Lee James Lecture: Korea

for ex-BKs to discuss matters related to experiences in BKWSU & after leaving.
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captporridge

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Lee James Lecture: Korea

Post19 Apr 2007

Hi,

I've been invited to a lecture by Lee James soon in Korea, and will be writing an article about the event.

I have an interest in cults and have developed the world's largest resource on a Korean based cult, http://www.jmscult.com and I have to admit what I am reading about BK is disturbing. If anyone has any specific info on Lee James, especially regarding his qualifications and experience, I would appreciate it.

The following about Lee James was sent along with email invitations to the event. I could find no reference to his "internationally acclaimed" play on Google and I noticed that despite listing counselling experience, no formal qualifications are listed and it is specifically stated that he did not finish his psychology degree. I am from Australia too and have never heard of the guy, so I find the reference to him being at the forefront of Australian drama to be suspicious.

There is a Internet Movie Database reference http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0416692/ to a "Lee James," born in the same city but one of the films he is listed as working on was released when he would have been 9 years old. That's if he was born in 1960. Very strange ...

I know imbd is not always accurate, but if he is an actor, he should have a listing on imdb.
Biodata

Lee James was born on April 1st 1960 in Cairns, Australia. He moved from a major in Psychology at Queensland University to Acting. He graduated from the National Institute of Dramatic Art in 1982 and for several years enjoyed success at the forefront of Australian drama. Last year in 2003, he upgraded to a bachelor degree of acting with his thesis entitled “Back From the Edge – Empowering the Actor”.

In April 1990, Lee moved to Japan to coordinate a meditation centre in Tokyo, work as a field advisor to World Health Organization on social trauma and disaster relief, and study the Noh and Bhuto dance forms.

He has spent the last 20 years touring Asia conducting programs for universities, theatre companies, government institutions and private corporations and in July-August 2002 he lectured and performed in 20 different countries over a 40-day period.

In April 2003 Lee returned to Australia and is now based in Sydney. He will continue his association with WHO projects outside of Australia but his main focus is in setting up a therapeutic theatre company in Sydney. The aim and vision of this company will be to bring to the stage the esoteric questions and states of being that seem so important to the quality of daily life, yet are often excluded from contemporary theatre. His own internationally acclaimed one-man show, The Quiet Dance will be brought to the stage in late 2004.

Social Work

Life Support Counseling (1998 – on-going)
This program began in Japan in 1998 and offers social workers, doctors and nursing staff the opportunity to expand their perceptions and fields of learning in all aspects of life support, especially that of hospice care (palliative care). Participants are offered the chance to broaden their views of life and death, and receive some practical methods for self-sustenance, including time and personal energy management.

Referred Counselor
Lee has counseled patients referred by doctors and hospital staff at four Tokyo hospitals, working with children with terminal illnesses, cancer patients and staff in palliative care, AIDS and post-operative care.

Current and On-going Projects 2004.

Volunteer Counselor
Half of Lee’s counseling hours are part of a United Nations volunteer counselors program. Love of Listening seminars have continued since 2000. People who have benefited include relatives of victims of the September 11th 2001 terrorist attack and the Bali bombing last year.

International Projects

Post-trauma counseling and training
Independent advisor to government agencies (eg: education, youth affairs, emergency services) and WHO for South East Asia. Dealing with emergency ‘in field’ support and training after social or natural disasters, specifically working with emergency crews and victims. Notable missions include:
    - Aum Shinrikyo (rehabilitation of past cult members) and post trauma for subway gas victims.
    - Hiroshima bus jacking;
    - Kobe earthquake 1995; Taiwan earthquake 1999; Iran earthquake 2003/2004.
    - land mine rehabilitation (Cambodia);
    - drug rehabilitation (all SE Asia);
    - suicide intervention and prevention (Japan, Korea);
    - time/resource/stress management (China, Hong Kong, Malaysia);
    - hospice support (inc. Philippines);
    - post traumatic stress – training social workers in East Timor 1999, 2000, 2001)
    - September 11th 2001 – Post trauma at Ground Zero New York;
    - International AIDS Conferences (1997, 1999,2001);
    - hostage negotiation inc. Indonesia (Aceh 2002,2003) and the Philippines
    (Mindanao 2001,2002).
Since 2000, Lee has worked with ‘war children’ (those who’ve grown up and lost relatives in war) including the Palestinian Territories and Israel, East Timor, Angola and Bosnia.

