Editing Science of Identity Foundation

{{short description|New religious movement based in Hawaii}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2024}}
{{Infobox organization
| name                     = Science of Identity Foundation
| abbreviation             = SIF
| predecessor              =
| established              =
| founder                  = Chris Butler (aka Siddhaswarupananda Paramahamsa)
| founding_location        = {{nowrap|[[Hawaii]], United States}}
| type                     = [[Religious organization]]; [[501(c)3 organization]]
| tax_id                   = 99-0177647
| status                   = <!-- Organization's legal status and/or description (company, charity, foundation, etc) -->
| purpose                  = [[Education]], [[philanthropy]], [[religious studies]], [[spirituality]] <!-- or: | focus = -->
| headquarters             = [[Honolulu]], Hawaii, United States
| region_served            = Worldwide <!--Any particular region or regions associated with or served by the organization-->
| services                 = [[Yoga]] classes
| website                  = {{Official URL}}
| formerly                 = {{plainlist|
* Hari Nama Society
* Holy Name Society}} <!-- Any former names by which the organization known -->
}}
The '''Science of Identity Foundation''' ('''SIF''') is a [[new religious movement]] started in the 1970s. It was founded by Chris Butler after he broke from the [[International Society for Krishna Consciousness]]. It is based in the [[United States|US]] state of [[Hawaii]].

Its theology professes to combine [[yoga]] with aspects of [[Gaudiya Vaishnavism]]. The followers must observe behavioral guidelines, such as  [[vegetarianism]] and refraining from alcohol. Butler's teachings include [[Islamophobia]] and condemnation of [[homosexuality]].<ref name=WiHo25/><ref name=Go25/> A secretive group, it has come under a great deal of media focus due to the politician [[Tulsi Gabbard]]'s ties to the group.

==History==
Chris Butler ({{b.|1948}}), son of a [[communist]] [[Anti-war movement|anti-war]] activist, had entered the 1960s [[Counterculture of the 1960s|counterculture]] while enrolled at the [[University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa|University of Hawaiʻi]].<ref name="Sanneh" /><ref name=":3" /> Soon, he joined the burgeoning Hare Krishna movement as a [[ISKCON guru system|guru]], with the name Sai Young, and soon acquired disciples.<ref name="Sanneh">{{Cite magazine |last=Sanneh |first=Kelefa |date=October 30, 2017 |title=What Does Tulsi Gabbard Believe? |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/11/06/what-does-tulsi-gabbard-believe |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200607114820/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/11/06/what-does-tulsi-gabbard-believe |archive-date=June 7, 2020 |access-date=January 13, 2019 |magazine=[[The New Yorker]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Wright |first=Walter |date=August 22, 1977 |title=Rebel against power trips. Chris Butler, maverick—with 1,000 followers. Hawaii's other Krishnas. |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/honolulu-star-advertiser-rebel-against-p/159245232/ |access-date=November 17, 2024 |work=Honolulu Star-Advertiser |pages=1}}</ref> Butler joined the [[International Society for Krishna Consciousness]] (ISKCON) and received the name Siddhaswarupananda Paramahamsa.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Han |first=Yoonji |date=October 18, 2022 |title=Tulsi Gabbard's ties to the Science of Identity Foundation, a controversial religious sect that some call an abusive 'cult' |url=https://www.insider.com/tulsi-gabbard-science-of-identity-controversial-religious-sect-2022-10 |url-access=subscription |access-date=May 9, 2023 |website=Insider |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite magazine |last=Howley |first=Kerry |date=June 11, 2019 |title=Tulsi Gabbard Had a Very Strange Childhood |url=https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/06/tulsi-gabbard-2020-presidential-campaign.html |url-access=registration |access-date=May 9, 2023 |magazine=[[New York (magazine)|New York]] |language=en-us}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=McMaster University |last2=Lagace |first2=Marc Lodge Andrew |date=May 2024 |title='Mother of Yoga': Zhang Huilan, Chris Butler, and the Popularization of Yoga in the People's Republic of China |url=https://journalofyogastudies.org/index.php/JoYS/article/view/JoYS.V5.002 |journal=Journal of Yoga Studies |volume=5 |pages=39–67 |doi=10.34000/JoYS.2024.V5.002 |doi-access=free}}</ref> Within a few years, Butler began to deviate from ISKCON's ways, choosing to marry and allowing his disciples to keep their heads unshaved, leading ISKCON founder [[A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada]] to publicly denounce him.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":3" /> After the death of Prabhupada in 1977, Butler broke away from ISKCON and founded SIF, then known as the Hari Nama (lit. Holy Name) Society.<ref name=":0">{{cite encyclopedia |year=2007 |title=Siddhaswarupananda, Jagad Guru |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Hinduism |publisher=Facts On File |location=New York |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OgMmceadQ3gC&dq=%22Science+of+Identity+foundation%22&pg=PA411 |last1=Jones |first1=Constance A. |series=Encyclopedia of World Religions |editor-first=J.. Gordon |editor-last=Melton |editor-link=J. Gordon Melton |pages=411–412 |isbn=978-0-8160-5458-9 |quote=[Butler] remained with ISKCON until after Prabhupada died in 1977. [...] He founded the Science of Identity Foundation as a vehicle to facilitate his teachings. [...] The Science of Identity Foundation (originally the Hari Nama or Holy Name Society) is located in Honolulu, Hawaii. |last2=Ryan |first2=James D.}}</ref> Simultaneously, he began to deemphasize ISKCON's rigid adherence to [[Vaishnavism|Vaishnava]] texts and promoted a range of eclectic views.<ref name="Sanneh" /><ref name=":2" />

