Japan's Strangest Cult? | False Gods

From Margaret Thatcher seances to promising to eliminate North Korea, Happy Science is a controversial new religious movement with over 12 million members in 90 countries.
Led by its charismatic leader, Ryuho Okawa, the group’s followers believe he is a divine being, but others have accused him of leading a cult.
We hear from journalists who have been investigating the group to try and get to the bottom of it.
Watch more stuff like this:
Cult Leader, Abuser or Goddess? Meet 'Mother God'
• Meet 'Mother God:' The...
The Controversial Guru Who Wants to 'Upgrade Civilization'
• The Controversial Guru...
Finding Salvation with an Online Cult
• Finding Salvation with...
Guns For God: The Church of the AR-15
• Guns For God: The Chur...
Click here to subscribe to VICE: bit.ly/Subscribe-to-VICE
About VICE:
The Definitive Guide To Enlightening Information. From every corner of the planet, our immersive, caustic, ground-breaking and often bizarre stories have changed the way people think about culture, crime, art, parties, fashion, protest, the internet and other subjects that don't even have names yet. Browse the growing library and discover corners of the world you never knew existed. Welcome to VICE.
Connect with VICE:
Check out our full video catalog: bit.ly/VICE-Videos
Videos, daily editorial and more: vice.com
More videos from the VICE network: www. vicevideo
Click here to get the best of VICE daily: bit.ly/1SquZ6v
Like VICE on Facebook: vice
Follow VICE on Twitter: / vice
Follow us on Instagram: / vice
The VICE KZbin Network:
VICE: / vice
MUNCHIES: / munchies
VICE News: / vicenews
VICELAND: / vicelandtv
Broadly: / broadly
Noisey: / noisey
Motherboard: / motherboardtv
VICE Sports: / noc
i-D: / idmagazine
Waypoint: / waypointvice

[@VICE]

Watch more from this series: kzbin.info/aero/PLDbSvEZka6GF2xBrzhKTVXDqfY1jJaJ7f

[@myamdane6895]

do u fart

[@StreetDrilla]

how can a female promote the japanese empire

[@sierra9347]

@@myamdane6895 -

[@jesusisgodfriendandlove469]

3 scientifically proven Eucharistic miracles youtube itdr Oviedo linole from lv league scientists colobia college studyeda eucharest1200nocellsdieonit

[@ramkarki2600]

The main issue is South Korea used to be a country where almost all of the people used to follow a mixture of Buddhism, Confucianism , Taoism and Korean Shamanism(Muism) . But now almost all Koreans are evangelical christians. They have lost their soul as now they hate their ancestors since their ancestors were heathens as per their new beliefs. Hence they are easy to be manipulated by the cults. Thats why you see all kinda weird cults like Father Moon, Doomsday Church Cult like Shincheonji church and this cult coming from South Korea. Its the same reason why most s€x workers in middle east are Filipino because they too have lost their ancestors faith and converted to Christianity. Koreans are even more hardcore than white in christianity. In my country of nepal white people come play holi and put tika on dashain but koreans come only as missionary. It is ironic since korea used to be a Buddhist country but now they want land of Buddha i.e. Nepal to be land of Korean Jesus.

[@DarthFurie]

I'm literally in tears over how when he was pretending to be a former BRITISH Prime Minister he literally was not even speaking in fluent English lmao

[@chikasu10]

Facts

[@llamaliammm]

And idiots still believe him 😭

[@vestaosto]

Needless to speak about the strange Japanese accent. Lol.

[@Luboman411]

"Denis!!!! Denis!!!!"

[@jzk2020]

What if I told you, to Asians, he sounded like he spoke perfect English. 🥺💨mind blown

[@pkre707]

That was the least charismatic cult leader I think I’ve ever seen.

[@sfdko3291]

Have you seen Elon Musk?

[@thearousedeunuch]

@@sfdko3291 He does not impersonate Thatcher.

[@Rem694u2]

@@sfdko3291 HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!

[@ollllj]

only second to donald trump

[@The_Google_User]

Japanese ppl are so chill and meek

[@cubezapper]

Respect to the son for standing up to his dad, a literal cult leader

[@Dorian-lt5jb]

Exactly!!! I hope he's safe!

[@Clefargle]

Can you even imagine that level of pressure?

[@Mxy-ff4zk]

agreed

[@zo5679]

He sued his son lol

[@RanDom-II]

The son's name is Hiroshi Okawa, an actor and producer in various media, and he was recently arrested, incarcerated for 20+ days and fined for defamation of some woman through his KZbin channel and after release his landlord kicked him out. He's in debt over $200,000 and just trying to keep his YT channel and keep from becoming homeless. He's literally crying on his channel, poor guy. Japanese culture is rough.

[@user-pv7fj8gk7r]

Dude my uncle is in Happy Science. I have so many stories. One time my uncle gifted me a book for my birthday, and it was a transcript of Okawa doing a "spiritual interview" with Michael Jackson, where Jackson's "spirit" admitted he molested kids and explained why he did it, but also talked about music and hanging out with famous composers and dead celebrities in heaven. The book hasn't been translated into English and I hope it never does. I was so fuckin mad.

