Earlier Reprints, Part Two
- AnonymousAugust 14, 2015 at 12:11 PM
Peer Pressure and Lack of Information
Peer pressure is a critical factor in keeping people in cults. Former members have told me, "In my group we had doctors, lawyers, social workers, people with all kinds of advanced degrees, intelligent people. I would look around, and I'd think, Well, Joe's still doing it. Mary's still doing it. It must be me; it must me. I just don't get it. There is something wrong with me; I just have to try harder."
Cult members feel that way because nobody else is speaking out---because nobody CAN speak out. The one who does feels alone, isolated, contaminated, wrong. Directly or indirectly, all the cult members actively encourage each other to behave in certain ways. Since we are social animals, it is difficult to resist such pressures.
In addition, the cult's dishonesty about many things keeps members from knowing what is really going on. Members are not only kept from sources of outside information but are also told lies and misrepresentations about the cult, the leader, and the group's activities. The importance or influence of the cult's actions is made larger than it really is; the leader's reputation is embellished, if not fabricated; the number of members or followers is often exaggerated to make the group look larger and more popular; and world events are distorted, as are the outside world's attitudes toward the cult. All these myths bout the cult and the society at large are generally perpetuated not only by the leader but by his inner circle of leadership as well. The resulting lack of knowledge among most members helps prevent them from making a real assessment of the situation they are in.
Margaret Thaler Singer
Cults In Our Midst - pg. 269-270
- AnonymousAugust 8, 2013 at 2:54 PM
I was a student with Jaffe 1996 at The School of Energy Mastery .I still use what I learned from him and his gifted teachers today in my practice. He was a warm, loving ,caring person and I was excited to find out he was coming to my area this weekend. I am not interested in Sufism but I wanted to re-connect with the Jaffe I remembered at the school, as the school was life changing. I have never found anything like it or teachers like those that were there since. However,after reading these blogs I am really not sure if I want to go . To be sure I will form my own opinion but I have to say I am really shocked by what I have read.
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I will keep you posted if I go.- AnonymousAugust 8, 2013 at 10:56 PM
www.rense.com/general26/raidersofthelost.htm
You may want to read this if you're having second thoughts. - AnonymousSeptember 12, 2016 at 12:26 PM
SEX LIES AND SUICIDE BOMBERS
excerpts from
www.rense.com/general26/raidersofthelost.htm
7-9-2
"There are a number of areas where Yasser Arafat defers to a quiet and amiable former Jordanian judge, Imam and Sufi teacher called Sheikh Muhammad Sa'id al-Jamal ar-Rifa'i, also called Sidi."
"Sidi claims to be the head of the Shaduliyyah Order of Sufism, with 15 million members worldwide. American adherents consider him to be The Guide of the Path, a perfect master. In Palestine, they don't take this so literally, HAVING CLOSED DOWN A RETREAT CENTER BECAUSE OF REPEATED ALLEGATIONS OF SIDI'S ADULTERY."
"He has visited America on several occasions, and raises several hundred thousand dollars each time through various organizations, the Shaduliyya Center, the Shaduliyah Sufi Center, and the Jaffe Institute (Shadhiliyya Sufi Center, University of Spiritual Healing and Sufism). The flow of money continues post 9/11, with no accountability."
"One indication might be that Sidi would make frequent visits to family members in Tul Karm, the local center for the Al-Aqsa Brigade suicide bombers. He reportedly would leave his home in East Jerusalem with large sums of cash in his pocket, including cashed checks and money from American devotees who would send it to him directly, believing it was going to charitable causes."
"Questioning either Sidi or Dr. Jaffe about the money or adultery elicits responses best described as implausible non-deniability. Sidi does the same when faced with questions about his views on Israelis and the control of East Jerusalem. To his students in the west, he proclaims love and generosity to Israelis. From the pulpit, his sermons contain phrases (translated) like "The Israelies are with the shaytun, they will get what they deserve." In America, in April 1999 he also said, "Get the Israelis out of Jerusalem." When Arafat's men went to ask him about ending the Intifada, his reply (translated) was, "We need to keep the bombers, they are martyrs for their country, I tell him not to stop."" it seems like you have little to no true knowledge about what's happening in Palestine. Now, Israel. wether its Sidi or any other person. It's wrong to accuse someone of terrorism just because of their nationality or faith. If Sidi was a terrorist or supporting terrorism the FBI would have already took care of them. as you might know Muslims are oppressed anywhere you go in the west. they get stopped at borders, they get picked for extra search, they get interrogated by gov officials all the time and these are just regular people who are not even religious but they happened to be born in a muslim country. So for you to say all of these allegations, it seems absurd that he hasnt been arrested till now which proves you are just talking and your talk is not true.
