Damanhur Inside Out

Former Damanhurians on the outside talk about life on the inside

Chapter 4: The secret of the Viaggio

with 8 comments

The alchemist returns from a magic journey“I think of myself as more of an alchemist than a painter”

Oberto Airaudi in an interview with VBS TV 2009


The ‘Viaggio’ is a vitally important aspect of Damanhurian life and it is run by the ‘Game of Life’ one of Damanhur’s four organizing bodies. Selected citizens are invited to join Oberto Airaudi – Falco – on magic journeys, traveling with him in one of Damanhur’s three motor homes (Airaudi always uses his personal camper, the most recent having cost one million Euro). The ‘Viaggio’ convoy carrying a small group of Damanhurians leaves Damanhur on Saturday afternoons and returns mostly, though not always, on Monday morning. Sometimes the Viaggio is away for weeks or months and citizens travel by car to rendezvous with it. To participate in the Viaggio citizens are required to bring just three days change of clothes and leave their work, Family-Nucleo and children behind without telling anyone that they are leaving (This is so that the magic journey will not be visible to the ‘Enemy’). They do not know when they will return and are not allowed to contact anyone at home while they are away. People just mysteriously disappear and no one knows where they are.

According to Damanhurian tradition, the Viaggio is used for conducting magic, alchemical and esoteric research. It is designed to take citizens out of their normal surroundings on a magical journey of inner transformation. Citizens are strictly forbidden to disclose what happens during the Viaggio to their fellow Damanhurians, with the excuse that it could spoil the experience for others. This secrecy shrouds the whole event in great mystery and the Damanhurians chosen by Airaudi to accompany him on his ‘magic’ journeys feel part of an elite group.

But the truth of the matter is less than magical for the many naïve and attractive young women who are called to go in Viaggio. Airaudi uses the secrecy of the Viaggio to conceal the fact that he has sexual relations with his female adepts. The women, (all over 18 and consenting adults), are led to believe that the sex act is part of an alchemical process or a vital element of esoteric research. Many women become sexually involved with Airaudi because he tells them that they alone have the unique characteristics required for a particular magic operation. At the beginning, they are unaware that they are just one of the many women with whom he has had sexual intercourse over the years: (more than 40% of the Damanhurian female population). Some of the women actually fall in love with him, especially if they are vulnerable, have lost a relative, are going through a divorce or facing a life crisis of some kind. He always encourages his women to leave their partners and enter one of the celibate paths in Damanhur’s ‘Via Spirituale’ – The ‘Way of the Oracle’, or the ‘Way of the Monks’, in order to maintain a close and privileged relationship with him. It is noticeable that the women who have sexual relations with Airaudi whether on a short or long term basis all remain very loyal to him, some travel with the Viaggio regularly for many years.

Airaudi uses his sexual relationships with the women to divide and rule: depriving Damanhurian men of their power, and intervening in couples to prevent the formation of strong emotional bonds. He often criticizes citizens for making their romantic relationships a higher priority than their commitment to Damanhur. He also publicly expresses his disapproval of Damanhurians who do not exercise control over their sexual energy, urging everyone to conserve it for their spiritual path. He, however, does exactly the opposite. Airaudi insists that alchemical or magic sex requires intercourse without protection and over the years many Viaggio women have become pregnant by Airaudi, some have had to resort to abortions. Airaudi’s sex magic is also known to cause medical side effects in the form of a variety of sexually transmitted diseases, which on occasions have assumed epidemic proportions among his women.

And how do Damanhurian men react to this situation? For the most part, they suffer from intense inner conflict: divided between their loyalty to their spiritual master and their grief over losing their partner. Many are aware that he has intercourse with their wives and girlfriends when he pleases, inside and outside of the context of the Viaggio but are powerless to do anything about it. Protests are met with indifference and nobody wants to talk about the problem. Those who make threats against him or are seen to endanger his reputation are quietly advised by the controlling authorities to deal with their disruptive emotions or leave the community. One Damanhurian attempted suicide when he discovered that Airaudi had been having sex with his pregnant wife. After the child was born the couple separated and she entered a celibate path. The woman has remained faithful to Airaudi for the last 17 years and still occasionally goes in Viaggio.

Airaudi is known to have had intercourse with both mother and daughter of the same family and even women who are sisters. This often creates intense rivalry between the women and emotional distress at all levels of family life. He has always preferred young and attractive women in their early twenties and is now reaping the magic and energetic benefits of sex with the daughters of Damanhur’s founding generation.

