Why is Japan So Obsessed with Cults?

[@brainblaze6526]

Thank you Squarespace for sponsoring this video. Check out Squarespace: squarespace.com/blaze for 10% off on your first purchase.

[@joyouknow5385]

I currently live in Japan. Cherry on top... Japan has mental health crisis & access to mental Healthcare crisis. So an abundance of cults & conspiracy believers is a continuing problem. I've had people try to recruit me. An African American. We went back & forth via translation app for nearly an hour at my front door. I'm a hard-core logic driven individual who's idols are Neil DT, Carl Sagan, Data 🖖&🖖Spock. At the end of the chat I'm pretty sure I convinced one of the recruiters to come to the pleasurable dark side of logic. It was like watching eyes light up for the first time. ✨️

[@nessc5825]

That’s just as scary… you can create your own logic cult… and probably nobody would miss a beat

[@popeye089]

Link to Jim jones episode? Thanks

[@aceundead4750]

My gf and i started a cult where we're the only humans and all the rest of the members are stray cats. Very little is achieved other than keeping my garbage cans from being knocked over.

[@Gentl3Repos3]

I like your cult ^.^

[@Amethystar]

So... Can anyone start a... franchise? I think I have a time slot open for a small cult.

[@Takillama]

My family is also part of this cult.

[@deannamarie8389]

@aceundead4750 if someone willingly wants to join your cult, could they domesticated cats? ^.^

[@duB420Grass]

This sounds like an Ariel Castro situation.

[@ParaNoid816]

I was camping once in the American midwest. We encountered a cult. Forest people. Some of their clothes were handmade... but they appeared to be totally normal otherwise. I asked one of the younger guys what their cult was about... and he says, "I don't know. It's just a cult, man." That was a weird day.

[@grege8318]

The Cult of Fact Boi! WHERE ARE OUR ROBES FACT BOI!? We cant have nice ceremonies without robes.

[@wonky_shoebox7514]

And creepy candles. Every cult needs creepy candles.

[@demonorb8634]

This cult is sponsored by rage shadow legends 😄 now back to our sacrifice 😮

[@olencone4005]

I hear they're down in the basement... you just gotta go down there and you'll see...... >.>

[@CWesleyHaas]

Here I thought it was Snuggies and Crocs for when we drank the Sunny D

[@GingerDog207]

Ok, I want the robes, but I'm not venturing down to the basement for anything! & I'm definitely gonna wear my Crocs... ❤❤

[@diego199302]

Simon: "their cults are much more chill?" Me, knowing about Aum: "Oh my sweet summer child"

[@Galafael1122]

The best part is that he actually did a Cas Crim on Aum a while back! He probably forgot all about it.

[@vonn2221]

What is 'sweet summer child' mean? Someone that innocent?

[@EterPuralis]

Yes. It's just left of the cinnamon buns. ​@@vonn2221

[@purrsuasively]

@@vonn2221 yes

[@KeithNeilson]

​@vonn2221 It's from game of thrones, where the seasons are irregular and unpredictable. So a child born in the summer might never know the harshness of winter.

[@travisproietti7078]

😄 it’s funny watching each video, both members streams and regular episodes, and being able to pick out which videos he shot on the same day by the shirt he’s wearing🤣

[@fernandochaidez4791]

He needs to wear his jackets again. I don’t care if it’s hot. 😂 get A/C 😊

[@aceundead4750]

Im sensing a new drinking game. A very long, slow, potentially dangerous drinking game.

[@skahtty]

This feels like cult behavior

[@ArchangelXCI]

I’m sure Simon does wear shirts multiple times before throwing them out

[@Crioten]

I'm still wondering if he owns an iron

[@HoundMonkey]

I used to work down the road from the Ramtha cult in Yelm, Wa... they used to send recruiters to town and they would come into the stores pretending to shop, then randomly try to start up a conversation about how amazing of a person the cult leader was and how happy they were living at the compound it was always super creepy.