- AnonymousAugust 15, 2013 at 11:45 PM
I have been practicing Sufism with the Shadduliyah order for the last 3 years. In my personal experience it has deepened my life tremendously and I feel more peace and happiness. I say with all clarity that this spirituality is not a cult. All of my brothers and sisters in this path of some of the most kind and genuine people I have met.
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A background story. A few years ago I smoke marijuana almost religiously. I don't even know why, I didn't even enjoy it a lot of the time. And, it changed my perception of reality. I was viewing life through the fantasies in my head. When I stopped smoking marijuana altogether, I started feeling much more clear. So a question to everyone with negative experiences with the Sufi path. Are you smoking marijuana, or drinking alcohol, or engaging in any other addictive behavior? Are you following the path wholeheartedly, or are you slacking off? It is impossible transform your life through Sufism if you continue to live unhealthily; it is in contradiction to the spiritual path. In a related sidenote, my Aikido teacher once said, "you cannot blame any martial art if you are not doing it correctly." Sorry for the rant. But I think everyone needs to look at themselves before blaming an organization or person. - AnonymousAugust 16, 2013 at 10:12 PM
A person who is in a cult doesn't know that they are in a cult.
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That's the dilemma!!!
Most cult members are very "normal" people. They are typically educated, intelligent, and idealistic. Often, they're highly successful professionals. Cults know they make the best recruits. (Destructive cults all operate basically the same way)
Remember, it's NOT the devotees, it's the LEADERS. - AnonymousAugust 26, 2013 at 9:17 AM
This path has been the biggest blessing of my life. Through the practices I have more love, gratitude, self-awareness, social responsibility, joy and contentment than I ever thought possible. Follow the love, fear and pain lead to more fear and pain. I used to blame everything and everyone for my suffering and it kept me a prisoner. When I finally realized that everything that happened "to me" from the "outside" was truly a hidden place inside myself that needed to change. This path is not for the faint of heart. People are people and Allah is Allah. Everyone will make mistakes, who are we to judge, judge yourself and your own actions. It is ok to hate something someone does. The healing happens when you allow them back into your heart, even if they are no longer physically in your life. This keeps the flow of love moving and will heal any illness. Sidi is a human, he has made mistakes and I have personally witnessed him crying for his mistakes and asking Allah for forgiveness. Ibrahim is a human he makes mistakes and likewise I have seen and heard him apologize publicly for his actions. All of you who were hurt, I am truly sorry. I sometimes thank Allah that I found the path in 2006. Although anything that happened in the past can be healed if you are willing to let it go. Allah says in His Quran to the Messenger (SAWS) you are but a messenger. Sidi, Ibrahim and all teachers put themselves out there for all to judge and continue against much criticism and I am grateful. Allow yourself to find out for yourself. God is greater than all of creation, He will not lead you astray. By the way, I was raised Catholic, found the Sufi path and now embrace Islam, however will attend and pray with anyone who loves God/Allah. Make no separation and if separation is what you see, then look to yourself, love yourself. Peace and blessings to you all. oh and I found this site and it intrigued me to hear and see all of this. I heard most of this when I started the path, but I followed my own heart, had my own journey and I encourage all of you to do the same.
Reply- AnonymousOctober 5, 2015 at 10:45 AM
IMPORTANT ISSUES TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING A SPIRITUAL TEACHER
- What credentials does this teacher possess that qualifies him/her to give this instruction?
- How does this teacher maintain his/her authority in the group or in relationships? Does he/she claim to be the only teacher that gives this instruction?
- Can you challenge the teacher's instruction? Can you question his/her advice? What happens if you disagree with the teacher?
- Who does this teacher report to? If you were to complain about the teacher, to whom would you go? Is there a system of checks and balances within his/her line of authority?
- Within this organization who makes the rules? Who can change the rules? How often does this happen? What happens when someone breaks the rules?
- What will you be expected to 'give up' or 'sacrifice' to study with this teacher? Ask this question in advance and be as specific as possible.
- Are students free to leave this teacher/group? What happens to those who leave?
- When do you graduate from this instruction?
-How does the teacher talk about those who have left the group? Is contact with them allowed, discouraged, or forbidden?
- What attitude does the teacher have toward maintaining relationships with friends, family, and others outside the group?
- What is the teacher's attitude toward people outside the group in general? Are you encouraged to be tolerant and understanding, or judgmental and elite?
- Are secrets being kept from you? Is information restricted in any way?
- Does this teacher repeatedly remind you to listen to your HEART and not your head? If so, why must you disconnect from rational thought to learn this teaching?
- Does the group use 'mind-altering' exercises, i.e. meditation/chanting/praying for long periods of time, sleep deprivation, constant busyness, or protein deprivation? What scientific, documented proof does this teacher have that these practices will enable the student to reach higher states of consciousness?
- Ask the teacher about his/her attitudes about sex in the group. Does the same standard apply to the student and the teacher? If the standards are different, ask why.