Scelta

Posted  29/02/2009 to the  Damanhur forum of   www.cesap.net under the title ‘Il Secreto del Viaggio’

Photo: Courtesy of the deleted yahoo group Damanhurusa-reloaded


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Ref:  The Secret of the Viaggio

I have had confirmation of these journeys and that it is the most ambitious and willing women who are the most present. It is as if they want to confirm a free choice without realizing that they have been chosen, just as they do not realize that every decision they make has already been a decision. Anyway, Airaudi also travels around in a smaller camper to go and see other lover adepts in the various Centers all over Italy.

Giorgiosan

Posted  08/05/2008 22:06 to the forum ‘Noi e le sette’ of www.focus.it under the title ‘Damanhur –Il Secreto del Viaggio’.

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Ref:  The Secret of the Viaggio

It’s all absolutely true….unfortunately, bitter and appalling disappointment.

Cursed hypnosis, rather than ambition and then when you realize, you are subjected to blackmail, humiliation, mobbing and if things don’t go well you are filled full of psychotropic drugs.

Warmly recommended psychotropic drugs …obviously

Petra Frattoni

Posted  12/11/2008 23:25 to the forum ‘Noi e le sette’ of www.focus.it under the title ‘Damanhur –Il Secreto del Viaggio’.


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‘The Secret of the Viaggio’ has also appeared in the anti-damanhur group of Facebook under the title: ‘Falco, his camper and the wives of the Damanhurians’. Below is a series of recent posts from the discussion board on this topic.

DIO Editor

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Ref: Falco, his camper and the wives of the Damanhurians

Disconcerting!

But this source of information where does it come from? Is it trustworthy?

Is it possible that no authority can do anything to stop this psychopathic rapist?

Personally if I had the means to do it I would have him physically castrated, (ZAAAGGGG) who knows perhaps that type of chastity could really help him grow spiritually?

Ciccio Provolone

Posted  05/08/2009 17:53 to the anti-Damanhur group of www.facebook.com under the title ‘Falco, il suo camper e le mogli dei damanhuriani’.

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Ref: Falco, his camper and the wives of the Damanhurians

Dear Ciccio

The information is very trustworthy. Everyone at Damanhur knows about it. He is not a rapist, because as is reported the women who go with him are induced to be consciously willing. There is no force, just brainwashing. It is ugly to say so but that is how it is. There is little they can do about it for a series of motives which are rather difficult to explain. Very few of the women who have had ‘relations’ with him have ever left Damanhur. The others are still there hanging on his every word, waiting for a sign in order to have the ‘privilege’ of going with him, to contribute to those ‘alchemical conditions’ that only he has ever understood. Others have been used and cast aside because he no longer finds them interesting or because they have become too old. He had a relationship with a young woman of eighteen, and then when the poor unfortunate creature fell in love with a boy of her own age she suffered the ostracism of those she lived with because Falco angrily distanced himself from her. This unfortunately is the sad reality of the situation. If you want to know more….

Ludovica Peretti

Posted  08/08/2009 16:37 to the anti-Damanhur group of www.facebook.com under the title ‘Falco, il suo camper e le mogli dei damanhuriani’.

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Ref: Falco, his camper and the wives of the Damanhurians

Yes, I would like to know more and in greater detail, excuse me but how do you know all this information, and do you think someone would be willing to testify publicly about their experiences?

Ciccio Provolone

Posted  21/08/2009 14:49 to the anti-Damanhur group of www.facebook.com under the title ‘Falco, il suo camper e le mogli dei damanhuriani’.

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Ref: Falco, his camper and the wives of the Damanhurians

There’s lots I could say but I do not think it matters, at least not on this site. I believe that more than one person could testify even though the fact of maintaining your anonymity guarantees you against any eventual repercussions. They can denounce you even though they hardly ever win their law suits and when they do they publicize them all over the world. And from what I have heard they do not limit themselves to denouncements. As far as the citizens are concerned, for obvious reasons they would never dream of confirming such information.

Tell me what you want to know and if I can help I will.

Ludovica Peretti

Posted 01/09/2009  14.00 to the discussion board of the anti-damanhur group of Facebook under the title ‘Falco, il suo camper e le moglie dei damanhuriani’.

