67, is a man who does not identify with his occupations. He denies being a self-help writer, although his books are found on shelves dedicated to the genre. He also states that he is not a coach, a professional who helps clients overcome challenges and achieve their goals. But he travels the world giving lectures and sells courses online to teach people how to manage their feelings.
identifies himself as the most read psychiatrist in the world and says he is a producer of knowledge, studied in postgraduate courses. He is the author of the Theory of Multifocal Intelligence, a method for understanding the functioning of the human mind, not recognized by researchers in the field.
At the beginning of this month, the Presidency of the Republic. He says he is in favor of judicial reform, calls the speech “a good criminal is a dead criminal” stupid and wants to encourage entrepreneurship.
“I see the country as radicalized, which is kidnapped by two families: the Silva family and the Bolsonaro family. Millions of Brazilians need an anti-radicalism and anti-polarization voice”, says Cury, in a videoconference interview, given from Recife, where he was to give lectures. “What am I? I’m from the center. I have a capitalist mind and a heart that cares for the underprivileged.”
Cury aims to prepare Brazil for what he calls the “great tsunami of robotics and artificial intelligence”, now proposing the creation of entrepreneurship clubs across the country.
In the 2024 municipal elections, the entrepreneurial discourse was embodied, in São Paulo, by the influencer (União Brasil). The rhetoric prospered, so much so that, in the final stretch of the campaign, () even appeared during election hours pretending to be a speaker.
“I got to know him [Marçal] more or less four months ago and, in fact, it is someone who sent me a message congratulating me for knowing that I don’t need and don’t love power”, says the psychiatrist. “I wasn’t inspired by Marçal, because I have a 0% personal attack policy.”
The pre-candidate states that, in light of the crisis, he would provoke the National Congress with the aim of promoting a broad reform of the Judiciary, with mandates of up to eight years for ministers of the (Supreme Federal Court). In , Cury appears with 2% of voting intentions.
“I don’t see much room for growth in the current scenario. Cury is more of an outsider than Bolsonaro was and doesn’t have the same impactful performance as Marçal”, assesses Pedro Lima, professor of political science at UFRJ (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro).
Born in Colina, 400 km from the capital of São Paulo, Cury was born into a poor family, with six children, living in one room. He remembers that he was not a good student, and his classmates mocked his desire to be a scientist. In college, he had a depressive episode and started writing. Recognition, however, would take time to arrive. Meanwhile, he says he has had success in the psychiatric clinic.
Living in the interior of São Paulo —he prefers to keep the city secret, to preserve security—, he is married and father of three daughters. Cury says he is a former atheist who became a “Christian without borders”, and claims that he respects the secularity of the State.
He found water volleyball, the popular biribol, his main hobby. It became an international bestseller, published in 70 countries, with more than 40 million copies sold, by his count. In part, the commercial success was due to the book. In the story, a homeless man prevents the suicide of a rich man, spreading a messianic message.
It is a criticism of the capitalist system, especially the miserable residents of palaces, as the author likes to say. Cury admits the contradiction between the book and entrepreneurial discourse. A film adaptation of the work is available on Netflix, directed by Jayme Monjardim.
In one scene, a lady is encouraged by a homeless man to forgive a boy who had stolen her belongings. “This story about a good criminal being a dead criminal is a stupid idea, not an altruistic one,” says the psychiatrist. “The problem isn’t incarceration, it’s incarceration poorly, not arriving before the crime.”
All of his work is based on the Theory of Multifocal Intelligence, created by him and systematized in a 1999 book. In general terms, the study of this theory would make it possible to manage emotions. Thus, people would be able to overcome emotional obstacles by recognizing their self.
On his website, Cury sells courses on emotion management for R$500. Although he says that people need to seek professional help in case of emotional disorders, the writer publishes videos on YouTube giving tips for combating anxiety, and also created the series “You Are Irreplaceable”, to prevent cases of suicide.
At the end of the first chapter of the book, he wrote that Multifocal Intelligence would bring solutions to autism, which has no cure. “Many cases of difficult-to-treat mental illnesses, including those of autistic patients, have been resolved,” he wrote.
President of the Brazilian Coaching Institute (IBC), José Roberto Marques celebrates Cury’s pre-candidacy and says he considers the theory to have a scientific basis. “If I change the perception of who I am, I change completely. He has character and is an intellectual. I would vote for him, why not?”
A Sheet asked the Brazilian Psychiatric Association (ABP) for a position, but received no response. Therefore, the report consulted five psychiatrists. Everyone stated that the Theory of Multifocal Intelligence has no scientific basis. That’s why they don’t adopt the approach in the clinic.
“It has no scientific validation. Anxiety, all of this is due to existential nothingness. What helps is caring for each person, in psychotherapy and medicating when necessary. I have nothing against the person, but it is to sell books”, says Paulo Pavão, professor of psychiatry at Uerj (University of the State of Rio de Janeiro).
“If this theory cured autism, he would have won the Nobel Prize in Medicine”, says Rodrigo Martins Leite, assistant doctor at the USP Institute of Psychiatry, adding that Cury works as a coach. Doctor in a press conference at the University of Geneva, Adriano Aguiar says that, in the case of a suicidal crisis, the patient should contact their doctor, call the CVV (Center for the Valorization of Life) or go immediately to the emergency room.
He says there is no proof that videos on YouTube could help prevent suicides. Member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences and the Heidelberg Academy of Sciences, in Germany, USP professor Wagner Gattaz says he is unaware of the Theory of Multifocal Intelligence.
Gattaz therefore refused to grant an interview, but sent a message via text message: “As far as I know, the pre-candidate is a prolific writer, but he is not a researcher or scientist. Therefore, even with the genius he may have, creating a theory out of nothing is quite risky.”
Cury counters. He says that some people have not adequately studied his theory, applied by thousands of people, with scientific proof. Compares Multifocal Intelligence with psychoanalysis and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT). According to the psychiatrist, many people also question the validity of these approaches.
“The Theory of Multifocal Intelligence is not true as a theory,” he states. “In certain aspects, it really has validation. But I’m not saying, ‘oh, my theory is true, my theory is valid’. Those who apply it, those who study, those who research are the ones who will give the direction.”
As for autism, he says he speaks of “resolution” and treatment, not “cure”, which he recognizes does not exist. “Producing knowledge in this country that doesn’t value scientists is a task, you can’t even imagine.”
