Interest
Former Cultist Recounts Experiences in Manga Form
posted on by Eric Stimson
Although modern Japan is a primarily secular society with low levels of religious fervor, cults like Aum Shinrikyō (which committed two sarin gas attacks in the 1990s) and Happy Science (which supports the conservative Happiness Realization political party) have emerged in recent decades and prompted national debate and soul-searching. A former cult member who goes by the name Nozomi Temote has published a manga about his experiences, Cult no Omoide ("Memories of a Cult").
Nozomitarō (Temote's alter ego) first learns of the cult by reading an article in a magazine in his high school years. Curious, he journeys to Tokyo to attend a seminar. Convinced that the Sekai Kakumei Kyōdan X (Order of World Revolution X) is his life's calling, he uses his mother's savings to move to Tokyo and proselytize for the group. They fan out across the city, passing out flyers and making microphone announcements of an impending earthquake and political collapse that would lead to a coup and a government ruled by God. To finance the cult, Nozomitarō sells mystical baubles like power stones and miracle water that will heal incurable diseases. The manga also recounts his admiration of his superior, Suzuki, and the jealousies and neuroses that afflict the relationships with his comrades.
Nozomitarō is intrigued by the magazine article (with his future self reminding him that he can leave his humdrum town without joining a cult).
Temote has since left the cult behind, and the manga is partly an explanation of why people are attracted to cults and a warning to dissuade others from following in his footsteps. "Cults make use of the weak-minded, the lonely, and those who feel that they need something to cling to," he writes. Living in a boring regional town with nothing stimulating in life to look forward to, he seized the prospect of a purpose, of belonging to something greater, of the dazzling big city. He occasionally raised questions about the group's activities, but he was reassured that they were "brave deeds" that were going to change the world.
The cult leader, Dōgen Majima, blames his prediction of a catastrophic earthquake on his followers' lack of belief.
"If I could, I'd give this manga to myself back then," Temote laments. A Japanese reviewer, Haruyo Kanda, believes that he drew the manga as an "atonement" and portrays his struggles and emotions in a way that ordinary readers would be able to relate to.
Lengthy excerpts of Cult no Omoide are available at Temote's website (Japanese only).
[Via Da Vinci News; Images from Temote Nozomi no Manga]
