Scientology is in part derived from, and shares elements with, a number of esoteric or occult systems. The extent of the influence of specific occult belief systems on Scientology is a subject of debate amongst scholars.
Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard claimed to have had a near-death experience in 1938 that inspired him to write Excalibur, an unpublished manuscript based on the revelations from the experience. In 1945–46, Hubbard was involved with and defrauded Jack Parsons, an American rocketry pioneer who was also a devoted Thelemite and member of the Agape Lodge of Aleister Crowley's magical order, Ordo Templi Orientis, in Pasadena, California. In 1950, Hubbard published Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health, and in 1953 he organized the Church of Scientology.
Hugh B. Urban, a scholar on religion who has written much about Scientology, writes that while some writers, such as Jon Atack, assert that Crowley's ideas on magic are at the core of Scientology, others, including Roy Wallis and J. Gordon Melton, have dismissed the connection between occultism and the Church. He argues further that the occult elements are combined with concepts in Eastern religions, science fiction, popular psychology and Hubbard's own thoughts, while confirming that there is one element that is related to the occult in the religion.
Hubbard's early interest in the occult
Hubbard's eldest son, Ronald DeWolf, related a story that L. Ron Hubbard had "first discovered Magick" at the age of sixteen when he read Aleister Crowley's The Book of the Law. Author Jon Atack reports that Hubbard joined the Rosicrucian order Ancient and Mystical Order Rosae Crucis (AMORC) in 1940, completing the first two neophyte degrees. According to Atack, Hubbard's membership lapsed on July 5, 1940. Although the details are not known to the public, it appears as though Hubbard was sued by AMORC for breach of contract after the advent of Scientology, with AMORC arguing that the terms within Hubbard's contract stated that he would not re-sell or distribute what he had learned within their order; and that he had indeed done so.
Near-death experience and Excalibur
In April 1938, Hubbard reportedly had a bad reaction to a drug during a dental procedure. According to his account, this caused a near-death experience. Allegedly inspired by this experience, Hubbard composed a manuscript, which was never published, with working titles of "The One Command" or Excalibur. The contents of Excalibur formed the basis for some of his later publications.
Arthur J. Burks, who read the work in 1938, later recalled it discussed the "one command": to survive, a theme that Hubbard revisited in Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health. Burks also recalled that the work discussed the psychology of a lynch mob. Hubbard cited Excalibur as an early version of Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health.
Aleister Crowley's magical order
In August 1945 Hubbard moved into the Pasadena mansion of John "Jack" Whiteside Parsons, an avid occultist and Thelemite, follower of the English ceremonial magician Aleister Crowley and leader of a lodge of Crowley's magical order, Ordo Templi Orientis (OTO). Parsons and Hubbard collaborated on the "Babalon Working", a sex magic ritual intended to summon an incarnation of Babalon, the supreme Thelemite Goddess.
In 1969, The Sunday Times published an exposé by Australian journalist Alex Mitchell detailing Hubbard's experiences with Parsons and the OTO.
Hubbard's experience with hypnosis
Hubbard was known to his associates in the late 1940s as a talented hypnotist. During this period, he worked in Hollywood posing as a swami. The Church says that Hubbard's experience with hypnosis led to his discovery of the principles of Dianetics as a technique for solving man's problems.
Affirmations
The "Affirmations" is a document purportedly written by Hubbard in the late 1940s, a few years before he established Dianetics (1950) or Scientology (1952). The Affirmations appear to have been intended to be used as a form of self-hypnosis.
Many suggestions encourage Hubbard to believe in his own occult powers: "That I believe in my gods and spiritual things." "That my magical work is powerful and effective." "You are psychic."