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Auditing & E-Meters
Contents
- Introduction to Auditing
- What is Auditing?
- What's an E-Meter & What Does it Do?
- Getting to Core Doctrine
- Solo Auditing
- So What's the Harm?
• Recording Past Sins
• Hypnosis
• Medical Promises
Introduction to Auditing
The core of the Church of Scientology comes down to the book, 'Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health', which was published in 1952 by L Ron Hubbard. Dianetics propounded the benefits of a process called 'auditing', which is now the fundamental 'practice' of Scientology.
Long before there was ever such a thing as the Church of Scientology, Dianetics and auditing were marketed as an alternative form of psychotherapy. (See Dianetics section) When the book was first published, it was marketed as the next revolutionary technique available to psychiatrists and therapists, and that through the process of auditing, all manner of ailments could be cured. Hubbard made a variety of outlantish claims, including that auditing could cure depression, schizophrenia, arthritis, leukemia, blindness, and so on. Hubbard was very clear in his claims that practically any physical or mental condition could be cured with auditing.
Even in the 1950s, there was a great deal of government regulation regarding what sorts of claims could be made regarding medicine and science. It was basically the same as it is today - if you're marketing a medical treatment, the claims you make regarding what it can do have to be scientifically reviewed and substantiated by unrelated parties.
With Dianetics and auditing being marketed specifically as a form of psychotherapy, it opened Hubbard's claim up to the government regulations regarding medical claims. Soon enough, psychiatrists, doctors, and scientists began thorough scietific studies in an attempt to validate Hubbard's remarkable claims about the great many maladies auditing could cure.
Unfortunately, every single one of his claims were thoroughly debunked. In fact, the methods of Dianetics were likened by several scientists and doctors to nothing more than "hypnotism" and "hocus pocus." This was confounded by the fact that although Hubbard was proclaiming Dianetics to be a scientific breakthrough, many academics, scientists, and medical professionals were all confounded by the fact that no references or citations were given in Dianetics for any of its theories or claims - something both completely unprofessional and utterly laughable for a supposedly scientific theory. Within a year of the book being released, despite it being a best-seller, it had been completely and thoroughly proven by scientific study to be nothing more than science fiction.
With Hubbard's reputation dwindling, he soon realized he was facing serious financial ruin - the government doesn't exactly like it when you make a lot of money off what turns out to be nothing more than quackery. His only way out of this sticky situation - as explained in the Dianetics section - was to declare his methods to be a religion. Then they were no longer open to the regulations that govern medical claims, and anyone who dared question their legitimacy could be quickly labeled a religious bigot.
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What is Auditing?
Auditing is the form of "alternative psychotherapy" that Dianetics was all about. Some have said it's a kind of mix of psychotherapy and a Catholic confessional. Individual audits are called "auditing sessions," These sessions are administered by an "auditor," someone whose training basically consists of reading Dianetics. The setting is meant to be private, often with the auditor and the individual alone in a room. They sit across from each other at a table, with an E-meter in front of the auditor. I'll explain the E-meter in greater detail in a minute. The E-meter has several dials on it, and a gauge with a needle that floats back and forth. The individual being audited holds onto two tin cans which are clamped to leads which are then connected to the E-meter.
According to the Church of Scientology, an auditing session consists of the auditor listening to the person being audited, who discusses their life, behaviors, recent events, and thoughts in a kind of confession-like atmosphere. Apart from the confessions, the auditor also administers "processes," which are sets of questions asked or directions given by the auditor. When the specific objective of any one process is attained, the process is ended and another process can then be used. Think of the "process" being like a subject in a conversation, or a specific theme of questioning.
The intentions of the individual being audited is supposedly registered by the E-meter, which is used by the auditor to determine the emotions and honesty of the individual as they speak and answer questions. In addition to operating the E-meter and asking questions, the auditor also writes down absolutely everything said in the session. These transcriptions are then kept in detailed files.
This entire auditing process, according to Scientology, guides the individual to inspect certain parts of their existence. By doing this, the subject is said to be able to free himself of unwanted barriers that inhibit, stop or blunt his natural abilities.
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What's an E-meter & What Does it Do?
E-meters are often described as "crude lie detectors", which I suppose in a way is somewhat accurate. The only problem is, it doesn't just detect the things lie detectors pick up on.
