Psychedelics are having a moment. There’s no denying it, especially when the headlines tout them as a magical healing source for anything from treatment-resistant depression to anorexia. But psychedelics (and other drugs, for that matter) don’t always end up in the right hands, and not all mushroom enthusiasts are well-meaning therapists or ceremony guides who want you to heal your inner child. Sometimes psychedelics are used not for good, but evil, and those spiritual beliefs that seem so fun and free-loving can be twisted to push a particularly noxious narrative.
Psychedelic cults
In 1987, Australian police raided properties of the ill-famed “The Family” cult, in the state of Victoria, under allegations of child abuse. It turned out The Family, also known as the Great White Brotherhood, was a bizarre New Age cult under the leadership of Anne Hamilton-Byrne, that had raised 14 (mostly adopted) children in near-isolation. The children were removed from the property and police discovered they had been brought up to believe they were all the biological offspring of Hamilton-Byrne, and had been beaten and starved during The Family’s almost two-decade existence. They had also been forced to take LSD.
The Hamilton-Byrne “Family”The Family was a ‘religious’ group started by Hamilton-Byrne in the 1960s on the outskirts of Melbourne. They bought a property near their meeting spot in 1968, which they named Santiniketan Park, and later built a meeting room, Santiniketan Lodge.
Hamilton-Byrne, a yoga teacher, followed in the footsteps of many cult leaders: she believed herself to be Christ incarnate and cherry-picked her favourite parts of Christianity, Hinduism, and other Eastern religions to create a sundae of New Age belief systems topped with a sprinkle of mysticism. She taught this doctrine to her loyal, committed members, many of whom were high-ranking lawyers, officials and social workers, who helped access money and resources for the group. Over 20 years, The Family grew in number, amassing a small fortune and multiple properties.
Between the late-1960s and 1970s, a member of The Family managed a private psychiatric hospital called Newhaven. There, patients were recruited and brainwashed to join the cult, along with some attending doctors. During this time, The Family administered LSD to patients and members, under the supervision and direction of two psychiatrists, in addition to several other “treatments” such as electroshock therapy.
Hamilton-Byrde was also in the business of collecting children. From 1968 to 1975, she “acquired” 14 children and infants. Some were the biological sons and daughters of The Family members, others were indoctrinated into the cult through illegal adoptions moved forward by influential members, bypassing standard protocols.
On reaching puberty, the children were forced to undertake a psychedelic coming-of-age ritual involving LSD and a dark, solitary room: a terrifying enough experience for adults, let alone a child brought up in isolation.
The Family wasn’t the only rogue psychedelic community to emerge from the countercultural movement. The Brotherhood of Eternal Love was a group of drug producers and distributors who were given the nickname “Hippie Mafia” by the Orange County police.
Founded by John Griggs, a former robber and criminal who renounced violence after taking LSD, the Brotherhood of Eternal Love looked to “create their own version” of society; they lived in isolation at Modjeska Canyon in Orange County, grew their own crops, made their own clothes, and more. LSD and religion were central to their belief systems: They believed acid could “heal and reveal” and called themselves “disciples.” They registered as a church to get religious exemption from the law, as they regarded LSD as a sacrament.
After LSD was made illegal in America in 1968, the first illicit and publicly available version of it was in the form of a 6mm orange tablet, dubbed “Orange Sunshine.” It was produced by the Brotherhood, which was in turn funded through made money by smuggling hashish. The Brotherhood distributed Orange Sunshine, often for free. They had “an audacious global smuggling operation, with drugs stashed in musical instruments, in a VW camper van, and, in quintessentially Californian style, inside hollowed-out surfboards.”
They produced millions of doses of acid, with the goal of making it “virtually free.” In 1970, they dropped 25,000 tabs of acid from a plane onto partygoers at Laguna Beach. You can imagine the police were none too pleased about this.
The Brotherhood’s criminal activities came to an end in 1972, after many years of evading the police. A drug raid was executed, and many of their members were arrested.
While the Brotherhood appears seemingly less brainwashy than the other groups, questionable leaders fueled by psychedelics are not a phenomenon confined to the past. In 2020 French businessman Bruno Cluzel set up a psychedelic retreat called Sowilo in Mexico. Calling himself Gabriel, Cluzel served up 5-MeO-DMT, a plant-based psychedelic to children as well as adults. All-powerful, among many things, he convinced a couple to sell their restaurant business and house and move to Sowilo, as well as serving up 5-MeO to their 12-year-old. Horrifying in the extreme.
The Costa Rica-based ayahuasca retreat Rythmia is reported to have a ‘cult-like’ aura under its founder Gerard Powell, a self-confessed drunk and drug addict. He discovered plant medicines and claims he had a ‘miracle’. Rythmia now sells miracles, and guests – many top celebrities – are encouraged to drink ayahuasca, a hallucinogenic brew. The retreat might have a five-star guest list, but it’s not always a good place to work. Former staff members have told how they couldn’t raise concerns without facing a backlash from higher-ranking workers,
Three years ago, Inner Mastery was called out by Adeptus Psychonautica, a psychedelics commentator, who called the Europe-wide ayahuasca retreat a cult. One of the examples he gave was the story of a former director-turned-whistleblower of the centre, Martin Lozano. He left after his wife was sexually assaulted, accusing Inner Mastery of a cult-like climate, financial and sexual abuse, and even one person’s death.
So, why and how are such cults able to become established?
Perhaps it’s the nature of the drugs; Gabriel from Sowilo was known to consume a lot of 5-MeO, possibly altering his relationship with reality and causing him to develop a God complex. Perhaps it’s the proximity to power, the feeling facilitators get from being thanked by seekers, from being the ones to “control” someone’s healing journey.
Psychedelics, especially substances like 5-MeO-DMT, are extremely powerful and potent mind-bending tools. People often experience a post-trip afterglow, leaving them sensitive and susceptible to influence. It’s easy to see a facilitator as God-like in the fuzzy wake of a particularly expansive trip. These powerful substances can make those who take them see the world and themselves differently, but there is a sharper, more dangerous side which can easily be exploited when in the wrong hands, as history continues to show.