[@travisproietti7078]

@@HoundMonkey I grew up in Eatonville!! Live out in port angeles now. Small world lol but yeah that Ramtha commune was something else 😆

[@olencone4005]

The Scientologists in Clearwater still do creepy stunts like that too o.O

[@WoodlandT]

When I was a teenager I rode horses at a place associated with Ramtha, just outside Yelm. It was a huge property. The woman lived in a copper pyramid with vintage animal fur upholstered furniture. The man lived in an octagonal log cabin. One day a whole bunch of absurdly attractive people from numerous countries, on motorcycles and sports cars, showed up to the property for a lavish bbq. It was like a scene from a cheesy Netflix movie. They were all high up Ramtha people. It was extremely odd

[@kyb3rcrystals]

lol i’m from oly and every time we go through yelm someone always makes a comment like “look, there are the cult gates!”

[@richardfeldkamp1707]

Pre-WW2, Japan had the cult of Emperor worship, the newer cults replaced that. Japanese people like to have some sort of regulation in their lives and a sense of belonging to a group. This is a very simple explanation but there is some truth to it.

[@dndsl3436]

Moreover, superstitions are taken more seriously in Japan (arguably in East Asia in general) than in many western countries. IIRC, some official police reports from the 1950s state "drowned by a kappa" as a cause of death.

[@shanedoesyoutube8001]

That's the _anime adaptation_ of Roman imperial cults

[@laurencewinch-furness9450]

They imposed the cult of the emperor on Korea. After the war, Kim Il Sung stepped into the vacuum and took Hirohito's place.

[@jasonbelstone3427]

@@laurencewinch-furness9450 More like, they replaced a Korean Imperial cult with their own Japanese one.

[@ScooterinAB]

I think a huge part of it is that there is no concept of religious exclusivity. There's a common joke about being born Shinto, marrying Christian, and dying Buddhist. Someone joining a cult is basically meaningless (unless it's those really fucked up ones, like Aum Shunrikyo) because it's just going to be seen as someone's Tuesday activity.

[@Silentgrace11]

I think another reason for Japan and South Korea being more cult centric that isn’t necessarily described here is that culturally, there’s always been an emphasis on group mindset, and operating with the betterment of the whole in mind as opposed to individualism. That manner of thinking is also the type of culture that cults try to develop to lure in and keep its participants - a mindset of being part of a community of like minded individuals, working to better the whole of the group, not questioning the group because the group knows better, etc. I could see this making it a lot easier for cults to hook onto people who are already familiar with that kind of mindset as it’s pretty established status quo in schools, the workplace, the familial circle, etc. I do genuinely wonder, with the uptick of feminism and general individualism that is starting to gain favor in South Korea recently, if we’ll start to see a decrease of cult involvement or behavior from the same generational group involved with the change in work and lifestyle culture.

[@Tea_laBlue]

I was thinking that. The culture is more group-centric

[@Ottobon]

Some things look up a bit but the birthrates are terrifying

[@pien-s2v]

So why are cult followers in America and Africa incrasing?

[@maryn174]

I am Japanese, and I believe one reason is that many people in Japan lack strong religious faith. Another contributing factor is the lax regulation of cults after World War II, combined with the rapid economic growth and population boom during the post-war period, which likely led to a significant increase in followers. However, in recent years, stricter regulations on cults, greater public scrutiny, and the slowdown in economic growth have resulted in a decline in the number of adherents.

[@maryn174]

If your argument is correct, then why is the number of cult followers increasing in countries like the United States and Africa? In nations where individualism is dominant, cults are simply adapted to fit that context. Individualism or collectivism has nothing to do with it.

[@TheKalaxis]

The cult of the almighty FactBoi would still make more sense than Scientology

[@GingerDog207]

Abso-Freakin-Lutely!!! Sign me up! 🍀🌴🦩

[@sdubpdot1087]

You religion shaming? Not cool....... OK it is cool

[@handbanana942]

Point me to the coolaid😅

[@Vishfeast]

Scientology believes they solved religion by classifying everything in the planet, with a series of words that are only descriptors of what is. Which has plenty of bias in it, with the objective that god isn't real and they inserted biased variables, to do what science does. Also as soon as you bring up religion to any of these people, they become wrathful and disrespectful, just like a defiant rebellious person would. Just make it seem less apparent, but really science cannot prove anything, it can only disprove. Which science has not done. I would like to remind you, that somehow science interested a discriminatory beliefs between genetics of a non-human cells and somehow fooled everyone that just because similarities in organic mechanisms are shared on the earth, doesn't mean they dictate "free will". Over and over I hear from scientology that were just here to reproduce, which dulls us to basic survival instincts, and any of us talking on here, is a compete fluke or sharing/expressing ideas to form wisdom, is completely a phenomenon! We should all just be busy in our caves and having sex with everything!

