Scientology was developed by an author of science fiction (Sci-Fi) books, L. Ron Hubbard.
Including short stories, novels, and non-fiction, he published 1084 works in his lifetime (died in 1986) and holds the Guinness World Record for most published works.
After serving in WWII, he practised as a hypnotist and published a book called Dianetics (soon became a bestseller), which, he said, covered a new approach to handle mental health.
The success of Dianetics provoked Hubbard to establish a foundation that was based on 3 principles: A) Souls are eternal and each soul has had multiple bodies over many lifetimes; B) In each of these lifetimes, the soul has gathered traumas; C) We, the current carriers of this soul, could get rid of these traumas through a process called ‘Auditing’.
In auditing, either through a conversation or through a machine called E-meterScientologists say an e-meter measures the body’s electric flow as an auditor asks a series of questions they say reveals sources of trauma. It is said to work like a polygraph lie-detector and the auditor observes the phrases and words that generate negative feelings., professionals help the patient recall their past traumas.
Members believe that reliving those traumas helps victims overcome them because the analytic mind (instead of our reactive mind) takes over and the victim reaches a state called ‘clear’.
The process, however, has not received any endorsement by medical science so far.
Those who look down upon Scientology base their argument on the fact that it was developed by someone whose life revolved around science fiction.
Another argument against the legitimacy of Scientology as a religion is that auditing costs money (US$800 for a 1-hour session; high-level full-scale auditing can cost up to $100,000), which is not something people associate with religion.
Also, the religion restricts people from leaving; people who have shared their inner secrets during auditing feel scared leaving (potential blackmailing).
A few (including Hollywood celebrities) who have left the religion have made various complaints but because of lack of evidence, these complaints have been ignored.
In the 1960s, when Scientology began making huge sums of money, the US tax department tried to claim taxes but after 25 years of a legal battle, it was ruled that Scientology was indeed a church and thus exempt from taxes.
After Hubbard died in 1986, David Miscavige took over the church; he has been accused of violence and abuse towards church members but nothing has been proved yet.
The biggest controversy around David Miscavige is the mysterious circumstances under which his wife, Shelly Miscavige, went missing in 2007.
