--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A cross between a foreign legion…" description: "\"A cross between a foreign legion boot-camp and a secret-society initiation ritual, the ordeals were grounded in pain. One thing was obvious: the agenda..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/800/tahir-shah-3083_agendas_a-cross-between-a-foreign-legion-boot-ca_2884533.png" --- # A cross between a foreign legion boot-camp and a… ![“A cross between a foreign legion boot-camp and a secret-society initiation ritual, the ordeals were grounded in pain. One thing was obvious: the agenda, which was dedicated to grave discomfort, had been drawn up by a passionate sadist.” quote by Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/800/tahir-shah-3083_agendas_a-cross-between-a-foreign-legion-boot-ca_2884533.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/800/tahir-shah-3083_agendas_a-cross-between-a-foreign-legion-boot-ca_2884533.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/800/tahir-shah-3083_agendas_a-cross-between-a-foreign-legion-boot-ca_2884533.png) > “A cross between a foreign legion boot-camp and a secret-society initiation ritual, the ordeals were grounded in pain. One thing was obvious: the agenda, which was dedicated to grave discomfort, had been drawn up by a passionate sadist.” [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A harsh, painful initiation designed by a cruel leader. **In simple terms:** A brutal training imposed by a sadist. Key Takeaway Beware of abusive power structures. Themes authority abuse rituals Mood critical serious Type sociological analytical When to use this quote - military training - cult initiation - extreme sports - coercive workplaces Key Concepts sociology power dynamics psychology Questions to Reflect On - What motivates people to accept pain? - How can we protect against abusive rituals? A Different Perspective Such methods can cause lasting trauma. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Agendas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agendas/) [Boot camp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boot-camp/) [Dedicated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dedicated/) [Discomfort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discomfort/) [Endurance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/endurance/) [Initiation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/initiation/) [Legion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/legion/) [Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain/) [Passionate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passionate/) [Ritual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ritual/) [Sadism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sadism/) [Sadist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sadist/) [Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret/) [Secret society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret-society/) ## Related quotes > [“Perhaps I’m a bit of a sadist myself, in addition to a masochist. He winces and jerks on the restraints. “Fucking hell,” he mutters.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-dominguez/perhaps-i-m-a-bit-of-a-sadist-myself-in-addition-to-a-masochist-he/) [Ella Dominguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-dominguez/) > [There is also something exciting about the risk. Somewhere in me is a sadist that likes pain, I guess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-hilton/there-is-also-something-exciting-about-the-risk-somewhere-in-me-is-a/) [Tyler Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-hilton/) > [“a sadist is a masochist who follows the golden rule”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-cathcart/a-sadist-is-a-masochist-who-follows-the-golden-rule/) [Thomas Cathcart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-cathcart/) > [Omaha is a game that was invented by a sadist and is played by masochists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-smith/omaha-is-a-game-that-was-invented-by-a-sadist-and-is-played-by/) [Shane Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-smith/) > [“Here the first of the things that happened, happened. The first of the things important enough to notice and to remember afterward, among a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornell-woolrich/here-the-first-of-the-things-that-happened-happened-the-first-of-the/) [Cornell Woolrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornell-woolrich/) > [“I'm a sadist at heart, and I have learned that one of the cruelest things you can do to someone is to teach them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-masters/i-m-a-sadist-at-heart-and-i-have-learned-that-one-of-the-cruelest/) Peter Masters > [“He never wanted to hurt someone. Well, not like that, at least. He was a sadist, not an asshole.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tymber-dalton/he-never-wanted-to-hurt-someone-well-not-like-that-at-least-he-was-a/) [Tymber Dalton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tymber-dalton/) > [“Not ever. I may be a sadist, but I’m no son-of-a-bitch.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-dominguez/not-ever-i-may-be-a-sadist-but-i-m-no-son-of-a-bitch/) [Ella Dominguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-dominguez/) > [Now, if your boss is a sadist, then you have a big problem. In that case, fire your boss and get a new job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/now-if-your-boss-is-a-sadist-then-you-have-a-big-problem-in-that-case/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [“It must be one of the worst things in the world, to see your child revealed as a selfish little sadist.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/it-must-be-one-of-the-worst-things-in-the-world-to-see-your-child/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [“You might be able to send some girls screaming and crying with that ‘I’m a happy little sadist' act but I’m not some girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jocelyn-adams/you-might-be-able-to-send-some-girls-screaming-and-crying-with-that-i/) [Jocelyn Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jocelyn-adams/) > [“What is the appropriate response to finding out a potential lover is a complete freaky sadist or masochist?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-l-james/what-is-the-appropriate-response-to-finding-out-a-potential-lover-is/) [E.L. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-l-james/) > [“Great,” Hayden muttered. “A rich sadist with a Nazi family history. Can this guy get any worse? Let’s get out of here.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-j-lawless/great-hayden-muttered-a-rich-sadist-with-a-nazi-family-history-can/) [M.J. Lawless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-j-lawless/) > [I dinna know what's a sadist. And if I forgive you for this afternoon, I reckon you'll forgive me, too, as soon as ye…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-gabaldon/i-dinna-know-what-s-a-sadist-and-if-i-forgive-you-for-this-afternoon/) [Diana Gabaldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-gabaldon/) > [“The sadist in him loved knowing that he’d used her for his pleasure, while also expressing his disappointment in her, whereas, the man who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josie-leigh/the-sadist-in-him-loved-knowing-that-he-d-used-her-for-his-pleasure/) [Josie Leigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josie-leigh/) ## More by Tahir Shah > [“As the head of an expedition, you can't pussyfoot around being polite to everyone. You have to show your teeth once in a while;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/as-the-head-of-an-expedition-you-can-t-pussyfoot-around-being-polite/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [“The last thing we wanted was for the Machiguenga to be sad again. Sadness appeared to bring out their