[@PhoenixRising883]

I can understand the draw of cults. I was raised by parents who held (hold) a very angry and distrustful view of the government despite having no real reason to do so other than they both have "not like the other girls" energy. Plus, my dad is narcissistic enough that he believes he knows the "real truth" and anyone else who didn't subscribe to his particular flavor of insanity was beneath him and worth ridiculing. Towards the end of Bush's first* (my original comment said second but it was actually his first) term, he took all of his available cash and drained his savings to buy silver bars and coins because the government was about to collapse any day and money would be worthless. Hell, my sister dove head first into it and published a blog post where she literally threatened President Bush's life (we all had blogs at that time, and my profile picture was of me posed with one of my dad's many rifles). She was visited by the secret service in our little Florida town, at the shitty gas station where she worked at the time. She was made to delete her entire blog and was banned from the Internet for a while (I can't remember how long). At one point a handful of years later, they fell on hard times and were forced to apply for food stamps (they were vehemently against welfare and looked down on those who collected any type of welfare). They tried to convince me that they were only doing it to help bring down the government faster. I don't really talk to them anymore, especially after I got a blood clot and lost my leg, my dad was emailing me all kinds of articles about how it was my fault it happened because I was vaccinated against Covid. Looking back on all of it, I guess I was in a cult of sorts. I'm now estranged from all of my immediate family (parents and siblings) and it doesn't look like there will be any reconciliation, especially since my sister saw fit to "turn me in" to the Department for Children and Families because I'm just a horrible, toxic person because I won't fall in line with them. The caseworker saw right through the allegations and told us she was only here to close out the case. So, yeah...

[@masjuggalo]

Now to be fair if he held on to that silver. It has gone up a lot in value so well. He might have purchased it in a paranoid panic. It was a decent investment

[@AnonEyeMouse]

Your sister was called Dove Head?

[@eaglesclaws8]

Holy fk

[@Alex_zer0_Shoveller]

You could probably publish a book and I'd read it bc WOW that is a lot of crazy shit... I'm glad you went noncontact with ur family , you're definitely better off without all that 😊

[@ThatWriterKevin]

Shame he went with silver instead of gold

[@ignitionfrn2223]

2:25 - Mid roll ads 3:35 - Back to the video 4:25 - Chapter 1 - How did this happen ? 10:30 - Chapter 2 - Pana wave laboratory 15:25 - Chapter 3 - Life space movement 21:35 - Chapter 4 - Yamato no miya

[@WarrenOKeefe]

Chef's kiss for the Babylon 5 Grey Council still being used as a cult reference My aged nerdy ass is deeply pleased

[@blackc1479]

You're not alone. We stand between the darkness and the light.

[@equiraptor]

We stand between the candle and the star.

[@bayoubilly5176]

​@@blackc1479 I'm just here for Garibaldi the Napoleon aliens fan service! Whaaat whaaat?

[@VubuMack]

The harga just are too flowery for the look

[@kevinpatrick1379]

Made my day 😊

[@TheDarkDogmaticDragonArisen]

5:50 Missed opportunity for "The greater good" from Hot Fuzz 😂

[@madpolitico]

I am so, so disappointed. Especially with this subject.

[@StrawberryRaine]

Japan's previous Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, was assassinated for being involved with a cult. I remember feeling bad for him at the time because his funeral took place the same week that Queen Elizabeth's did. To say his death was overshadowed in the western world would be an understatement lol

[@danicalifornia505]

16:17 how does Simon not realize he already heads a cult, he talks wild space and time shit, and has thousands of dedicated followers hanging on his every video? He even has a way to contact each and every single one individually via Liam.

[@Galafael1122]

I don't know about you, but Liam can't reach me and I'm super grateful for that.

[@Etymon-jt3zw]

Simon Whistler is going to start the world's first KZbin cult. For people obsessed with random facts, Conspiracy theories, Darwin awards & Florida Man.