- Who pays for the leader's expenses and lifestyle? Is it dramatically different from the students: Will your financial responsibility continue to increase to maintain good standing? Is there an annual report for this group? Every bonafide church, charity, and non-profit organization has this information available to anyone who asks for it.
These questions are meant to provide areas of exploration. Many teachers will not respond directly to your inquiries. We encourage you to do your own research and scrutinize your teacher as closely as possible. Remember: avoidance to your questions should raise a red flag. A healthy spiritual community, church, or teacher, will encourage questions about their group. Attitudes of avoidance or secrecy may tell you something about what the future will be like in this group.
Authors: Sharon Colvin and Rosanne Henry, M.A.,L.P.C.
Both are former cult members who compiled this "20/20 Hindsight List" of questions they wish they had asked before they got involved with their spiritual leaders and communities. They didn't demand answers to these questions because they didn't know they could. - AnonymousApril 4, 2016 at 12:20 PM
cultrecover.com
- AnonymousSeptember 1, 2013 at 10:20 AM
For the Last seven years I have studied with both Sidi and Dr. Jaffe. Having a science background I have an inquisitive and ascertaining mind. My experience has been overall amazingly transformative. And I have discovered Dr. Jaffe to be incredibly generous with his time and finances. Often, He gains very little financially from the seminars he is invited to attend across the country...and expends tremendous energy helping those whom attend the workshops. He is very charitable and often gives without expectation or need for return...to those who come to him for healing. Personally I have witnessed his healing ability which is profound. Currently he is working with both myself and my father for very little financial gain and I am receiving tremendous benefits. There is a quality of such deep peace, love and wisdom that emanates from him and creates trust and hope for the betterment of humanity as a whole. While nobody is perfect, I think Dr. Jaffe is sincere in his desire to help others and his personal deep desire to better himself. When we look to others as role models of perfection, our own imperfection may tarnish what we see. If we put others on pedestals they will always fall off. However, if we open to a deeper place of unity with all beings, suddenly we achieve the inner freedom to see and experience the Divine Light in a beautiful unifying form. Please don't let these above hurtful comments prevent you from following your deeper knowing and attending a seminar or workshop. You may be happily surprised!
Reply- AnonymousAugust 20, 2014 at 11:56 AM
I also know Dr. Jaffee from Energy Mastery School 1994-1996. To attend this school has been one of my best decisions in life. I am very grateful that we met because he and the other teachers opened gates for me that were closed before. I have not seen him since, I have not been travelling to USA anymore and he didn't come to Europe. Otherwise I probably would have attended more of his seminaries. With Robert (Ibrahim) Jaffe I met a great healer and clairvoyant person but I never ever put him on a pedestral. He is a human being like all of us. We all are not perfect.
"Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone" - AnonymousJuly 5, 2016 at 2:16 PM
Generous? Jaffe charges $500 for a "healing session"! His small private weekend seminars in Sedona will run you a lot more. I know; unfortunately I have put plenty of money in his pocket. The cheaper seminars he does around the country - like "Path of Love" are recruiting/brainwashing expeditions to bring more people to "the path.
- AnonymousSeptember 21, 2013 at 8:48 PM
Sufism is the exact opposite of a cult, they're not going to brainwash you or hurt you. I could never say I agree with everything they say or do but if you've tried reiki and you understand it, than you'll get sufism as well (I would think). There are people who try to rip you off (mostly on the internet) with holistic cures but Ibrahim is definitely not one of them. I've been doing energy healing for 3-4 years now and while I'm not cured of my illness I'm living a normal life again. If you took the risk of not taking medication because you heard you could be healed with alternatives than that's on you.
Reply - AnonymousSeptember 21, 2013 at 8:50 PM
Sufism is the exact opposite of a cult, they're not going to brainwash you or hurt you. I could never say I agree with everything they say or do but if you've tried reiki and you understand it, than you'll get sufism as well (I would think). There are people who try to rip you off (mostly on the internet) with holistic cures but Ibrahim is definitely not one of them. I've been doing energy healing for 3-4 years now and while I'm not cured of my illness I'm living a normal life again. If you took the risk of not taking medication because you heard you could be healed with alternatives than that's on you.
Reply - AnonymousOctober 12, 2013 at 1:57 PM
Just watched the video posted above (http://vimeo.com/61180038). It's excellent and definitely worth watching!
