Fraudsters and authority figures

A topic has been discussed for several months and it stands out with its danger, not because it is the only problem in the country, or because we have nothing to talk about, that is why we have started discussing it. On the contrary, I guess many people prefer not to discuss it because it is scary. It's scary because it ended with the death of 6 people, who in my opinion were murdered, it's scary because this topic involves a lot of government and public figures, state services and employees, the police, and a lot of money. And it's scary because on a deep level, things at the government level are scary, because there are some people out there who are allowed to do everything, without any consequences. In short - this is the Bulgarian mini-version of the Epstein files, which, however, will never be revealed publicly. Because nothing is revealed publicly in this country. And at the very least, no politician involved has ever been removed for connections with anyone, for committing crimes, etc.

And yet there is some continuation of this unsolved story in the public space, journalists have begun to investigate other similar cases and societies. It is about the so-called sects and this is the reason for today's post - something that impressed me a lot about this topic and made me think.
It is not entirely certain whether these are sects in the religious sense of the word, or organizations of people who try to take advantage of the vulnerability of other people for financial gain.
In principle, I have not considered the specific meaning of the term sect, but I believe that sects do not differ in their functions from the so-called mainstream religion - religion itself takes advantage of people's vulnerability in one way or another. On the other hand, even Christianity is considered a Jewish sect, so...

I think Bulgarians are very susceptible to such organizations. Either because they are very poor, very unhappy, or because their consciousness and knowledge are quite limited - they have been closed off, the rest of the world has been hidden from them, and they have been manipulated for decades. Therefore, after the fall of communism and the Iron Curtain, many such organizations appeared in the country.
There was such an organization in the building next door to the school and campus where I studied and lived as a teenager. You can imagine what a strategic position for recruiting victims. In the same school where state security officers were once recruited.
Our teachers were very worried at the time. But I don't actually remember any news about any student being recruited, manipulated, driven to suicide, etc., by such an organization. There were such cases, but they were not related to this. And although I had a classmate, an absolute rebel, who went to their meetings just to oppose them and make fun of them, I was afraid - that they might meet me somewhere, lie to me, because they probably used incredible manipulation techniques, and tie me up like that for life, without me wanting to.

Bulgaria has its spiritual leaders too, they are recorded in history, holy people who created societies. There is probably not just one, but one is the most famous. And there was a period when I said to myself, ok, this is a holy and wise man, maybe I should also read his books, believe in his wisdom... not that I can lead this holy life that he teaches that one should lead, but at least I will be informed, I will know what he is talking about (and then I will probably blame myself for not being able to do it 😄) Then I realized that this holy man was actually very close to the authorities, that the king consulted with him at the time, that they supported and saved together representatives of a nation that is nowadays famous for its great aggression and thirst for war and the death of those who differ from them for religious reasons.

I think that in this very "sacred" historical moment in the life of the country's more recent history, which I also mentioned to you some time ago, there is simply a lot of money involved. Some money was promised and given. By some very rich people, to be saved. They were saved by a king and a spiritual man.

Everything is about money. Even spirituality. Guess if I am still interested in this spiritual saint.
And the current Bulgarian patriarch, who, due to his service to Russia and his appearance, is called Satanail (his name is Daniel), actually declared this spiritual leader and his society a sect.
Here I would say that not only money, but also power played a big role in this decision, taken again at a high state administrative level.

I would say that I no longer believe in either one or the other - neither religion nor spiritual leaders. Over the years, I have come to the point of questioning each and every one of them. And most of all this - how a person, given our innate imperfection, will know more than you, will have greater power and influence, whether to forgive sins, whether to guide you in life, to say what is wrong and what is right, which of your normal daily actions or thoughts is an absolute sin that must be punished, or how to lead your life in general.

There were some church dogmas that I have come across by chance in my life, such as the fact that it is a sin for a woman not to wear a headscarf when entering church, a sin not to wear a skirt, or a sin if she is on her period, which absolutely repelled me from this institution with their absurdity.
And people who proclaim themselves saints, gather people around them and take advantage of them, are even more dangerous. In fact, I don't know what's more dangerous - trusting priests who claim you're living in constant sin, or trusting a person who assures you that they'll tell you how to live, because it's obvious that you don't know how.

In Bulgaria today, it turns out that there are quite a few such organizations, whether "spiritual" or of another type, in which a person proclaims himself a guru, gathers people who worship him, and he takes advantage of them financially. These people take out loans, buy houses to live near him, or make large investments in his projects, which he has convinced them are super successful and will make them rich. One such person was even a member of the previous parliament, but in Bulgaria it is a tradition for criminals to enter parliament in order to gain immunity - the impossibility of being held criminally, administratively or civilly liable.

When I watched the latest investigative journalism about such an organization, I kept asking myself, how is it possible for people to fall into this trap? The fraud is obvious. And some of them are people with money. I always thought that if I had a lot of money, all my problems would disappear, and especially a lot - I wouldn't constantly wonder who to give my money to, to tell me how to live, what to do, to feel a little better.
But then I realized that I don't actually trust any "authority". I'm not just talking about institutions, the institutions here have long proven that they can't be trusted, but also personal authority figures. I don't trust anyone who claims to KNOW. Whatever it is. I also don't like people who are infatuated with other people. I see this a lot among men - admiring a friend, considering him a leader, believing his every word, which often turns out to be wrong, but no one wants to check the facts.

This all probably comes from the fact that I grew up in an extremely authoritarian family. Not like the one where the father is called sir and must be addressed in a polite form, but in a family where the parents constantly imposed restrictions and their every restrictive word was law. Every word was law. To the point where the whole world was distorted beyond recognition by their words and life became suffering and a constant challenge.
It took me about 40 years to understand that they were wrong, that all their words were wrong, that all their actions were wrong, and that these people were not role models at all, no matter how much they imposed their halo of authority, rather imposing an authoritarian regime.
So all this is coming out in full force now - all the questions and denials, suspicions and digging behind every word and every action. Actually, I'm not sure it's just now, but ultimately, I don't know when it started.
It's not nice to realize that you've lived a lie your whole life. Then you start to be suspicious of everything.
But maybe that's how it should be in a country where, as I've told you, fraudsters lurk around every corner. Still.

Thank you for your time! Copyright:	@soulsdetour
	Soul's Detour is a project started by me years ago when I had a blog about historical and not so popular tourist destinations in Eastern Belgium, West Germany and Luxembourg. Nowadays, this blog no longer exists, but I'm still here - passionate about architecture, art and mysteries and eager to share my discoveries and point of view with you.

Personally, I am a sensitive soul with a strong sense of justice.
Traveling and photography are my greatest passions.
Sounds trivial to you?
No, it's not trivial. Because I still love to travel to not so famous destinations.🗺️
Of course, the current situation does not allow me to do this, but I still find a way to satisfy my hunger for knowledge, new places, beauty and art.
Sometimes you can find the most amazing things even in the backyard of your house.😊🧐🧭|