Lee hopes to apply the techniques learned to the plight of the urban aborigine.

Personal/Governmental/Mental Health Management (inc. indigenous peoples)
All Asia workshops, topics including Adapting to Change; Stress Free Environments; Least Effort, Greatest Result; WHolistic Health; Mind-Body-Spirit; Re-sourcing; Back to Alpha; and the Back From the Edge series.

Projects in Japan and Australia

In between
A series of workshops for educators, helping them in conflict resolution within the classroom, values education, and self-sustenance and support groups (Teachers Union, Tokyo)

Youth Retreats : The Hero Within
Retreats on a local and national level to facilitate self-empowerment, leadership and ‘living values’. In 2000, Lee completed an advisory paper on bullying in high schools.

Therapeutic Theatre

The Light Company’s philosophy includes various Mind, Body, Spirit methodologies that are carried out in hospices (for the elderly and AIDS patients), schools (countering bullying, empowerment and responsibility and conflict resolution) and in dealing with post trauma of personal or environmental disaster and/ or social crisis.
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ex-l

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Re: Lee James Lecture: Korea.

Post19 Apr 2007

CaptPorridge wrote:Hi, I've been invited to a lecture by Lee James soon in Korea, and will be writing an article about the event. There is a Internet Movie Database reference http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0416692/ to a "Lee James," born in the same city but one of the films he is listed as working on was released when he would have been 9 years old. That's if he was born in 1960. Very strange ...

Capt'n, sir, welcome aboard the wonderful pirate ship; the SS BKWSU!

Interesting little turn up you have there, I see the other Lee James has a credit for Special Effects in the film;
    Angels' Wild Women (1972) ... "Hot, Hard and Mean ... Too Tough for Any Man! They'll Beat 'em, Treat 'em, and Eat 'em Alive!"
    • "Blood Orgy of the She Devils" (1972) ... aka "Female Plasma Suckers"
So, yes, that sounds just like the Brahma Kumaris we know and love ... but, no, it does not sound like the kind of work a 12 year old would be allowed to do. Even one unfortunately born on April 1st (... I could not make this stuff up if I tried!!!) We have discussed Lee on the forum before, especially of his time in Japan, and so you could start have a look and asking members on this topic here. Usually BKWSU use "leading" for any BK as the consider the BKs are leadking the world into a Golden Age after Destruction.

mr green used to work writing biodata for his local 'VIP' BKs, so perhaps he can pass comment. You arrive at an interesting time because we have just unveiled from original documents that the early days of the cult have been largely fabricated, exposing them for their banishment, the kidnapping and physical beatings of a breakaway group called the Prajapita Brahma Kumaris, their withholding from the public and even loyal BKs of the channelled messages from God they base their philosophy on and a number of key members leaving on ethical grounds.

I raised a question about Lee myself, I do not know him at all. He advertises himself as a "leading spiritualist". I understand the word 'spiritualist' to mean a medium of spirits. I do not know what your relationship with the BKWSU is, but it would interesting to ask about the practise and reliance of mediumship within the BKWSU and especially, have a look over the threads on the organization's early history. Although they preach "God Shiva", it is appears clear that until 1949, they thought their founder Lekhraj Kripalani was God. You might ask him about the 'Prajapati God Brahma' era.

It is good to have another experience seaman in the hold to man the bilge pumps ...
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captporridge

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Post19 Apr 2007

Thanks ex-l,

Yeah I saw the blood orgy link last night! Brilliant, brilliant movie!

