When you think of a "cult," you may imagine some of the modern-day groups that believe in aliens or think that their leader is the second coming of Jesus Christ. Well, it turns out that human beings have been joining cults and heretic religions for thousands of years. Many of them have been totally forgotten by the average person, and you may have never been taught about these religions in history class. Here are 10 of the most shocking cults from ancient history.
10. The Skoptsy
Nearly every Christian-based religion has looked down upon having any kind of sex outside of marriage at some point or another, believing we should reserve the deed for having children. After all, lust is considered to be one of the seven deadly sins, and "thou shall not commit adultery" is one of the Ten Commandments. But one Russian cult from the 1800s called the Skoptsy took this rule so far they believed that you should never get it on — even if you're married.
Believe it or not, the Skoptsy is estimated to have had up to a million followers during their heyday. They encouraged their followers to remove any body parts that may lead them to lust. Men would castrate themselves, and women would have mastectomies. The founder of the cult, Kondraty Selivanov, had the audacity to approach Tsar Paul I, saying, "I am not the father of sin: Accept my act and I will recognize you as my son." After this incident, the Tsar had him committed to an insane asylum, and the cult fell apart soon after. Today, there are no remaining members of the Skoptsy, which shouldn't come as a surprise at all, considering that they wouldn't have been able to have children to pass their beliefs on to.
9. Mithraism
Mithraism was an ancient Roman cult that was the so-called "sister religion" of early Christianity. Scholars believe that the Mithras were practicing their religion at the same time that Jesus Christ was preaching that he was the son of God. The God Mithras is shown slaying a sacred bull, and... well, there's not much known about their beliefs besides that. Unfortunately, there are no written records to help scholars unravel the deeper meaning behind the religion's beliefs, so most of it is just theories and speculation.
According to experts who have studied the remains of Mithras, they believe that the image of the bull actually represents the zodiac sign of Taurus. Star maps were found among the remains of the temple, which is why they were studying the zodiac. The leading theory that historians have about their beliefs is that by killing Taurus, they will be able to shift the equinox in order to change the weather. Mithraism became popular among the Roman soldiers, and it became widespread in Italy. Eventually, it disappeared completely.
8. The Cult of Athena Polias
You may have heard of the Vestal Virgins in ancient Rome. Over in Greece, they had a very similar all-female sect called Athena Polia. These women were considered to be like the physical incarnation of the goddess Athena, and the high priestess was one of the most powerful positions in all of Athens. She was always descended from one of the most powerful families in the city, and became a go-to advisor for all matters political and religious.
Every year, the city celebrated Athena's birthday with a festival known as the Panathenaic Procession. The priestess and her maidens were all supposed to remain virgins throughout their lives, and dress modestly, because they were supposed to represent purity. During the festival, the maidens carried baskets filled with small animals, like rabbits, to be sacrificed to the goddess Athena on the altar. Despite its popularity, the cult took a turn for the worse when the temple was destroyed by the Persians in 480 BC.
7. The Kachina
The Kachina was an ancient religion practiced by multiple Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, including the Pueblo, Hopi, Zuni, Tewa, and Keresan people.