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Ref: Falco, his camper and the wives of the Damanhurians

Well there wasn’t anything in particular, but knowing about all those contradictions that you find in cults and then perhaps knowing about those things that Mr. Airaudi doesn’t say publicly but for sure tells his most devoted and faithful followers.

And then, I know it is difficult but if there was a really strong testimony it could be put on YouTube masking the face and perhaps the voice too!

Ciccio Provolone

Posted  01/09/2009  18.00 to the discussion board of the anti-damanhur group of Facebook under the title ‘Falco, il suo camper e le moglie dei damanhuriani’.

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Ref: Falco, his camper and the wives of the Damanhurians

*There are an enormous amount of things it would be impossible to talk about them all. The greatest contradiction is the Community itself. Beginning with those who do not practice what they preach. From the leader who tells you what you have to do, how you have to behave, how you have to use sex, which he poetically calls ‘vital energy’. Sure no one forces you but try entering the Community and doing the opposite of what you are asked, or even just one thing. Try it. You will be excluded by everyone and all the moral repercussions will begin.  Try not fasting when you are asked to, you will have to do extra hours of work as behavioral ‘correction’ even though no one uses that term there. Try not doing your Meditation School exercises and declaring you have not done so, you would be expelled or there would be even more hours of work to do.

There is a hierarchical structure or what He likes to call the pyramid; which has him at the top followed by his chosen workers. We are talking about the various entities that manage the lives of the citizens.

He is the unquestioned head. Everything that he does and says is good and just. At the beginning, around thirty years ago he said that people would become rich, that they would be able to work very little and have lots of time to study. His great dream was his personal one. The others are just servants who feed his dreams of glory. He made us believe that he had supernatural powers. But it is absolutely not true. I never saw anything.

A little while ago, perhaps two years back, he got into trouble with the law. Also on that occasion, it just so happened that nothing was ever said publicly

The authorities found a human bone at his house but the citizens were never told this story. His collaborators held a public evening confusing everyone and saying that what had been found (not explaining exactly what) was the result of his journeys in time (hardly believable no?) and that the citizens of the Community would be able to understand, for others it was incomprehensible. The biggest problem was that everyone leapt to his defense without even knowing why. It was just the same with the story of the tax evasion.

There’s so much to tell dear Ciccio, more than you could ever want.

As far as the testimonies are concerned, don’t worry, there are other ways and they will surely be found.

Ludovica Peretti

Posted 01/09/2009 19.00 to the discussion board of the anti-damanhur group of Facebook under the title ‘Falco, il suo camper e le moglie dei damanhuriani’.

* This post has since been removed  from the Facebook discussion board of the club anti- damanhur group by its author, Ludovica Peretti.

Dio Editor

Written by damanhurinsideout

May 25, 2009 at 4:50 pm

8 Responses

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  1. […] […]

    Damanhur

    June 23, 2009 at 10:40 am

  2. Well, i was at Damanhur for about 2 months.
    Found litle brain washing in it, unless indeed, a person is so trully empty of self knowledge that desires to take the aspects that exist in that community like a newborn baby does to milk.

    I was has a guest and so perhaps there is much that i do not know. Obviously. Must admit that it never came to my attention all this information about Oberto and his many “wives”.
    Never while i was there, did i ever hear about that info. And i heard about alot of info! From Time Machines to alien experience swaps(for a week, an alien presense would be with you in your mind, and then, vice versa upon that aliens mind in hisor hers, or ITS home planet. Dont ask me if its true!!! But sounds great!!!Until the alien starts wanting to take control of your willy!!! HAHAH! joking! im sure such never happened:)…er….probably!!!:) ) and etc etc of other things.

    I met him personally. Oberto. He is a small midle aged man. Rcih, does painting and has a helicopter. If he got rich with damanhur or was allready rich, i dunno.
    I will admit though, that i recognized something in him. Within his blue eyes, from a distant past of my incarnations(no idea where, what, how or whatever, but there it was. I sensed it was not negative, or i would feel hatred for the man immeadly). This is info that is quite useless to all readers, but, there it is. Hence, i can say that at least, the feeling i got from what i know of him, was, benign. Real or not.
    Interestingly enough though i am awhere how easy it is to manipulate people. All you need to do is act(not wanting to comment on other actions that work upon the information field of a human beings brain wave and DNA field…er…and other things i know nothing of), believe in your own lies/truth and others will come to do the same…etc etc.