Reply - AnonymousOctober 22, 2013 at 8:05 AM
"One particularly effective hypnotic technique involves the deliberate use of confusion to induce a trance state. Confusion usually results whenever contradictory information is communicated congruently. For example, if a hypnotist says in an authoritative tone of voice "The more you try to understand what I am saying, the less you will never be able to understand it. Do you understand?" The result is a state of temporary confusion. If you read it over and over again, it may finally make sense. However, if a person is kept in a controlled environment long enough, hearing such disorienting language and confusing information, he will usually suspend his critical judgement and adapt to what he perceives everyone else is doing. In such an environment, the tendency within most people is to doubt themselves and defer to the group." Combatting Cult Mind Control by S. Hassan
Reply - AnonymousOctober 26, 2013 at 6:14 PM
Wow, this is disturbing. I recently discovered Sidi and Ibrahim's group and instantly fell in love. Now, after searching online for more information about Sidi's life (I expected all good news), I have found this page claiming abuse and manipulation! There are claims of financial and sexual misconduct here, and I need to know whether any of these are backed up by evidence, or if they are just stories and rumors. If you, or someone you know, has witnessed any of these wrongdoings personally, I hope that you will have the courage to contact me directly. Or maybe you can give me the names of some of these people who have left the group. I have no idea how to find them! As someone who is considering joining this group, I need to know the truth!!! You can contact me at sojourner.freeman@gmail.com, and I promise to keep your identity, and what you share, completely confidential. I'm not interested in creating a big stink. I just want to gather information from all sides so that I can make the best decision for myself and my future. I am not interested in what you "heard" or what your friends "heard." Please only contact me if you have had some direct personal experience with the group. Thank you for helping a stranger!!!
Reply - AnonymousOctober 28, 2013 at 12:04 PM
forum.culteducation.com/list.php?12,page=2
Reply
Cult Education Forum
"Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"
A Sufi Cult (page 2)
Ex-teacher (page 3):
"I was a faculty member of Jaffe's school for 10 years, and I can definitely verify what previous posters have said. My intentions in posting here are to help anyone who is still a member of, associated with, or considering joining this organization......"
"......Dr. Jaffe was once a student of Osho/Baghwan Shree Rajneesh......."
read more of this post and others at website listed above
(culteducation.com)- AnonymousMarch 21, 2015 at 9:55 AM
1984-Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh Bioterrorism Attack
In 1984 the cult followers of Indian guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh spread salmonella in the salad bars of ten restaurants in the town of The Dalles, Oregon, sickening 750 residents. It was the first bioterrorism act in modern American history.
Rajneesh had once been a professor of philosophy at Sagar University in Jabalpur, India. He began to develop a cult following after delivering a lecture titled "From Sex to Super-consciousness" in the 1960s. The guru eventually presided over an ashram in Pune, India, and later led his followers to Oregon in 1981.
During 1981 Rajneesh moved almost seven thousand of his disciples, called "Rajneeshies," to a a one-hundred-square-mile ranch near The Dalles to form a community compound. The Rajneeshies effectively took over the nearby small town of Antelope. Eerily reminiscent of Jonestown, the newly incorporated city was called "Rajneeshpuram." And like Jim Jones, Rajneesh had his own heavily armed security force.
Hoping to exercise more political power in the region, the Rajneeshies planned to take over Wasco County judgeships and the sheriff's office. The salmonella poisoning was part of an organized effort to incapacitate voters who would vote against Rajneesh's designated slate of candidates. Cult members ultimately hoped to contaminate The Dalles water supply. The poisoning of local salad bars was done as a preliminary test.
Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh reportedly bragged about bedding hundreds of women, which earned him the title of "sex guru." Wealthy disciples bought the guru expensive gifts, including a fleet of more than ninety Rolls-Royce automobiles. When asked why he needed so many cars, Rajneesh replied that his goal was to have 365, a Rolls-Royce for each day of the year. He often rode the cars during ceremonial parades at Rajneeshpuram.
Meanwhile, reportedly about 87 percent of the residents of Rajneeshpuram had a sexually transmitted disease.
from Cults Inside Out
by Rick Alan Ross
Ex-teacher:
"The people I met in this organization always had the highest of intentions. We really thought we were in something wonderful, that we were cultivating self-responsibility and awareness, and could never get caught up in something as insidious as a cult. We even had discussions about how this was not a cult, and we were all very aware of what was going on.
But then, the stories began…and I wouldn't find out for years that all of them were true, even though I was one of the ten people in the "innermost circle" of the organization, and one of the highest ranked teachers in the country. In short, Sidi was having sexual relations with his students (while married, both he and his students), he gathered enormous amounts of money from us every year on his visits, and while some was given to charities in Jerusalem" *(see Rense.com: Raiders of the Lost Ark), " he also gave much of it to his sons who lived in the Bay Area (and weren't very financially solvent themselves, I believe).
I don't even know where to begin or end, really - sexual abuse, financial abuse , psychological abuse…there was/is so much lying about everything, it just hurts to think about all the well-intentioned people who have been hoodwinked by Sidi al-Jamal over the years.
I hope this helps, and I hope that anyone who hears about this organization or its communities (for they exist around the USA; West, South, East, and North), or the "Sufi University" can see this group for what it is - nice people, but 99% of them have no idea what they're in, or getting other people into. Good luck, everyone."