In 1976, Butler's disciples launched a new political party, the Independents for Godly Government, presenting themselves as a "multifaith coalition of conservative-minded reformers", and ran candidates for the House of Representatives and mayoral elections; the candidates did not disclose their links with Butler and explicitly claimed to have no affiliation with any religious organization including the Hare Krishna faith.<ref name="Sanneh" /> The party was funded by a variety of businesses, including two local newspapers and a health-food store chain, run by the disciples themselves.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Friedrich |first=Pieter |date=August 1, 2019 |title=How the American Sangh built up Tulsi Gabbard |url=https://caravanmagazine.in/politics/american-sangh-affair-tulsi-gabbard |access-date=October 1, 2024 |website=[[The Caravan]] |language=en}}</ref>

In the 1980s, he ran a late-night television show called ''Chris Butler Speaks'' on [[KITV|Channel 13]].<ref name="butler1982">{{cite news |last=Christensen |first=John |date=November 23, 1982 |title=Chris Butler: About this guru business |newspaper=[[Honolulu Star-Bulletin]] |page=B-1}}</ref> Since the 1990s, Butler has kept a low profile, rarely speaking in public; in 2017, ''[[The New Yorker]]'' reported that Butler presents himself less as a Hare Krishna dissident and more as a member of a worldwide Vaishnava movement.<ref name="Sanneh" /> Butler's wife [[Hui Lan Zhang|Wai Lana]] has received acclaim for popularizing yoga through the ''[[Wai Lana Yoga]]'' show; in 2016, she was conferred with the [[Padma Shri]] award by the [[Government of India]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sarbacker |first=Stuart Ray |title=Tracing the Path of Yoga: The History and Philosophy of Indian Mind-Body Discipline |publisher=[[State University of New York Press]] |year=2021 |isbn=9781438481210}}</ref>

==Theology==
The organization combines the teaching of [[yoga]] with aspects of [[Gaudiya Vaishnavism|Gaudiya Vaishnava]] theology.<ref name=":0" /> The followers should practice [[vegetarianism]] and refrain from [[gambling]], smoking, drinking alcohol, taking drugs or having "illicit sex".<ref name="butler1982" /> While theological basis of [[Gaudiya Vaishnavism]] comes primarily from the ancient Indian texts, ''[[Bhagavad Gita]]'' and ''[[Bhagavata Purana]]'',<ref name="Jiva-Goswami">{{Cite book |last=Dasa |first=Satyanarayana |title=Krishna : a sourcebook |date=2007 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=978-0-19-972431-4 |editor-last=Bryant |editor-first=Edwin |location=Oxford |chapter= 16: The Six Sandarbhas of Jiva Gosvami |oclc=181731713}}</ref> Butler deemphasized the Indian texts, and in 1984 published "Who Are You? Discovering Your Real Identity", which used some examples from science to argue against materialism and asert eternal nature of the self.<ref name="Sanneh" />

Butler's teachings included condemnation of [[homosexuality]],{{refn|name=bigot|<ref name=WiHo25/><ref name=Go25/><ref name="Sanneh" /><ref name=":2" />}} suspicion of [[Islam]],<ref name=WiHo25/> [[Islamophobia]],<ref name=":1"/> and skepticism of science.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last=Hurley |first=Bevan |date=October 16, 2022 |title=Tulsi Gabbard's ties to secretive cult may explain her perplexing political journey |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/tulsi-gabbard-cult-putin-democrat-science-of-identity-b2058196.html |access-date=May 9, 2023 |work=[[The Independent]] |language=en}}</ref> In the 1980s, Butler opposed [[Bisexuality|bisexual]] relations, asserting that these would lead to [[pedophilia]] and [[bestiality]].<ref name="Sanneh" />

Multiple ex-members of SIF have described it as a cult; Butler's status has been characterized as "akin to a god" and not willing to be questioned.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Wiseman |first=Oliver |date=October 29, 2019 |title=Whose side is Tulsi Gabbard on? |url=https://thecritic.co.uk/issues/november-2019/whose-side-is-tulsi-gabbard-on/ |access-date=October 1, 2024 |website=[[The Critic (modern magazine)|The Critic]] |language=en-GB}}</ref> They say Butler regularly mocked his devotees, publicly, calling it "a form of [[Krishna]]'s mercy".<ref name=":3" /> Butler denies these allegations;<ref name="Sanneh" /><ref name=":2" /> and he threatened to sue the ''[[Honolulu Star-Advertiser]]'' when it planned to publish accounts of ex-followers in 2019.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Cocke |first=Sophie |date=January 27, 2019 |title=Chris Butler and Science of Identity Foundation criticize media, decline interviews |url=https://www.staradvertiser.com/2019/01/27/hawaii-news/butler-and-his-organization-criticize-the-press-decline-interviews/ |url-access=subscription |access-date=October 1, 2024 |work=[[Honolulu Star-Advertiser]] |language=en}}</ref>