    If he has any kind of special coercing mental ability, i did not detect that from him(probably becuase i was no one of influence…?). I talked with him briefly and must admit that, there was a certain tension from my side, although, that may be because i was nervous. Regardless, for sure it did not make me want to “kiss his feet” or some such nonsense. Actually i would want to talk more with him about what ever is going on in Damanhur and its supposed eco community plans. Looked incomplete in many ways. Like i said, much there is to know about them. Good, and, also, the bad…or so it seems.

    Will have to admit that some people there had indeed, strange vibs. Specially some women…Know not the reasons, but, met 2 at least that had much tension under and behind their eyes. Agressive tension. One of Sex energy and another of guile. But, there where also other women that had not such,this easely perceiveble negative tension. Well,in their defense, i suppose it could have been something that belongs to some event that happened to them that day, and left them fuming. Maybe it was the “moon week”:) :) Maybe not. Just a comment anyway.

    Did not stay there because the whole citizen A and B crap was totally geared torwards money. So, that is and never will be my choice. But, i know of others that wanted the C and D. THe least in any economical responsability. Actually, any resposibility to them. I am none of them, neither C nor D. But, will admit that while i was guest there, staying at Nucleo Tin and working there in the forest grounds, i met some very loveable people. Specially an old lady called Megatara(whale in italian). A very astute lady:) Ended up working also for a small construction company there, for a few weaks, and yes, they paid me. Not much, 5 euros an hour, but, when i left, the people at the place i was where actually concerned if i had enough money. They gave me clothes and boots also. Must admit that it felt like family:) No one spoon forced anything on me, and mind you, neither did i! For at times, i can be quite a preacher!! AH :P :P :P :P Im 30 years old but can talk yer ear off:P Specialy about the Toltec path(a litle bit:P), and, lately, of Kryon:)

    Anyway, interesting info and i will pop there again, eventually, to try and sense this info. And ask a few questions to some people that i know there. IT is indeed a suprise to me, this info.
    If it is true, well, i guess something will have to be done:)

    Jorge

    January 23, 2010 at 10:23 pm

    • Ciao Jorge

      Thanks for your comment

      As a guest you are very unlikely to hear about the true nature of the Viaggio.

      Only those who go in Viaggio know its secret. There are many Damanhurians, especially new citizens who have no idea what really goes on. But if you are a young and attractive female citizen you can be sure that Airaudi will eventually invite you to join one of his magic journeys.

      Damanhur does not spoon feed or preach to potential recruits it ‘seduces’. That way you do not notice what is happening to you and any subsequent decisions you make, you ‘believe’ are your own.

      It is good to hear you were treated well …but then guests usually are…Tourism is essential to the Damanhurian economy. They want you to come back and bring you friends. If you haven’t fallen for it perhaps your friends will!

      It is interesting to note that you ‘worked’ for a few weeks for the ‘small construction company’ at 5 euros an hour…paid in cash no doubt. That kind of working arrangement is illegal in Italy because it provides no protection for workers. That company can be heavily fined by the courts.

      Damanhur has always considered itself ‘above the law’ of the State that hosts it.

      Take note.

      DIO Editor

      damanhurinsideout

      January 24, 2010 at 1:43 pm

  3. Thank you for the information.

    I am interesting in experiencing Europe via self-sufficient, spiritually based, communities and peoples. Coming from a community of this kind, I did have doubts about Damanhur which drove me to research other perspectives.

    You have affected my life choices in a positive way and I thank you

    Beacon

    December 13, 2010 at 9:13 pm

    • Dear Beacon

      Thank you for your comment ..it is good to know that this site is actually helping people avoid disaster…
      Good luck. I hope you find what you are looking for.

      DIO Editor

      damanhurinsideout

      December 20, 2010 at 12:37 pm

      • I was considering apllying for the 3 month citizenship, but I am really reconsidering this now…
        it’s increadible the difference there is between this site and the official web site of danahmur…
        I’m glad I found this site, thank you for this informations!

        hannah

        January 6, 2012 at 1:40 am

      • Hi Hannah

        You came to the right place …Damanhurian propaganda is legendary ..it can even persuade Judges and Politicians …once you are in Damanhur you begin to see through it…but it takes a while and by then you have usually handed over all your cash…

        It’s always wise to do RESEARCH on alternative groups before you join them…Thank you for your comment it’s good to know that the site is still helping people.