Thank you so much for the info, I certainly found the right place. I just checked out the link to the thread about Lee, and I just skimmed a couple of the child abuse threads. I'll try and absorb what I can, and I already have a few questions I'd like to ask. Hope I get the chance, I'll certainly try,

PS, Last year some members lived in my building. About once a month they'd gather downstairs to stare at a TV screen showing some pretty patterns for a few hours. Oops, I should have looked for info on them earlier ... Anyway, thanks and I am really looking forward to seeing what goes down at this lecture.

CapPorridge
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yudhishtira

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Post19 Apr 2007

I experienced a lecture for the first time with this bro earlier this year. I had the following observations;
    1. he seems to feel he has been seperated from the BK family for a while and is now back but in my perception not healed. He is carrying around a lot of pain. Dangerous if you are a charasmatic person who tries to influence others.
    2. he has "issues" about the Dadis and Baba belonging to him, hence he tries to lecture to others about it.
    3. he likes to shock. He was sharing with our group a film that showed that 9/11 was a plot by the US government and couldn't be Al Qaeda.
    4. his meditation commentary style made me feel like I was being hypnotised, and I have never said that about any other BK. I had to disengage from what he was saying and be very strongly in Yoga. Others commented on this also.
I would have a very low trust level in the current stage of this soul. I think he needs to spend some time in Baba's lap chilling out instead of trying to intellectualise about Gyan to others.
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captporridge

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Post19 Apr 2007

I went and it was really very boring! I was expecting him to be much more charasmatic. Instead he went for the quiet soothing-voice guru thing. Reminded me of the Heaven's Gate cult guy, plus he wore white.

I had my video camera on my lap the whole night, the sound is not so good, but here's a brief taste: Lee James on the Virginia tech Shootings.
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john

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Post19 Apr 2007

yudhishtira wrote:2. he has "issues" about the Dadis and Baba belonging to him, hence he tries to lecture to others about it.

What do you mean?
3. he likes to shock. He was sharing with our group a film that showed that 9/11 was a plot by the US government and couldn't be Al Qaeda.

What is shocking about that?
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ex-l

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Post19 Apr 2007

john wrote:What is shocking about that?

I do not know if it is shicking but it is an interesting technique that, say, David Icke uses.

Open an individual up. Hypnosis or meditation is a good way of doing this. Take the individual as far out of its normal perception as possible, establishing an apparent sequence of logical progresssions that the individual has no way of proving or disproving. Then delivering back into the individual another series of apparently logic perception before they close down again and go home. Stand back and wait to see how the seed you have planted gestate. For example;
    blah-blah-blah-blah, blah-blah-blah-blah, blah-blah-blah-blah ... CIA Conspiracy.

    blah-blah-blah-blah, blah-blah-blah-blah, blah-blah-blah-blah ... 5,000 Year and God Shiva in Gulzar.
A little bit of confidence, showmanship, humble exhibiting of extremely holy personal wounds. Kind of describes your average BK gig, does not? What do Illuminati Conspiracies have to do with Gyan? Some should snitch him up to the SS, but I fear that the SS are happy with whatever goes these days as long as there are 'souls on seat' and an audience for them.
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john

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Post19 Apr 2007

ex-l wrote:I do not know if it is shicking but it is an interesting technique that, say, David Icke uses.

David Icke is very, very funny :lol:. But apart from that I get the drift of what you are saying, interesting technique.
    Do you think it's a learnt technique or just part of their approach?
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ex-l

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Post19 Apr 2007

john wrote:Do you think it's a learnt technique or just part of their approach?

I think it is a learnt approach, a sort of culture that develops of its own according, a bit like the SML courses amongst the "executive" BKs. I meant hey both have a very specific 'form'.

I am sure that amongst politics and theatre (of which Lee James has some trainign but stunted success due to his BK involvement) that it is studied and taught. Especially in America where they are very good at these things. It is a well-studied science, an industry and they have markets and circuits that performers and their managers feed off of profitably, including David Icke who is doing very well there.