[@alanhilder1883]

You mean "has started" rather than 'is going to start'.

[@jaypriole142]

Yay I’m in a cult! . . . . Wait.

[@anhedonicauthor]

And cocaine.

[@blackc1479]

As far as cults go, it's pretty chill. He doesn't demand anything more than our eyeballs for the occasional rant, or education on some obscure factoids. (Though if you're a talented script writer, I'd recommend keeping that to yourself, lest you be invited to sacred initiation in the holy basement.)

[@hearmerawrnow]

All hail Simon!

[@whypick1_]

Really love the work the new editor did. I'm going to Google their name to see if I can find more of their work right away!

[@stephencarl1482]

Simon, just coming from Brain Blaze marathon and now here???? Am I in a cult😬Peterrrrr

[@aceundead4750]

Yes. We have Flavor-Aid and cocaine, i recommend avoiding the Flavor-Aid.

[@DongusKong]

I was born into a white supremacist doomsday cult, called "The Children of Canaan". I have 10 siblings that I know of, and probably more out there. So, just from my family alone, that's 13 people in a cult, so that should be taken into account when talking about people in cults. Most cults encourage massive families

[@blackc1479]

That's gotta suck, but at least you got out.

[@rashkavar]

That probably varies a fair bit based on what they're stemming from. Christian cults encourage large families because very early Christian traditions have a heavy focus on the idea that there should be lots of children. Even many of the mainstream sects like Catholicism are pretty strict about not using contraception and other things related to ensuring families are quite large. Cults tend to be more extreme forms of the traditions that they stem from. A Buddhist or Shinto cult would probably be very different from one pulling from Christian ideals. (And yes, while mainstream religions will have varying degrees of problems with cults, successful cults tend to play off of established religious ideas within the culture they're operating in - if you're going to induce a profound religious experience in someone, the vibe that has is going to be very different for someone from a Christian/European cultural background than someone from an east Asian cultural background. And if you can't induce that kind of experience, you tend not to get many followers.)

[@Plutonium.2]

@@rashkavarwell, sort of. Scientology’s relationship to children is very negative but they still encourage people having babies. It has less to do with the raising of children and more to do with building ranks. In Scientology the mother isn’t meant to attach to her kids and they aren’t meant to attach to her (it’s considered a low tone thing to love family so implies the person is still infected) but the push is still very much for people to have at least one child although they are encouraged to adopt. It’s really just simply so the cult itself grows and grows stronger and nobody is more of a believer than someone who’s born into the cult

[@MichaelHall1989]

Been living in Japan for the last six and a half years. The 15-ish number is accurate. 20% actually doesn't seem unreasonable. It's a thing. There's a small town called Ota in Gunma prefecture where it's about 50-60%. You should really do some deep dives on the bigger and more wacky cults here (this channel would be fun but other channels would work, too). Soka Gakkai is the biggest cult in Japan and doesn't get nearly enough air time on KZbin.

[@ZEVM2]

Inadvertently joined a Buddhist cult while studying abroad in Japan but managed to cut ties when they started trying to sell me a cult newsletter subscription

[@PrecariousPorcupine]

9 years ago I lived in a town with a cult, everyone warned us about them when we first showed up. The Pastor came by and invited us to worship with him and told us we could move to his compound, and that a major requirement was for us to sign over our pay checks to him. He didn't try to hide it at all

[@shazam3662]

they really got the infamous "hen tai" to edit this video

[@view1st]

The Japanese aren't allowed to express themselves outside of the very narrow confines of a repressive political and social system so they take to cults and fandoms as a means of escape. It gives them a sense of belonging (extremely important to an unusual degree among the Japanese).

[@ZiggyZigQuinn]

I don't know who gifted me a membership, but THANKS!

[@gabriellavedier9650]

I was waiting for the Happy Science Cult, the one that made multiple full length anime movies about their religion that include lizard people, furries, the space police, and the god of gods El Cantare.

[@ThatWriterKevin]

I didn't include Happy Science because I've written about them before, though I can't remember if it was on this channel or Sideprojects

[@ChunkyKong-47]

I see you’re a fellow fan of mothers basement

[@alyssinwilliams4570]

Kinda surprised that Aum Shinrikyo didnt even get a mention. That I noticed, at least?

