The accused cult leaders Jeff and Shaleia Ayan were internet relationship gurus and the founders of the Twin Flame Universe, a kind of reality show that guides you to find your divine soulmate or the twin flame. Alice Hines, an investigative journalist and news correspondent, is always fascinated by stories based on eccentric subjects. One day, when she was searching through Reddit, she stumbled upon a few posts on this twin flame community. She felt intrigued about the whole community and the concept of twin flames, leading her to begin her research to write an article on it. As she dug deeper into the Twin Flame Universe, she began to unravel some of the darkest truths about this community. The documentary series Desperately Seeking Soulmate showcases the ultimate truth of the Twin Flames Universe by presenting us with some of the interviews of former members of the community as well as Alice Hines’ effort to bring the matter to light.
What Is Twin Flame? How Were Jeff And Shaleia Manipulating The Members?
According to the creators, Twin Flame of a person is more than just a soulmate. It’s having a spiritual connection with a partner that God has chosen for you. One can feel an irresistible attraction towards this person and become willing to do anything to be with them. Jeff and Shaleia Ayan believed they were each other’s twin flames. Together, they founded Twin Flame Universe, and a lot of people joined this community with the belief that one day they could unite with their twin flames. However, most of the followers were heterosexual women looking for a male partner or trying to resolve their issues with the one they loved. It was not a spiritual connection at all, but nothing more than a dangerous obsession. It made some people desperate for love and prompted them to crave attention from certain individuals. Even Ryan Gosling had to file a restraining order against a woman who constantly believed that Ryan was her twin flame. This obsession was life-destroying, but without paying much attention to the destructive part, Jeff and Shaleia, two relationship gurus, continued capitalizing on the obsession.
Some of the former members of the community explained how they were drawn to the Twin Flame Universe. Initially, Jeff and Shaleia’s video sessions were useful to them. They focused on self-development courses and talked about self-love. There were some therapeutic videos on their channel promoting self-development. Jeff and Shaleia opened a Facebook group where a diverse range of people with different sexual orientations joined and shared their experiences and beliefs. Jeff and Shaleia shifted from posting videos on YouTube to therapeutic sessions called “Twin Flame Essential School,” for which the members had to buy an expensive subscription.
These classes were attended via Zoom, where people with a diverse range of interests started joining. The members had to pay well for the classes, and it’s hard to say whether their conditions improved, but it surely benefitted Jeff and Shaleia, who were getting quite richer. Each day, they used to open the classes, calling them “another juicy class,” which is really cringe-worthy. While Jeff was mainly the one who counseled the members, Shaleia was more into crystal ball gazing or tarot card reading. They focused on the concept that if you cannot be with your twin flame, your life is incomplete. Even though initially the couple appeared to be very friendly, gradually these classes started intimidating the members.
Jeff started advising the women, who are basically the “chasers” in the Twin Flame Universe, to pursue the man they believed to be their twin flame. They started normalizing stalking and getting obsessed over the person whom the women wanted to be with. It was very frustrating for the members of the community who still had a sense of dignity. Still, some others who were fascinated by the concept of a twin flame did what Jeff and Shaleia told them to do, and in the end, it gave them nothing but a traumatic experience. They often got blocked by the person they were stalking. These members found this kind of humiliation even more distressing than having a breakup. They started posting their bad experiences of getting humiliated by their twin flames on the Facebook group of Twin Flame Universe. Jeff and Shaleia failed to recognize that there was something extremely wrong with their therapeutic sessions. They never mended their behavior and continued to give the same advice, resulting in many members with some degree of self-awareness leaving the community as soon as possible.
What Happened To Anne And Catrina?
Among the members of the Twin Flame community, there was a lesbian couple, Anne and Catrina, who believed themselves to be each other’s twin flames. During the time they joined the Twin Flame community, both of them were in heterosexual relationships and even had children of their own. But the mutual attraction was so strong that they couldn’t forsake the need to be together. Meanwhile, Jeff and Shaleia became their saviors in such a situation. While both of them wanted to pursue a relationship but couldn’t, Jeff and Shaleia advised them to renounce all the boundaries and to follow their hearts. Anne and Catrina got engaged, and initially, they were grateful to Twin Flame Universe for this. But soon, Jeff and Shaleia’s true intentions were revealed.
Anne and Catrina were really happy together, until one day, Jeff asked Anne to get more attached to her masculine side. It was hard for Anne to follow their commands anymore because she never felt like she wanted to be a man. But Jeff started coercing her to transition. Jeff even emphasized the need for her to change her name from Anne to Dann, which would reflect her masculinity. Anne and Catrina realized that Jeff and Shaleia were not exactly trying to unite the lovers, but they were somehow forcing the point of divine masculinity and divine femininity. Gradually, Jeff and Shaleia’s behavior started becoming violent and threatening. Jeff started texting Anne and Catrina, forcing them to change their names. But it was dangerous and traumatizing for Anne to completely forget her gender identity and embrace something new. As a result, they had to cut all ties with Twin Flame Universe.
What Happened To The Twin Flame Universe?
In June 2020, Alice Hines decided to visit Jeff and Shaleia’s place in Michigan. She wanted to see them in person and know how they lived or what their viewpoint was, which she couldn’t do just by watching their videos. She managed to get permission from her editor and visited the couple’s place, where she was stunned to see how Jeff and Shaleia were flaunting their affluence. According to them, they needed to be more affluent in order to be represented as internet influencers. Alice even appeared in one of the interviews in Jeff’s session, where she really felt uncomfortable with the way Jeff stared at her. Alice understood that these people were not quite safe, so she took her precautions beforehand. In Jeff and Shaleia’s residence, she also found some of the students living in the basement, where some of them were transitioning.
Similarly, like Anne and Catrina, Briana didn’t have any independence in her relationship. Jeff forced her to find her lover in a woman. Briana didn’t like that at all. She said that she was a heterosexual woman who wanted to date a man, but Jeff and Shaleia selected her partner to be a woman who transitioned to be a man. Briana found it extremely hard to adjust, as it was impossible for her to manipulate her own choices, desires, and sexuality. Even though she didn’t pay attention to her mother’s words initially, she had to contact her again for the guidance and love she really needed during such a pathetic time. She came back from Michigan, realizing that being there would eventually ruin her mental state. Briana didn’t respond to the filmmakers, probably because she might still be in the healing process, and we wished her a quick recovery from the trauma. She may soon get well and raise her voice against the amorality and torment that the Twin Flame Universe was putting its members through, just like Anne, Catrina, and many others who spoke out against it. However, the Twin Flame Universe is still a growing community, with new followers joining them every day. Probably this documentary will make some people open their eyes and realize that they are falling into a dangerous trap.
