This is a very well informed and extremely informative interview by Lex Fridman on one of the biggest YouTube/Podcasts in the world.
Lex Fridman is very well prepared and thoughtful, no matter who you are, there are things covered here you have probably not heard before.
Lex provides an outline of the episode which takes you right to each section :
0:00 – Introduction
1:21 – Thetans
5:19 – Dianetics
17:22 – God
27:58 – Sea Org
32:08 – Auditing
52:21 – Control
1:02:45 – David Miscavige
1:11:52 – Xenu
1:27:46 – Secrecy
1:33:49 – Mike Rinder
1:40:56 – Separation of families
1:47:51 – Tom Cruise
1:51:43 – Sin
1:56:39 – Corruption
The bobblehead even makes an appearance throughout the episode!
Give it a watch.
Okay guys you got me. This interview was pretty good.
I spent a couple hours listening, listening to the Ozark’s TV show that Aaron brings up with the one character being Aaron’s “spirit animal” the Marty Byrd character living a life of hell of bad choices and always finding the best choice in the set of horrible ones dealt him.
Really incredible interview, Lex is a remarkable person, Aaron gives excellent insight and helps Lex really rise to a level of being one really well informed smart people out in the world who now deeply gets the Scientology world’s predicaments and evil.
It’s riveting, incredible interview.
What is amazing is that it was edited from 4 to 2 hours.
I completely agree with Mr. Fridman. Aaron is an inspiration. I am constantly impressed with Aaron’s generosity and raw sincerity in sharing his experiences. His willingness to be vulnerable for all the world to see is admirable. This is why, even when there may be a few missteps along the way, Aaron remains guileless and laudable. Like Mike, Aaron is an authentically good man. As the saying goes, “you can’t keep a good man down!”
50:37. Aaron gives a great answer. Makes me think that a PIE CHART type of answer could be given.
Have a large PIE CHART and have ALL of the slices which are the negatives, and then slices for the positives.
And the answer in the form of a PIE CHART answer about Scientology, would be quickly more representative and display why Scientology comes out with controversies like it does.
If I had the ability, and time, I’d hope to do a book with a PIE CHART as the display visual framework, and then write the chapters of the book about the slices in the PIE CHART.
And then other splinter Scientology groups, turned away from official Scientology’s PIE CHART, the splinter Scientology groups or field auditors would have their own PIE CHARTS for their visual representation of what all they do.
Official Scientology’s pie chart has strong unchanging slices to their pie chart that give official Scientology the overall negative status.
Remarkable discussion! Really liked it.
Aaron is quite something, straight up front as an individual, (always liked him for that), he presents well on camera. Well educated in Scientology, articulated & definitely not afraid to be himself. It truly isn’t easy to be objective and educational in explaining in simple terms the complex workings of Scientology, especially to the uninitiated. I’d even go on to easily say, many people who ‘practice’ or have practiced the subject of Scientology in Scientology would be both dumbfounded and more than likely horrified to listen to this. Hopefully it just might wake them up! Such is the power of the conditioning of the mind of Scientologists as how to think and act, as intentionally set up by Hubbard.
Lex, well… compliments all that is good in an inquisitive mind. Very sharp and focused, plus won’t gloss over something for humor’s sake or “go with the flow” of someone else’s familiarity with a subject. An admirable quality to seek understanding of something, no matter how trivial it may seem to Aaron by his familiarity with Scientology. There’s a lot to admire here without the ever present prejudices often seen with discussions about a subject associated with so much misery and corruption. He insists in seeking the core of the understanding of the structure of the Scientology system of belief, not necessarily being swayed by the effect it has created.
They both certainly come across as not believing in serving or protecting a master.
It’s f*cking Hinduism.
What you’re trying to attain by reaching OTVIII (or OTXV) is Moksha/Nirvana/complete Enlightenment.
Enlightenment = Awareness.
You’ll never have super powers in this Reality (Saṃsāra), because they don’t exist within the “code” of our current Reality’s laws of physics. If you want super powers, incarnate into a Simulation that allows such.
Hubbard was a disgusting con man, stealing bits of truth and twisting it to use as tools for his own personal agenda of gratification, glory, wealth, power, and control.
He was not a saviour, he was a predator.
Enlightenment is free. All it is is the understanding that infinity exists; that life is an experience comprised of collective Conscious (energy/the soul/Ātman); that manifestation is resonance; that existence in this physical universe is intersection within a specific point in spacetime—similar to a server/host. The meaning of life is to live. To experience and appreciate everything that signs up to intersect, and to marvel at the beauty.
Never give up on your dreams. Your dreams are why you’re here.
And the only thing that matters is love.
If you’re reading this,
Thank you for resonating with me.
Well now, I can’t be certain this is really f*cking Hinduism. You may well be correct about this. But the questions that is raised in my mind is:
“If they give so much money to da Kult, how can they afford all those elephants?
Have you got any idea just how much it costs to buy and care for elephants?
Even a plain ordinary horse costs at least $100K (from what I’ve been able to find out). And the purchase price of an elephant is just the beginning. Can you imagine what it costs to feed one of those giants? How about the cost of cleaning up the tons of poop?
Also, someone would have to spend most of their day providing love and affection for these animals. They are not like automobiles, you know. You can’t just turn them off when you don’t need them.
Elephants have evolved many human characteristics. They need constant love and reasurance they are being “good elephants”. Otherwise, you could be looking at some problem behavior. And I’m pretty certain that problem elephant behavior is something you really don’t need.
My guess is that you would have to spend about $1 million dollars every year feeding and caring for these elephants.
Also when one or more of them begin to feel unloved, they require professional care and support and that kind of support don’t come cheap, Yo! That is Moocho Dinero Dude! I saw it on Breaking Bad.
You all got to treat those Elephants with love and compassion. If you try to just dump them off on the side of some road, they will come back and cry and stomp you. Believe me that is just not worth it.
What ever you decide to do, please take care of your Elephants. You don’t want an angry elephant on your hands or toes. You don’t want them stomping on any of the Vishnus either. It is Peace and Love you need to attain.
Bottom Line?
If you are going to get some elephants, you best really take good care of them. Otherwise you could really wind up with a big old mess!
Bingo. Agreed. Hubbard could have stopped when he started defining “static” and thetan, and just left it there.
I’m reading and listening to Bhikkhu Bodhi’s lectures, and listened to the Dhammapada about 50 times now, almost every Sunday.
I’m into the Jhannas, and particularly just meditating straight on nothingness, and it’s better than ALL of Scientology, in just a few minutes of thinking deeply on nothingness.
“Auditing” is fool’s charlatanry quackery soul therapy/exorcism.
The best in Scientology are the decent Scientologists who are decent due to that being who they are despite Scientology’s evil worstnesses of Hubbard’s.
Exactly.
EXCELLENT interview. I always really enjoy listening to Lex. He has a very interesting way of talking. But better than that he has a great way of listening. He has an honest deeply inquisitive nature. WHAT A HEARTFELT way he ended with Aaron and then the quote by Emerson…Whew.
I think there is a good reason he reached out to Aaron to explain scientology. Aaron has the right combination of intelligence, honesty, courage, heart and vulnerability. He also knows his audience really well.
Kudos to Aaron for having the guts to “go after” the cult known as scientology and david miscavige and any individuals in it who are committing crimes and abuses.
Aaron’s enemies would do well to LISTEN to him. And I mean “listen” the way Lex Fridman knows how to listen. In fact, maybe they should LISTEN to this interview and CHANGE.
One can dream.