Aum Shinrikyo

Aum Shinrikyo (currently Aleph) is a Japanese new religious movement and doomsday cult founded by Shoko Asahara in 1987. It carried out the deadly Tokyo subway sarin attack in 1995 and was found to have been responsible for the Matsumoto sarin attack the previous year.

Quotes

The legendary utopia of Shambhala... ruled by the god Shiva, is a world that only those souls who have penetrated the full truth of the universe may enter. There the world's saviors, whose goal it is to save all souls and lead them to gedatsu progress in their own training. Master Asahara has been reborn from that realm into the human world so that he migh take up his messianic mission. Thus the Master's efforts to embody truth throughout the human world are in accordanc with the great will of the god Shiva.
- "Invitation to an Infinitely Clear World", a 1988 Aum pamphlet, quoted in Shimazono 1995, p. 396, quoted in Walliss 2004, pp. 172–173
Wouldn't you like to build a society based on truth, where more and more souls can live according to truth, realize gedatsu, and make their way to a higher world? Let's help the world avoid disaster and attain a happy future. Let's combine our efforts, and translate into action the great will of the god Shiva and our guru, Master Asahara.
The plan to transform Japan into Shambhala is the first step towards transforming the entire world into Shambhala. Your participation will result in great merit and lead you to a higher realm.
- The same pamphlet, quoted in Shimazono 1995, p. 396, quoted in Walliss 2004, p. 173,

The Initiation of Blood comes from a secret Tantric rite wherein the blood of the guru is taken into one's own body. The introduction of the guru's internal tissue implies the introduction of the guru's holy karma, and hastens progress in purifying one's own karma, thus elevating one's practice...
- Jintsuriki, 1988, quoted in Shimazono 1995, p. 405,

From this day, from this moment on you'll have to dedicate yourselves to even stricter practice, and quickly raise yourselves to the stage where you are prepared for death at any time.
- Mahayana, volume 31, 1990, pages 51–54, quoted in Shimazono 1995, p. 40

I believe that the Guru is the only person who can lead us to the state of absolute freedom, absolute happiness, absolute joy. I believe that everything in this world is transient. Only the Guru's love is real, and I would like to be able to respond to the Guru's love even a little bit. That singular, perfect existence is our ultimate aim.
- Aum member Aoyama Yoshinobu, Mahayana, 1990, quoted in Shimazono 1995, p. 405,

The new organization will not have a guru, and the position of founder Asahara will be confined to the subject of meditation. Since he will be regarded only as a spiritual existence, he will not be in the position to give orders to the followers. We define Lord Shiva and Buddhas as the fundamental subjects of our adoration. In our context, a guru means an interpreter of scriptures. There have been a lot of gurus in the past and we do not define guru as the unique and absolute being.
- Outlook on the AUM-related Incidents annd Outline of Drastic Reform, January 2000, quoted in Walliss 2004, p. 198

Even if I should begin to doubt, that is earthly desire. My doubts are illusions caused by earthly desire. My doubts are illusions caused by earthly desite. I will thus shut off those doubts. I will thus shut off those doubts. What should I do when I can't shut them off? Then I should just leave them alone. If there comes a time when I'm captured by such doubts then I should chant the mantra repeatedly and perform memory training. I'm going to train my memory for the truth! I'm going to train my memory for the truth!
- Aum training passage, quoted in Shimazono 1995, p. 410