[@GrievousReborn]

My biggest guess is because of how dark the tale is considering they used the same type of gas the Nazis used to murder people

[@ThatWriterKevin]

Because this is Brain Blaze and I wanted fun stories, not terror attacks

[@joerocker237]

@@ThatWriterKevin Hehe...

[@blackc1479]

​@@ThatWriterKevinfair enough. So when's it going to pop up on shadows?

[@rashkavar]

@@blackc1479 It's already been on casual criminalist or decoding the unknown, I think. I know I remember hearing Simon talking about them at some point

[@twincast2005]

The intro bafflingly completely glosses over the long history of Buddhism (and periods of violent interreligious conflict) in Japan, but other than that, the explanation is depressingly accurate. I managed to completely forget about Pane Wave. But hearing it, it all came back to me. Not sure I had heard Life Space Movement story. I think I may. Might just be archetype familiarity. Yamato no Miya may not be overtly violent, but convincing people to buy their overpriced water instead of medical treatment isn't harmless.

[@ThatWriterKevin]

The decision shouldn't be that baffling I hope: this is Brain Blaze, where we come to dunk on ridiculous nonsense like the Venusian Telebyte. I needed to add some educational context, and if you found that to be depressingly accurate even if slightly oversimplified, I feel that means I did my job

[@GingerDog207]

​@@ThatWriterKevinwe love you Kevin, job well done! 🍀🌴🦩

[@ThatWriterKevin]

@@GingerDog207 Thanks! I love you too

[@Plutonium.2]

@@ThatWriterKevinwe do and the script is excellent

[@sakshambhadoria9998]

Social alienation, breakdown of support systems including family as an institution and complex,fast paced lifestyle giving birth to stress,mental health problems and physical exhaustion are driving people to take solace in the cults which thrive on hope and positivity.

[@Itried20takennames]

Well, cults are often friendly and supportive only at first, but not at all that way later, as the cult make more demands, encourages competitive for the leader’s favor among members and punish nonconformity. Don’t know if that part would help mental health issues much.

[@donaldwert7137]

Holy s***! Simon knows about the Kobayashi Maru! I'm shook. I'll have to join his cult, now.

[@ThatWriterKevin]

He is very vocal about his love of Star Trek

[@donaldwert7137]

@@ThatWriterKevin He's usually so dismissive of pop culture that I forget that. Good script All hail Kevin.

[@ThatWriterKevin]

@@donaldwert7137 Thanks!

[@blackc1479]

It is funny how many people are super narrow in their nerdiness. My boss often teases us about our specific forms of geekdom. Yet she will totally squee over pretty much anything dinosaur or shark related that comes out and can recite pi to like 50 digits. We keep telling her it's OK to come out of the nerd closet, and join us. 😂

[@donaldwert7137]

@@blackc1479 I know exactly what you mean. I can geek out about one thing while the thing right next to it gets no attention at all, even when they are similar (or appear to be, to non-geeks). "Come to the Geek side. We have cookies!"

[@DarkWarchieff]

I ran a dragon cult as a teen, we ran a protection racket.

[@MPM1620]

protection from dragons?

[@eaglesclaws8]

Protecting your virginity 😂

[@armlegx]

D&D is fun

[@MPM1620]

Ohh, it's a Dungeons and Dragons reference I thought you were literally walking around your neighborhood trying to extort people by I telling them their house was gonna get burned down by Dragons unless they paid you.

[@MarzieMalfoy]

That’s sounds more fun than the cult I was in. It was a witchy cult and strict with a lot of yelling

[@boujiebarbie3198]

Wait?!!! Why da h3ll did that dude shriek like that? That terrified me!!!😂I wasn't ready for that!!!😂😂

[@rickbezoski682]

I'm joining the Cult of Simon's Personality. He's already got the bald head, vaguely wise looking beard, and his various sidetracks will make him just mysterious enough to always ponder all he says.

[@francoislacombe9071]

The Sarcasm was strong in this episode.

