Summary of Amanda Montell's Cultish

By IRB Media

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.

Book Preview: #1 The first time Tasha heard the buzz of their voices was at a Kundalini yoga studio in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She was 13 years old. The group was called the Healthy, Happy, Holy Organization, or 3HO. Their leader, Harbhajan Singh Khalsa, claimed to be the official religious and administrative head of all Western Sikhs.

#2 3HO’s secret mantras and code words were meant to be used to attract your soul mate, acquire lots of money, and look better than ever. But they could also be used to threaten and intimidate others.

#3 In 2009, Tasha arrived in Southern California to give her life to 3HO. She met Alyssa Clarke, who had come down the coast from Oregon to start college. Alyssa was captivated by how tight-knit all the CrossFitters seemed, and she became devout.

#4 Alyssa and Tasha’s stories are similar because they were both under cultish influence. They were both pushed to extremes, and ended up broke, friendless, and riddled with PTSD. But what they shared was that they were both under the influence of language.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Feb 28, 2022
• ISBN: 9781669354161

IRB Media

With IRB books, you can get the key takeaways and analysis of a book in 15 minutes. We read every chapter, identify the key takeaways and analyze them for your convenience.

Book preview

Insights on Amanda Montell's Cultish

Contents

Insights from Chapter 1

Insights from Chapter 2

Insights from Chapter 3

Insights from Chapter 4

Insights from Chapter 5

Insights from Chapter 6

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

The first time Tasha heard the buzz of their voices was at a Kundalini yoga studio in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She was 13 years old. The group was called the Healthy, Happy, Holy Organization, or 3HO. Their leader, Harbhajan Singh Khalsa, claimed to be the official religious and administrative head of all Western Sikhs.

#2

3HO’s secret mantras and code words were meant to be used to attract your soul mate, acquire lots of money, and look better than ever. But they could also be used to threaten and intimidate others.

#3

In 2009, Tasha arrived in Southern California to give her life to 3HO. She met Alyssa Clarke, who had come down the coast from Oregon to start college. Alyssa was captivated by how tight-knit all the CrossFitters seemed, and she became devout.

#4

Alyssa and Tasha’s stories are similar because they were both under cultish influence. They were both pushed to extremes, and ended up broke, friendless, and riddled with PTSD. But what they shared was that they were both under the influence of language.

#5

Cultish groups are an all-out obsession in American culture. The majority of psychologists I interviewed denounced the pseudoscientific concept of brainwashing, which is what many people seem to believe when it comes to cult influence.

#6

The answer to the question of why people become cult members is not some weird wizardry that happens on a remote commune. The answer is language. Charismatic leaders use language to create a mini