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@blakestacey wrote:

I think there even is a case to be made about how Frank Herbert is the anti-L. Ron Hubbard, using sci-fi literature as an efficient outlet for his psychedelics/mysticism/ecology/psychosexuality obsession oscilliation and actually leaving a descent literary legacy instead of starting a cult or several, but this post is already running so long it’s starting to need an editor.

I would read that essay.

While I agree with @Amoeba_Girl that not turning into a cult leader and pivoting to full time grifting like L. Ron Hubbard isn't an awfully high bar to clear, it still an interesting parallel, as basically everywhere LRH zigged, FH zagged, despite having ample opportunity, or arguably more, due to actually being a renowned writer.

Some specifics are that Dune has the various human specialization schools that were meant fill the void in a space faring society where computer science is haram, especially the mentats, which leads to a lot of techniques being partially described or implied in a way that they are just begging to be converted into a dianetics type get-smart-quick handbook. This is the 'tech' Amoeba_Girl is talking about and it is definitely a thing.

Additionally he had a huge mysticism itch that he tried to scratch at every opportunity, but instead of going the way of the enlightened master who drops just enough wisdom to keep the followers following and the premium members paying, you have the here's how you should broadly expect this shit to work in case it works of Godmakers to complement Dune's beyond cynical approach to religion, mysticism and secret societies, no strings attached.

Also despite being subsumed by the more obvious spice-is-oil allegory, cautioning that psychedelics have diminishing returns when treated as a cultural cornerstone for a group is also in there.

Also where LRH dabbled in sex magic and rat-style group homes FH appears to have been Tolkien levels of wife guy, the last Dune book had a really touching afterword about his wife's death and he himself died very shortly thereafter.

This leads to my next point about total loving commitment playing a huge role in how things shake out in Dune, featuring as the main reason for stuff like going against the breeding program to conceive Paul, breaking the Suk conditioning to betray the Atreides, the (presciently predicted and made inescapable) death of Chani that breaks Muad'Dib, and the ultimate fall of the god emperor, love is presented as both an anchoring character trait as well as a huge confounding factor against long term planning. Even the straightforwardly evil antagonist faction in the last two Dune books largely runs on the perversion and weaponisation of the concept.

I'd argue that this odd true love based individualism is the core subtext of what I would consider FH's extremely anti-cult messaging, and in general there is enough demystification of cult dynamics and elements that I could see FH's writings working as inoculation against cult vulnerability instead of fomenting it.

To say nothing of Dune's pervading message that outsourcing your free will is the most terrible no-good outcome and even being the deity of your own religion comes at a price no sane man should be willing to pay.