Cult Mind Control

Moriarty

Moriarty

Veteran
I saw this thread on Sufi Cults: http://www.sunniport.com/masabih/showthread.php?t=11124 and thought I should add something regarding mind control and cults. I have observed that this is very common amongst Sufi orders..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3FO0pAj528

How to Become a Cult Leader a film by Carey Burt:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULM0W_R1B-E

Anyone who opens an FB page can get a following in this day and age. With a bit of charisma, mind control and taking advantage of peoples insecurities some people make claims to being Jesus (peace be upon him):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEs7SORT9P4

Then you have the 'Vassarion', the Russian false prophet:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2Cv5hZfOmk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45DA_HJuLZ0

Others have claimed to be Mahdi:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vks7u5hE7KM

Gohar Shahi, Mirza Ghulam, Utaybi claimed it for his friend and the list goes on...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Domn6GfmPTE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QunOVqB2uAI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X99d8cIw8Xw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZPxj_PtVUI

And having a following does not mean anything. Look how large and organised these people are:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1M6RyvSoAw

Other charlatans will claim to be Sunni but to have a mystical knowledge and high spiritual state. Because this is difficult to measure anyone can claim it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UtxwbHy9tYc

Most of what is flaunted as spirituality is in reality a mixture of self help, new age and claims to mystical knowledge, none of which can be measured:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbDVGfJGzrg

Cult leaders always emphasise on women followers...

Cults, wonderful on the outside but on the inside are very manipulating. Cult leaders are desperate to trick you into joining. They are after your obedience, your time and your money.Cults use sophisticated mind control and recruitment techniques that have been refined over time. Beware of thinking that you are immune from cult involvement, the cults have millions of members around the world who once thought they were immune, and still don’t know they are in a cult!


To spot a cult you need to know how they work and you need to understand the techniques they use.
 
Updated Sunni Version of 'How Cults Work?'

A cult needs to recruit and operate using deception. Why?
Because if people knew their true practices and beliefs beforehand then they would not join. A cult needs to hide the truth from you until they think you are ready to accept it.

Like believing you are literally one with Allah, or Hamza Yusuf is a general of the Mahdi.

For example, imagine if the leader of Heavens Gate cult was open and honest about the group and had said to new recruits, “Join us, wear strange clothes, get castrated and then drink poison!” he would not have had many takers.

A cult will have a slick well-rehearsed Public Relations front which hides what the group is really like. You will hear how they help the poor, or support research, or peace, or the environment. They will tell you how happy you will be in their group (and everyone in the cult will always seem very happy and enthusiastic, mainly because they have been told to act happy and will get in trouble if they don’t). But you will not be told what life is really like in the group, nor what they really believe. These things will be introduced to you slowly, one at a time, so you will not notice the gradual change, until eventually you are practicing and believing things which at the start would have caused you to run a mile.

A normal religious organization would not have any trouble with you moving to another similar organization as long as you stayed in that same religion. Because it is the belief system that matters, not membership in an organization. For example if you were a Sunni then you could move from one organization to another and still be a Sunni.

However cult leaders will tell you can only be “saved” (or can only be successful) in their organization alone.
This can be done by telling you that you need to do 'suluk' and give 'bay'ah' and follow the guidelines.
No other organization has the truth, all others miss the mark. So it is not the belief system that decides your future, but your membership with that particular group.

The cult leaders need to make you believe that there is no where else you can go and still be saved, and if you ever leave the “one true Shaykh” then you are going to cursed or misguided. This is a fear based control mechanism designed to keep you in the cult. It also gives the cult leaders tremendous power over you. If you really believe that leaving the group equals leaving God (or means you are leaving your only chance to succeed in life), then you will obey the cult leaders even when you disagree with them instead of risking being kicked out of the group. Exclusivism is used as a threat, it controls your behavior through fear. Also the desire to move up the ranks of the group, to have a position and recognition, stop one from accepting truths about the group. This is done by one thinking they are doing 'suluk' to attain 'ma'rifah'. But the hidden desire is to be a part of something, an elitist group. Of course this is never admitted even to the self. A form of psychological dissonance.

A religious group may say that other groups following the same religion are OK, but they are the ones who have a better grasp of the truth and they are superior to the rest. This is often just a subtle version of exclusivism.

