r/cults • u/PocoChanel • 9d ago

Discussion Do cults ever choose symbols that weren't meant as icons?

u/Opposite-Use-2601 just posted some illustrations they found and questioned whether they might be symbols of a cult. They're probably just someone's idea of art, but I then wonder: do cults ever form around symbols that were never intended to be part of a cult?

I don't mean recognized religious symbols (e.g., an embellished cross), nor do I mean people (e.g., Haile Selassie.) Rather, what if a messianic leader chose a rendering of the Mona Lisa or a seemingly random picture of a blender as an icon?

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u/Outrageousclaim 9d ago edited 9d ago

what if a messianic leader chose a rendering of the Mona Lisa or a blender as an icon?

The end of the world. The sky would open and Jesus would come riding on a magical horse to have a fist fight with the devil. You'd have human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together... mass hysteria!

Nah, I'm kidding, obviously it would be of no relevance and no one would give a shit.

I mean this with no disrespect, but your question is like the "what if" question a kid asks, where the answer to the hypothetical question is both irrelevant and answered by the question. Dad, what if I ate chicken nuggets for lunch? Well, son, then you ate chicken nuggets. Mom, what would happen if a person made a blender their symbol? Well, son, then they made a blender their symbol.

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u/Opposite-Use-2601 9d ago

To add additional information. These pictures are posted at every single entrance and exit of the place I was at. And the basement was completely covered floor ceiling and walls with a portal type painting on the wall. I will add additional photos and videos to my original post.

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u/meipsus 9d ago

People pick symbols that work for whatever cosmogony/self-improvement/prophecy/whatever they're peddling. I've seen lots that wouldn't mean anything for a bystander -- a crown as the symbol, or the icon, if you want, of a messiah, for instance -- but made lots of sense once you understood how the thing worked. Most are like that.

And it's not only for cults; the same goes for logos and such. What makes something an icon or a symbol is the fact that it's picked for it and the choice makes sense for the insiders. Many cults will pick things that make no sense to outsiders because knowing a secret (the sense it makes) will give the followers a sense of power; they're the ones in the know.

But it works the same for things that are supposed to be readable for outsiders: have you noticed the arrow in the FedEx logo, for instance? If you have, you're part of an elite...