[@ericajackson1082]

I'd like to hear more of your stories! :)

[@user-ks9db9bq7l]

本のタイトルを教えてくれないか？

[@s0urce.ow0]

Hahaha. Thats so fucked up and Im sorry about your uncle, but I cant stop laughing. I had my own experience with happy science. I went to visit family in Russia a few years ago during the world cup. My cousin and best friend and I took a sleeper train to Nizhniy where we met a whole group of Russian Happy Science members. They seemed nice enough. Gave me the vibe that they were in recovery from addiction or something. Then when we got off the train, they caught us and handed us pamphlets that basically said that god is alive on earth and was some Japanese guy. We got a pretty good laugh from that.

[@sysamanthahopeang6268]

I would want to read that for entertainment😅😂

[@liveforone]

Imagine working in a cubicle next to Okawa on the day he "realized" he's God.

[@chagash6758]

I would steal his cocaine

[@Clefargle]

You joke but I knew somebody like this they were my neighbor and they worked for NASA before they went nuts and became convinced they were God in the flesh. Really scary to witness it happen to someone you knew

[@rdablock]

@@Clefargle i wanna hear more about that

[@WeThePeeps13]

@Winston R Yeah, right after you called him a god.... for a particularly good investment he'd made.

[@UFOhunter4711]

Happened to one of my parents friends kids, was studying economics then BAM one day he thinks he’s Jesus

[@warbledurbler7905]

Margaret Thatcher's knowledge of the English language has really decreased since her death.

[@Ananse15]

Deceased along with her

[@kayleecaresyoga3350]

And she’s suddenly become a militant Japanese nationalist 🤔😂

[@user-jy3zl2vp4b]

I guess it is like any skill; if you don't use it you loose it! So sad though. It means when we die, our loved ones won't be able to understand us.

[@fullmetaltheorist]

Death does that to a person. Lol.

[@Clo_Dub]

“After he realised he was literally God”. Ugh, don’t you just hate it when that happens

[@erinnicole5748]

"Satan is a furry when on earth" is probably the only true thing that man has ever said.

[@bitmikealerts_lol]

That means that furrycons are literal hell

[@elliefugerer3409]

They're saying Satan is a furry. I'm fucking dead.

[@rez2678]

Guess I’m Satan 😭

[@savelives3763]

Well, Satan is an Abrahamic concept. Rest of religions in the world literally don't believe in any entity as Satan.

[@deadzone3451]

That's the 21st Century for ya.

[@haze6647]

@Chase Calvin yea brother

[@yamamotohentai6978]

wtf I think they're based

[@Shazzyhtown]

Sounds like a Japanese version of Scientology doesn't it? The whole "parting with your money" and "ranks" thing. Totally Church of Scientology. All they need is Xenu, the Intergalactic War Lord.

[@jamesstmanhattan]

Yeah, part with your money, bring it to us. We've known this model in America since time immemorial, haven't we?

[@Sound557]

I thought about it as similar to Falun Gong from China or the World Unification Church (Moonies) from South Korea.

[@teethgrinder83]

Pretty much the first thing I thought myself-Hubbard didn't get the flashy anime when he started his scam mind you

[@hellomynameisname4270]

Exactly

[@user-sb3yt2xl6x]

Scientology isn't a cult. It's a religion, a way of life.

[@GM-it5rj]

I’ve studied world religions and cults my entire life. And I was already familiar with Happy Science. But the intergalactic cat Satan that disguises himself as a Furry was a new one to me. As of yet, I’ve not been able to substantiate that assertion anywhere else on the internet. Has anybody else found an outside source to verify this claim? If so, I would be immensely grateful to anyone who could provide a link to that information.

[@DinosourousRexx]

I think the source is the anime film produced by Happy Science, which they played a clip of during that section of the video

[@jessicalulila5709]

A youtuber called Mother's Basement made two videos about this cult

[@31328]

Honest question, why you don't start a religious cult yourself?

[@cutez0r]

Don't drink or eat while watching this, I did that mistake and now I have soda coming out of my nose. I completely lost it at the anime part.

[@Shiroya_Rumika]

Me too, I was drinking a water, until I got to that Anime part, the water is dripping on my mouth

[@itookallthenames]

Too late, I saw the anime part before I saw this comment, soda nose level reached

[@Mly_aaa]

It killed me that Obama was included in seances💀💀💀like man jus bc he ain’t president anymore don’t mean he’s dead 😂😂😂he’s probably jet skiing somewhere w Michelle

[@YouTuberOnlineNow]

He really loves jet skiing with his wife

[@kellybraille]

Haha right!? I was like, "Obama? Barack Obama? The totally alive person Barack Obama? What?"

[@kellybraille]

Haha so what exactly is Barack's body doing, while his mind is over there in a little Japanese body, pretending to speak bad Engrish? Why you messing with these people, Barack? 😂😂😂

[@Mly_aaa]

@@kellybraille 💀💀💀his english didnt transfer w his minddddd omfg hahah

[@makeit.primetime99]

Interesting.. little do you know about the implanted prz orackabamba

[@TheErikjsm]

That margret thatcher impression was hilarious i will atleast give him that

[@Xsksnssjccxghb]

Denis! Denis!

[@gretaweiss6802]

@@Xsksnssjccxghb omg 😂😂

[@timothicc]

HAHAHAHA🤣

[@marcusson9025]

He was so full of himself, but his limited understanding for English language was very apparent.

