Here's the thing. EVERYONE has a story to share. Everyone has been through his or her own share of hurts: betrayal by a close friend, manipulation by a family member, lies by a lover, humiliation by an employer, or some form of variance or combination (maybe all) of the above.
Dahn Yoga practitioners know that we all have frailties and insecurities - obviously, they do, too. The difference is that they exploit our past or present pains for financial gain.
I started thinking about this more and more as I considered my last employer, a savvy businesswoman who was a manipulative psychopath. She knew exactly which buttons to push from most of her employees. The nicest and most soft-spoken workers got the most heat, and they would often leave her office with puffy red eyes from crying. The ones who had greater confidence and/or less to lose (ie, those who had college degrees, money in their bank accounts, or a firm religious background) received little to no harassment by this woman.
Dahn Yoga's 1:1 healing sessions are operated under the same framework. Disguised as healing and nurturing sessions, the masters talk you into spilling your guts as they literally beat your chest, stomach, and back repeatedly to remove "blockages" from your soul and your system. It is in this sort of vulnerable position confined in a small, poorly lit room reminiscent of a prison cell that you begin volunteering stories of grievances of years past.
In what seems like releasing the demons and thus inviting restoration to the soul, you end up feeding the Dahn predator with reasons why you need more help than you realize. After you've bared your soul to them, they suddenly have a class or series of healing sessions to sell. Can't afford a healing retreat or seminar? No problem - they offer payment plans that are reasonable and fit around your schedule.
Try as you might, they are relentless and will not back off. You start to feel uneasy with their aggressive sales tactics, but you're cornered, because now they know all your dirty little secrets and use all your stories as leverage to get you to commit. "You can't spend $300 to attend a Shim Sung lecture? No wonder you still suffer from your addiction to XYZ. No wonder you're still plagued by the child abuse from your youth - you're unwilling to let it go. Restoring your health is obviously not a priority to you."
I read somewhere that anxious people are the nicest people. In a way, being nice is a protection device - a defense mechanism. The nicer you are to people, the less likely they will attack you. When it comes to pyschopaths (ie, Dahn Yoga practitioners) you end up becoming their prey because they are here to hurt, rather than to heal clients.
Beware, especially those of you who are pure in heart and are particularly susceptible (to the point of being gullible) in readily trusting others. If you somehow get caught in the Dahn Yoga web, remember Jesus' Word from the Bible says: I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. Matthew 10:6
I've been doing Dahn yoga for over 10 years and it kept me healthy both physically and emotionally for all these years. I am very grateful to the masters -- they gave me a lot of attention and taught me useful, healing practices that I use every day. Its a pity there is no Dahn in Chicago anymore...
ReplyDeleteCult is within -- some people with weak personalities will find cults anywhere. If one is conscious of what he/she is doing and responsible for his/her own actions one can learn a lot from Dahn. It is easy to blame someone for one's own excesses and play a victim card.
I agree with you here. I just had an introductory session. The person I was with was not preying upon my past woes. She was very informative of the whole process of how to work with my own energies She really never even asked me anything about my past. She only wanted to show me a healing technique that is very benifical for my health. I've done yoga for yrs....and also understand energy work. People do not have to buy into anything if they don't want to. Seems that everyone wants to play the victim. We all have a lot of inner work to do on ourselves. I think that this is just another tool offered and if it doesn't seem to work for you don't purchase it. Really after reading all these posts seems people are just looking for someone to save them somehow and when that falls short they are all up in arms about it. This is all about making sound choices.
DeleteI agree with you here. I just had an introductory session. The person I was with was not preying upon my past woes. She was very informative of the whole process of how to work with my own energies She really never even asked me anything about my past. She only wanted to show me a healing technique that is very benifical for my health. I've done yoga for yrs....and also understand energy work. People do not have to buy into anything if they don't want to. Seems that everyone wants to play the victim. We all have a lot of inner work to do on ourselves. I think that this is just another tool offered and if it doesn't seem to work for you don't purchase it. Really after reading all these posts seems people are just looking for someone to save them somehow and when that falls short they are all up in arms about it. This is all about making sound choices.
DeleteI just signed up for three months of Dahn yoga, only to do my research afterwards. But I'm having trouble understanding exactly what makes it a cult besides the fact that it is expensive? I have my own intentions and expectations of joining and intend to stick to them.
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