The Messiah Delusion, From believing in my own divinity to exploring the power of belief and hypnosis.
For a significant part of my life, I was convinced I was the Christ of this era. Raised in a prominent religious cult, I was taught from childhood that I was born of immaculate conception and that my mother was Mary. It wasn’t a personal delusion but what later was diagnosed as a transferred delusional disorder by a psychologist. When I turned 18, I left the family cult and began to adjust to reality. Yet, an old friend encouraged me to embrace my role, leading me to gather followers and continue the charade.
For five years, I lived as Christ, combining my deep religious beliefs with strong people skills and a knowledge of hypnosis and magic. To me, these methods were justified, believing that biblical Jesus used similar techniques. I thought I had a direct line to God, receiving daily guidance and performing what I considered miracles through both divine intervention and my own abilities. Despite skepticism from some, many believed in the miracles I performed.
Eventually, as I came to terms with reality and witnessed the decline and imprisonment of my family members, my delusion began to unravel. I lost faith in any messianic figures and became a skeptic and atheist. It took another 3-5 years to fully discard the remnants of this belief. Today, I am an atheist, a passionate teacher and director, and an effective hypnotist, with a keen interest in human cognitive fallibility and belief systems.