[@nandishcs]

This is the kind of content vice should be focusing not just on minority mind set and white guilt.

[@petergray7576]

"El Cantare" is literally "the singer" in several Latinate languages (or very close)😕. Was Ohkawa's God an Ancient Astronaut that moonlighted as a Venusian opera singer?

[@horos5870]

Yes "el" means "the" in Spanish and "cantare" "to sing" in Italian 😳😳 such a pride he chose these impressive words for his religion

[@XSemperIdem5]

I lost it at that point 😂 are we playing La Loteria or something?

[@arx3516]

El Cantare worked as a singer on space cruise ships in his youth.

[@ericashiorikayo1893]

The singer would be "El cantante"? but yes, "El cantare" sounds so silly to any latin-derived language speaker, such as myself

[@_.ana._.]

The idea of God being sick on the mic is kind of awesome

[@kaligula785]

South Park scripts write themselves these days

[@Exsugarbabe1]

Satire is now dead..

[@lucassobotzky9908]

wait r u cereal

[@subifyouhatetiktokandreddit234]

@@Exsugarbabe1 Wrong, Liberals want to kill it, but it's not dead

[@danielc9967]

@@subifyouhatetiktokandreddit234 well Happy science is far right, I guess being a liberal ain’t so bad afterall

[@spacelada9900]

lmao fr

[@Petruskinhap972]

Im a nurse and on admission I have to ask patients if they follow any religions. An Asian patient told me her religion was Happy Science. I had never heard of it, the daughter explained it was about love and friendship and it sounded sp nice. Kinda mind blown to see it is a cult ...... Learning something new with Vice.

[@altheaequatorin1179]

i’m concerned for the daughter, she’s probably being brainwashed 24/7.

[@Rem694u2]

All religions sound nice on the outside when members explain them. It's when you dig deep into them that you discover the darkness.

[@DarthFurie]

Where do you work that you're asking patients about their religion? I have a chronic health condition and get treated at major hospitals all on the US East Coast and I'd be pissed if a hospital asked something like that

[@Petruskinhap972]

@@DarthFurie i am in NYC and this is a regular part of admission. We are very diverse. We have a large Orthodox jewish population for example and we even have a Sabbath elevator that family members can use. We also have patients who are Muslim and can only eat Halal foods, etc, etc. Culture sensitivity is huge in nursing. This is the reason why we ask about religion. Why would you get mad over this? If you are non religious, just say so. We don't care either way. What a silly thing to get mad about.

[@iHaveTheDocuments]

What do you do for the religion of woke? Id say for your safety, try not to offend them. But that's impossible.

[@Richardsmith-hc5ur]

My biggest concern is that he’s doing a seance with Barrack Obama… He’s still alive, so either it’s a troll, or Obama has telepathic powers.

[@siddharthchawla9034]

Never call something the strangest, weirdest or worst, reality often finds a way to 1 up itself

[@emperorpingusmathchannel5365]

That animation quality on their animes is suprisingly impressive

[@ivanzero8854]

The true definition of "with the power of god and anime"

[@CrossbowmcChicken]

It looks like 2000s anime

[@nanafan350]

@EpyonX 😐😐😐😐

[@makeit.primetime99]

Its literally japan how could you be impressed, good animation is standard ... of course if the budget allows.

[@killallhokkiensf3701]

aum shriyoko also had one

[@maramilitia]

Looks like Thatchers English is improving.

[@VanaeCavae]

LOL

[@HugoSilva-jr1gt]

😅

[@arimax888]

😂😂🤣🤣 that part was hilarious & surreal

[@re_i_gn]

Is it just me or does her voice kinda sound different too? Probably smoking a lot in the afterlife, idk.

[@jdmunshi2946]

So is her pronunciation 🤣

[@Bot-tm7hs]

Im kind of surprised that mr.Okawa let his family members have such high-ranking positions in the church. Usually cult leaders take as much power for themselves as possible

[@xxivkraegen2124]

At that point mf was busy bathing in money he couldnt give 2 fucks about it

[@lilwaffleiron7845]

For anyone who wants to deep dive further into this, there's another cult called "Soka Gakkai" or it's acronym "sgi" which stands for Soka Gakkai International. It even has its own rarely-mentioned university in the United States which it tries to distance itself from to not arouse suspicion. It's a sort of unconventional Buddhist sect type religion, and I'd compare it to scientology in terms of money and influence.

[@Mohit-gg2vd]

Soka gakkai is a humanistic organisation. It's based on faith in the lotus Sutra and jas come down from scriptures and the last teachings of shakyamuni buddha. It does not act like this funny religion happy science. It's seems kinda funny. Happy science is trying to copy successful religions.

[@RanDom-II]

I only know about Soka gakkai from my mom who knew about them many decades before they spread beyond Japan. She remarked how the original stories of a beheading that was thwarted by a lightning hitting the sword was later changed to a falling store, like the official more plausible story was changed. Made me think similar re-writes likely with the Bible. I knew someone who put her faith in Sokkai Gakkai because she was lonely and when she was dying of ovarian cancer, the members seemed to be caring for her and probably conducted her funeral when she died. They aren't as outlandish as some other more recent Japanese cults. They're popping up all over the place like suburban US.

[@Enlightize]

Hey! That's me in the video! Thank you VICE for interviewing me. Happy Science was definitely an experience I"ll never forget.