Ex-teacher
forum.culteducation.com
a sufi cult page 3
- AnonymousNovember 11, 2013 at 8:11 AM
I was a member of the fuqura as well. I took the bayat from Sidi himself. A few years later I went on a retreat in MD where Sidi gave several talks and I had a chance to meet some other "Beloveds". I met and was unimpressed with Jaffe. He seemed very focused on getting people to pay him for teachings and healings. He was also abrasive with the women. I actually saw him arguing with 2 women in front of a small group of beloveds.
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Not only did I end up leaving the Shadiliyah, but I left Islam altogether. And I'm much better for it. Anyone that wants to follow Sidi will have trouble doing so, for Jaffe will interfere with conflicting advice and threats about how we'll develop cancer if we don't believe in him.
Islam is for Arabs. I'm a Black man and we had our own religions long before the Islamic slave-traders came along. Thank God I'm free! - AnonymousNovember 18, 2013 at 9:16 PM
Everyone is so loving and caring!
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"When you meet the friendliest people you have ever known, who introduce you to the most loving group of people you have ever encountered, and you find the leader to be the most inspired, caring, compassionate and understanding person you have ever met, and then you learn the cause of the group is something you never dared hope could be accomplished, and all of this sounds too good to be true, it probably is too good to be true!
Don't give up your education, your hopes and ambitions to follow a rainbow."
-Jeanne Mills, former member of the People's Temple and subsequent victim of assassination a year following the November 18, 1978 Jonestown suicides/murders - AnonymousNovember 19, 2013 at 5:09 AM
Economic damage:
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Many of those leaving cults report having been systematically and consistently dispossessed of their money and property (Durocher, 1999; Thaler-Singer, 2003). In order to conceal their economic activity, some of the cults maintain accounts in foreign countries without their members being aware of the fate of their funds (Zohar, 2010). - AnonymousNovember 20, 2013 at 8:59 AM
Beloveds have mistaken astral suggestions for donations and astral sex as being from Allah.
Reply - AnonymousFebruary 5, 2014 at 11:42 AM
The first rule of recruitment is that a recruit must never suspect he or she is being recruited.
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The second rule is that the cult must monopolize the recruit's time.
- Margaret Singer - AnonymousFebruary 22, 2014 at 4:56 PM
All healing is self healing. It is between me and my divine Source. People value what they pay for. The key is what or whom have we given our authority to? Frequently, and sadly, the way our authority is leveraged is through the money we give or pay. If one pays enough to someone, one has opened that much of their heart for receiving - if money sits close to the heart - one has cleared that much of the heart for receiving what was always there. Perhaps Sidi and or Ibrahim are helping remove some of what separates us from our Source.
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The cynicism and distrust I see written in this blog could reflect the parts of us that feel deeply vulnerable. Why not turn this vulnerability over to God, Christ, Allah, or your Creator/Creative force and drink in the divine mercy, protection, wisdom, truth, riches and sustenance that are your birthright.
I haven't read Sidi's books nor followed his ways, still it can be deeply painful to have a mirror of such magnitude and purity as Sidi, reflect the parts of ourselves we have ignored or disowned. I imagine that were Sidi to read warring words, he would be praying for us.
As for Ibrahim Jaffe, I found him to be generous of spirit, mind, and heart and truly anointed to be prompting deep inner healing.
Neither of these men purport to be anything other than men with gifts and flaws. Still, from my perspective, their hearts are big and clean and their striving to be presentable before their Lord is perfect.
- Jannah - AnonymousFebruary 22, 2014 at 8:44 PM
Comments from Naive question regarding a man, Sidi Shaykh Muhammad al-Jamal ar-Rifa'i as-Shadhuli
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"Invest $1000 and you are guaranteed to get your money back in 13 weeks. Leave it in, and every 13 weeks you will make it back again." The members signed up en masse, and each was also asked by Ibrahim to invest an additional $1000 with the dividends going to the commune.
I read over the information provided, and it had every trapping of a "Ponzi Scheme-a type of investment fraud where the early subscribers make huge profit and then it fizzles out, leaving most people poorer and the original "schemer" much richer. We warned my mother that this was almost certainly a Ponzi Scheme, and in time, it fizzled out exactly predicted. But she ignored our cautions and warnings saying that Ibrahim and Sidi had "looked"at the investment psychically (that is the word she used) and deemed it safe for the coming two years. It fizzled out within five months. These young people and my mother lost thousands of dollars each.
I have a number of friends who follow him. I like my friends more than I like him, and, in general, his followers would be good people. He, on the other hand, has long been followed by tales of the abuse of women followers. I have personally known some of these women, some of them very well
He is a showman, using tricks which would be well-known to any hypnotist to impress his followers, such as what is known as automatic writing. Of course, he calls it someone else.
