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Dianetics was secular, but subsequently Hubbard's "research" discovered the existence of the soul or, in his terminology, the "Thetan," the conscious being that inhabits a human body. Embroidering on Hinduism and Buddhism, Hubbard announced that Thetans are reincarnated over trillions of years, which meant that there were aeons of engrams to be erased. For Scientologists, truth became stranger than science fiction. Hubbard's explanation of why someone might have difficulty crying: he was once a primordial clam whose water ducts had been clogged with sand.
Dianetics, retooled as the religion of Scientology, has since developed most of the accouterments of other faiths—liturgies, clerical collars, but only the vaguest sort of theology. Unconvinced that it was indeed a religion and noting that Hubbard received 10% of all revenues, the Internal Revenue Service in 1959 got the courts to deny Scientology a tax exemption. Later, however, Scientology beat an ill-conceived medical fraud case against E-meters by the Food and Drug Administration, and has won limited recognition as a religion.
Hubbard and his wife had moved to England when, in 1968, Britain banned foreign Scientologists, largely because of the rising number of complaints about Scientology. Among the most questionable practices reported in various countries: the recording of confessions that made members susceptible to blackmail; "disconnect" orders requiring the devout to sever all ties with antagonistic family and friends; "fair game," under which a defector could be "deprived of property or injured by any means . . . sued, lied to or destroyed." The worst practices were dropped, but the sect did not become notably friendlier. "Black p.r." and "noisy investigations" (wellpublicized inquiries into the motives and backgrounds of critics) continue. Hubbard once spoke darkly of handling enemies via "Auditing Process R2-45," meaning a .45 bullet through the head, but this was just a joke, say his followers, and there are no accusations of any such terminal excommunications.
New members of the church are being recruited in most major American cities. They then enter the complex levels of Scientology auditing and training. Brochures offer 12½ hours of "Life Repair," done with E-meter sessions, for $625, and it costs the "preClear" $5,000 or more to reach "Clear," more yet to ascend to "Operating Thetan."