[@BigBlack81]

Thank you for doing your bit for public service. Attending this must be our generation's version of a badge of honor.

[@duncansiror5033]

You've been featured on 'That Japanese Man Yuta' correct?

[@Enlightize]

@@BigBlack81 Hahaha. Your welcome? It all honestly, they treated me well and the event I went to was fun....just when I researched it more I realized that it was not for me.

[@Enlightize]

@@duncansiror5033 Yea, that was me. 😅

[@Enlightize]

@@nezsa777 Hey Dylan. You’re right! I’ve never said I didn’t enjoy myself while I was there. Just, it’s not for me. 🙂

[@washqz7775]

Ryuho Okawa is ripe for the meme-ing. Especially him saying “hot iron laadyyyyyy..” and “Dennis! Dennis!” 😆

[@lethaldream50]

god i had the same thoughts. highly exploitable

[@jeffreyphandani5160]

Who is Denis? I can get it if his ex wife who act like that, like she actually wanna blur what she really thought about in her mind, "penis" to "Denis"

[@lethaldream50]

@@jeffreyphandani5160 i kind of assumed Denis was some guy in the audience making a ruckus lol

[@TrialByDance]

Denis Thatcher, Margaret Thatcher's husband.

[@amylovemyart]

I lost it when he yelled "Dennis! Dennis!!" And there are people dumb enough to believe that!!!!

[@Peleski]

I found, living there, that Japan has a lot of cults. I think people are more accepting of top down control structures, their native religions are rather distant and impersonal, and normal society can be suffocating and unfulfilling. It doesn't surprise me that people look to parallel societies.

[@ompi9833]

When I went to school in Japan there was a happy science building near us and my friend attended a seminar on a dare.

[@ainsleyharriott2209]

After seeing Thatcher’s spirit exude from the man’s body I’m convinced this is 100% legit.

[@jimbomchooch6007]

DENIS, DENIS!!

[@se.hannon96]

His impression of her was spot on 😂

[@T2uyu]

after seeing your pfp I think you should join them

[@primeshrimp6130]

Even better than Meryl Streep!

[@JemRau]

Who is Denis?

[@537monster]

I remember talking to a Japanese person, and they basically described this as Japanese Scientology.

[@TheXerforce]

Do they have japanese tom cruise as well?

[@daBEAGLE1017]

Who is to say what is good and what is not? Scientology (im not) has made many happy and they will tell you different, same with Christianity.

[@jahcoba]

@@TheXerforce I guarantee they have Japanese celebrities as an obvious parallel

[@537monster]

@@daBEAGLE1017 luckily I’m not Christian. This isn’t making people “happy” it’s taking advantage of peoples depression in order to sell them “happiness” as a product. Happiness shouldn’t come from blatant lies.

[@rickdiaz427]

@@jahcoba I am afraid the number is growing as we speak...

[@harshvardhangaikwad9572]

I was studying Japanese language in Pune during 2015 and I read one of his book which was kinda motivational and it had one animated movie CD which shows how Rhyuo is reincarnated from Budha and other God's and religion is mixture of Buddhism and Christianity. The book stall people arranged one meeting to join their 'cult' and they asked me to pay subscription fee but I didn't paid as I was not interested. I just wanted to talk with Japanese person to understand new things about language. After that I left that meeting. Now I got to know more about this religious group. Nice video Vice 👍

[@endi4654]

This is the best comedy I've watched. No thanks to the main actor. His take on Margaret Thatcher is appalling.

[@boobylinks]

When Ryuho Okawa was asked about what he thought of Flat Earth, he responded with, "That's the craziest thing I've ever heard!".

[@bokiNYC]

🤣🤣🤣

[@sarahfinch5051]

This killed me 🤣🤣

[@everythingisfine9988]

💀💀💀

[@cabonegrojohnpatrick6930]

Hahahahahaha... I can't stop laughing. TF! He's so delusional. 😆😆😆

[@bmhater1283]

LMAOOO

[@Rem694u2]

I was very skeptical of Happy Science until they said that Satan is a furry. Now I am a staunch believer in Happy Science. It all makes sense now.

[@prodbybaenji]

this

[@jamescook5487]

Thought the same thing lol

[@theinquisitor7191]

AWE HELL NAW. 😱

[@Dong_Harvey]

I guess that makes a lot of people furries all of the sudden

[@guarini800]

Now I get why furries are so obnoxious.

[@pvtpain66k]

We need a new, hour-ish, version of this, now that Okawa is dead.

[@freddquimby6240]

When I was in 5th grade our school took us to a book fair. I was exploring the place and spotted a crowded stall. I got curious and went to check it out. There I saw the people operating the stall were foreigners. Now I realize they were Japanese people. They were going on about this Happy Science but I didn't understand a single thing. They were giving away some kind of pamphlet with the cult leader's face in front with a CD attached to it. The CD was about some kind of anime. I took 3 of those pamphlet lol. The only reason I took those were because of the anime XD. I watched it at home but didn't understand a single thing about that anime. The story was about some teenagers trying to contact Thomas Edison who was in heaven for something. They go to heaven somehow IDK and they do stuff there to please him I guess. I don't remember the story so well cause I stopped watching it after getting bored. And now after 12 years I realize it was a freakin cult? WTF. I am laughing so hard as I watch this video haha.