violence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/the-last-thing-we-wanted-was-for-the-machiguenga-to-be-sad-again/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [If hot food is they key to maintaining an expedition's stamina, then low grade gut-rot alcohol is the key to sustaining its sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/if-hot-food-is-they-key-to-maintaining-an-expedition-s-stamina-then/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [“Normally I would have been the first to go in search of cannibal monks, particularly as I had heard of a similar tradition at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/normally-i-would-have-been-the-first-to-go-in-search-of-cannibal/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [“Inscribed on it was a verse from the Quatrains of Omar Khayyam, the eleventh-century Persian mystic. Reading the words aloud I prepared for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/inscribed-on-it-was-a-verse-from-the-quatrains-of-omar-khayyam-the/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [“Moroccan traffic isn't like normal traffic. It's armed combat, a war of wills, in which only the very bravest have a chance to survive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/moroccan-traffic-isn-t-like-normal-traffic-it-s-armed-combat-a-war-of/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [“Prideep pointed to the flames of paraffin lamps as they came alive in the distance and cackled in awe at the experience. (…) I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/prideep-pointed-to-the-flames-of-paraffin-lamps-as-they-came-alive-in/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [“The very fact that a Frenchman was prepared, after tow minutes of conversation, to be so friendly towards anyone, especially one who had come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/the-very-fact-that-a-frenchman-was-prepared-after-tow-minutes-of/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [The taste for glory can make ordinary men behave in extraordinary ways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/the-taste-for-glory-can-make-ordinary-men-behave-in-extraordinary-ways/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [“As anyone who's ever taken an Ethiopian bus knows, there is an unwritten rule that the windows must remain firmly closed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/as-anyone-who-s-ever-taken-an-ethiopian-bus-knows-there-is-an/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [“In some warped way, having an embalmed body with us made perfect sense.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/in-some-warped-way-having-an-embalmed-body-with-us-made-perfect-sense/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [“Back at the guest house I tried to acclimatise. A travel-worn adventurer had once told me that leaning with one's head dangling over the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/back-at-the-guest-house-i-tried-to-acclimatise-a-travel-worn/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [Any man who has ever led an army, an expedition, or a group of Boy Scouts has sadism in his bones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/any-man-who-has-ever-led-an-army-an-expedition-or-a-group-of-boy/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [In some peculiar way, indeed, the rules were now beginning to seem quite logical. It was then I knew that I had been in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/in-some-peculiar-way-indeed-the-rules-were-now-beginning-to-seem/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [The forest did not tolerate frailty of body or mind. Show your weakness, and it would consume you without hesitation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/the-forest-did-not-tolerate-frailty-of-body-or-mind-show-your/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) [Explore all 140 Tahir Shah quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) ## More Agendas quotes > [There's a dishonest tyranny in the liberal/progressive/socialist agenda that comes down and says 'we are here because we care about you; we want what's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-west/there-s-a-dishonest-tyranny-in-the-liberal-progressive-socialist/) [Allen West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-west/) > [There could be no more powerful argument against mixing religion and government than the success of independent African American churches in placing racial segregation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jacoby/there-could-be-no-more-powerful-argument-against-mixing-religion-and/) [Susan Jacoby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jacoby/) > [At home we didnt talk about religion. So gradually the question faded away by itself and disappeared from the agenda. When I was nineteen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergei-prokofiev/at-home-we-didnt-talk-about-religion-so-gradually-the-question-faded/) [Sergei Prokofiev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergei-prokofiev/) > [We have Internet now and people are not stupid. But it seems that some people are trying to push the same agenda of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bassem-youssef/we-have-internet-now-and-people-are-not-stupid-but-it-seems-that-some/) [Bassem Youssef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bassem-youssef/) > [The next thing you do today will be the most important thing on your agenda, because, after all, you're doing it next. Well, perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/the-next-thing-you-do-today-will-be-the-most-important-thing-on-your/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [In our system of government, the judicial and legislative branches have different roles. Judges are not politicians. Judges must decide cases, not champion causes.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orrin-hatch/in-our-system-of-government-the-judicial-and-legislative-branches/) [Orrin Hatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orrin-hatch/) > [It's when someone has an agenda of their own for the record that it doesn't work for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alanis-morissette/it-s-when-someone-has-an-agenda-of-their-own-for-the-record-that-it/) [Alanis Morissette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alanis-morissette/) > [The problem with merely writing so that you can be understood is that the wrong people, in advancing their agendas, are only too ready…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-a-dembski/the-problem-with-merely-writing-so-that-you-can-be-understood-is-that/) [William A. Dembski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-a-dembski/) > [If we allow our self-congratulatory adoration of technology to distract us from our own contact with each other, then somehow the original agenda has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaron-lanier/if-we-allow-our-self-congratulatory-adoration-of-technology-to/) [Jaron Lanier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaron-lanier/) > [We have to consider who is going to be the best prime minister to take on a "one nation" agenda.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damian-green/we-have-to-consider-who-is-going-to-be-the-best-prime-minister-to/) [Damian Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damian-green/) > [There certainly are situations where I feel not empowered or uninspired. 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And I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-shea/the-forces-of-immorality-and-marxism-and-evil-count-on-one-thing-us/) [Matt Shea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-shea/) [Browse all 985 Agendas quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agendas/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A cross between a foreign legion boot-camp and a secret-society initiation ritual, the ordeals were grounded in pain. 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