The Rumormill

I've been posting definitions of various Scientology terms lately. You may have wondered why. So, here it is: I've heard a lot of strange rumors about Scientology running amok. As a Scientologist, they don't make sense to me, so I simply assumed people didn't understand what Scientology was and thus, decided to define the basic terms for everyone.

This approach hasn't gotten me any amazing responses, and the responses I have gotten are a bit out of my league. Most have asked me about things I honestly know nothing about. However, because people have asked such penetrating questions, I felt a need to answer them and found two really great websites to tell you what is fact and what is fiction when you search the web for information about Scientology. So, here are some great links by people a lot smarter than myself:

Grahame answers the burning question: is Scientology a Cult?
(This is something I also addressed in a post called Is Scientology a Religion?)

Grahame also addresses a very touchy subject - Scientology ex-members.

He talks about "Fair Game" here and here

I could go on and on with the questions Grahame has taken on - from aliens to how one joins the Church of Scientology, but that would make my blog be a list of his posts... so I'll move on.

Another great website that tackles and separates fact from fiction is Scientology Myths. Ever wondered about Clambake, Lisa McPherson, Copywritten scriptures and more? Got to Scientology Myths. Or, if your questions aren't answered there, ask them on the Scientology Myths Blog.

I hope these links help clear up the rumors and confusions that have surrounded Scientology. I would personally like to point out that Scientology is a very new religion - the only religion that I know of that was developed in the 20th century. And, as all new religions get attacked for what they stand for - goodness, peace, humanity, etc, I'm not particularly upset about the attacks Scientology has weathered. I've experienced nothing but good from my religion and I hope everyone who reads what I have to say will check out more about Scientology from the horses mouth - like reading a book, talking to an actual church member, touring a church, etc.

The Two Parts of the Mind

In an earlier post I went over the four words you need to know to understand Scientology. It'd be a good idea to review that post before reading this one. So, I'll give you a moment to review...

Okay, this post is about the two parts of the mind. I mostly am going over what they are, as it's probably a new concept to a lot of people to have the mind divided up this way. And, if you missed reading it, I cover the Scientology definition of the mind in this post. So, here are the two parts of the mind.

Analytical Mind n. The conscious, aware mind which thinks, observes data, remembers it and resolves problems. It would be essentially the conscious mind as opposed to the unconscious mind. The analytical mind is actually the awareness of awareness unit plus some evaluative circuits (or machinery to make the handling of the body possible). The thetan plus his machine.
Analytical means capable of resolving (problems or situations). The word is from Greek analysis, meaning "resolve, undo, loosen," which is to say, take something to pieces and see what it is made of.


Reactive Mind n. That portion of the mind which files and retains physical pain and painful emotion and seeks to direct the organism solely on a stimulus-response basis. The reactive mind is ruggedly built and never stops operating. Pictures, of a very low order, are taken by this mind of the environment even in some states of unconsciousness. This is the mind that stores up all the bad things that have happened to one and throws them back to him again in moments of emergency or danger so as to dictate his actions along lines which have been considered "safe" before. As there is little thinking involved in this, the courses of action dictated by the reactive mind are often not safe, but highly dangerous. The reactive mind is an unknowing, unwanted series of aberrated (meaning deviating from the rational thought or behavior) computations which bring about a negative effect upon the individual and those around him.


One of the goals in Dianetics is to move the mental recordings of physical pain and unconsciousness that reside in the reactive mind into the analytical mind - so that you can easily remember such recordings without the pain or unconsciousness that has been recorded affecting your decisions or your body negatively. It's all covered in Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health - which is a very cool book. I read it when I was 18 and I think anyone who is curious about their mind and why people act the way they do should check it out.


(Note, these definitions were excerpted from: Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health, Dianetics: The Original Thesis, Science of Survival, Scientology, the Fundamentals of Thought, Scientology 0-8: The Book of Basics and other writings by L. Ron Hubbard.)

Scientology Definition of Responsibility

I recently reread the definition of the word "responsibility" in the Introduction to Scientology Ethics Book and it always strikes me as incredibly true. Check out the definition:

"The nonrecognition and denial of the right of intervention between oneself and any being, idea, matter, energy, space, time or form, and the assumption of full right of determination over it...

"Full responsibility is not fault; it is recognition of being cause.

"Responsibility also means a state, quality or fact of being responsible, and responsible means legally or ethically accountable for the care or welfare of another. Involving personal accountability or ability to act without guidance or superior authority. Being the source or cause of something. Capable of making moral or rational decisions on one's own and therefore answerable for one's behavior. Able to be trusted or depended upon; reliable. Based upon or characterized by good judgment or sound thinking."

Isn't that deep?! What responsible thing have you done lately?

Four Words You Need to Know to Understand Scientology

Here are some words that I've seen mis-defined all around the Internet:

Scientology n. A religious practice developed by L. Ron Hubbard which applied to man's spirit and his spiritual freedom. It is the study and handling of the spirit in relationship to itself, universes and other life.
The word Scientology comes from Latin scio which means knowing in the fullest sense of the word and Greek logos, study of. In itself the word Scientology means "knowing how to know". Scientology is a route, a way rather than a dissertation or an assertive body of knowledge. Through its drills and studies, one may find the truth for himself. The technology is therefore not something to believe, but something to do.
(as excerpted from The Creation of Human Ability, Scientololgy 8-8008, Scientology, the Fundamentals of Thought, Scientology 0-8: The Book of Basics and other writings by L. Ron Hubbard.)

Dianetics n. A methodology developed by L. Ron Hubbard to address and handle the effects of the spirit on the body. Its application can help alleviate such ailments as unwanted sensations and emotions, irrational fears and psychosomatic illnesses.
Dianetics comes from the Greek word dia, meaning through and nous, meaning soul.
It is most accurately described as "what the soul is doing to the body through the mind".
(as excerpted from Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health, Handbook for Preclears, Scientology, the Fundamentals of Thought, and other writings by L. Ron Hubbard)

Thetan n. The person himself - not his body or his name or his mind or anything else; that which is aware of being aware; the identity which is individual. The term was coined to eliminate any possible confusion with older, invalid concepts. It comes from the Greek letter theta, which the ancient Greeks used to represent thought or perhaps spirit, to which an "n" is added to make a noun in the modern style. It is also "theta to the nth degree", meaning unlimited or vast.
(as excerpted from The Creation of Human Ability, Scientololgy 8-8008, Book of Case Remedies and other writings by L. Ron Hubbard)

Mind n. A communication and control system between the thetan and his environment. The mind is a network of communications and pictures, energies and masses which are brought into being by the activities of the thetan versus the physical universe or other thetans. It is not the brain. It is everything used as part of the individual's thinking process, plus the thetan. A mind has to be alive to be considered a mind. Thus, a computer or electronic brain cannot be a mind; it can only be a thinking machine, as there is no life connected to it.
(as excerpted from Handbook for Preclears, Scientology, the Fundamentals of Thought, and other writings by L. Ron Hubbard)

An easy way to prove the difference between the brain, the mind and the thetan is: Think of a cat (you actually have to try this now...). So, you've got a picture of a cat? Who's looking at it? Where is it located?
Let me know what happens when you do the above.