In my opinion, I think the few BKs that are off in this mode, e.g. James, Bacon, George, de Carteret have just done it very subtle and with some difficulty within the organization. Of course, their sales pitch is not;
    "blah-blah-blah-blah, blah-blah-blah-blah, blah-blah-blah-blah ... CIA Conspiracy".
It is more;
    "Lao-tsu ... Einstein ... Greenpeace ... love and light ... Sister Jayanti ... 5,000 Year Cycle and God in Gulzar"
I am using specific references here. Perhaps I should separate the "blah-blah-blah-blah" theory from the "woo-woo-woo-woo" theory ... and don't forget to have an ambient musical interlude to sedate the punters even more. Absolutely Blissful combination. I am sure that there are established psychological models and terminologies for these techniques but I lack the academic background to known them. Worth investigating further.
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Mr Green

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Post19 Apr 2007

I knew Lee James a bit. He is very left-field and, in my opinion an attention seeker. He loves an audience.

He has never had an internationally acclaimed play. That is just not true ... he had a small theatre group made up of his friends in Japan. They toured around the BK centres to perform the play in various countries including london ... this is probably all they are alluding too.

It's news even to me that he did not finish his degree as the BKs lord things like 'degrees' even over their own members.

The Brahma Kumaris PR machine just has got to stop ... It is just inexcusable to keep punting out all these blatant lies in the hope of suckering innocent people to go along to their cult recruitment events.
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joel

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Post19 Apr 2007

mr green wrote:The Brahma Kumaris PR machine just has got to stop ... It is just inexcusable to keep punting out all these blatant lies in the hope of suckering innocent people to go along to their cult recruitment events.

Yes, Lee's bio is over the top. He never studied Noh and Kyogen as his bio represents. A couple of the people in his theater group did. Ikuko, in particular is quite accomplished. Her mother is a teacher of Noh. But hanging out with someone who's studied since childhood is not the same thing as making a study oneself, even if one claims to be a quick study.

At the same time, he is quite uniquely talented.

Another BK theater person, sent by Dr. Nirmala to Japan before Lee James, has married a Japanese woman and, after a time in Tasmania, the two are living north of Tokyo raising a couple of children.
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ex-l

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Post20 Apr 2007

Wasn't Lee James was the BK that was meant to be working on the 'BK Duty of Care' programme primal.logic was suggesting?

I heard he flew over to speak to Janki, although the whole thing kind of went quiet after that ...
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Mr Green

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Post20 Apr 2007

ex-l wrote:Wasn't Lee James was the BK that was meant to be working on the 'BK Duty of Care' programme primal.logic was suggesting?
    Yes.
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captporridge

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Post22 Apr 2007

Here's a ten minute clip from the lecture in which Lee predicts the end of the world in 2012: BK Lee James YouTube clip.

My microphone is not too good, but my zoom if fracking great! He uses Mayan prophecies as the basis for this date and mentions this project to support it: http://www.thehorizonproject.com/
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abrahma kumar

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Post23 Apr 2007

CaptPorridge wrote:Here's a ten minute clip from the lecture in which Lee predicts the end of the world in 2012: BK Lee James YouTube clip. My microphone is not too good, but my zoom if fracking great! He uses Mayan prophecies as the basis for this date and mentions this project to support it: http://www.thehorizonproject.com/

Admittedly the section on view via the link does not represent the entire session but I found that Bro Lee's demeanour struck a discordant note with me. Over-dramatic (even with allowances made for his theatrical background)? The motioning of his upraised arm and close-eyed delivery (was it a guided meditation sequence?) struck me as 'devices' that could pull 'vulnerable' people towards the personality he is projecting (mysterious undertones?). The wearing of white on a public platform also sets the 'wearer' somewhat apart (aloft?) from those listening.

Having met the Brother a few times I would describe him as having an engaging style of personal address which can come across as well refined 'love-bombing'. I wonder if any BK's who know Brother Lee are reading this thread and could offer their comments on whether within the BKWSU there is any risk of 'a cult of personality' developing around him?

Sorry but I would have to listen many many times to catch the full import of what was being said. Thanks.
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