E467 - Cults & Cons: Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh and The Rajneesh Movement

In today's second episode of Cults & Cons, Vanessa Richardson unpacks the rise and collapse of the Rajneesh Movement, a New Age cult that transformed a remote stretch of rural Oregon into a powerful and deeply disturbing experiment in control. What began as a promise of spiritual enlightenment and communal living under the guidance of guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh quickly devolved into paranoia, political manipulation, and violence. As the cult’s leadership consolidated power, its members carried out election interference, intimidation campaigns, and ultimately the largest bioterror attack in U.S. history.

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