Written in 1950 by science-fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard, "Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health" has been on more than 600 best sellers lists and sold more than 22 million copies in 50 languages. The book claims to be "a spiritual healing technology," according to Scientology Newsroom, with the ability to improve your IQ and your personality. After publication, followers of the book and its author grew into what is called the Church of Scientology.
Philosophy
The philosophy behind Hubbard's "Dianetics" is that past traumatic experiences affect your current behavior by causing self-doubts, unreasonable fears and negative thoughts. According to Hubbard, your mind records everything on "time tracks," and through therapy, you can take memories from your subconscious into your conscious mind, freeing you from irrational feelings and psychosomatic illnesses. Additionally, the book states that most of the subconscious memories influencing your behavior happened in utero, before you were born.
Therapy
One of the key elements to achieving the clear mental state promised in the book includes therapy sessions called "Dianetic auditing." In these therapy sessions, which have been compared to Freudian analysis, you would recline while the auditor, or therapist, helps you to recall and re-experience traumatic events of your past. The theory is that all current problems stem from an event in your past, so with enough therapy, you can live pain-free and without unhappiness.
Diagnostic Tool
"Dianetics" claims do not include diagnosing actual medical problems, but the book does include the claim that psychosomatic illnesses can be traced to their origination, diagnosed and cured through Dianetic auditing.
Scientology
The first Church of Scientology was formed four years after the publication of "Dianetics" in Los Angeles with the ideology that man is immortal and without limits. The Scientology Newsroom expresses the church's mission as "true spiritual enlightenment and freedom for the individual." However, some have labeled Scientology a racket or a cult. For instance, a 1991 "Time" magazine article states that psychiatrists warn Dianetics therapy sessions may produce "a drugged-like, mind-controlled euphoria" that keeps you coming back and paying fees. Additionally, Scientology's tax-exempt church status was denied in 1957.
References
- Carnegie Mellon School of Computer Science; From Dianetics to Scientology -- The Evolution of a Cult; Margery Wakefield; 1991
- "Time"; Scientology: The Cult of Greed; Richard Behar; May 1991
- Scientology Newsroom: Dianetics
- Dianetics.org: Video Introduction
- "Dianetics: The Modern Sciences of Mental Health"; L. Ron Hubbard; 1950