For example, first off they may give you the impression that they think you are a true Muslim Sunni and it’s not until later that their true position is revealed.
 
moriarty, why did u send me a blog about "yaqoubi abuse" in private messages?

what do u want me to do about it? why did you do this?
 
These things will be introduced to you slowly, one at a time, so you will not notice the gradual change, until eventually you are practicing and believing things which at the start would have caused you to run a mile.
Click to expand...
tablighi jamaat
minhaj ul quran
 
Cults know that if they can control your relationships then they can control you. Whether we like it or not we are all profoundly affected by those around us. When you first go to a cult they will practice “love bombing”, where they arrange instant friends for you (peer bhais, fellow seekers, brothers in the tariqah). It will seem wonderful, how could such a loving group be wrong! But you soon learn that if you ever disagree with them, or ever leave the cult then you will lose all your new “friends”. This unspoken threat influences your actions in the cult. Things that normally would have made you complain will pass by silently because you don’t want to be ostracized. Like in an unhealthy relationship love is turned on and off to control.

Cults also try to cut you off from your friends and family because they hate others being able to influence you. A mind control cult will seek to manoeuvre your life so as to maximize your contact with cult members and minimize your contact with people outside the group, especially those who oppose your involvement.

Reporting Structure

In a mind control cult like in Nazi Germany or Communist Russia you must be careful of what you say and do; “The walls have ears”. Everyone is encouraged to watch out for “struggling” brothers and sisters and report what they see to leadership. Often information given in deepest confidence is automatically reported to leadership. Cult leaders will then use this information to convince their members that they have a supernatural link, the trusting member does not suspect the very natural mechanism behind the supernatural revelations they are given.


Time Control

Mind control cults keep their members so busy with meetings and activities that they become too busy and too tired to think about their involvement.

Time control also helps the cult keep their members immersed in the manufactured cult environment (jama'at, 40 days. retreats etc.).

And time control helps keep cult members away from friends and family.

Fear and Intimidation

Cult leadership is feared. To disagree with leadership is the same as disagreeing with the Divine. The cult leaders will claim to have direct authority from God to control almost all aspects of your life. If the cult is not a religious group then questioning the leaders or program will still be seen as a sign of rebellion and stupidity.

Guilt will be used to control you. Maybe the reason you’re not making money is because you’re not “with the programme”. Maybe the reason you’re not able to convert new recruits is because “your heart is prideful and full of sin”. It could never be that the programme isn’t working, or those new recruits have valid reasons for not joining. It’s always your fault, you are always wrong, and so you must try harder! You will also be made to feel very guilty for disobeying any of the cult’s written or unwritten rules.

People in a mind control cult will also hide their true thoughts and feelings, and instead wear a mask which presents them as a perfect cult member. This mask is a defense against being reported to leadership and being punished for not measuring up (cult members never feel like they measure up to the cult’s ideals, and yet often believe the other members around them do, when in reality the others feel the same as them). Hence cult members are trained not only to deceive outsiders, but also to deceive their fellow cult members. Rarely can close friendships form in cults, and if they do the cult’s leaders may see them as a threat and move those people away from each other. Nothing is allowed that can be more powerful than the cult members’ allegiance to the group and it’s leaders.

Character Assassination

Character Assassination is used to help create the guilt in you. Character Assassination is a type of false reasoning used by people and groups who have no real arguments. The technical name for Character Assassination is “The Ad hominem Fallacy”. This is how it works. Imagine if you will a conversation between two men, Ford and Arthur…

“One plus one equals three”, says Ford.
“No I don’t think so. You see when I have one thing, and I have another thing, then I have two things not three”, replies Arthur.
“I see your point, but what you must realize is that one plus one when calculated in relation to this complex number domain, which I just invented, and then squared by the sum of the ninth tangent in the sequence of the Fibonacci series results in three!”, stated Ford triumphantly.

Ok, Ford is wrong, but that is not the point. The point is that Ford tried to answer Arthur’s reasoning with more reasoning of his own. This is the healthy way people and groups debate subjects. Now lets see what would have happened if Ford had used Character Assassination…

“Arthur I have been a mathematician longer than you. How dare you disagree with me! You are obviously a very smug and prideful person. I think you are disagreeing with me because you are jealous of me, and to be honest with you Arthur your rebellion has really hurt me and a lot of other people too”, stated Ford his face intimidatingly close to Arthur’s.

You see Ford didn’t answer Arthur’s argument, instead he attacked his character. If you are not aware of how Character Assassination works then it is a powerful way to exert control over you.