The best comparison I've heard (which you can see here) is that the E-meter is essentially just an ohmmeter - an electrical instrument that measures electrical resistance, the opposition to the flow of an electric current. That resistance to electrical current was marked on a scale, with each measurement referred to as an "ohm." So however many ohms of resistance showed up on the gauge told you the amount of opposition there was to the flow of electric current.
There's a dial on the front of the E-meters, which is identical to a dial on an ohmmeter. This dial changes the value of ohms of resistance. So if you were to hold on to the two leads on a very rudimentary ohmmeter, you may not see a reaction in the needle. You may need to adjust the value of each setting on the gauge before you'll see any change in the readout.
This is precisely what's happening with the E-meter. It doesn't react when you tell a lie, it only reacts to electrical resistance as it goes through your skin.
As an auditor goes through those processes of questioning and directing, they're constantly fiddling with the dial on the front of the E-meter. This changes the value of ohms related to the current being passed through the two leads, which are held in the hands of the person being audited. The value that shows up on the gauge of the E-meter can be representative of pretty much anything and everything. It could be a hunger pang, a sensation of pain, a random thought, or even just a random muscle twitch. The same exact thing would show up on an ohmmeter, except no ohmmeter is used in any other industry or religion to show anything other than electrical resistance.
What does it mean in Scientology? They believe that this measurement of electrical resistance in some way is a clear, reliable, and precise indication of changes in the "reactive mind" - the part of the brain that Hubbard claimed stored exact impressions of past events, which occurred while the person was unconscious or otherwise not completely aware. Or more simply, they're memories of painful experiences from past lives.
So if you were to tell a story and the gauge reacted, the auditor would take that as a sign that whatever you were telling the auditor was in some way connected to a past life experience, not just a random electrical charge. Also, if you were answering a question and the gauge reacted, it wouldn't be a sign of a random electrical occurence, but would be concrete evidence of some other intention than what you were stating, i.e. a lie.
The goal with the E-meter is to get to the point where your needle "floats" - it roams freely from one side of the gauge to the other, indicating that the mind is in a state of alignment, so to speak. That past life experiences have been dealt with, and the pain of those "engrams" alleviated.
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Getting To Core Doctrine
An interesting and somewhat troubling part of the issue of auditing has to do with precisely how much members are told about the purposes and intents of auditing. Much like what was discussed in the Converting section regarding the fact that specific and important aspects of the doctrine are withheld from followers until they've invested a great deal of time and money, the true details about what you hope to accomplish with auditing isn't shared with the membership until they attain at least OTIII, or Operating Thetan Level Three.
As a part of the OTIII training course, you're told the story of Xenu. This story will be discussed in greater detail in the Xenu section, but suffice it to say, it contains a great deal of important information regarding auditing and its true purposes. While everyone prior to OTIII is told you're dealing specifically and exclusively with the reactive mind and past life memories, what they don't tell you is that you're also dealing with something known in the church as "thetans." Thetans are the souls of aliens who were exterminated 75 million years ago by the Galactic Prince Xenu. When Xenu solved an overpopulation problem by murdering millions of aliens, the souls of those aliens that remained after the genocide were gathered up by Lord Xenu, brainwashed into believing all sorts of things (including all the doctrines of other religions worldwide), and then let loose upon planet Earth. These dead alien souls have since latched onto our bodies - either individually or in clusters - and they're the source of all our depressions and illnesses.
These thetans are the source of the past life memories that auditing seeks to address and cure. These thetans are also the cause of every single illness and physical ailment known to man, including cancer, manic depression, infections, malaria, AIDS; everything, right down to the common cold. This is the source of Hubbard's outlandish claims that Dianetics and auditing could cure anyone of any illness.
You would think that such information would be imperative to the understanding of the religion. Not only that, but it would have a massive impact on your own understanding of what you hope to accomplish through auditing, and how you can accomplish those goals. But this information is withheld from everyone until they've spent usually ten years or more in the church and have either spent hundreds of thousands of dollars or have worked through years of menial labor for the church to pay for their courses. And even then, once you've finally been granted access to the crux of the doctrine, you cannot discuss it with anyone. Not even your family, your spouse, or even other people who have already gone through precisely the same OTIII training courses.
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Solo Auditing
Once you get to the OT levels, you're slowly trained throughout each of the courses to do something called "solo auditing." This doesn't replace regular auditing with a trained auditor; you're still expected to go through and pay for regular auditing sessions where you go through the routine of confessions and questioning. But once you get to the upper level, you can audit yourself for a few specific purposes.