[@nomdeplume2213]

I started a cult with my daughters. We wear our PJ'S all day and eat cheetos and chocolate in bed whilst watching scary movies with our dog and cat lol it's the funniest cult I've ever been in... well... its the only cult I've been in but it's still the funniest 😂

[@MrExplosion449]

The tenth planet apocalypse conspiracy is basically exactly the plot of the Doctor Who story ‘The Tenth Planet’ where a hitherto unknown 10 planet approaches Earth to steal its energy

[@abjectpriority7303]

never thought i’d hear Bloodborne’s ‘Gherman the first hunter’ OST on any of whistler’s channels (5:57). good stuff Editing team ☺️

[@michaelmoore7975]

@7:23 to @7:40 This is called _religious syncretism._ They incorporate a hodgepodge of various religious customs, but since there is no 1 affiliation, they identify as atheist. Quite a bit different than atheists in the US and elsewhere.

[@Kuma-yu4jx]

The fact that a religious party, Komeito, has 7 percent of the lower senate’s seats, speaks of how medieval our separation of church and state is.

[@andywilson5828]

Who else says 'The greater gooood', whenever they hear some one say 'the greater good' in homage to Hot Fuzz?

[@JaredLS10]

Simon sounding like a Ferengi about to quote the Rules of Acquisition at the 18:00 mark.

[@PliniusSecundus]

I'm wondering if Simon does anything else besides talking to a camera from morning till night. This guy is crazily productive.

[@joyouknow5385]

I currently live in Japan. Cherry on top... Japan has mental health crisis & access to mental Healthcare crisis. So an abundance of cults & conspiracy believers is a continuing problem. I've had people try to recruit me. An African American. We went back & forth via translation app for nearly an hour at my front door. I'm a hard-core logic driven individual who's idols are Neil DT, Carl Sagan, Data 🖖&🖖Spock. At the end of the chat I'm pretty sure I convinced one of the recruiters to come to the pleasurable dark side of logic. It was like watching eyes light up for the first time. ✨️

[@joerocker237]

You absolutely deserve a medal for this...

[@vonn2221]

Can you tell me the dark side of logic is like what?

[@amb163]

"No bloody A, B, C, or D!" .... or E, for that matter. Just the good ole Enterprise.

[@1986krazy]

18:30 *cough**cough* Jared Leto *cough* lol

[@AtheistIII]

Can we have an episode on billionaires doing stupid stuff? Like when Steve Jobs believed that he could fight body odour and cancer by not eating meat?

[@MarkHarrisonBNE]

The problem took care of itself… Too soon?

[@AtheistIII]

@@MarkHarrisonBNE Meh, the guy is dead for over ten years and was an O short of being a count while he was alive, so I'd say your good

[@MarkHarrisonBNE]

​@@AtheistIII Bahahaha! An “O short of a Count”. I’m so stealing that. Love your work bro 😁

[@AtheistIII]

@@MarkHarrisonBNE Thx mate :D I'm way prouder of that one than I probably should be^^

[@Itried20takennames]

And Jobs was one of the few “lucky” people whose pancreatic cancer was caught early, found by coincidence on a scan done for some other reason. Immediate surgery and chemo might have been curative, but he delayed to try the nutritional cure, and by the time it was clear they weren’t working the cancer had spread and was no longer treatable by surgery. That said, Jobs later did say he regretted not having the surgery, and that he had done so as he didn’t want the surgery (understandable, most don’t, but most know in that situation that it’s the best option). I would also had Musk to the list of billionaires making weird decisions.

[@Lumpyfish]

My mom and step dad are in a cult like that 18:10 they tried to get us all in on it but they didn’t succeed

[@vanderstank]

Cults are always a fun thing to research. Much knowledge can be learned from them.

[@stephendellefave6423]

Who wants some Kool aid?!?! Let's go!!! As an American I can say with certainty that there's some strange people out there!! 😂

[@andrewsuryali8540]

The APA Hotel chain is run by a LOHAS (Lifestyle Of Health And Sustainability) cult whose leader is married to the leader of a Japanese ultranationalist movement. I try to stay in an APA whenever I get the chance to visit Japan. They have both groups' publications in every room.

[@danielreuben1058]

Well, at least the last lady (the one who hung with Buddha) realized the importance of the Noble Eightfold Path.

