Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2009
| Subscribe to Newser's RSS feeds RSS | Follow Newser on Twitter Twitter


10

Guru at Sweat Lodge That Killed 2: 'I'm Being Tested'

James Arthur Ray says he has hired investigators to probe incident

Share

(Newser) – The self-help guru who ran a spiritual retreat where two people died during a sweat lodge ceremony last week says he is "being tested" by the tragedy. James Arthur Ray told a seminar audience that he is "frustrated and confused" and has hired his own investigators to find out what went wrong. 'This is the most difficult time I've ever faced," he said, breaking down in tears. "I don't know how to deal with it really."

Nineteen people from Ray's "Spiritual Warrior" retreat in Arizona were hospitalized after the incident and one remains in a coma. A cousin of one of the dead called upon Ray to prove that participants "were not mistreated and not put in a reckless situation," adding that he suspected Ray of exhibiting a "godlike complex" that may have dissuaded people from opting out of dangerous activities.

Investigators say the
Investigators say the "sweat lodge" structure at the Angel Valley Retreat Center in Sedona, Ariz. did not have a building permit.   (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
This undated photo provided by the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office shows a
This undated photo provided by the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office shows a "sweatbox" structure at Angel Valley resort in Sedona, Ariz.   (AP Photo/Yavapai County Sheriff's Office)
Ray declined to discuss what exactly had happened in the sweat lodge.
Ray declined to discuss what exactly had happened in the sweat lodge.   (YouTube)
A view of the Angel Valley Retreat Center in Sedona, Ariz., where a heart-shaped stone memorial is set up on the site of a sweat lodge tragedy.
A view of the Angel Valley Retreat Center in Sedona, Ariz., where a heart-shaped stone memorial is set up on the site of a sweat lodge tragedy.   (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
OFF THE GRID
11.24.09
Murdoch and Microsoft: The Mice Are Trying to Roar
11.23.09
Books Are Bad for You
10 comments
VIEWING:
 
Fondue
Oct 14, 09 8:08 AM CDT
Ray should have never messed with a culture he knows nothing about. Reply
Vote up! Vote down!
+4
IN RESPONSE:
ultramarine13
Oct 14, 09 7:39 PM CDT
Wow. We actually can agree on something.
Vote up! Vote down!
0
IN RESPONSE:
bewilderbeast
Oct 15, 09 4:28 AM CDT
"Poor me!" He should go on Oprah and tell us how he's "being tested"!! WTF? Tragedy is, he''ll carry on duping suckers.
Vote up! Vote down!
0
gabo
Oct 14, 09 8:35 AM CDT
Poor guy, two are dead, many slowly recovering, and he's being tested. Wow... Reply
Vote up! Vote down!
+3
IN RESPONSE:
Spudsy
Oct 14, 09 1:44 PM CDT
I think he meant to say "I'm being sued for everything I own and more."
Vote up! Vote down!
+1

View all 10 comments »

LEAVE A
COMMENT Comment Policy
Facebook ConnectPost this comment to Facebook?

After connecting you will have the option to post your comment on your Facebook profile.

 

Related Newser Stories

6 Stories

 Guru Twittered About 
 Sweat Lodge Death 

But a source close to James Arthur Ray says this is common imagery

Oct 30, 09 10:31 AM CDT
(Newser) - James Arthur Ray, who yesterday canceled his upcoming appearances to devote all his "physical and emotional energies" to the fallout from the sweat lodge tragedy, talked a lot about death in the days leading up to the ceremony. His Twitter feed was full of posts that have since been... More »

MORE ABOUT:
death • New Age • self-help • deaths • Twitter • James Arthur Ray • sweat lodge • Sedona • Angel Valley Retreat Center

 People Still Signing Up 
 for Guru's Sweat Lodges 

James Arthur Ray is out recruiting, and audiences are buying, despite deaths

Oct 22, 09 5:43 AM CDT
(Newser) - James Arthur Ray has hardly missed a beat since three people died in one of his sweat lodge ceremonies two weeks ago: The self-help guru is back on the road peddling his workshops, and many members of his audience seem unfazed by the deaths. "When you're pushing the limits,... More »

MORE ABOUT:
death • self-help • deaths • James Arthur Ray • sweat lodge • sweat lodge survivor

Survivor: Days of Fasting Before Sweat Lodge Disaster

Self-help guru James Arthur Ray ignored pleas to help those collapsing

Oct 21, 09 7:07 PM CDT
(Newser) - Participants in the fatal Oct. 8 sweat-lodge ceremony had already been through five days of fasting and sleep deprivation, a survivor says—and the self-help guru leading the proceedings saw their gasping, vomiting and fainting as signs of weakness and urged them to push on through it. No charges have... More »

MORE ABOUT:
drugs • alcohol • Arizona • sleep deprivation • fasting • James Arthur Ray • sweat lodge • Sedona • Angel Valley Retreat Center • Beverley Bunn • sweat lodge survivor

6 Stories


US 
TwitterFollow @NewserUS on Twitter

 
Arizona • New Age • ceremony • James Arthur Ray • sweat lodge • sweat lodge survivor

from our news partners

PopEater.com