== Association with Tulsi Gabbard==
SIF has received a great deal of media coverage due to [[Tulsi Gabbard]]'s strong ties with the group.<ref name="Sanneh" /><ref name=NYT2019>{{cite news |last=Bowles |first=Nellie |author-link= Nellie Bowles |title=Tulsi Gabbard Thinks We're Doomed |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=August 2, 2019 |access-date=September 21, 2019 |page=A1 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/02/us/politics/tulsi-gabbard-2020-presidential-race.html |archive-date=September 26, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190926014900/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/02/us/politics/tulsi-gabbard-2020-presidential-race.html}}</ref><ref name=Go25>{{cite magazine |last=Godfrey |first=Elaine |title=What Everyone Gets Wrong About Tulsi Gabbard |magazine=[[The Atlantic]] |date=January 21, 2025 |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2025/01/is-tulsi-gabbard-a-mystery/681398/ |access-date=February 6, 2025}}</ref><ref name="FFO WSJ">{{cite news |last1=Feng |first1=Brett |last2=Forrest |first2=Caitlin |last3=Ostroff |first3=Rebecca |title=As a Rising Political Star, Gabbard Paid to Mask Her Sect's Ties to Alleged Scheme |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |date=January 29, 2025 |url=https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/tulsi-gabbard-science-of-identity-qi-group-ed51c890 |language=en-US |access-date=February 6, 2025}}</ref> Gabbard was raised in the SIF community in Hawaii and considered Butler her mentor.<ref name="GrubeDec24">{{Cite news |last=Grube |first=Nick |date=December 10, 2024 |title=Senators Urged To Examine Gabbard's 'Deep and Intense' Ties To Hawaiʻi Sect |url=https://www.civilbeat.org/2024/12/senators-urged-to-examine-gabbards-deep-and-intense-ties-to-hawaii-sect/ |access-date=December 12, 2024 |work=Honolulu Civil Beat |language=en}}</ref> Her parents, [[Mike Gabbard]]<ref name="Sanneh" /><ref name=":5">{{Cite web |last=Bolante |first=Ronna |date=August 1, 2004 |title=Who is Mike Gabbard? |url=https://www.honolulumagazine.com/who-is-mike-gabbard/ |access-date=October 1, 2024 |website=Honolulu Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Issenberg |first=Sasha |title=The Engagement: America's Quarter-Century Struggle Over Same-Sex Marriage |publisher=[[Knopf Doubleday]] |year=2021 |isbn=9781984898517 |pages=112–114}}</ref> and Carol Gabbard,<ref name=":5" /> are members of SIF.<ref name="FFO WSJ"/><ref name=WiHo25>{{cite news |last1=Williamson |first1=Elizabeth |last2=Homans |first2=Charles |title=Tulsi Gabbard's Unorthodox Path to Trump's Intelligence Team |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=January 27, 2025 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/27/us/politics/tulsi-gabbard-trump-national-intelligence.html |access-date=February 6, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250130023242/https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/27/us/politics/tulsi-gabbard-trump-national-intelligence.html |archive-date=January 30, 2025}}</ref> In 2015, she acknowledged Butler as her guru in a video statement for an [[International Society for Krishna Consciousness|ISKCON]] anniversary event.<ref name="Sanneh" /><ref name=":1" /> Butler has likened her to a star pupil.<ref name="Sanneh" /><ref name = NYT2019/> Gabbard has worked to minimize and hide her relationship to Butler and SIF.<ref name="FFO WSJ"/><ref>{{cite news |last=Lubin |first=Rhian |title=Gabbard 'paid to mask connections' to alleged pyramid scheme tied to her Hindu sect |work=[[The Independent]] |date=January 29, 2025 |url=https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/tulsi-gabbard-senate-hearing-sect-b2688454.html |access-date=February 6, 2025}}</ref><ref name="GrubeDec24" />

==See also==
* [[Qnet]]

== References ==
{{reflist|2}}

== External links ==
* {{official website}}
* {{ProPublicaNonprofitExplorer|990177647}}

{{Portal|Hawaii}}
{{Modern Gaudiya Vaishnavas}}
{{Yoga}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Hindu organizations based in the United States]]
[[Category:Religious organizations based in Hawaii]]
[[Category:Yoga organizations]]
[[Category:Hindu new religious movements]]
[[Category:Religious organizations established in 1977]]
[[Category:1977 establishments in Hawaii]]
[[Category:International Society for Krishna Consciousness]]
[[Category:Gaudiya Vaishnavism]]
[[Category:Hinduism and Islam]]
[[Category:LGBTQ and Hinduism]]
[[Category:Anti-Islam sentiment in the United States]]
[[Category:Homophobia in the United States]]
[[Category:Sects that require vegetarianism]]
[[Category:New religious movements established in the 1970s]]