Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 4, No. 2, 2005, Page 115
―So I call on him, and on our community, to ask for protection for the ‗lost boys‘ ousted
from this cult, for prosecution of polygamists, and for prevention of this odious cult from
continuing to share our country while flouting its laws. I call on the federal government to
enforce the law, to go to Bountiful, to investigate, and to proceed to remove these people
from our midst.‖ (Jean M. Gerber, Canadian Jewish News, Internet, 5/11/05)
Gilbert Deya Ministries
“Miracle Baby” Clergyman Released
Gilbert Deya, head of Gilbert Deya Ministries, taken into custody on suspicion of illegal
human trafficking between Kenya and the UK, has been released from police bail. It is alleged
that Deya and others stole babies from Nairobi slums and sold them to infertile women in
Britain, who were convinced they had conceived through prayer. (Gitau wa Njega, The
Standard, Nairobi, Internet, 6/22/05)
Dahn Hak
Death in Seung Heun Lee’s Yoga-Tai Chi Course
The recent death of a 41-year-old Bronx college professor has drawn attention to the
nationwide chain of personal development courses in mostly affluent communities run by
Dahn Hak, an organization that arrived from Korea a decade ago with its founder, Grand
Master Seung Heun Lee.
Julia Siveris died of heat exhaustion on a hike in the Arizona desert that was calculated to
break her down so she could achieve heightened spiritual awareness and become a ―master‖
of Dahn Hak. Lee, who markets his own version of yoga, says he wants to begin an
―enlightenment revolution.‖
Mind control experts say Dahn Hak is a destructive cult that lures followers and persuades
them to give up their time and money — workshops and retreats can cost up to $10,000 —
with the result that they leave their families or change careers in order to concentrate on the
group. Cult observer Rick Ross says Dahn Hak actually purveys a religious system behind the
image of a yoga, meditation, or martial arts façade, ―whichever exercise is popular.‖
Lee, whose spiritual name is Ilchi, claims supernatural powers, including healing, and teaches
members to control their thoughts through ―brain cleaning‖ and the use of ―brain respiration,‖
a breathing technique.
Practitioners at the Greenburgh, NY, facility are guided through a series of exercises in a
softly lighted room by a white-robed Korean woman. There, they stretch, and pound their
abdomens to facilitate the flow of ―Ki,‖ or life energy, before they lie down, close their eyes,
and breath deeply to soothing music. Then, the woman puts ―power brains‖ on their chests to
induce vibrations in their bodies. Deeply relaxed, they adjourn to the lobby for tea.
Newcomers follow the same routine, but at the end the woman encourages them to sign a
contract for a program that promises to change their lives.
Ari Laqidara, who chose to become a Dahn master rather than attend graduate school, said
celibacy was not required, but was rather an ―intention or wish‖ designed to keep them
focused on spiritual pursuits, and so they could better help and heal others. But Iris Song said
a Dahn instructor told her to divorce her husband, who resented her devotion to the group.
The instructor, she recounts, said ―my spirit was too pure to be tied down. They made me
believe this was my destiny that I needed to leave my family.‖
Lee tried to demonstrate –without success — the power of brain respiration at the University
of California-Irvine‘s Institute for Brain Aging by holding up a card and having his child
―trainees‖ see through them and identify objects on the back side. (The Greenburgh facility
runs a school that claims to help children with ADD and similar conditions.) ―He was there for
―So I call on him, and on our community, to ask for protection for the ‗lost boys‘ ousted
from this cult, for prosecution of polygamists, and for prevention of this odious cult from
continuing to share our country while flouting its laws. I call on the federal government to
enforce the law, to go to Bountiful, to investigate, and to proceed to remove these people
from our midst.‖ (Jean M. Gerber, Canadian Jewish News, Internet, 5/11/05)
Gilbert Deya Ministries
“Miracle Baby” Clergyman Released
Gilbert Deya, head of Gilbert Deya Ministries, taken into custody on suspicion of illegal
human trafficking between Kenya and the UK, has been released from police bail. It is alleged
that Deya and others stole babies from Nairobi slums and sold them to infertile women in
Britain, who were convinced they had conceived through prayer. (Gitau wa Njega, The
Standard, Nairobi, Internet, 6/22/05)
Dahn Hak
Death in Seung Heun Lee’s Yoga-Tai Chi Course
The recent death of a 41-year-old Bronx college professor has drawn attention to the
nationwide chain of personal development courses in mostly affluent communities run by
Dahn Hak, an organization that arrived from Korea a decade ago with its founder, Grand
Master Seung Heun Lee.
Julia Siveris died of heat exhaustion on a hike in the Arizona desert that was calculated to
break her down so she could achieve heightened spiritual awareness and become a ―master‖
of Dahn Hak. Lee, who markets his own version of yoga, says he wants to begin an
―enlightenment revolution.‖
Mind control experts say Dahn Hak is a destructive cult that lures followers and persuades
them to give up their time and money — workshops and retreats can cost up to $10,000 —
with the result that they leave their families or change careers in order to concentrate on the
group. Cult observer Rick Ross says Dahn Hak actually purveys a religious system behind the
image of a yoga, meditation, or martial arts façade, ―whichever exercise is popular.‖
Lee, whose spiritual name is Ilchi, claims supernatural powers, including healing, and teaches
members to control their thoughts through ―brain cleaning‖ and the use of ―brain respiration,‖
a breathing technique.
Practitioners at the Greenburgh, NY, facility are guided through a series of exercises in a
softly lighted room by a white-robed Korean woman. There, they stretch, and pound their
abdomens to facilitate the flow of ―Ki,‖ or life energy, before they lie down, close their eyes,
and breath deeply to soothing music. Then, the woman puts ―power brains‖ on their chests to
induce vibrations in their bodies. Deeply relaxed, they adjourn to the lobby for tea.
Newcomers follow the same routine, but at the end the woman encourages them to sign a
contract for a program that promises to change their lives.
Ari Laqidara, who chose to become a Dahn master rather than attend graduate school, said
celibacy was not required, but was rather an ―intention or wish‖ designed to keep them
focused on spiritual pursuits, and so they could better help and heal others. But Iris Song said
a Dahn instructor told her to divorce her husband, who resented her devotion to the group.
The instructor, she recounts, said ―my spirit was too pure to be tied down. They made me
believe this was my destiny that I needed to leave my family.‖
Lee tried to demonstrate –without success — the power of brain respiration at the University
of California-Irvine‘s Institute for Brain Aging by holding up a card and having his child
―trainees‖ see through them and identify objects on the back side. (The Greenburgh facility
runs a school that claims to help children with ADD and similar conditions.) ―He was there for