[@j.stouty]

Could you please make this a podcast? I'd honestly listen to these way more often!

[@marybroome7865]

In Ireland I wanted the constitution to say freedom FROM religion

[@blackc1479]

From someone in the states, I totally feel that, especially these days.

[@toulousegoose1150]

​@@blackc1479The Treaty of Tripoli gives us exactly that in the states, but people like to forget about that one.

[@erinmcdonald7781]

Love this one! I get the feeling that there could be more episodes here…. Ps. We need some robes in the merch store and more candles in the basement! ✌️😸

[@nickintexas]

“Exhibits A through E” is a reference to US criminal trials. Book #1 is Exhibit A. #2 is B… #5 is Exhibit E.

[@julianshepherd2038]

Good to see Waldo/Wally has found a career.

[@jorgelotr3752]

2:11 and that's for a country that takes pride in their (badly understood) "non-religiousness". 9:22 that's a good idea: "it's our belief that by providing[good quality/affordable/scam-priced] appliances we add to our positive karma to give us a blessed afterlife"

[@christianlimonsoto1596]

The dolphin lost in the river would be a interesting story for one of your Chanel’s even if it’s only a short video I wouldn’t mind

[@lostbutfreesoul]

Someone attempted to recruit me and my Wife on a Train. It was cute the way they talked about the farm and how we would love the free life there....

[@mightyb8679]

Business Blaze = Brain Blaze = Simon Slacker !!!

[@TheSteveBoyd]

Fact Boi be BLAZIN'!

[@djtigerstripes]

These cults are funny. Everyone knows the only true religion is Spaceology. Because of Spaceology i have my very own robot hand.

[@mcs131313]

I don’t think 1/100 statistically means you’re that likely to know a bunch of copy people. They’re usually bunched and a bit insular. So it’s more like probably most of us know few or none, and a few of us probably know A LOT.

[@henrychurch6062]

How a religion works 1 - We are always correct. You are also correct if you agree with us. 2 - We need money. You will be happy if we get money. 3 - Everything that isn't part of us is wrong. You don't want to be wrong do you? 4 - The best thing you can do is help people to be happy and correct by getting them to join us and give us money. That's really about it. Follow this easy recipe and you too can start a religion.

[@omgandwtf1]

You forgot threats of eternal damnation and a strict no asking questions policy

[@zerosvenson8277]

@@omgandwtf1 I was definitely going to throw in the old “love me or burn” ultimatum but I see I’ve been beaten to it :(

[@eliahabib5111]

Your second point is incorrect. It should be: give us money because for every dollar (or Euro or Yen) you will get three back (or 10 or any multiplier >1).

[@5ebliminal]

no one gonna mention 115 being played after 18:04 one of the greatest black ops tracks and Elena Siegman needs more appreciation! clearly so does kevin or the editor for their taste in music

[@TheShadowChesireCat]

Simon: "When I think of cults, I think Jonestown." Me: *stares in memories of Aum Shinrikyu*

[@charlesjmouse]

An observation. Feel free to call me out if the info on which the following chain of reasoning is based is in error: -In general, to be human is to be religious. Chances are if you're not a member of an organized religion, you're a member of a 'disorganised' one. -Counties and cultures have their organized religion(s). Japan has Shinto which is more a loosely related 'buffet' of beliefs than an organized religion. -In a country where the cultural background to belief has something of a 'pick 'n mix' aspect to it, it's hardly a surprise cults are a common thing.* *While I have no numbers to draw on (I didn't look!) if you extend the definition of 'cult' to include any belief system that isn't part of an organized religion, it's hardly a surprise there are so many 'kooky' groups about today, from actual cults to Moon landing deniers, as seemingly fewer people consider themselves part of an organized religion today... ...one might even wonder given the human tendency to be religious if one of the benefits of organized religion is a degree of protection from falling for 'whacky' beliefs?

[@DouglasZanini]

Another day, another Simon Whistler channel.

[@SiiriCressey]

6:03 Is the screeching person the cultist who was held captive for twelve years by deprogrammers?

[@Onora619]

Idea: Cult of Simon All hail factboi

[@turtleboy4111]

Here we effen go!

[@amandaeveland]

I think of downtown Clearwater FL. When people talk about being in a cult.

