Russell Brand emerged on American TV screens in the early 2000s as a raucous lad who loved women and attention as much as he loved himself. He entered the comedy scene in 2000, but caught international attention when was fired from MTV in 2001 after he came to work dressed as Osama Bin Laden the day after 9/11. He’s perhaps best known for his role as “Aldous Snow,” the protagonist’s new boyfriend in the 2008 film “Forgetting Sarah Marshall.”

This week Brand has been under fire after four women accused him of sexual assault and abuse from 2006 to 2013. UK-based news organization Channel 4, which Brand worked for at the time, published the explosive allegations against Brand, including allegations that he sexually abused and groomed a teenage girl.

While Brand has been open about his addictions to sex and substances, he’s also been open about God, spirituality and the problem of human mistakes and suffering. One article estimated Brand makes at least 1,000 pounds per year from his YouTube channel, which has been demonetized in the wake of the sexual abuse allegations. He also sells his advice through a $60/year subscription to his podcast “Stay Free with Russell Brand.”

“All desires are the inappropriate substitute for the desire to be at one with God. As long as we prioritize this material truth over spiritual truth we will live in tyranny because we are living in an illusion,” Brand said in his 2014 book “Revolution.”

Brand’s stories and comments about addiction and recovery have been shared by spiritual teachers and addiction recovery groups alike. So, how can a sober, spiritual man be an alleged sexual abuser?

In light of the sexual abuse allegations against Brand, it is important to look at how the former sex addict turned self-help guru’s spiritual journey is tangled into accusations of sexual and emotional abuse.

Let’s go deeper into his spiritual history:

Controversial Kundalini practices and spiritual growth

As part of his recovery, Russell Brand embraced yoga and meditation. In various interviews and social media posts, he’s said these practices helped him find inner peace and develop mindfulness, which was important for his journey toward sobriety.

Yoga, in particular, became an essential tool in his quest for spiritual growth. He has spoken about how these practices allowed him to connect with a deeper sense of self and begin the process of healing on his YouTube channel “Awakening with Russell.” His story has been used by other yoga teachers as an example of the transformational power of the practice.

Russell Brand has been a longtime follower of Kundalini yoga, a form of yoga which he was referred to as “the crack cocaine of yoga” in his book “Revolution.”

“I had this yearning, longing, this emptiness. For me, addiction was a spiritual problem. I was looking for solutions. I really tried being a drug addict and pursuing money and sex, but I feel an authenticity, a unity with God, through yoga more than anywhere else in my life,” Brand said in a 2013 interview on The Chopra Well YouTube channel.

Kundalini yoga has been linked to brainwashing, rape, and abuse. Some former Kundalini students have alleged that the group is a cult that uses predatory and manipulative tactics against followers, and that sexual abuse is common within the group.

Jules Hartley, a former actress who studied alongside Brand between 2011 and 2013 at Los Angeles Kundalini studios, told Insider this week that she was not surprised by the allegations against him, as the yoga they shared was built on power, control, and manipulation tactics.

“It’s the same story. It’s the same storybook,” Hartley told Insider. “It’s power, it’s control, it’s manipulation. It’s getting others to get sort of mesmerized, to get what they want.”

He recently did a live yoga session with popular yoga YouTuber Yoga with Adriene, so this practice that began years ago is still part of his spiritual advice he shares with his followers. He started sharing even more Kundalini yoga meditation and tips on his social media in 2021, the same year more than a dozen of the Ra Ma Yoga Institute’s former employees, students, and business partners spoke with Insider about its culture of abuse.

12-Stepping to sobriety

Brand struggled with drug and alcohol addiction for many years, which led to a tumultuous personal life and numerous run-ins with the law. His journey towards spirituality began when he reached a breaking point in his addiction. After hitting rock bottom, he decided to seek help and entered rehab in 2002. This marked the beginning of his path to recovery.

Brand adopted the 12-Step program as a fundamental part of his recovery process, a choice that he said changed his life.

“The 12 Step program, which has saved my life, will change the life of anyone who embraces it. I have seen it work many times with people with addiction issues of every hue: drugs, sex, relationships, food, work, smoking, alcohol, technology, pornography, hoarding, gambling, everything. Because the instinct that drives the compulsion is universal. It is an attempt to solve the problem of disconnection, alienation and tepid despair,” Brand said of the 12-step program and the problem of addiction in his book “Recovery: Freedom from Our Addictions.”