Information Control

Common sense tells us that a person who does not consider all information may make an unbalanced decision. Filtering the information available or trying to discredit it not on the basis of how true it is, but rather on the basis of how it supports the party line, is a common control method used throughout history.
 
Cult Recruiting Techniques

Here are some key warning signs that may indicate a cult is trying to recruit you.

Hyped Meetings
Rather than explain to you what the group believes or what their programme is up front, they will instead insist that you can only understand it if you come to a group meeting. There everyone around you will seem so enthusiastic that you will start to think there is something wrong with you. They create an environment where you will feel uncomfortable and the only way to become comfortable is to join them. This is an application of controlled peer pressure.

Intense Unrelenting Pressure
They call repeatedly. Meet you on campus or outside your work. Trick you into coming for only an hour and then lead you into a long study, meeting or talk. They have to keep the pressure on, otherwise you might snap out of the mind control environment they are trying to immerse you in.

They tell you that they are not a cult.
This is a preemptive strike against the warnings from friends and family members which they know will come. In fact some cults go as far to tell you that Satan will try and dissuade you by sending family members and friends to tell you it is a cult. When this tactic is used then often a warped form of logic occurs in the recruits’ mind, the “agents of Satan” do come and tell them that it is a cult. So since the group predicted that would happen, the group therefore must true! Basically if any group tells you that they are not a cult, or that some people call them a cult, then for goodness sake find out why!

Incentives For Joining and Staying in a Cult


Times you are vulnerable. (seeking marriage, after a divorce, single parent, seeking father figure, seeking belonging etc.)
Experiential rather than logical. (dreams, kashf, out of body experiences, seeking miracles etc)
Fake friendship. (wanting affluent friends, seeking position, money or a job)
End of world pressure. (appearance of Imam Mahdi, Dajjal, predictions, armageddon, food shortages and war predictions etc)
Pressure to do crazy things.
Secret knowledge.
(suluk, khalwah, kashf, ranks amongst awliya etc)

Warning Signs


Single charismatic leader.
People always seeming constantly happy and enthusiastic. Especially if you discover that they have been told to act that way for the potential new recruits.
Instant friends.
If you are told who you can or cannot talk to or associate with.
They hide what they teach.
Say they are the only true group, or the best so why go anywhere else.
Hyped meetings, get you to meetings rather than share with you.
Experiential rather than logical.
Asking for money for the next level.
Some cults travel door to door during times when women are home alone. They, and this is rather sexist, think that women are easier to recruit and once they have the woman then it will be easier to snare the husband or partner.
Saying that they have to make people pay for it because otherwise they will not appreciate it. This is of course a very silly reason, plenty of people are able to appreciate things which they did not pay for.

Find out More

Before joining a group a person should find out everything possible about it. Commonly many ex-members will have posted their cult involvement stories on the net. Do not be pressured into giving 'bay'ah' but study Islam, tasawwuf and find out everything possible about any of these groups.
 
moriarty can you answer the question please?

why did you send me a blog about "yaqoubi abuse" ?

who are you? and what do you want?
 
Personality traits of a Narcissistic cult leader are listed in the following book:

http://www.amazon.com/Narcissists-Among-Us-ebook/dp/B0098JOM62/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1347382697&sr=8-1&keywords=joe+navarro+narcissist

These traits make interesting observation. Of course it is not necessary that the cult leader has all of these traits. Having a dozen is dangerous enough:

1 He has a grandiose idea of who he is and what he can achieve.

2 Is preoccupied with fantasies of unlimited success, power, or brilliance.

3 Demands blind unquestioned obedience.

4 Requires excessive admiration from followers and outsiders.

5 Has a sense of entitlement - expecting to be treated special at all times.

6 Is exploitative of others by asking for their money or that of relatives putting others at financial risk.

7 Is arrogant and haughty in his behavior or attitude.

8 Has an exaggerated sense of power (entitlement) that allows him to bend rules and break laws.

9 Takes sexual advantage of members of his sect or cult.

10Sex is a requirement with adults and sub adults as part of a ritual or rite.

11 Is hypersensitive to how he is seen or perceived by others.

12 Publicly devalues others as being inferior, incapable, or not worthy.

13 Makes members confess their sins or faults publicly subjecting them to ridicule or humiliation while revealing exploitable weaknesses of the penitent.