        DIO Editor

        damanhurinsideout

        January 7, 2012 at 6:08 pm

  4. Well, unfortunately I am not surprised, by what I have read on this web site. Although it would not stop me from visiting. I can also talk your ear off about things “esoteric”. I have a friend who is putting a great deal of energy into the community at the moment and my (selfish) concerns would be for that person’s emotional well being, My other concerns would be for the world as a whole: magick or no magick, every time some charlatan dupes a bunch of innocent people there are all kinds of repercussions from other spiritual seekers losing faith in anything at all due to the accumulation of frauds perpetuated by these imposters, to what if it actually works and one being (who may be guilty of unbelievable hubris [in the classical sense]) is the sole beneficiary of all this psychic energy and has ill intentions (the worst of it can only come back on him in this life if not the next).
    Here I will paraphrase the words of a world renowned Spiritual Master:Before choosing a master or guru one should investigate this person thoroughly, through his students, acquaintances, benefactors, and detractors. One should also listen to the potential master’s teaches over a period of time, with an open heart and an open mind, while maintaining a critical eye for inconsistencies and never accepting that something is beyond one’s comprehension at a given stage (if this is the case the master has made a grave error in even making the student aware that such knowledge exists). One should also investigate the Tradition from which the master received his teachings and confirm that the teacher is in fact part of an unbroken line of disciplic succession (this is difficult with Western Hermeticism because it has morphed many times in the last millennium and knowledge was often conveyed by the written word instead of oral tradition, imagine trying to form a College of Meditation during The Inquisition!)
    In all altruistic honesty, the spiritual question bothers me the most! We have enough phony prophets and gurus, an incredible amount of energy (people’s life force) has gone into building this, something grand and magnificent by all accounts. It would be a great shame if all of that energy were allowed to dissipate into entropy because of the corruption of its founder. The same person I paraphrased above has also commented on this: “Many revolutionaries start with excellent ideals and goals, but once they have toppled the oppressor they themselves, by way of arrogance [become tyrants].” I hesitate to name this person because I do not want to be seen as endorsing one path over another. So, as I have seen others comment “Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater!”
    As for the monetary question and working “in the black” as you put it in the States that’s called “working under the table.” Big deal 90% of the work I have done in my life has taken that form, I don’t want a single penny of my money spent on another bomb or bullet no matter what! But then again, you who had devoted yourselves to accumulating money robbed yourselves before you got to Damanhur. You wasted your time accumulating scraps of paper in an unsustainable economy. Now you feel duped, with some justification if your Spiritual Master is a charlatan, although, as rational Awakened Beings and Spiritual Seekers, should have investigated as stated above– it being your responsibility to your own Growth. Get over the money! Forget it. I try not to own any more than 50lbs of material so that I can be ready to leave to the other side of the world in an hour. How can I do it without money? I Manifest it! I am 36 years old, I began my studies of esoterica and arcana in university libraries and performed ritual magick in secret when I was in my VERY early teens. Later, the day after I turned 18 I hitch hiked across the United States with $40 in my pocket, in my early days of wandering I made sure that I had nothing of any material value left every night before I went to bed (beyond my clothes and other such ‘rags’).
    Today I find myself still seeking while having suffered many disappointments because of the rigor I apply to potential Paths and Masters (the Master whom I respect has many other responsibilities without taking on a novice personal disciple), but I endure. Do I have money? Barely. Bank accounts? No. Credit cards? No. Own a home? No. Own a car? No. I own 6 shirts,2 pairs of pants, a back pack, a netbook computer, wireless hot spot, a cell phone, and a small collection of books that I have started in the last 10 months (I have several caches scattered about) and will walk away from eventually, maybe tomorrow (i couldn’t say for sure). Still this is much more than what I would have if I were an initiate in most monastic traditions, a renunciate has nothing, owns nothing, and desires nothing: not even the Liberation or Enlightenment which is the culmination of any Spiritual Path should be a desire or attachment. But that is not for everyone, I am certainly not ready for it, as I have yet to even find a Master.
    I guess this is more than my 2 cents call it a nickle. Don’t give up hope in spirituality, if Falco is the REAL problem then time will take care of it and those who are True Guardians of the Light will have a chance to set things right.

    wanderlust

    October 13, 2012 at 1:24 pm


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