The main purpose of solo auditing is to address various physical or mental ailments. In OTIII you're trained to locate body thetans and, through solo auditing, release them from the effects of the genocide perpetrated by Lord Xenu. To accomplish this, a single Scientologist holds both cans of an E-meter in one hand and asks questions to themselves as an auditor. The Scientologist directs themselves to a cluster of body thetans, addresses it telepathically, and then guides each individual member of that cluster through the Xenu story step by step in order to free them from the devastating effects of those memories. Hubbard warns that this is a painstaking procedure, and that OT levels IV and VII are necessary to continue the long process of deaing with one's body thetans.
Tory Christman, a very nice woman who was a Scientologist for over 30 years, has created a video to show precisely what solo auditing is like when you reach the level of OT7. It's only a few minutes long and really does a brilliant job of showing auditing on a personal level - and not to mention, Tory's just an absolute joy to watch! I'd definitely recommend that you check it out and see this for yourself.
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So What's the Harm?
You may be wondering after reading all this, all of this may sound a little weird, but what's the harm? There are several sides to that answer, so I'll do my best to explain them. Several of these answers touch on topics dealt with in other sections, so I'll try to summarize them here and link to the related sections so you can continue reading if you're interested.
Recording Past Sins
One of the most important aspects of Catholic confessionals is the absolute protection of privilege. Everything confessed to a priest isn't just protected by a fierce code of ethics, it's protected by law. Unfortunately this isn't the case for Scientology auditing sessions.
In 1965, L Ron Hubbard wrote a policy order known as "Fair Game." (You can read more about it in the Fair Game section) This order was written specifically to train Scientologists how to react, respond, and attack anyone who spoke out against the church, as well as anyone within the church who dared express doubt, dissent, or a desire to leave the church. These individuals, as well as anyone else the church decides they just don't like, are declared to be a "Suppressive Person", and are thus open to the Fair Game policy.
This policy states that any Suppressive Person, "May be deprived of property or injured by any means by any Scientologist without any discipline of the Scientologist. May be tricked, sued or lied to or destroyed."
Hubbard meant every single word of that order. Since it's quite clear in the Church of Scientology that any word written by Hubbard was canonized doctrine, Fair Game because an absolute policy and doctrine of the church.
This is where auditing comes in. Imagine if every time a Catholic confessed a sin to their priest, that each and every explicit detail was documented and kept in the vaults of the Vatican. Just in case that person should ever contemplate leaving the Catholic church, they would be reminded of the pages upon pages of documented indiscretions kept on file. Knowing that part of your faith's doctrine includes the Fair Game order, saying that any enemy of the church can be utterly destroyed, how do you think you would feel?
These files containing everything about each Scientologist's life, every past mistake, they're all ready and waiting in Scientology vaults, just in case anyone should think about waiting. Through the auditing process, you divulge your deepest, darkest secrets. You think you're clearing your conscience and working through destructive memories. But in reality, you are feeding the organization all the information they need should they ever decide to blackmail you. You're giving them the leverage with which to control you. Who would ever want to face such circumstances? And how many of us could face those circumstances and still risk having every sordid part of your past splashed all over town? And they do. Countless individuals who have left the church have seen pamphlets detailing all of their perversions - some real, some imagined, some exaggerated - delivered to each and every one of their neighbors. Some have seen such pamphlets posted in neighborhood shop windows, complete with their photographs, full name, home address, and other personal information.
The Church of Scientology has tried to claim that these files are never used at all for these purposes, that no one has access to the information, and indeed, that Fair Game itself has long since been cancelled. Yet as always, actions speak louder than words. If Fair Game has been cancelled, if no one has access to the information contained in members' private auditing files, then I'd love to hear their official information about where all the information came from that they've spread about practically everyone who's dared leave the church - Tory Christman, Stacy Brooks, Greg & Debra Barnes, Jim Beebe, Maria Pia Gardini; the list goes on and on. You can hear all of their stories at XenuTV.com.
