Going Clear summary

Long before he conjured up Scientology, Hubbard had a vision while under anaesthetics during a dental operation in 1938. After he regained consciousness, he was convinced that the secrets of the universe had been revealed to him.

Afterwards, Hubbard claimed to have had other visions, which would later serve as the basis for Scientology’s belief system. But what exactly did he “see?”

So who exactly was the man behind the creation of Scientology?

Lafayette Ronald Hubbard was born in Nebraska in 1911. Although both his parents were Methodists, Hubbard took a deep interest in magic and shamanism, as well as psychoanalysis.

Dianetics is Hubbard’s theory of the human/thetan mind, armed with a system of techniques aimed at dealing with painful memories that supposedly impede our mental and spiritual progress.

So how exactly does Dianetics work? Let’s use Hubbard’s own experience as an example:

Religion had never been an integral part in the life of L. Ron Hubbard. Sure, he’d been interested in shamanism, had experienced strange visions, but what exactly motivated him to found his own church all of a sudden?

The answer is closely tied to the fate of Dianetics: at first, Dianetics sold well — at least well enough for Hubbard to create six foundations with the purpose of training auditors. But Dianetics suffered from two problems.

Long before Paul Haggis became the renowned director and screenwriter responsible for hits like Crash and Million Dollar Baby, he was approached by a sympathetic young Scientologist who handed him a copy of Dianetics. The two soon became involved in a lively discussion which ultimately led to Haggis’ conversion to Scientology.

But was this animated conversation a chance encounter in which two like-minded people simply clicked? Not quite.

More than any other religion, Scientology has a close relationship with stardom. Many celebrities, for one reason or another, were sympathetic towards Scientology, or even became members. The list of celebrity Scientologists is long and includes such notables as John Travolta, Kirstie Alley, Priscilla Presley, Anne Archer, Juliette Lewis and Tom Cruise.

This is no coincidence; Scientology has always placed great emphasis on recruiting celebrities. Hubbard correctly figured that the best way to establish Scientology’s image as a path to enlightenment would be to recruit captivating public figures, such as film stars.

The Church of Scientology has been involved in some operations that truly sound like they could have come out of a spy novel.

For example, Operation Snow White was a real attempt to gain influence over governments worldwide. Starting in the late 1960s, Hubbard felt that Scientology was facing steadily growing animosity coming from the American and British governments. France, too, was supposedly planning to indict the Church for fraud.

Scientology’s harassment of critics is just the tip of the iceberg. Hubbard himself was violently abusive, verging on maniacal.

Hubbard’s second wife, for example, recounts that Hubbard repeatedly kicked her in the stomach during her pregnancy with the intent to cause a miscarriage. Hubbard’s first son, a child of another mother, relates similar stories of violence.