14 Has ignored the needs of others, including: biological, physical, emotional, and financial needs.

15 Is frequently boastful of accomplishments.


16 Needs to be the center of attention and does things to distract others to insure that he or she is being noticed by arriving late, using exotic clothing, overdramatic speech, or by making theatrical entrances.

17 Has insisted in always having the best of anything (house, car, jewelry, clothes) even when others are relegated to lesser facilities, amenities, or clothing.

18 Doesn’t seem to listen well to needs of others, communication is usually one-way in the form of dictates.

19 Haughtiness, grandiosity, and the need to be controlling is part of his personality.

20 Behaves as though people are objects to be used, manipulated or exploited for personal gain.

21 When criticized he tends to lash out not just with anger but with rage.

22 Anyone who criticizes or questions him is called an “enemy.”

23 Refers to non-members or non-believers in him as “the enemy.”

24 Acts imperious at times, not wishing to know what others think or desire.

25 Believes himself to be omnipotent.

26 Has “magical” answers or solutions to problems.

27 Is superficially charming.

28 Habitually puts down others as inferior and only he is superior.

29 Has a certain coldness or aloofness about him that makes others worry about who this person really is and or whether they really know him.

30 Is deeply offended when there are perceived signs of boredom, being ignored or of being slighted.
31 Treats others with contempt and arrogance.

32 Is constantly assessing for those who are a threat or those who revere him.

33 The word “I” dominates his conversations. He is oblivious to how often he references himself.

34 Hates to be embarrassed or fail publicly - when he does he acts out with rage.

35 Doesn’t seem to feel guilty for anything he has done wrong nor does he apologize for his actions.

36 Believes he possesses the answers and solutions to world problems.

37 Believes himself to be a deity or a chosen representative of a deity.

38 Rigid, unbending, or insensitive describes how this person thinks.

39 Tries to control others in what they do, read, view, or think.

40 Has isolated members of his sect from contact with family or outside world.

41 Monitors and or restricts contact with family or outsiders.

42 Works the least but demands the most.

43 Has stated that he is “destined for greatness” or that he will be “martyred.”

44 Seems to be highly dependent of tribute and adoration and will often fish for compliments.

45 Uses enforcers or sycophants to insure compliance from members or believers.

46 Sees self as “unstoppable” perhaps has even said so.

47 Conceals background or family which would disclose how plain or ordinary he is.

48 Doesn’t think there is anything wrong with himself – in fact sees himself as perfection or “blessed.”

49 Has taken away the freedom to leave, to travel, to pursue life, and liberty of followers.

50 Has isolated the group physically (moved to a remote area) so as to not be observed.
 
Cults and cult leaders always seek to seize power. This takes the form of intense control of followers, seizing estates where possible, seeking money and other forms of embezzlement.

Here is an example of when the 'Murabitoun' cult lead by Ian Dallas aka Abdul Qadir seized a masjid in Norwich:

http://web.archive.org/web/20060906092119/http://murabitun.cyberummah.org/norwich-mosque/index.htm

More info on Ian Dallas and Freemasonry:

http://web.archive.org/web/20061007022406/http://ebooks.cyberummah.org/english-ebooks.htm#Simposio%20Junger

This is the audio recording of a conference held in Granada (Spain) by Ian Dallas, the leader of the Murabitun World Movement. In this conference he delivers a long speech praising nazi ideology and Hitler. This audio file is a rare testimonial of the hidden agenda of the Murabituns, a sect which exploits muslim’s resources in order to finance extremist pro-nazi projects...
Click to expand...
This PDF document contains the scanned reproduction of the acts of the conference organized by Ian Dallas (aka Shaykj Abd al-Qadir al-Murabit) in 1990 in honor of the occultist and nazi ideologist Ernst Junger. At the conference also spoke CIA mkultran Albert Hofmann, the discovered of LSD, delivering a speech were he makes fun of the arabs because “they are uncapable of drugging themselves properly”! This is how the muslim’s money is employed by Fellini’s ex-actor and pro-nazi leader of the Murabituns...
Click to expand...
 
Cult members always feel anxiety around their 'mystical' narcissistic cult leader or even in the group.
As a defense against the high level of anxiety that accompanies being so acutely powerless, people in cults often assume a stance of self-blame. This is reinforced by the group's manipulative messages that the followers are never good enough and are to blame for everything that goes wrong.
In tariqah cults this is given the guise of 'suluk', ego, obedience to the Shaykh etc.

