoga is an entry way to a cult or has no value. For example, just because some cults use the name
Forum: Coercive Persuasion and Undue Influence

Hi S_Byers666, Thanks for the post. I was especially interested in all the stuff about yagyas, since I bailed out of TM before that was introduced.
Forum: Coercive Persuasion and Undue Influence

cultreporter, I think it's a great site. Very good looking and very informative. Obviously you've put a lot of work into it and I think it has paid off. The only thing was that I got confused about what the relationship is between "Siddhaswarupananda Paramahamsa", Chris Butler, and "Siddha". Are they the same person?
Forum: Coercive Persuasion and Undue Influence

Hi cultreporter, My site is www.suggestibility.org. Another site critical of TM is www.behind-the-tm-facade.org. I'd love to look at your blog, but I'm getting an error accessing it right now. I'll try again later.
Forum: Coercive Persuasion and Undue Influence

QuoteemntkQuoterrmoderatorThe supernatural claims you say Randi cannot prove, no one has proven. No psychic powers have ever been proven through science with research results, which have been peer reviewed and published within any reputable scientific journal. Such claims typically rely upon and/or cite anecdotal evidence. I am agnostic about whether a supernatural/metaphsical reality exis
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

QuotecultreporterIs there anyone here who has been involved with a similar organisation or has any thoughts on how best to go about exposing what they are really about? I think that Transcendental Mediation qualifies. It markets itself as a "simple, natural, relaxation technique". Then they hit you with post-trance indoctrination into "Maharishi" Mahesh "Yogi's&quo
Forum: Coercive Persuasion and Undue Influence

Hi Gazz, Congrats on making what seems like an early escape! Some people (like me for example) didn't catch on so early and gradually got sucked far way into the TM machinery, often with some devastating psychological and financial impact. If you haven't already you might check out and .
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

QuotejmmFrom what you have written I think your sister had some mental problems to begin with, that have not done well in the atmosephere of BPI. You have no evidence for that position, and I think that you are on dangerous ground here. Cults often use a "blame the victim" approach regarding those who are damaged by their cult involvement.
Forum: Recovery from Destructive Cults and Groups

If that's who you mean, then in addition to the RR links (and FWIW) here are a couple of dissatisfied customers...
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

OMG I'm *really* sorry for quoting from religioustolerance.org, it's very creepy there... "The Scientology religion is an expanding new religion, founded by American author and humanitarian L. Ron Hubbard. The word Scientology means the “study of knowledge or truth” and addresses the rehabilitation and salvation of the human spirit."
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Oops, I quoted from religioustolerance.org. Try this instead:
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

QuoteRama Das (slave name)The famous "McMartin" case, which happened in the early nineties, is the centre of the arguement that it does not happen, as the accused were later acquitted. I think there is reason to believe that many aspects of that case were surpressed, including that tunnels were found by an archaeologist independently comissioned by a few parents, and the subsequent repo
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

What is "narcissistic injury"?
Forum: Coercive Persuasion and Undue Influence

Also go to Amazon and search for "Steven Hassan". The first two hits are a great resource. "Combatting Mind Control" was pivotal in my development of the understanding of what had been done to me and how.
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

anticult, You make a reasoned argument. I would need to know about the researchers quoted and their methods being being convinced of their accuracy, though. I certainly cannot prove that there is no SRA in the world, although I strongly think that there would have been evidence of any *widespread* SRA before now. I personally find it unlikely that they are so disciplined and sophistica
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

QuotecultreporterQuoteJoe KQuoteRama Das (slave name)congratulations on knowing everythingWow, in the absence of counter-arguments we are resorting to flaming. Kath was simply expressing her opinions, as the people arguing against FMS here have certainly felt free to do. Well in perspective we have the person who started the whole thread casting very unempathetic and quite odious judgments on
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

QuoteRama Das (slave name)congratulations on knowing everythingWow, in the absence of counter-arguments we are resorting to flaming. Kath was simply expressing her opinions, as the people arguing against FMS here have certainly felt free to do.
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

QuoteThe AnticultI am not going to contribute any more to this thread, its too complex a discussion for that..Yes, it's very complex. QuoteThe AnticultI have NEVER said so-called "repressed memories" are forensically reliable! That is insane. No sane person would ever claim that. People can't remember the color of a truck from a hit and run yesterday.Good, I think that w
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

The #2 listing when you google for "Tom Cruise"...
Forum: Celebrities associated with "cult-like" groups

QuoteRama Das (slave name)Maybee the recovered memories are flawed, but would it not stand to reason that they could be at least fairly acurate, Yes, a particular recovered memory *could* be accurate, but without other evidence there is no way of telling whether it is accurate or not. QuoteRama Das (slave name)and if there are so many corroborating similar experiences that this is very loudly
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

QuoteThe AnticultThe FMS idea was created by people I consider to be offenders. Goodness. You consider Elizabeth Loftus and Margaret Singer to be offenders? Seriously? QuoteThe AnticultBut now it is used by every criminal out there. Of course, and it's a horrible consequence of the unreliability of recovered memories, but this doesn't make recovered memories forensically rel
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

QuoteRama Das (slave name)Does Rick Ross or any other respected institution have anything to say on the model of the trauma induced memory split? It makes sense as I was in a car accident as a child and the intense pain and/or shock of the situation, to this day, prevents me from recalling anything before I was laying on the side of the road AFTER it happened, waiting for the ambulance. The
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

QuoteThe Anticult... What is missing in the skeptical community is that there are an enormous amount of people who sexually abuse children, and then lie about it. Child sexual abuse and child abuse are very common. Just look at the internet, the world is full of offenders. So I think the skeptical community, needs to grow up a bit, and realize there are plenty of child abusers and criminals
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

QuoteRama Das (slave name)I wonder if they possibly have an agenda of convoluting this particular issue? ... To extend this a little further, (this is a hypothesis) the networks of heirarchy and power that are occult (hidden) in nature, that are alledged to reign over us contrary to our belief, involve their members in these kind of rituals for many reasons, one most important is so they ha
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

QuoteThe AnticultThis is an extremely complex area. I most definitely agree.
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

QuoteRama Das (slave name)So if these people are on the level, they are fighting an ENORMOUS uphill battle. Unquestionably. This uphill battle would be made worse by such reports as this report (found on this site) of the FBI's investigation into such things: . (It's a huge reports, search for "Conclusion" if you burn out reading it.)
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Sorry, "tanaats" is me. I initially created the "tanaats" account, then decided I wanted to be "Joe K" instead. But I couldn't figure out a way to delete the "tanaats" account and sometimes I forget and log in as that.
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Personally, I would find out if these memories were always there or had been "recovered" somehow . If they were "recovered" then this is a very tricky thing. One would have to know what techniques were used to recover them, and (for example) whether any therapist who assisted in the recovery believed in Satanic cults and may have (perhaps even unconsiously) imparted this be
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Quotedlgs124 to Joe K, obviously she wrote it to me. there are other ways than just speaking to communicate, just in case you didn't know that. It wasn't obvious to me at all, because your words seem to reflect a bubble of denial, and I was wondering if the denial was internally consistent. It's very a very difficult situation to have one's sense of reality challenge
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"