What happens when your purpose gets weaponized, relationships are rewritten by group doctrine, and chess becomes both sanctuary and battleground? In this powerful second part of our convo with Danny Rensch, we return to unpack life after his “purpose ordainment,” and the heartbreak of being separated from his mother by cult coercion. 

With raw honesty, Danny shares how spiritual manipulation, covert contracts, and collective pressure led to the deepest trauma of his youth and how healing and reconnection became possible, despite loss and pain. We chat about his wild chess tournament sagas, the story of Igor (the inappropriate Russian master with a soft spot for broken kids), and the unraveling of the Church of Immortal Consciousness as generations, money, and ideals collided. Danny gets real about calling things what they are, facing the dark side of “doing good,” and why his redemption arc is proof that you are not what happens to you—you are what you choose to become. 

We also drop a secret character from his book who collided with NXIVM. File this one under: complex, courageous, and essential listening.

Fill in the gaps in our convo and read Danny’s gripping memoir, Dark Squares: How Chess Saved My Life. Also, follow him on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, X, and LinkedIn.

Also…let it be known that:

The views and opinions expressed on A Little Bit Culty do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast. Any content provided by our guests, bloggers, sponsors or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, group, club, organization, business, individual, anyone or anything. Nobody’s mad at you, just don’t be a culty fuckwad.

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CREDITS: 

Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames

Production Partner: Citizens of Sound

Co-Creator: Jess Tardy

Audio production: Will Retherford

Production Coordinator: Lesli Dinsmore

Writer: Sandra Nomoto

Social media team: Eric Skwarzynski and Brooke Keane

Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin

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