[@thejman5683]

Have you Watched Mother’s Basement’s video on Happy Science’s films? Apparently one film (Mythic Laws) takes the Far Right Japanese stuff to the next level, there was a montage of China (it was supposed to be a fictional country I can’t remember it’s name but it was heavily implied to be china) of them invading Japan, killing religious people and their families, and in said montage had schools teach about Nanking (Japan’s Far Right denies any war crimes Japan did during WWII)

[@freddquimby6240]

@@thejman5683 I have not watched the film but I definitely heard about it though. The horrendous things Japan did in Nanking though. I cannot imagine a single person just going around and chopping heads of other people and competing for it.

[@queensha9976]

Im trying to figure out when Barack Obama died for him to be summoned

[@clumsygirl3855]

Same

[@sudonim7552]

Low level prophets can channel the spirits of dead people, but only HIGH LEVEL prophets can channel the spirits of alive people, obviously.

[@TerribleShmeltingAccident]

Lol I was thinking same, like wait what? Obama? He's dead?! What else have I missed 🤣

[@MrDan11422]

You are in the cult of Trump

[@TerribleShmeltingAccident]

@@MrDan11422 cult? Someone been drinking that CNN Kool-aid

[@medotaku9360]

How's this dude gonna pretend to be Margaret Thatcher when he can't even use an English accent?

[@ladydarkmoon7793]

LMAO!

[@alexcarter8807]

I know it was hilarious!

[@Splashmesplash]

Hahahahahaha you nailed it.

[@rozniyusof2859]

Denis! DENIS!

[@abdur1300]

let alone British accent

[@atomicphilosopher6143]

Vice has blocked this video from being viewed in Japan (Vice themselves have made it unavailable here). I live in Japan and I have to use a VPN to watch a video from Vice. Real brave of you, guys. Way to show the problem to everyone except the people who really need to see the message. This is not the kind of journalistic integrity I expect from Vice.

[@FratterKnox]

To be fair, Happy Science is notorious for copyright striking creators who criticize them. If it was uploaded originally with a region block on Japan then I would agree that they lack journalistic integrity and bravery. That said, if it was region blocked in response to Happy Science striking their channel, that’s a bit more understandable. Unfortunately, due to how KZbin’s copyright strike claims work, Vice wouldn’t exactly have much choice in the matter.

[@itookallthenames]

There are cults in Australia like Hillsong and Landmark that do the same sort of censorship

[@JJ-vc4wx]

How stupid are people to believe in the bullshit lmao.

[@JJ-vc4wx]

How stupid are people to believe in this bullshit lmao.

[@kyleowen1084]

Journalistic integrity has been dead for many years

[@sierraesse8184]

When I watch Vice’s videos, although very informative, I feel like I just read a sentence ending with a semi-colon and I’m waiting for the rest of the sentence.

[@robertdominguez6002]

That anime studio seems to have a decent budget ngl

[@chaitanyasharma3420]

Heck yeah they make 45M evry year

[@amirlhmzn]

even better than some hentai animation ngl hahahaha

[@luistorres6594]

I was at the Union Square subway, when a Japanese lady was trying to recruit me into this

[@supershaggy4271]

lol how'd it go?

[@khabib29-0goat3]

Is she young and pretty? Id worship even my cat for a cute japanese girl

[@nickname8619]

@@khabib29-0goat3 ultra simp level 200

[@gretaweiss6802]

In New York?

[@luistorres6594]

@@gretaweiss6802 Yes

[@ashac.7500]

6:18 he didn't even use a British accent, that's caught lacking in 4K

[@kuswardaniratna7256]

I love this, they're not even trying or at least pretend to be more convincing or secretive or something. The entertainment value's off the charts..

[@jordynbarker4964]

3:30 cracked me up. like this guy is the supreme being of earth, more powerful than any other man. and then his voice sounds like a twelve y/o😭

[@lillebowskiurbanachiever2367]

I thought the same thing when he was manifesting Thatcher, asking please come to us. I thought you were God.

[@SinCityRaider81]

😹

[@Rem694u2]

THE POWER OF SOY COMPELS YOU!!!!

[@reeldeal8385]

Or Winnie The Pooh 😭

[@ninjamusic9554]

@@Rem694u2 that's an already debunked myth lol

[@hugogonzalez1727]

Was finally able to convinced my wife this "religion" she grew up in is a CULT! I visited their temple in oahu and got very cult feel for the whole situation. I also got the joy of watching their "anime" and its totally sciencetology. Same same but different.

[@ericktellez7632]

Mexican?

[@hugogonzalez1727]

@brax10808 its on Kapiolani Blvd right in Honolulu. Went there twice both times felt like theyre were trying to make me tired and docile before speaking to me about el canter or whatever. Looks like a buddist temple the whole nine yards until they start talking about their holy leader.

[@hugogonzalez1727]

@brax10808 the real exclusive one is in pacific heights you can't even go unless you're a seasoned member. Honestly beautiful place but dont drink the coolaid

[@Seeker0fTruth]

@@hugogonzalez1727 interesting!!! I lived in Honolulu and know Kapiolani Blvd…so crazy…never heard of it though. Good job following your gut instincts!

[@hugogonzalez1727]

@@Seeker0fTruth the one in Kapiolani is more for first timers. The one on pacific heights is luxurious you only get access after donating so much or being with them for so long.

