The Aum Shinrikyo Cult & the Tokyo Gas Attack

On the morning of March 20, 1995, millions of rush hours commuters boarded trains across Tokyo, just as they countless other mornings. Unbeknownst to those millions of riders, five of those trains were carrying large quantities of a nerve agent called Sarin, a colorless, odorless liquid that, when released into the air, can cause extreme respiratory problems and eventually death. As the trains traveled to their respective destinations through the underground system, the bags of Sarin became punctured and released the gas into the packed trains cars and within seconds, the first victims began dropping to floor, choking and vomiting.

The Tokyo gas attacks killed thirteen people and injured nearly 6,000 others, and they remain the worst case of domestic terrorism in Japan’s history. Yet beyond the obvious trauma of the incident, the attack has left a deep wound in the nation’s psyche. When the perpetrators of the attack, a doomsday cult known as Aum Shinrikyo, were apprehended, the nation was shocked that a small religious cult had managed to cause such tremendous damage. Even now, thirty years later, the impact of Aum Shinrikyo and the sarin gas attacks are still felt around Japan.

References

BBC News. 2018. Aum Shinrikyo: The Japanese cult behind the Tokyo Sarin. July 6. Accessed July 16, 2025. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-35975069.

Kristof, Nicholas D. 1995. "In shrine of Japan cult, police find labratory." New York Times, March 27: 2.

—. 1995. "Japanese police raid the offices of a sect linked to poison gas." New York Times, March 22: 1.

Monterey Institute of International Studies. 2016. Chronology or Aum Shinrikyo's CBQ Activities. Timeline , Monterey Institute of International Studies.

Murakami, Haruki. 2001. Underground: The Tokyo Gas Attack and the Japanese Psyche. Translated by Alfred Birnbaum and Philip Gabriel. New York, NY: Vintage.

Watanabe, Teresa. 1995. "Police seize toxic chemicals in raid on Japanese sect." Los Angeles Times, March 23: 1.

—. 1995. "Raid on sect spurs civil-liberties worries." Los Angeles Times, March 23: 4.

WuDunn, Sheryl. 1995. "Fear stalks Tokyo: safe no more." New York Times, March 21: 13.

—. 1995. "Sect says government staged the gas attack." New York Times, March 22: 10.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

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