Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 3, Nos. 2 &3, 2004, Page 106
New Summaries
3HO/Yogi Bhajan
Death of the Guru
Harbhajan Singh Khalsa Yogiji, founder of 3HO (Happy, Holy, Healthy), has died in New
Mexico at the age of 75. The movement, combining yoga, meditation, and yogic philosophy,
grew in the 1970s among the soon-to-be-called ―baby boomers‖ as an alternative to the
drug culture. He had been asked to create a Sikh ministry in the West by the Sikh seat of
religious authority in Amritsar, India. (Hindustan Times, Internet, 10/7/04)
Alusi Okija
Cult Victims’ Bodies Discovered
Police in eastern Nigeria have discovered body parts, skulls, and more than 50 corpses,
some mummified, of possible victims of rituals carried out by Alusi Okija, an ancient secret
society of the Ibo people. Authorities speculate that the dead — businessmen, civil servants,
and others — died of poisoning in a ritual calculated to settle disputes. The guilty die and
the innocent survive the poison.
The police commissioner says the ritual developed to deter crime but has become a way for
the officiating priests and their ―collaborators‖ to kill and defraud the priests take the
property and money of the deceased. (Daniel Balint-Kurti, AS, Internet, 8/5/04)
Aum Shinrikyo
Asahara Refuses to See Lawyer
Aum Shinrikyo founder Shoko Asahara is refusing to see Takeshi Matsui, the lawyer the
guru‘s daughters have hired to handle his death sentence appeal. The appeal trial was set to
begin ―as early as next year,‖ but it now may be delayed. During the trial that ended in his
conviction, Asahara often refused to speak with his court-appointed lawyers, and he has not
personally indicated a wish to appeal. (Kyodo News Service, Internet, 5/19/04)
Barred from Philippines
Two Japanese suspected of being high ranking Aum Shinrikyo members have been barred
from entry into the Philippines because they are considered ―threats to our peace and
security,‖ said an immigration commissioner. (APF in Philippine Sun Star, Internet, 4/19/04)
Court Orders School to Admit Asahara’s Daughter
A Tokyo court has ordered Bunkyo University to admit a daughter of Aum guru Shoko
Asahara, rejecting the school‘s contention that her presence would be disruptive. Bunkyo
originally admitted her and then rejected her after learning who she was. (AP in Charleston
Gazette, 5/1/04)
Life Sentence Changed to Death on Appeal
The Tokyo High Court has sentenced former Aum Shinrikyo ―intelligence minister‖
Yoshihiro Inoue to death, reversing a lower court‘s life sentence because it found that,
―Although he has cooperated in clarifying the facts and has shown deep atonement, his
criminal responsibility in the subway attacks and its terrible results is equivalent to that of
those who actually released sarin gas.‖
The lower court had ruled that Inoue played only a supporting and liaison role, but Judge
Yamada said the gas release was Inoue‘s idea and that he procured the vehicle used in the
attack. The lower court acknowledged that Inoue was the on-the-spot gas attack
commander. (Yomiuri Shimbun, Internet, 5/29/04)

Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 3, Nos. 2 &3, 2004, Page 107
Arrested for Illegal Sales
Six Aum Shinrikyo members were recently arrested for selling dermatitis cream in Tokyo
without licenses. Police also raided 20 Aum-related locations to learn if proceeds from the
sales were used to fund Aum activities. Some customers complained that the cream led to
chapped skin because of the side-effects of the steroids used in it. (Manaichi Shimbun,
Internet, 6/3/04)
Arrests for 1995 Shooting
Three former senior Aum Shinrikyo leaders and an ex-police officer have been arrested for
the 1995 shooting of then Japan National Police Agency chief Takaji Kunimatsu. The arrests
were made during police raids of eight Aum facilities, including the group‘s headquarters in
Tokyo‘s Setagaya Ward. (Xinhua News Agency, Internet, 7/7/04)
Asahara Still Their Guru
Aum is reportedly still strongly influenced by imprisoned guru Shoko Asahara (known also
as Chizu Matsumoto), despite the apparent attempt of new leader Fumihiro Joyu to
reform the group following his break with the founder in 2003. Joyu has not been seen since
he announced that he was undergoing religious training. In his stead, four other senior
leaders have been operating Aum and treating Matsumoto as their head, in absentia. One of
them said: ―Even if our guru is executed, he‘ll only perish in body. His existence will still be
absolute.‖ Aum currently has 650 live-in and about 1,000 lay followers, with 26 facilities in
Tokyo and 16 other prefectures. (Yomiuri Shimbun, Internet, 7/8/04)
Beasts of Satan
Accused of Human Sacrifices
Four members of the northern Italian heavy metal band, Beasts of Satan, have been
charged in Busto Arzizio with murdering two other band members in 1998 as part of a
―drug-fueled‖ Satanic sacrifice. Former band member Andrea Volpe agreed to show
authorities the location, near Milan, of their grave, hoping for leniency in another case
brought against him earlier this year alleging that he shot his girlfriend and buried her alive.
La Sapienza University sociology professor Maria Macioti has said that an increasing number
of young people seem drawn to devil worship, and a magistrate has warned of the lure of
antichrist cults. (Al Baker, New York Times, Internet, 6/20/04)
Police are also investigating the recent deaths of two cemetery workers that may be related
to the Beasts of Satan. One doused himself with gasoline at the cemetery porter‘s lodge last
December and set himself on fire. In May, his friend, a florist at the cemetery, hanged
himself from a tree in his parents‘ yard after telling relatives he was frightened.
The mother of one of the 1998 victims said she told the police at the time about the
Satanist group, but reports they told her: ―Look, people are free to be Catholic, Buddhist,
whatever they want. If you want to get into trouble, go ahead and accuse them ...‖ (Peter
Popham, New Zealand Herald, Internet, 6/24/04)
Brainwashing
Muslim Leader Calls for Curbs on “Rogue” Preachers
Britain‘s most prominent Muslim leader, Iqbal Sacranie, has demanded a crackdown on
―rogue‖ Islamic preachers, blaming them for brainwashing young men through sermons
that promote holy war against the West. He has urged the government to establish the legal
offence of incitement to religious hatred for use against fundamentalists operating on the
fringes of a few mosques. He has urged every mosque in the country — more than 1,000 —
to help in the fight against terrorism. (Telegraph, Internet, 4/2/04)