Jeff Guinn's historical retelling in this book stands as an objective, richly detailed account that demonstrates many aspects of a complex story without taking sides. His narrative is marked by clarity, and conciseness, tracing the tragic events from their very inception to their roots.
Jeff covers the religious origins dating back to 1844 and examines the religious leaders who interpreted The Book of Revelations and The End of Times in a unique light.
It insightfully portrays the group's female leader and how in the wake of her decline, David Koresh emerges by becoming her lover. His adopted name, ideologies, and doctrines are particularly self-centered and megalomanic made me wonder once again why people become blind to obvious deception when facing certain individuals.
Guinn's work is not just a recounting of events; it's a crucial piece of historical literature, essential for those seeking to understand the full narrative and grasp the multifaceted truths of this story.
America is the land of opportunity and religious freedom. Sadly sometimes this religious freedom enables the greatest civil and criminal abuses and attracts cynical players. Rajneesh and his followers sought to build a utopia in the backwoods of Oregon, founding their own city to shine the light of Rajneeshism.
Led by megalomaniac Sheela, his fanatically loyal Puja, and a variety of law-savvy American followers, the cult started a war on local residents trying to turn the entire region into Rajneeshpuram. In the meantime, Rajneesh also known as Osho amassed an incredible amount of wealth, a fleet of luxury cars, and lovers, showing the world what cults are truly about. Greed, power, and sex.
As a woman and a hard-boiled feminist, Keith Raniere and his cult NXIVM bother me the most. While one could attribute most personality cults to religious fervor, Raniere managed to mentally enslave dozens of secular and well-educated women and men. Alarmingly, Raniere was just an average Joe who had mastered techniques of manipulation through a stint with a multi-level marketing company.
Instead of religion and redemption, he sold his followers the idea he could help them become their "best selves" by following his methodologies which were ridiculously self-centered and misogynistic. The fact that Raniere was a creep and a women hater should have been more obvious to the ones who regarded him as their Vanguard, the most ethical man on earth, but it wasn't. Perhaps this book can explain why.
Religion has been slowly phasing out in most Western world leading to new forms of worship. In his book, Zeke Faux proves that the crypto market is much more than a pyramid scheme, emerging technology, or speculative investment strategy but a modern cult with personalities and ideologies that level up and often mimic the biggest cult leaders in history.
Great book on how MLM phenomenon targets women with text-book cult methods by showcasing prosperity and female empowerment unattainable to most but few MLM members, who are often already positioned right on a social ladder.