“Where understanding fails, fear takes root. And where fear thrives, truth must speak.”
It’s a strange thing to be called a “cult.” Not because it hurts (though it can), and not because it’s true (because it isn’t), but because the word itself has become a kind of modern spell, cast quickly, used often, and rarely examined. Say it loud enough, and critical thinking shuts down. Say it online, and the echo chamber does the rest. So let’s pause the panic and take a breath. This is the moment where we reclaim the conversation, not with defensiveness or spin, but with the deeper clarity that has always defined our Work.
What Does “Cult” Actually Mean?
The word cult originally meant ‘care’, from the Latin cultus, a reference to reverence, devotion and cultivation. It once described spiritual practice and sacred tending. Over time, the word took on darker connotations like manipulation, control, blind allegiance. Today, it’s mostly used as a slur, an easy, unexamined label for anything different. But often, the word says more about the accuser than the accused….
In a world uncomfortable with genuine spiritual commitment, anything outside the status quo becomes suspicious. Passion, discipline, joy, or transformation that doesn’t align with conventional norms is often branded ‘dangerous.’ The fear of difference becomes accusation. And the accusation becomes ‘fact’ in the court of public opinion.
Consider this – these days, the word cult gets thrown around so freely, it’s almost lost its meaning. In truth, the modern world is full of unconscious cults – the cult of consumerism, the cult of pop culture, the cult of outrage, the cult of the daily news cycle etc… Wherever there’s unexamined allegiance, unquestioned belief, or behaviour driven by fear or belonging rather than conscious choice, cultic energy is present. And yet, these cultural patterns are rarely questioned, because they’re familiar. Ironically, it’s often the ones stepping outside of these patterns who get labelled most harshly, simply because they’ve chosen to live differently.
Interesting consideration isn’t it…
So Let’s Be Clear: Hermes Far Eastern Shining Is Not One oF These Modern Day Cults
Hermes Far Eastern Shining is not a cult. It is not a community. It is not a personality-driven movement. It is not here to convert, control, or convince. Hermes is a company that exists solely to create and share esoteric energy artefacts with the world – tools for spiritual transformation that emerged through a profoundly unique Alchymeic process over 35 years ago. These artefacts are not mass-market products or spiritual gimmicks. They are precise energetic transmissions, created through a rare and sacred communion, intended to support genuine transformation.
Hermes is not an ideology, not a dogma, and not a group. It is a source. What has organically arisen around the Work is a wide, informal network of people – individuals across the globe who have encountered these esoteric tools and found them powerful, meaningful and life-changing. Some of these people have connected. Some live near each other. Some have formed communities of practice and devotion to transformation and awakening. But those communities were never required, structured, or mandated by Hermes Far Eastern Shining. They simply happened, as real transformation often does.
Likewise, it isn’t at all necessary for anyone who is interested in experiencing the esoteric Energies of Hermes Far Eastern Shining, to join any group. These esoteric tools are free to use by anyone – they are ‘non-denominational’ and will function and support anyone with a genuine interest in self-transformation and awakening – no cult required.
So What Is This Work?
The artefacts created by Hermes are Alchymeic in nature, meaning they do not rely on belief, persuasion, or external authority. They are energetic forms that carry a living current of transformation. Their purpose is to help dissolve egoic fixation, transcend karmic limitation and reveal the radiant Presence of the Divine. The principle behind them is this:
No person, path or method has power over the Divine. But where there is real receptivity, the Divine will use whatever forms It can.
This is the basis of the Work. Not belief. Not cultish control. But liberation and real freedom – the recognition that Divine Reality is Prior to everything and cannot be touched by any ideology, personality, or cosmic force.
Why the “Cult” Label Emerged – and What It Reveals
Yes, the word “cult” has been used to describe this Work. And if you’re here because of something you read online, welcome. You’re not alone.
Like many genuine spiritual movements throughout history, Hermes has been misunderstood. Media misrepresentation, sensationalism and suspicion of anything sacred or non-ordinary have followed us for years. We’ve watched how easily mystery and silence are mistaken for secrecy and threat. But beneath all of it is often a deeper fear, not of Hermes itself, but of what it represents: that there might truly be something more than what we’ve been told.
Let us be clear:
– There is no charismatic leader demanding allegiance
– There is no doctrine requiring belief
– There is no coercion, dependency, or closed system.
What there is, is a body of esoteric energy tools and people who have freely chosen to work with them in their own way. This way of life is self-authenticating. There is no group you need to join. Nothing to ‘sign up’ for. Just you, your transformation and the unfolding recognition of the Divine as your True Nature.
What You’ll Find If You Look Deeper
If you visit those who have chosen to live near each other and engage this Work more deeply, you won’t find control. You’ll find freedom. You’ll see people doing the Work, not preaching it. You’ll find gardens, animals, music, art, laughter, mess, depth, children, intensity – all the beautiful contradictions of a spiritual life lived in reality, not in doctrine. But that’s the point of the Alchymie – to help awaken beings ‘in place’, right where they are, within the ordinary circumstances of life. No need to go to India, join an ashram or escape the demands of ordinary day to day functioning. It IS possible to awaken to profound spiritual insight right where you are…
There is nothing binding about this process. The only request is sincerity about the process – an availability to change and growth. The only authority is the Divine. And yes, that kind of freedom can feel threatening to those who are bound by the ‘ordinary conventional’ mindset. But that doesn’t make those who chose to gather us a cult. It makes them rare. And that should be respected, not shunned.
If You’ve Called Hermes Far Eastern Shining a Cult…
We invite you to look again, at the products, and the teaching that goes along with them. And if you’re curious but cautious, welcome. Take your time. We are not here to avoid scrutiny. But we are here to ask deeper questions of humanity. What if the word cult is being used to distract from something far more important? What if what’s being rejected isn’t a group… but the possibility of awakening to the Divine Reality? What if what scares us isn’t the ‘other,’ but the possibility that the mystery is real? These are the questions worth asking. This is the invitation.
Let’s stop casting spells with words. Let’s talk about what actually matters. Let’s talk about the Real.