[@lokielopt09]

I recently did a research about Japanese religion and belief, then I saw "happy science". Never heard of it & wondering what was it. Thanks for this content VICE

[@natalieshark]

This series is right up my alley.

[@Organic.Mechanic]

That guy is lucky he is in Japan and is seriously rich. Calling himself mohommad is a surefire way to reach next dimension.

[@timeklof62]

@@ndnxneh you can but you might lose your head

[@friendlyperson9691]

@@timeklof62 This is why I hate religion.

[@Xirtamani]

@TheExplorer It's the same with Hinduism and Christianity, but you didn't mention those two 🤔. I think I know why🙄. Hindus - afaik - can't even excuse the contradictory bullshit some of them do with some actually rather small respectively irrelevant verse/surah as the other two usually do though...

[@clumsygallium6104]

@@Xirtamani what's wrong with Hindus? Been there to India and Nepal, I met a lot of people in my life, but they are the most spiritual and friendly.

[@YTChannel344]

@@clumsygallium6104 I think he's referring to conflicts in South-Asia due to difference in religions among Hindus, Muslims and Christians.

[@dhanupinandito183]

"Happy Science was founded by Ryuho Okawa after he realised he was literally God while working abroad on Wall Street." What the~

[@starman825]

Hmm I’ve been to six flags does that make me Buddha

[@djayjp]

Makes sense.

[@jordynbarker4964]

Our boy snorted too much coke on Wall Street 😔

[@j2oorange]

Cocaine's a hell of a drug

[@LookDeeper]

@@alskjlskaj there is no recovery

[@reiskywalker17]

I hit pause on "satan is furry" part cuz I LOL to tears 😂 this is a comedy gold

[@enaiena]

Same lmao!

[@c.w.8200]

I love how Japanese people pick and choose words from other languages and use them however they please. I thought it's mostly in anime but apparently cults do it too...

[@razorking1819]

I'm still on the part satan is a furry I'm crying some furries are looking at this and asking "how dafuck we even get in to this?"

[@sudonim7552]

It's true, I went to a furry convention and spoke with Satan. Cool dude, gave me this weird tattoo on my hand tho dunno what that's about.

[@Luna-ne3dq]

You're welcome my guy

[@razorking1819]

@@Luna-ne3dq lmao

[@razorking1819]

@@sudonim7552 oh nah go check that out in the doctor's lmao

[@King-Kyle]

I don't know about all that other crap but satan would defs be a furry in my mind.

[@HIMMBelljuvo]

"In addition, Mohammed, you know, of Islam, I sent him, too." Muslims are gonna be big mad

[@rayyan6619]

it's rather hilarious

[@9nnna5]

It's funny bcuz how ridiculous it is.

[@rishab5293]

Fatwaaaaa himmmm....

[@abdallahbohimed7315]

Nah man we find it hilarious

[@1maginaryme]

nahh, we chill

[@beepbeep9043]

Thats awesome that his son left and has been insulting him! Good for him, can’t imagine how hard that is.

[@alexernst9448]

6:00 Not that this is remotely the weirdest thing here, but how exactly do you seance Obama? Being, you know, still alive?

[@IKEMENOsakaman]

Omg... my family member is a part of this, and I have nothing I can do to bring him back to the real world... He thinks I'm delusioned for not wanting to know the "truth". What can I do.....

[@iennternet]

After watching this, i guess u can't really do anything

[@dustinevans2895]

Have you tried the Airplane: The Movie "Get ahold of yourself " *SLAP ??

[@medotaku9360]

You can't control people. You have to let them go to figure it out on their own.

[@supershaggy4271]

I will pray for your family member

[@iennternet]

@@supershaggy4271 praying for him is kinda ironic if you think about it

[@WinterReflections]

You'd think the spirit of Margaret Thatcher would be able to summon more fluent English without a strong Japanese accent.

[@NYD666]

Actually accents are a part of muscle memory. That's why when a person gets someone else's voice box or face, they dont get a someone else's voice or accent. If you were to take over someone's body, you would most likely speak like them. As for not speaking in english? I like the comedic value

[@Unexist612]

Thanku for your Efforts

[@santiagovelasco1717]

Why is their slogan of "one World one people" the same as the Flagsmashers' from The Falcon and The WS?

[@makeit.primetime99]

Nw0

[@Josh-99]

For as serious and duty-driven of a people as the Japanese are -- qualities that I personally admire -- they also do crazy better than anyone else.

[@catherinehazur7336]

.....Just another reason I won't be adding a visit to Japan to my bucket list anytime soon

[@thefrustratedneetaspirant7777]

@@catherinehazur7336 it's a paradise for tourists

[@Mr.Joy1369]

Yo how bout the American woke?

[@Josh-99]

@@Mr.Joy1369 You mean the people who are just decent human beings who consider the emotions of others? They don't qualify as crazy. The people who use the term "woke" as a pejorative, on the other might, certainly do.