This program, initially developed by Alcoholics Anonymous, incorporates a spiritual component where individuals acknowledge their powerlessness over addiction and turn to a higher power for guidance and support.

He has described a bizarre upbringing where his father took him to have his first sexual encounter with a sex worker when he was 17. He has discussed the encounter in various interviews, including this 2009 interview on Chelsea Lately.

Brand went to a now-shuttered 12-step program called Focus12 in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk.

Russell Brand v. Purity Culture

Brand stopped doing drugs, but his sexual promiscuity continued into his sobriety. He made stabs at purity culture before the term hit mainstream media headlines.

In 2009, he made fun of the Jonas Brothers’ purity rings, which prompted a response to Brand from pop star Jordin Sparks and even led to Sarah Palin’s pregnant daughter being given a purity ring by a prominent abstinence group.

Brand’s criticism of purity culture is not in itself unique or worth noting, but it is worth noting for discussions of purity culture and its prevalence in modern culture.

Mix and match religions

Brand delved into various spiritual and philosophical texts, drawing inspiration from authors like Carl Jung, Terence McKenna, and Aldous Huxley. He explores topics such as consciousness, the nature of reality, and the interconnectedness of all things on his YouTube channel.

Brand has also openly expressed his interest in Eastern spirituality, including practices like transcendental meditation. He has spoken about how these practices have helped him find inner calm and clarity.

He’s spoken often about the idea of universal “one-ness” – a concept that’s prominent in eastern religious beliefs. While he said he does believe in God or some concept of a higher power, he also believes in the concept of inner divinity and the interconnectedness and sacredness of all living things.

“God, I fundamentally believe in. What do I mean by God? I mean my awareness,” he said in a 2020 interview where he was asked to define God.

Brand has also credited God with helping him overcome his addictions, as he did earlier this year in an interview with Tucker Carlson.

Brand’s “Messiah Complex”

In addition to the credit Brand gives the 12-Steps with helping him gain sobriety, he has also claimed to believe in a higher power and has even made some claims to Christian beliefs.

He has made various claims to Christianity over the years, but he’s also applied the term “messiah” to himself, as he did in his 2013 comedy special “Messiah Complex.”

Regardless of the specific type of spirituality Brand ascribes to, it’s clear that spirituality has become something of a brand for him. His 2022 “33 Tour” included aspects of Christian and New Age spirituality and numerology in connection to the number 33.

Numerology is a practice observed by various religions ranging from pagan to Abrahamic faith practices.

He’s also done more than just talk about his beliefs–he’s also selling his spirituality in the form of wellness retreats. UK columnist Julie Burchill called Brand’s wellness shtick a “wokescreen” for his behavior in a May 2023 column. The wellness industry has come under increasing scrutiny as an expensive solution to simple human problems.

How did we get here and what happens now?

One of Brand’s accusers called his behavior “an open secret,” and Brand’s questionable sexual misbehavior has been well-documented online.

In 2013, he joked about raping women and having sex with audience members, children and homeless people during a since-deleted interview with Richard Herring. The Daily Mail shared the interview this week as new allegations against Brand were reported.

He talked about going to sex addiction therapy in his memoir. He said he decided to go to sex therapy when his manager checked him into the 12-step program in 2002. Brand said in his memoir “My Booky Wook” he was warned his sexual behavior could threaten his career.

In the wake of the allegations, other news organizations have compiled clips of his interactions with women he shared the screen with–be it another actor, fan or interviewer.

Brand tried to get ahead of the news, posting a video over the weekend about “very serious allegations” about him that were going to be shared soon.

“These allegations pertain to the time when I was working in the mainstream, when I was in the newspapers all the time, when I was in the movies and, as I have written about extensively in my books, I was very, very promiscuous,” Brand said in a statement.

Brand’s YouTube channel has been demonetized, meaning he can no longer earn money from the content he posts there. His latest book, Recovery: The Workbook, which was set to be published in December has also been canceled by his publisher.

Influential (and controversial) male media figures like Carlson, Alex Jones and Elon Musk have defended Brand against the allegations of sexual abuse.

Some legal experts have said it’s unlikely Brand will face trial if the cases are taken to court. Police in the UK have opened investigations into the allegations, and he could face charges in the U.S. if Los Angeles police open an investigation. Brand is not currently under investigation in the U.S.