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January 24, 2007
Yoga Cult in Brooklyn Heights?
Is it possible that the Dahn Yoga center in Brooklyn Heights — the one always hanging signs on doorknobs to advertise free classes — is actually a cult? This past Sunday one of the unassuming ladies from local blog A Brooklyn Life took them up on their free class offer and experienced "some intense and almost violent stretching exercises" and "a series of poses that become progressively more awkward." It wasn't an entirely negative experience, but she didn't plan on going back. But in the post's comments, one reader suggested Googling "Dahn Yoga" + "cult" and the search results are pretty spooky...
After reading the Brooklyn Life post, Brooklyn Heights Blog did some more research on the place, and found a Village Voice article about Julia Siverls, a NYC college professor who died mysteriously while training to become a "Dahn Master." Is this a conspiracy theory, or what? If this place is a cult, it's a pretty huge one — there are Dahn Yoga centers across America, and also in Japan, Korea, Canada, and the U.K. Has anyone had a postitive, non-cultish experience with the Brooklyn Heights branch?
Yoga in the Heights [A Brooklyn Life]
What You Should Know [Brooklyn Heights Blog]
Fatal Trek [Village Voice]
Brooklyn Heights Studio [Dahn Yoga]
Posted by Brooklyn Record at January 24, 2007 11:44 AM
Comments
i dunno, but i've seen a lot of disguised spam about it on the Craigslist message boards, now that you mention it.
Posted by: Anonymous | January 24, 2007 9:55 PM
The vibe is bad when you walk past their door. I would not go there.
Posted by: Anonymous | January 24, 2007 10:47 PM
Well, I guess the cult part wouldn't have anything to do with real Yoga. A Yoga cult... that's something new!
Thanks,
Scott Hughes
Yoga Forums
Posted by: Scott Hughes | January 30, 2007 3:15 PM
Many people believe Dahn Yoga to be a manipulative, philosophically immature, and money hungry cult. The entire notion of Dahn Yoga is based on historical revisionism and lies. Korea cannot claim to be a home for yoga, nor the internal cultivation arts. The "grandmaster" is really an uneducated Korean racist, a man who has ruined countless lives in his quest for money. His criminal organization relies on heavy coercion and brainwashing, and it continues to prey on unsuspecting victims to this very day.
Posted by: Jim | May 9, 2007 12:22 AM
Dahn Yoga
With roots dating back 5,000 years into East Asia history, Dahn Yoga offers a simple yet powerful way to reintegrate your body, mind and spirit through the cultivation and mastery of your "Ki" (life force) energy. This is a powerful exercise to master because it will stimulate your mind as well as your spirit. Dahn Yoga can seriously change your life! -SRV
Posted by: Mike | August 8, 2007 1:41 PM
A friend of mine who had an existing yoga practice decided to try Dahn's $20 one-on-one special. The teacher seemed to have no idea what she was doing. My friend wound up hurting his back, and after the lesson, they gave him the hard sell about plunking down a large sum of money to become a member. He was creeped out, went home, and googled away to discover exactly what you all are talking about.
Cult or not, there's no excuse for incompetent yoga teachers who injure their students.
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Posted by: samantharob | February 13, 2008 4:13 AM
Do you want to start the Salem witch trials again? Go for it! Anyway, if your minds are so weak and you are so scared, why wake up and get out of bed? If you want to do an investigation and inform the public, I can't think of a better use of your time. But to throw the word "cult" around because it is not your "cult," smacks of slanderous and loose talk. As the courts have consistently ruled, "buyer beware!" Big boys and girls can make up their own mind about how they want to spend their time without being labeled members of a "cult." Yours truly, Notta Yogaenthusiast.
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Posted by: MistAddipssag | March 22, 2008 7:02 AM
I am east asian, and I found their claim to be ridiculous. Yes we have Ki and all, but using the name yoga? Yoga came from india!! Ah well, just like I heard when everybody though all orientals like me knows kung fu. If you donno yet, no, not all know kung fu, I don't.
Hey, it is a very clever way to to put "recordbrooklyn" instead of going thru all the hassle to put CAPTCH, does it work though?
Posted by: harumi | March 27, 2008 10:13 AM