Byron Katie's "Work"?

Image via WikipediaRecently I have become much more aware of the destructive tactics used by the "church" of scientology; I wrote about it in a previous blog entry, here. Today I was checking my Google Reader feed for blogs that use the term "mindfulness-based," and I came across a web site (called the Ross Institute Archives: click here), devoted to the discussion of cults and what they call "large group awareness training." The entry that I was directed to was actually written about the early evidence indicating that Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy is an effective treatment for depression (and, I believe, for anxiety disorders). But it was written in the context of a discussion about Byron Katie, who has written some very popular self-help books about what she calls "The Work" (click here for her website). I had seen a little about Byron Katie's books, and did not see anything that looked particularly dangerous or loony about her stuff. But the people who were writing on this web site have looked at it in more depth, and they report that they are finding what appears to be some alarming methods that Katie uses in her group "trainings." Here is an excerpt from the web site, about the experiences of one person who went through one of those group "trainings":

[H]aving met and talked with Katie personally, I want to say upfront that I believe she is very innocent/ignorant about what she is doing to people. I believe that she sincerely believes she is what she says she is, and that's probably what makes her so convincing. At the same time, there is no doubt that she falls into the category of a... mass manipulator. The book "In Sheep's Clothing" offers a list of tactics that covert aggressors use to manipulate, distract, and deceive... I believe that it is herself she is deceiving the most... it's scary, because so many people are following her lead.

With many reservations, I attended her 9 day school. We were sworn to secrecy about the events that go on there so as not to "spoil it for others" who would attend in the future. [Here is] a small list of things that happen there:


>A forced 36 hour fast...

>Long, intense confessional sessions.

>Deep, excessive probing into one's past traumas. (She used violent Korn music to trigger our worst memories.)

>No contact with family or the outside world. (We turned our cell phones into the staff.)...

>Being invited to criticize Katie and The School, and those who did were silently, subtly shunned by the group and Katie.

>Having every doubt and concern about what was going on at The School questioned and "turned around", until no one could trust their own perceptions anymore.

I was surprised by the number of educated professionals at The School. Teachers, doctors, psychologists, social workers, counselors of all kinds. I was even more surprised how everyone seemed reduced to this "blissed out" state by the end, where they couldn't even hold an intelligent conversation anymore. It was scary, and sad.

And, most of them would fight to the death to defend Katie's validity and honor.

Some of what this person describes sounds a bit like a typical long meditation retreat... but other things, as listed in the quotation above, are very indicative of emotional and cognitive manipulation techniques. If this is in fact what goes on in the "trainings," then I would have very, very strong reservations about Katey's "Work."

Years ago, when I was in graduate school, and working in a psychiatric hospital, I was invited by a fellow hospital staff member to attend a weekend "training" (or maybe they called it a "seminar") for something mysterious, something that she said was really a wonderful experience. I can't remember what it was called... something along the lines of "The Way" or something like that. After she pressured me a bit, and after she offered me a discount on the price (it was really expensive, as I recall), and out of curiosity, I went. I have experienced few things that were weirder. Everyone was made to wait out in the hallway, outside some kind of large conference room. It was a Saturday morning, and there were about 30 or so of us who were participants. We milled around, talking to each other, a bit uncomfortable about the lack of information we had been given about what we were getting into. Eventually, the doors opened, and loud, dramatic music began to play. Inside the room there was a group of people standing side-by-side, dressed in very formal business clothes. These were our instructors. They stood very still, with excellent posture... and no facial expressions at all! Just sort of staring into space! And they just kept standing there, and the loud music just kept playing, as we stood around in the room. They kept that up for a while (maybe 3-5 minutes? it seemed like a very long time), before telling us to sit down.

That was the beginning of a series of manipulative and disorienting techniques that they used for what I eventually came to believe was simply a sort of pyramid-type money-making scheme. If you finished the whole weekend doing their weird exercises (and it included some harsh tactics, and some confessional-type tactics, and techniques designed to elicit strong emotion), then you were invited to go to the "next level." And, of course, the "next level" consisted of more "training" that cost a lot more money. And, after that? Well, you became an "instructor," and that cost a lot of money, too; and, as an instructor, you tried hard to bring in more people to start at the bottom level. What a scam!

I think that the type of manipulation used by groups of this sort constitutes a form of terrible abuse of vulnerable people; and today, in a time when there is so much fear and uncertainty, more and more people will be in a position from which they might succumb to any sort of group that offers them hope...