Russian Cult With Massive Following Resurfaces in Argentina Amid New Victim Reports
Media 24/July 2, 2025
By Jessica Daly
A Russian cult, Ashram Shambala, led by convicted sex offender Konstantin Rudnev, has surfaced in Argentina. Several Russian nationals linked to the group are under investigation for human trafficking, forced labor, and drug distribution. What do we know about the cult, and where else did it spread?
Leader and founder of a Russian cult Ashram Shambala , Konstantin Rudnev—the self-proclaimed extra-terrestrial from Sirius —has been arrested in Argentina along with several of his “followers.”
Rudnev was previously convicted in Russia on charges including rape, drug trafficking, and establishing a cult that violated citizens’ rights, serving 11 years in prison.
Now, he’s once again at the center of a disturbing investigation.
Ashram Shambala cult in Argentina
After two cult members brought in a malnourished-looking 22-year-old pregnant woman to give birth, an Argentine doctor reported suspicious behaviour, the local police reported.
The two women barely let the pregnant woman speak and answered all questions on her behalf, the doctor said. The two women also attempted to alter her birth certificate by writing “Rudnev”—the surname of the Ashram Shambala cult leader—without him being present.
The pregnant woman is likely to have been a victim of Rudnev’s cult, Argentine prosecutor Fernando Arrigo said.
Rudnev was arrested with six women at Bariloche airport and is now in a maximum-security prison. While being arrested, he reportedly attempted to slit his own throat.
Phones seized from suspected members of the Ashram Shambala cult revealed strict control measures—food rations, forced fasting as punishment, and blacked-out homes with floor mattresses.
In total, 21 people are being investigated for “being part of a criminal organization that, for the purpose of sex trafficking and slavery, recruited a 22-year-old woman brought from Russia.”
Who is Konstantin Rudnev?
Rudnev is a medical engineering graduate turned self-proclaimed religious leader. He founded Ashram Shambala in 1989 and adopted several names such as Sotilian Sikorisky and Shri Jnan Avatar Muni. He was “delivered to Earth by a UFO in the form of an embryo,” according to ex-cult followers.
In return for promised enlightenment, his followers were required to sever ties with their families, surrender all their belongings, and dedicate their entire lives to him.
Rudnev developed his teachings from books, magazine articles, and films. He devised a hierarchy, rituals, and a dress code. He skilfully capitalized on the Soviet-era hunger for the forbidden, the occult, and the mystical.
The history of Ashram Shambala in Russia
Rudnev had his followers pay their way into the cult through “courses”. In 1991, one course cost 100 rubles, which was almost a quarter of an average monthly salary at the time in Russia. By 2010, a “cleansing of energy channels” cost 1,500 rubles (around $47 at the time), and an “initiation ritual” went for 4,000 rubles (around $126), a previous cult follower told reporters.
From there, the courses only became more expensive, which led Rudnev to live a lavish lifestyle with many expensive cars and a fleet of motorbikes.
Humiliation, starvation, and sexual assault in the name of “healing”
Female followers were referred to as “priestesses,” while male members, often performing unpaid labor, were called “elks.” Outsiders were labeled “mice.”
One former follower, Natalya Koksharova, published a book describing her experience, calling the cult “a concentration camp for God-seekers.” She alleges that members were forced to pay for spiritual “healing” or be threatened with illness or death.
Rudnev's so-called "priestesses" were instructed to maintain a specific appearance—thin, with black-dyed hair, heavy makeup, and provocative clothing—resembling a woman Rudnev told his followers he loved in his youth. The cult also filmed of orgies, which were later sold as part of the cults disturbing practices.
Ashram Shambala reportedly amassed as many as 30,000 followers across more than 20 Russian regions. Rudnev turned his followers into sex slaves, humiliated them, destroyed them, and mutilated them, russian media reported.
The cult members were forbidden from communicating with relatives, engaging in romantic relationships, starting a family, and even forming friendships. Its followers were required to monitor each other's behaviour and report everything to Rudnev.
Members lived in properties registered under the names of “priestesses,” kept in isolation with blacked-out windows, minimal food, and open windows regardless of weather. Hair and tooth loss were signs of “divine energy”, the followers were told.
Rudnev sent his cult representatives to the US and South American countries, especially Brazil.
He was arrested several times in Russia, but none of the cult members would testify against him, and cases were dropped, until his arrest in 2013, when he was sentenced to 11 years in prison.
During his time in prison, some people who claimed to be involved in the Ashram Shambala cult defended Rudnev, while others recalled the torture they faced.
After his release, Rudnev resurfaced in Europe, in Montenegro in 2024, police discovered Ashram Shambala filming ritual porn in a hotel room, he vanished and became a wanted man, according to reports.
Rudnev then moved to Argentina, where he continued his “religion”. As the investigation unfolds, authorities are still working to determine the full scope of Ashram Shambala’s activities and how many victims may have been affected.
To see more documents/articles regarding this group/organization/subject click here.