Groups like the one described tend to be isolated and naive, believing that they have the truth and others are misled and unable to understand the inner secrets. If she widens her point of view, she might be able to find her way beyond these traps on the path.
https://groups.google.com/d/topic/soc.religion.islam/s26FV9JLvrg - AnonymousMarch 11, 2014 at 10:11 PM
Sufi or Jihadist: Sidi Sheik Muhammad Al-Jamal
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This chameleon-like teacher preaches yummy-love Sufism complete with channelled/automatic-writing visits by angels and jinn when with the broken Americans, yet there's a different guy in the mosques…
Message from al-Quds Jumah Khutba
Masjid at-Tawheed, Mtn. View, California
by President of the Higher Sufi Council in Jerusalem and the Land of Palestine, Imam of al-Quds ash-Sharif
Shaykh as-Sayyid Muhammad Said al-Jamal ar-Rifa'i
Jerusalem and the Holy Land
………….Jerusalem is a Muslim city…….
"Jerusalem is a city of Islam and the Capital in which all Muslims are brought together and are united."…….
It is for everybody to know that our case is not only a Palestinian one, but an Islamic one, which concerns all Muslims in the world………..
…….it is a duty for every Muslim on earth to stand up,
and to rescue Jerusalem, and to send money and everything that they can, whether it be of great value or not, to support the cause of the Palestinians.
read the entire post at:
https://groups.google.com/forum/m/#ltopic/alt.islam.sufism/3mr7KvlrsYk
Cultural Institute of the Italian Islamic Community
I must clarify that this so-called "Higher Sufi Council in Jerusalem and the Holy Land" is nothing but a structure created by PLO………….and is completely submissive to PLO agenda.
Mashaykh like al-Jamal ar-Rifa'i are accepting to be involved in the structure of PLO, are joining PLO in it's misrepresentation of a tragic reality and are ready to accuse Israel of many absurd and false things.
……………Shaykh al-Jamal ar-Rifa'i keeps absolutely silent against those horrible crimes, and actively cooperates with the criminals in their anti-Israel propaganda. …..
I am also compelled to say that his behavior and his association with a band of criminals who have appointed him as "Head" of this so-called "Higher Sufi Council" is not a positive element in his favor.
About his personal reputation, he had been living in the United States for a long period, and was compelled to leave the country because some Muslim women who had approached him in order to be admitted in Shadhiliyyah declared that he attempted to sexually abuse them. Other Muslims who have joined the tariqah also denounced his attempts to extoll from them huge amounts of money. Instead of defending himself from those repeated accusations, Shaykh al-Jamal ar-Rifa'i returned to Israel, and accepted to become the leader of this fake "Higher Sufi Council" at the service of Arafat, at the service of an organization which considers terrorism against civil population and suicide terrorism as a form of "jihad". When in the United States, he was admitting everyone to his classes on Tasawwuf, and some American Jews who were interested in Tasawwuf were very close to him, to the point that he used to say,"They are my Jewish students". When a group of these same Jewish students of his visited him in Jerusalem, he told them: "I am a Palestinian Shaykh; please refrain from visiting me. I do not want to give the impression that I have relations with Jews"………
As a matter of fact Shaykh al-Jamal simply repeats in front of the Pope the old slogans of PLO propaganda……
Moreover, and this is really the extreme limit of falsity, Shaykh al-Jamal has the courage to compare the banner of Arafat's criminals to "the banners of Peace and Love", and to "the banners of the prophets". One should seriously ask him: were the prophets using children as human shields? Were they teaching their followers to be involved in suicide terrorism? Were they shooting at civilians, children, women, old men?………
Read the entire letter at:
https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/islaminst/
conversations/topics/1897 - AnonymousApril 15, 2014 at 2:51 PM
"For me, some of the key differences between "brainwashing" and mind control, or thought reform, are as follows: The term "brainwashing" is often associated in people's minds with overtly coercive behaviors, exemplified by the image of a prisioner at the hands of abusive jailers. At the beginning of a "brainwashing" process, the subject looks at the "agents of influence" as the "enemy," and is forced to comply with them.
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With mind control, the "agents of influence" are viewed as friends or mentors, which cause people to lower their defenses, making them more vulnerable to manipulation. The key to mind control's success lies in its subtlety, the way it promotes the "illustion of control." The individual believes he is "making his own choices," when in fact he has been socially influenced to disconnect his own critical mind and decision-making capacity. In other words, he believes that he has freely chosen to surrender his free will to God or to a leader or ideology. When one steps back and objectively evaluates the vast amount of social influence used to get him to "surrender," the degree of manipulation becomes very obvious.
by Steve Hassan, Releasing the Bonds, pg. 40- AnonymousSeptember 16, 2015 at 9:50 AM
"A thought-reform program is not a one-shot event but a gradual process of breaking down and transformation. It can be likened to gaining weight, a few ounces, a half pound, a pound at a time. Before long, without even noticing the initial changes---we are confronted with a new physique. So, too, with mind control or brainwashing. A twist here, a tweak there---and there it is: a new psychic attitude, a new mental outlook. These systematic manipulations of social and psychological influences under particular conditions are called programs because the means by which change is brought about is coordinated. And it is because the changes cause the learning and adoption of a certain set of attitudes, usually accompanied by a certain set of behaviors, that the effort and the result are called thought reform.