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Hypnosis
There has been a great deal of academic and scientific review and study of the processes of auditing, and nearly all of them have come back with very serious concerns regarding hypnosis and mind control. When most people think of hypnosis, they think of what they've seen in the movies - watches swinging back and forth, and a smooth-talking guy telling you that you're getting sleepy. True hypnosis isn't like that at all; it's a very effective therapy tool used by psychiatrists to address anxiety and other behavioral issues. The only thing is, it's a very volatile and dangerous thing to go into, because it leaves the mind open to suggestions that can be very powerful and entirely overwhelming. Hypnosis is something that should always carry that age-old warning of, "Hey kids, don't try this at home!" It should be reserved solely for those who have extensive training, know how to handle it safely, and can be trusted not to abuse it. (For more scientific information about true hypnosis, visit this wikipedia article - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypnosis)
The problem with hypnosis in the setting of Scientology auditing is that it opens people up to very serious influences and suggestions. Not only that, but it can drudge up a great deal of suppressed anxiety and memories of trauma. Bringing all of that up without trained medical professionals there to guide you through it can - and often does - lead to severe emotional breakdown, leaving you vulnerable and emotionally drained.
An official inquiry conducted by the state of Victoria in Australia found that Scientology auditing involved a form of "authoritative" or "command" hypnosis, in which the hypnotist assumes "positive authoritative control" over the patient. "It is the firm conclusion of this Board that most scientology and dianetic techniques are those of authoritative hypnosis and as such are dangerous... the scientific evidence which the Board heard from several expert witnesses of the highest repute... which has virtually unchallenged - leads to the inescapable conclusion that it is only in name that there is any difference between authoritative hypnosis and most of the techniques of scientology. Many scientology techniques are in fact hypnotic techniques, and Hubbard has not changed their nature by changing their names."
All of this may seem a little far-fetched, or even a little bit too much like science fiction. Which is why it cannot be stressed enough that L Ron Hubbard himself had studied hypnotism extensively and was quite adept at it. Forrest Ackerman, Hubbard's literary agent, in an interview recounted at length an encounter he had with L Ron Hubbard at a meeting of the Los Angeles Science Fiction society on April 29, 1948. He stated,
"Well, 45 years ago there was established a Los Angeles Science Fiction Society. I'm a charter member... It was a period when Ron came around our club. He was living in Los Angeles. And what I particularly remember about his appearances there was an evening of spectacular hypnostism when he hypnotized just about every kid in the club. I remember he gave one young man a - what would you call it... In any event, the boy was convinced that cupped in his hand, he held a little tiny Kangaroo that was hopping around and I remember he came over and showed the Kangaroo to me. One by one Ron was hypnotizing everyone in the club. He gave one boy a post hypnotic suggestion, he said 'Now, I'll snap my fingers, and bring you out of it, and about 3 minutes from now youre gonna hear the telephone ring and you'll go over and someone will be making you a fantastic offer on a brand new automobile. But you're gonna resist no matter how great the offer, you're gonna come up with some reason that you can't accept it.'
"So we were all trying to keep sraight faces and see what was gonna happen and carrying on in a natural fashion. And then this boy with the post hypnotic suggestion looked kind of puzzled and looked over at the phone - which of course wasn't ringing - and he went over and he took it off the hook and seemed to be listening to a voice in his mind for a few minutes, 'Oh, really, a brand new Cad, never...only driven one mile? Only $500, Yes, gee that I could have it for $350.00, well, well that certainly is a bargain but gee, I only have $350 in the bank. Oh you'd shave off a 150! I could have it for $350.00, well, well, the only problem is that that $350.00 is earmarked for present for my mother. Well yes, I suppose my mother would, would think I should have a brand new Cadillac instead of a present from her, that would make her happy, but....and you know..but,but,but.' Then he got it down to where the invisible voice was going to give it away. He was, 'Well, well, ah...My teacher taught me never accept a gift unless you can return', or what ever, it was you know, he kept coming coming up with all, all....
"We were all standing around holding our sides trying to keep from being hysterical and then Ron told one other boy, he said, 'Well now I'm gonna bring you out of this. As some point Im just going to scratch the tip of my nose and (snap) you'll go instantly to sleep.' Well, everybody was so fascinated by Ron's performance, that they clustered around him. And one mad moment his nose itched you know, and he'd forgotten all about the special command. He kind of scratched his nose. I happened to be standing right behind this boy. Instantly limp, he fell right into my arms."
(Quote sourced from Lermanet.net)
Several other individuals have come forward with similar stories of Hubbard's hypnotic exploits, including several other writers who were a part of the same science fiction society. Hubbard was clearly not only well versed in hypnotism, but was incredibly adept at it. It should be no surprise, then, that independent studies with no previous knowledge of Hubbard's history as a hypnotist found the same traits and methods in his books.
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Medical Promises
Despite the long history of Hubbard and Scientology getting in trouble with the law and facing serious public backlash due to their outlandish medical claims, they still make very serious and concrete problems to people suffering from a variety of medical problems. While I do realize that it's well within the right of any religious organization to discuss a variety of miracles, there's a very serious difference between the traditional view of a miracle and the concrete promises being made by Scientology.