[@victorrubahimbya1124]

Wow am so glad I find someone that realises how focused and duty driven these Japanese people are ...its embedded every where in their culture and system with or with out religion at hand

[@whywelovefilm7079]

“Oh, and you know Mohammad? The one from Islam. Yeah, I know him too. I sent him here “ 😂😂😂

[@FarhanAli-cb3vp]

@Slow Day 1.8 billion muslims know this guy is a lunatic! He's just making this whole crap up to rip people off. those 12 million people need to wake up from this cult lol

[@ariosetiawan173]

its too far Away mention Prophet Mohammad sent by him, just waiting he sent to ... #kidding XD

[@aceraphael]

@Farhan Ali Tbh Mohammad did the same thing...he too claimed Jesus and all others in the Bible are the followers of the God he preached...only difference, he chose to kill anyone who didn't believe him.

[@ariosetiawan173]

@@aceraphael are you kidding "Templar Ace Raphael" ? XD

[@None-do2qn]

@@aceraphael maybe try to research more

[@danieloftamriel]

I saw his latest film, “The Divine Protector,” today at Laemmle in Glendale, and I gotta say, for a super Buddhist-centric movie, I actually enjoyed it LOL.

[@intreoo]

I watched a movie directed by Okawa yesterday and was in tears. What made it even funnier was that it somehow topped Japan's box office for 4 weeks and won 3 awards.

[@kingkelz215]

I strongly dislike how nearly every cult takes positive notions and tries to warp them for fear-mongering or financial gain.

[@isobelamber9785]

‘Are you religious at all?’ ‘Yes, I’m a happy scientist’ 🙂

[@kevintrang3007]

As opposed to a -mad- sad scientist

[@bnmbg731]

Lol

[@bensloan3109]

This made me ugly laugh lol

[@n.p.m1918]

got a gaia ad while listening this and i didnt notice that before i saw what there was on screen..

[@cheddersnevets4106]

I did a research project on scientology for a religion class about 20 years ago. They are stalkers. Every address I have moved to, I've received scientology propaganda addressed to me at that address before I changed my address with the post office. They like to let you know they are watching. This is very similar...

[@stefangherman8408]

Wait a minute! Barack Obama is still alive.

[@Kambrius70]

Is he though?

[@JessiekaIsANerd]

That's what they want you to think

[@ff_user]

Wrong. I’m Obama. And I’m dead.

[@ETS186]

Bro i wanted to like your comment but it was at 69... figured i shouldn't so i just reply here to show my appreciation

[@stefangherman8408]

@@ETS186 Thanks!

[@ParallaxMY]

What an absolute delight seeing this video. Though, I honestly wished you didn't block this video in Japan, Vice. I think they deserve to know the nonsense being pushed to the forefront by Happy Science, as well.

[@apple_dragon226]

Did it say it was "blocked in ur country*aka japan* " by vice bc some government's would blocked certain videos that their citizens shouldn't watch on youtube in that country

[@ParallaxMY]

@@apple_dragon226 "The uploader has not made this video available in your country." Clearly it wasn't because of the Japanese government blocking the video. Vice themselves blocked their own video in Japan, either fearing an impending lawsuit by Happy Science or some other reason that we don't know.

[@noirto2]

@@ParallaxMY avoiding lawsuit there probably

[@jamescalderon289]

@@ParallaxMY its just so crazy how this dude legit copy and pastes scientology to a tee. To the point of using their greatest weapon: Lawyers

[@jesszheng2129]

Mmm Mmm

[@formorri]

It's so wild that they have a brick and mortar in my neighborhood

[@brandongoldstein5015]

"A hot iron lady" 0:03 🤣

[@sricardo4387]

The name “Happy Science” sounds like a Sex Experiment to me

[@73gmiller]

I think your getting Happy Science confused with Happy Endings

[@arimax888]

😂😂🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@dashingmay]

@@73gmiller hahahahaha!😂😂

[@everythingisfine9988]

@@73gmiller 🚀🚀🚀

[@germanshepherd6638]

We have this in America, it’s called Scientology. Praise lord Xenu! 🛸

[@rangoman1815]

Or liberalism

[@rangoman1815]

@@mangonel but nothing is worse than liberalism with existential fatigue and virtue signalling! Smells like sooner or later all these liberal countries will have Shariah law

[@rangoman1815]

@@mangonel yeah that's why Europe is turning towards Islam and other Western countries will follow suit...

[@ssp9980]

Don't forget about the the cult of Christianity

[@rangoman1815]

@@mangonel it's not only because of the radial Muslim refugees but also because of the Europeans themselves...

[@dreadinside654]

Dennis!! Dennis!! Is he reffering to my childhood cartoon Dennis the manace? 😂😂😂

[@prasadnaiquesai]

Witnessed Margaret Thachers funeral,received condolence letter from British Prime Minister on Thachers demise & Now this Seance of Mrs.Thacher spirit/soul talk through a Japanese Denis,Denis .Life does not end with body.

[@uprightape100]

"Re-militarized Nuclear-armed Japan"........what could possibly go wrong?

[@huseyinmehmetaltun2046]

they may want a rematch to settle the score with certain country

[@medotaku9360]

They have a military. They just call it the National Guard.

[@controversialmemberofsocie9295]

@Killin Sparker were talking about china right or are we talking about america

[@controversialmemberofsocie9295]

@Killin Sparker cause right know America and japan are on good terms

[@theinquisitor7191]

Weeaboo banzai attack at Pokemon Harbor. Lol.

[@jeebsunabia7972]

"Members may have a rise in status based on donations" - THERE! RIGHT THERE! MAJOR, MAJOR RED FLAG!