Thus, thought reform is a concerted effort to change a person's way of looking at the world, which will change his or her behavior. It is distinguished from other forms of social learning by the conditions under which it is conducted and by the techniques of environmental and interpersonal manipulaton that are meant to suppress certain behavior and to elicit and train other behavior. And it does not consist of only one program---there are many ways and methods to accomplish it.
The tactics of a thought-reform program are organized to
---Destabilize a person's sense of self
---Get the person to drastically reinterpret his or her life's history and radically alter his or her worldview and accept a new version of reality and causality
---Develop in the person a dependence on the organization, and thereby turn the person into a deployable agent of the organization"
Cults In Our Midst p.62
Margaret Thaler Singer
SINGER'S SIX CONDITONS FOR THOUGHT REFORM
1. Keep the person unaware that there is an agenda to control or change the person
2. Control time and physical environment (contacts, information)
3. Create a sense of powerlessness, fear, and dependency
4. Suppress old behavior and attitudes
5. Instill new behavior and attitudes
6. Put forth a closed system of logic
- AnonymousApril 25, 2014 at 5:14 PM
"1. Keep the person unaware of what is going on and how she or he is being changed a step at a time. Imagine you are the person being influenced. You find yourself in an environment to which you are forced to adapt in a series of steps, each sufficiently minor so that you don't notice the changes in yourself and do not become aware of the goals of the program until late in the process (if ever). You are kept unaware of the orchestration of psychological and social forces meant to change your thinking and your behavior. The cult leaders make it seem as though what is going on is normal, that everything is the way it's supposed to be. The atmosphere is reinforced by peer pressure and peer-modeled behavior, so that you adapt to the environment without even realizing it."
Reply
"The process of keeping people unaware is key to a cult's double agenda: the leader slowly takes you through a series of events that on the surface look like one agenda, while on another level, the real agenda is to get you, the recruit or member, to obey and to give up your autonomy, your past affiliations, and your belief systems. The existence of the double agenda makes this process one of non-informed consent."
"2. Control the person's social and/or physical environment; especially control the person's time. Cults don't need to have you move into the commune, farm, headquarters, or ashram and live within the cult environment twenty-four hours a day in order to have control over you. They can control you just as effectively by having you go to work every day with instructions that when not working---on your lunch hour, for example---you must do continuous mind-occupying chanting or some other cult-related activity. Then, after work, you must put all your time in with the organization."
Cults In Our Midst, pg. 64-65 ---Margaret Thaler Singer- AnonymousSeptember 16, 2015 at 10:32 AM
"3. Systematically create a sense of powerlessness in the person. Cults create this sense of powerlessness by stripping you of your support system and your ability to act independently. Former friends and kinship networks are taken away. You, the recruit or follower, are isolated from your ordinary environments and sometimes removed to remote locations.
Once stripped of your usual support network, your confidence in your own perception erodes. As your sense of powerlessness increases, your good judgement and understanding of the world are diminished. At the same time as you are destabilized in relation to your ordinary reality and worldview, the cult confronts you with a new, unanimously (group-) approved worldview. As the group attacks your previous worldview, causing you distress and inner confusion, you are not allowed to speak about this confusion, nor can you object to it, because leadership constantly suppresses questions and counters any resistance. Through this process, your inner confidence is eroded. Moreover, the effectiveness of this approach can be speeded up if you are physically tired, which is why cult leaders see to it that followers are kept overly busy."
4. "Manipulate a system of rewards, punishments, and experiences in such a way as to inhibit behavior that reflects the person's former social identity. The expression of your beliefs, values, activities, and characteristic demeanor prior to contact with the group is suppressed, and you are manipulated into taking on a social identity preferred by the leadership. Old beliefs and old patterns of behavior are defined as irrelevant, if not evil. You quickly learn that leadership wants old ideas and old patterns eliminated so you suppress them."
Cults In Our Midst, pg. 65-66
---Margaret Thaler Singer - AnonymousSeptember 18, 2015 at 12:59 PM
"5. Manipulate a system of rewards, punishments, and experiences in order to promote learning of the group's ideology or belief system and group-approved behaviors. Once immersed in an environment in which you are totally dependent on the rewards given by those who control the setting, you can be confronted with massive demands to learn varying amounts of new information and behaviors. You are rewarded for proper performance with social reinforcement.
