…is repetitive “Duplication“.

Yesterday I wrote a blog post titled, “Defending the detrimental makes you an accomplice“. I indicated there must be some root cause in the basics of Scientology that allows for the harm we see perpetrated by the Church of Scientology.

Today Marty Rathbun wrote a post where he writes what he thinks is the root cause in a blog post titled, “Why Bother?“. He believes it is the induced Certainty that is the reason why scientologists misbehave. He points to the work of Ken Wilber where he says that when people experience great spiritual exaltation, they tend to believe they have found “the only way”. It creates Certainty. In some cases even fanaticism.

But is that the real reason for the Certainty scientologists harbor? Could there be an earlier root cause?

One answer comes from Hubbard himself in a technical bulletin from 8 May 1969 titled, “Important study data”. It is studied as part of an early Scientology course called “The Student Hat”. He writes, in caps:

NUMBER OF TIMES OVER THE MATERIAL EQUALS CERTAINTY AND RESULTS.

The stress on duplication is also prevalent in the counseling (called auditing in Scientology). Hubbard sees the ability to “duplicate” a trauma as the key to removing it. This is based on one of Scientology’s axioms (#12) that says:

The primary condition of any universe is that two spaces, energies or objects must not occupy the same space. When this condition is violated (a perfect duplicate) the apparency of any universe or any part thereof is nulled.

Cryptic? Well, it means that if you are able to fully duplicate a trauma, it will cease to exist as a trauma. While the axiom itself is false and the fact that auditing does not need this explanation of duplication for it to work, we can see that duplication is stressed, not only in training, but in counseling as well.

The act of duplicating in an auditing session begins very early on in Scientology with the level called “Objectives”. At this level, the person receiving the auditing is asked to duplicate the actions of the practitioner (auditor) again and again. The same is done in the early communications training in Scientology.

Brendan pointed this out last Friday. I felt myself reject his view as a sort of knee-jerk reaction since I have had so much gain doing the communications training and the auditing. Aside from getting massive, real and objective gains from both, I do see that the repetitive stress on duplication does mold a person to be more easily controlled. It sets a person up for swallowing Scientology wholesale as it corrodes the person’s critical thinking skills and hence his free will.

On one hand it can produce great gains. On the other, it blunts his ability to question.

Our resident commenter, Harper, puts it this way:

The core “evil” is Repetitive Obedience with an increasing intolerance for free action and choice in the materials application. That is all. That is the core evil.

“Give me that hand.”

“Thank you.”

“Give me that hand.”

“Thank you.”

*** OR ***

“Start …. FLUNK! You smiled … Start.”

In “A Beginner’s Guide to L. Ron Hubbard” Hardeep pointed this out. “If there is any claim of Scientology about brainwashing this is it. Repeat … repeat … repeat …”

Yes Hardeep. Why? Because …

If you control what someone DOES, you eventually control how they think. Look at prisoners who over time cannot function in society because they have been institutionalized. They are forced into a living mold of repetitive acts that SHAPE the person into something they were not before.

If you want freedom, control your repetitive acts.

The TV show by Hardeep is available here: A Beginner’s Guide to L. Ron Hubbard

There are often multiple causes for an effect. Such can be explored in what is called a “fishbone diagram“.

In the case of Scientology and the harm perpetrated by the church, I believe there are several causes. But my view is that the stress on duplication and repetition is a root cause of the Certainty that we see in so many Scientologists. More so then the exalted states pointed to by Wilber. Repetitive duplication is also used in schools, very much so in communism and other patriotic ideologies, in certain types of meditation, tribal chantings, etc. It molds controllability. The Golden Age of Tech (a regimen released in the Church of Scientology in 1996 and version 2 released just now) takes this to new heights. It enforces obedience.

Rebels get into trouble. Conformists are created. They survive.

This is my current view, subject to future revisions.

Another interesting angle on this comes from another commenter on this blog, freebeing.