[@amypieterse4127]

🚩

[@officerdont5691]

🚩

[@samanthajohnston9269]

I've found that when people make a point to tell others they aren't doing something it's because they actually are

[@Anon26535]

Let's see him do a seance of Shoko Asahara.

[@amandabama253]

Is anyone else listening to this and thinking sounds like SCIENTOLOGY to me 😆

[@lethaldream50]

right? pretty sure fiscal donation is at the core of scientological rank and promotion as well.

[@souradeeproy7673]

Yes, just more kawaii

[@brillsmith2207]

more like the church of unification aka the moonies.

[@msl1689]

@@brillsmith2207 Nah I think it's closer to scientology. Moonies believe in a Holy Family.

[@noesunyoutuber7680]

"The Church of Happyology" is a name used by TV Tropes for fictional Scientology stand-ins. Happy Science is literally Happyology plus Scientology minus the "ology" - double Scientology!

[@jebedmondson6428]

I met one of their followers outside of a trump rally in Atlanta in 2016 , he gave me a book called “a spiritual interview with George Washington”, it was the weirdest thing I had ever read from what I can tell they’re basically just Japanese Scientology

[@juliemay5117]

I want to read that!!

[@jebedmondson6428]

@@youtubeconsumer22 it was really confusing, the guy was super polite but he just pressed it into my hands and left without saying anything

[@biplabkumarnayak8499]

I never laughed so much when people were hunting Dinosaur 🦕 In that anime

[@UCUSmusic]

It does explain a lot tho.... lol

[@stormzaba3757]

“ can you speak English? “ Him: ADennis! Dennis !

[@luisbussamara7132]

I've lived almost 15 years next to one of these temples and always wondered what was that. Thank you vice

[@riyokar6159]

Using Anime to explain the religion we know who the actual followers are. 😂

[@whathell6t]

@@memetopia5130 Well! It’s just anime weebs, not Tokusatsu weebs. Tokusatsu weebs are way different.

[@whathell6t]

@@memetopia5130 On the other hand. Show the weebs Evangelion, and they will scurry away like rats, back to the sewers they came.

[@mattberg6816]

Late 20s white men working retail jobs with an Asian fetish

[@mr.vietnam1575]

@@whathell6t Oh evangelion that show, man those two episodes were a acid trip.

[@idksom8928]

@@whathell6t WEEB IS WEEB

[@MacNCheese69]

Brilliant! This is how all religions were started. Some adaptation about “oh all those previous religions were of the doing of THIS true religion now” and so forth and so forth…

[@Charlie-bi1of]

LMAO, homeboy is smoking some good stuff!

[@hayaowennaga]

Ryuho Okawa's son publicly has been criticising his father's organisation as a cult.

[@thejman5683]

And Happy Science is suing his son

[@ladydarkmoon7793]

This was so entertaining ! I laughed through out the whole thing. I literally couldn't take this cult seriously.lol "I'm margret thatcher ....oooooo fight fight...Denis!...Denis!" had me dead lol

[@Xsksnssjccxghb]

Lol same 🤣 I’m Asian and we have a saying here that if people wear suits in these religious videos then they are most likely part of a cult. There are so many cults like these in Taiwan (with impersonations of dead famous people

[@calijahlovechild7706]

May you be blessed with light.

[@GGtilley2000]

When I was in London last year I got handed a flyer for happy science. I read it and thought it was mental

[@usser1138]

“cone down to this place” If Thatcher’s soul was coming back it would be from below not above 😂😂

[@dustinevans2895]

How dare you sir Boo...Hiss...Boo...Hiss

[@Dewsta26]

@@dustinevans2895 the gammon generation are thankfully dieing off. The day can't come soon enough. So much greed at the expense of the younger generations well-being. Shame on them.

[@yeremi6005]

Hey hey hey #stopasianhate 😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂

[@SmokeyChipOatley]

This is what would have happened if L Ron Hubbard was born 50 years later and became a weeb

[@thethecat100]

In the new York ( happy science) temple they have a golden statue of Hermes there! They say it means the philosophy of the East and philosophy of the West come together.

[@Steve_305]

So its basically the Japanese version of Scientology

[@TheCrabError]

I’m only 1 min 15 seconds in, but i heard something like “realized he was a god while working on wall street” and my first thought was ‘yeah, cocaine definitely can have that effect’. Ok, now on with the show.....

[@noesunyoutuber7680]

A lot of people feel like they're gods on cocaine, but how good does the coke have to be to convince you after it's worn off?

[@jenoirine]

Yep, it's one hell of a drug

[@ThePowarrior]

if your son and ex-wife are demons, i'd suspect you are a demon too?? idk thats just me

[@paulczar]

Not really, just means he hooked up with a succubus. Humans can have sex with demons (apparently?)

[@whatsup5914]

@@paulczar I think there's some hentais bout that

[@zizi6538]

@Diss Raps tf are you talking about

[@WindFireAllThatKindOfThing]

@@paulczar Last year in Japan, 598,900 men got married. Presumably to mostly women. So the math backs your claim up, here. It's science. Happy science.

[@clayonkelvinmcpherson86]

I am Super afraid and shock of this organization Happy Science!

[@icchampion5]

I thought Japan tightened it's restrictions to new religious orgs ever since Aum Shinrikyo.