I'm sure we're all fairly familiar with the Christian concept of miracles, so I'll use that as an example. (That's not to say one is right or one is wrong, it's just that we as a society are all somewhat familiar with Christian theology.) The Christian doctrines and cultural attitudes regarding miracles is less about promises and more about placing your hope and faith in God. As is often said over pulpits and in prayers, "Thy will be done," the process of hoping for a miracle involves asking God for a specific miracle, and then leaving it entirely up to God how to respond. You can hope that if you're ill a miracle will occur that involves you being healed. But you don't expect it as a guarantee, you don't discontinue the medical advice of your doctor thinking that medicine will prohibit God from giving you that miracle, and in no way think of the idea of a miracle translating into an absolute promise from God that you will be cured. The whole idea of "Thy will be done" is to leave it up to God, and through faith knowing that whatever is supposed to happen will happen. It's about faith, not about certainty.
With Scientology, there isn no question with regard to the claims they're making. There is no hope, there is no faith in what they're saying. It's an absolute guarantee that auditing and Scientology will deliver a variety of results, which include improved IQ, enhanced memory, alleviation of dyslexia and ADHD, and indeed, the absolute cure from any and all mental or physical ailments.
While such hopes are truly admirable, and indeed, science has shown that faith itself can do great things for the body, Scientology's approach to it is not only irresponsible, it's downright dangerous. I say that because of Scientology's policies regarding how they plan to live up to their claims. It's an all or nothing attitude; they don't just offer you auditing in addition to medical intervention, they expect you to follow their advice and no one else's. If you take up auditing, if you follow Scientology's edicts, you are expected - and indeed, by some accounts, pressured - to cease any and all medications you're currently taking and wholly ignore your doctor's advice.
As I will explain in the Physical Illness section, Scientology's doctrine states that the souls of the dead aliens killed by Xenu are the sole source of all physical and mental illnesses. Essentially, all ailments are psychosomatic, and therefore can be cured through auditing and Scientology courses. Their doctrine flatly refuses to acknowledge science, biology, and medicine. To them there is no such thing as an infectious process, there's no such thing as cancer, and there's no such thing as science. In fact, they even declare that all medical science is the work of Xenu attempting to confuse and destroy us. That is the true source of the church's infamous hatred of psychiatry, but what most people don't realize, they're just as vehemently opposed to all other aspects of medical science.
In my opinion, it seems as if these outlandish guarantees of grand medical cures are specifically calculated to take advantage of the desperation of the chronically ill. I've been sick myself for twelve years due to a very rare and complicated genetic disease. I know what's caused my illness, I've seen the genetic mutation with my own eyes. And yet if I did not know what I know about Scientology's top secret upper-level doctrines, I could imagine being attracted by their claims of medical wonders. Everyone in a position like mine hopes and prays for just such a miracle cure. But what is so dangerous and potentially deadly with regard to Scientology is their vehement demands that if you want to take them up on their offer, you can't take any medications and you can't follow your doctor's advice. That can be dangerous for new recruits, but that doesn't even compare to the danger that threatens current members and those raised in the church. In my opinion, this policy of proclaiming auditing to be the one and only cure is the root of nearly all the mysterious deaths - both suicide and murder - within the Church of Scientology. Lisa McPherson was denied medical care after a car accident and a few short weeks later, she was dead. Jeremy Perkins was denied psychiatric medication and he subsequently murdered his mother, stabbing her 77 times. The list goes on and on, and it all comes down to their radical claims, and their insistance on their followers completely disregarding medical science.
If they were offering miracles, I wouldn't mind that. But offering miracles while simultaneously taking away the individual's absolute right to decide for themselves, that is truly offensive, dangerous, and irresponsible. Despite Scientology's continued definitive attitude, no specific case of any such claims coming true have ever been documented scientifically. That's not exactly a stellar track record. And yet they continue to endanger peoples' lives through their definitive, outlandish, and baseless claims. I don't think that seems ethical or just, let alone spiritually enlightened.
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Detailed Information & Additional Resources:
• Wikipedia: Auditing
• Wikipedia: E-Meter
• Wikipedia: Fair Game
• WhatIsAnonymous: Fair Game
• Lermanet: Hypnotism
• YouTube: Ohmmeter Explanation
• Wikipedia: Ohmmeter
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