The more complicated and filled with contradictions the new system is and the more difficult it is to learn, the more effective the conversion process will be.
Since esteem and affection from peers is so important to new recruits, any negative response is meaningful. Approval comes from having your behaviors and thought patterns conform to the models put forth by the group. Your relationship with peers is threatened whenever you fail to learn or display new behaviors. Over time, an easy solution to the insecurity generated by the difficulties of learning the new system is to inhibit any display of doubt and, even if you don't understand the content, to merely acquiesce, affirm, and act as if you do understand and accept the new philosophy or content.
6. Put forth a closed system of logic and an authoritarian structure that permits no feedback and refuses to be modified except by leadership approval or executive order. If you criticize or complain, the leader or peers allege that you are defective, not the organization. In the closed system of logic, you are not allowed to question or doubt a tenet or rule or to call attention to factual information that suggests some internal contradiction within the belief system or a contradiction with what you've been told. If you do make such observations, they may be turned around and argued to mean the opposite of what you intended. You are made to feel that you are wrong. In cultic groups, the individual member is always wrong and the system is always right.
The goal of all this is your conversion or remolding. As you learn to modify your former behaviors in order to be accepted in this closed and controlled environment, you change. You affirm that you accept and understand the ideology by beginning to talk in the simple catchphrases particular to the group. This "communication" has no foundation since, in reality, you have little understanding of the system beyond the catchphrases. But once you begin to express your seeming verbal acceptance of the group's ideology, then that ideology becomes the rule book for the subsequent direction and evaluation of your behavior.
Also, using the new language fosters your separation from your old conscience and belief system. Your new language allows you to justify activities that are clearly not in your interests. Precisely those behaviors that led to criticism from the outside world because they violate the norms and rules of the society as a whole are rationalized within the cult community through use of this new terminology, this new language."
Cults In Our Midst, pg. 67-69
---Dr. Margaret T. Singer - AnonymousOctober 9, 2015 at 8:24 AM
Physician explains mind control/phobia indoctrination:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUsOHsZliA4 - AnonymousOctober 9, 2015 at 10:24 PM
(VUsOHsZIiA4)
- AnonymousApril 29, 2014 at 9:23 AM
"Frequently, at gatherings of former cult members, a lively exchange takes place when participants compare their respective groups and leaders. As people begin to describe their special, enlightened, and unique leader---whether a pastor, therapist, political leader, teacher, lover, or swami---those present are often surprised to learn that their once-revered leaders are actually quite similar in temperament and personality. It seems as if these leaders come from a common mold, sometimes light-heartedly called the "Cookie-Cutter Messiah School."
Reply
Take Back Your Life, pg. 54 - Janja Lalich and Madeleine Tobias- AnonymousMay 21, 2014 at 11:52 AM
Muslim Cults
In 2001, there were people who left the Shadhili tariqah of Sidi Jamal of Jerusalem, although precious little is left online about their experiences. In 2007, there was a swarm of young Westerners who left Damascus and the Shadhili tariqah under Muhammad Yaqoubi. In 2008 until now, there have been quite a few young Westerners leaving Nun Keller, an American Sufi shaykh in Jordan. They have not been quiet as far as writing on blogs about some of their experiences, and I think we will see more with both the Shadhilis and people continuing to leave other culty tariqahs that recruited heavily in the West, such as the Ba'Alawiya and the Naqshbandiya, as well as the more liberal tariqahs that place far less emphasis on Islam and attract upper middle class non Muslims.
And if any survivor of these tariqahs reads this- know that you are not alone. There are others out there, and they can be found.
lemanal.blogspot.com/2009/02/muslim-cults.html
comment by Ex-Tariqah - AnonymousMay 21, 2014 at 11:56 AM
sorry, Nuh Keller
Some people may find the comments posted by someone called "Lover of God" to the following forum useful. This is a follow up of my previous post to this forum on March 27th, 2013.
Replyhttp://forum.culteducation.com/read.php?12,57030,page=4
"I am familiar with this group. It has its issues, but by and large it helps alot of people deepen their spirituality. For the handful of negative stories, there are thousands of active participants in the U.S. and many more around the world who get alot out of it and feel it is very positive for them. Keep in mind this group is mostly made up of converts, although in the last few years it has attracted more Muslim-born immigrants. The majority of the membership are intelligent, educated professionals. Think psychologists, doctors, business people. These are people who would be critical of any hokum pokum as they have a good head on their shoulders. Sufi masters who aren't the real deal sometimes get away with stuff in the East when their membership is poor and undeducated. Just visit a Sufi shrine in India to get a sense of that. Harder to do that with a highly intelligent, educate membership. Sidi Mohammed al-Jamal is the real deal, a widely respected religious figure known throughout the Muslim world. His community in the UK predates the one in the U.S. and the group in both countries ais full of wonderful, loving people."
. . .
Continued on the page introduced above.