[@obsidian00]

Disney Adults

[@RoaringEgg]

PART 2 PLEASE

[@baref1959]

"a system of religious veneration and devotion directed toward a particular figure or object. "the cult of St. Olaf"" Basically EVERYONE.

[@rebeccaritchie3315]

Why does every cult have a specific date for some random Ragnarok event? At least the Bible doesn’t give a particular time, it’s just sort of “random in the future…” 😂

[@olencone4005]

It's basically FoMo, fear of missing out -- it gives their followers a sense of urgency so they won't hesitate to donate their money or buy the book/product that's being pushed.

[@minervacuervo4662]

And that’s why the Bible says not to believe anyone who claims to know the date 🤷🏽‍♀️

[@blackc1479]

​@olencone4005 100%, plus it adds that sense of "other" or unworthy who don't get it vs those who do, with the associated sense of superiority.

[@blackc1479]

​​@@minervacuervo4662hasn't stopped any of the Christian cults who also "knew" when the end was going to pop off. It's not what you believe per se, it's how you believe it, and/or are manipulated in your belief. I know plenty of Christians who live trying to be more like Jesus, and many more who are told they are being christ-like as long as their checks clear.

[@AvB.83]

I get that people would make up a future apocalypse to basically keep their followers in line, after all, you might object a mortal leader, but if GOD/the Gods want it, they'll just do that... but why in their own lifetime? Sure, they might be a bit more desperate to follow your orders & give you money and power, but they WILL find out (unless you plan a mass suicide shortly before the apocalypse) 🤔 and why are so many people so desperate for the world to end? We see that with cults, we see that with conspiracies, we saw that with covid, idk how many people were ranting about how the streets would be filled with the rotting corpses of the vaccinated... how boring does ones life have to be for you to jump on any random apocalypse train?

[@Corsuwey]

Many old martial arts dojos have a quasi-cult following.

[@harleydanforth5986]

As a citizen of the US Simon shitting on us for Japan having religious freedom and tax free religion is fucking gold lmfao

[@chrisleneil]

Love that editor! 💀

[@patrickbrumm420]

New Idea for Decoding or Criminalist: Operation Snow White

[@mikesheehan4470]

3:45 is that a cat I hear?

[@Between_Scylla_and_Kharybdis]

It’s the background music. If you pay attention, you can hear the same sound a bit later as the bgm loops around

[@maximilianrenner3195]

Engagement bro❤

[@Nerathul1]

All hail Simonology and our glorious eternal leader!

[@talleyphillippe-mclain2040]

The plot of Mob Psycho makes so much more sense 😂

[@pricelesspancake]

I escaped a cult pretending to be southern Baptist 15 years ago and I'm still scarred

[@grantwaters7235]

Check out the Yellow deli in Kyoto!!!

[@aurthurpendragon1015]

I love how proud Simon seems that Japan got a couple of ideas from America after WWII even though he's not American. lol

[@ThatWriterKevin]

I think it's more that he's proud he knew something without it needing to be in the script

[@jamesanonymous2343]

THIS GUY & DOG EXCREMENT ARE ON THE SAME LEVEL. GUTTER-WISE,

[@Abomin81onVlog]

The cult of squarespace

[@ramseydoon8277]

1:45 i can attest to that.

[@hearmerawrnow]

All hail Simon - our charismatic leader!

[@mirthenary]

I like the Cult of Personality 😁

[@Omnolos]

This made my day.

[@jimparsons6803]

Was that Japanese Lawyers countenancing kidnapping?

[@Sh4dowgale]

0:50 It's a lot more than a couple million. There are lots of people in religions. And religions are just huge cults.

[@MadameWesker]

"I gotta become a cult leader!" Sadly, I've yelled this to myself as well

[@NuclearFisshin]

Put your microphone on a floor mounted stand. Every time you even touch your desk. It is very audible.

[@mrb6088]

17.50 "oh come on kevin, give them a break kevin JOIN MY NEW DOLPHIN CULT KEVIN!"

[@darkstarr984]

I joined a “cult” in college but really we were all just a bunch of friends cracking jokes about one of our friends being god and sharing meals together.

[@hohumgrr]

"I could make that shit up" L. Ron Hubbard