In cults and abusive relationships, those in a subordinate position usually come to accept the abuse as their fault, believing that they deserve the foul treatment or that it is for their own good. They sometimes persist in believing that they are bad rather than considering that the person upon whom they are so dependent is cruel, untrustworthy, and unreliable. It is simply too frightening for them to do that: it threatens the balance of power and means risking total rejection, loss, and perhaps even death of self or loved ones.
This explains why an abused cult follower may become disenchanted with the relationship or the group yet continue to believe in the teachings, goodness, and power of the leader.
 
Moriarty, if you're trying to say turuq are cults, then I'm happily in a cult.

Most of what you've written is by kuffar, for kuffar, who are against any form of submission, indeed, even the true submission which is to Allah ta'ala and His beloved, peace be upon him. Of course, I don't mind submitting to his heirs, being anxious around them, and that jazz that you're cutting & pasting.

Yes, we all know there are charlatans out there, posing as spiritual guides. If you're trying to insinuate through your private messages to Wadood that Sheikh al-Yaqoubi is cult figure and a leader of a cult, then just say so - what are you beating around the bush for?
 
The core attraction to the cult can be many factors. One main reason is the leader. Attraction to the leader has many facets. This includes his promises to the seeker of rank with the Almighty, miracles, unveiling of the unseen, knowledge and mysticism. A factor relating to this is charisma.

In general, charismatic personalities are known for their inescapable magnetism, their winning style, the self-assurance with which they promote something--a cause, a belief, a product. A charismatic person who offers hope of new beginnings often attracts attention and a following.

One dictionary definition of charisma is "a personal magic of leadership arousing special popular loyalty or enthusiasm for a public figure (as a political leader or military commander); a special magnetic charm or appeal."

Charisma was studied in depth by the German sociologist Max Weber, who defined it as "an exceptional quality in an individual who, through appearing to possess supernatural, providential, or extraordinary powers, succeeds in gathering disciples around him."

n the case of cults, of course, we know that this induction of whole hearted devotion does not happen spontaneously but is the result of the cult leader's skillful use of thought-reform techniques. Charisma on its own is not evil and does not necessarily breed a cult leader. Charisma is, however, a powerful and awesome attribute found in many cult leaders who use it in ways that are both self-serving and destructive to others. The combination of charisma and psychopathy is a lethal mixture.

For the cult leader, having charisma is perhaps most useful during the stage of cult formation. It takes a strong-willed and persuasive leader to convince people of a new belief, then gather the newly converted around him as devoted followers. A misinterpretation of the cult leader's personal charisma may also foster his followers' belief in his special or messianic qualities. Like the fact that they may term him as 'mujaddid' or 'mahdi' or something else.

In the long run, skills of persuasion (which may or may not be charismatic) are more important to the cult leader than charisma--for the power and hold of cults depend on the particular environment shaped by the thought-reform program and control mechanisms, all of which are usually conceptualized and put in place by the leader. Thus it is the psychopathology of the leader, not his charisma, that causes the systematic manipulative abuse and exploitation found in cults.
 
If you're trying to insinuate through your private messages to Wadood that Sheikh al-Yaqoubi is cult figure and a leader of a cult, then just say so - what are you beating around the bush for?
Click to expand...
No such insinuation has been made. It was the exact same PM I sent you or Abu Aleshba questioning you or Abu Aleshba what do you make of a particular blog? That blog was made by former members of the Yaqoubite group and now head the WLSIS. That was in context of the following thread:

http://www.sunniport.com/masabih/showthread.php?t=11118

Many 'sufi' cult leaders recommend non Muslim books on a regular basis. Nuh Keller recommends:

http://salikah.blogspot.co.uk/2006/06/sh-nuh-recommended-books.html

Endangered Minds: http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/ASIN/0684856204/qid=1149823027/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl/702-3408292-0307209

Silicon Snake Oil: http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/ASIN/0385419945/qid=1149823087/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_0_1/702-3408292-0307209

I recommend: http://www.amazon.com/dp/0060520221?tag=nononsenseselfde&camp=14573&creative=327641&linkCode=as1&creativeASIN=0060520221&adid=0DNX9M6NQR30RW738YNJ&&ref-refURL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nononsenseselfdefense.com%2Fcultawareness.htm

Taming Your Gremlin: A Surprisingly Simple Method for Getting Out of Your Own Way
 
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