In writing of my own experience thirty-five years after leaving Yogi Bhajan’s cult of the American Sikhs, I have reached the conclusion, to paraphrase a common saying, that “you can take a person out of cult, but it is much harder to take the cult out of a person.” Most cults impact every aspect of a person’s sense of identity and well-being, from appearance to world view, from sense of agency to warped ethical framework, from sense of spiritual superiority to sense of shame, and much more. Recovering from a cult requires reclaiming (or finding for the first time) an authentic sense of identity, free from the distorted norms inflicted by the cult into virtually every aspect of life. So deeply engrained are many of these norms that ex-cult members are often unaware of their source or their continued impacts upon their lives. For example, many eastern spiritual cults promote a belief in past life “karma” as a determinant of current situations, such as social status within the cult, or the rationale for unethical behavior, such as sexual abuse by the cult leader. Because most cults are all-consuming in the beliefs, attitudes, practices, and the lifestyles they promote, former members face enormous challenges to their sense of identity upon leaving, and it often takes many years to come to grips with the lingering influences of the cult. This presentation will explore in detail some of the many factors that have lasting destructive influence even after a person has physically left a cult, and will offer options for regaining a healthy and authentic sense of identity.
Registration: https://icsahome.networkforgood.com/events/50795-2023-icsa-annual-international-conference
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