Sunday, Aug. 16, 5 a.m. The faithful arrived on the shores of the Atlantic. At Sagaponack Beach on Long Island, N.Y., they spread their blankets, then sat down, crossed their legs, closed their eyes, lifted palms upward and waited intently for the sunrise. With the first blush of light across the horizon, the throng unleashed a high-velocity "oommm" that rivaled a swarm of yellow jackets.
The same morning, at an Indian burial site in Cartersville, Ga., 75 believers gathered. They sat in small groups and burned incense and sage. One man produced a tortoiseshell on which he arranged some amethysts. As...