Self-help guru arrested in Arizona sweat lodge deaths

LA Times ^ | 2.4.10 | By Kate Linthicum and DeeDee Correll

[DBCJR]

Reporting from Los Angeles and Denver - Self-help guru James Arthur Ray was arrested Wednesday and charged with three counts of manslaughter in connection with an Arizona sweat lodge ceremony that left three people dead in October.

...

The charges are linked to the last day of Ray's five-day $9,695-a-person "Spiritual Warrior" retreat near Sedona, where he assembled about 50 people in a makeshift, sauna-like sweat lodge for about two hours.

When it was over, three people were dying. Eighteen others suffered burns, dehydration, respiratory arrest or kidney failure.

...

Ray said he used the sweat lodge to show people they can gain strength and confidence by mastering physical discomfort. He had rented space at the Angel Valley Retreat Center several times over the last seven years for similar retreats.

For the "Spiritual Warrior" retreat, he promised to teach techniques that he says he "searched out in the mountains of Peru [and] the jungles of the Amazon."

[DBCJR]

Ray stole an ancient sacred practice for personal gain. The result is 3 people died and watch that this centuries old ceremony is not made legally liable for Native Americans.

[outlawjake]

wow.. that is horrible.. must be an awful way to go..

[DBCJR]

I did one sweat lodge conducted by Cheyenne. There were maybe 10-12 people to start. They took breaks and people were encouraged to not go back in if they felt badly. This guy didn’t do those things.

[LibWhacker]

Brian said his client is "devastated" by the deaths. "This was a tragic accident. No one, including Mr. Ray, could have possibly foreseen consequences anything like this.

BS. I could've forseen it in my sleep. If the idiot's never heard of heat stroke, he's too damned dumb to be free. Lock him up in solitary confinement for the rest of his life before the stupid SOB hurts someone else.

[sig226]

These guys are con men, nothing more. Good riddance.