What is New Age Spirituality and Why Does It Feel… Culty?
Why does new-age spirituality feel culty? Short answer…? It’s because cults have intertwined new age terms with their manipulative language since the dawn of the new age movement.
Here’s the thing, though… Whether you're hearing a politician speak, a religious leader, or a tarot reader on social media, cult-like language is everywhere. It’s almost ingrained in the way we speak. Language is taught, after all. But it isn’t so much the words used, but the way they are used and the intent behind them.
At its heart, New Age spirituality beliefs have a more holistic view of divinity than the rigid hierarchy often felt in religion, which is why so many people who leave organized religion find a spiritual connection under the New Age umbrella.
The power of language is how cults and cult-like groups become influential and potentially dangerous. Unfortunately, the new age spiritual movement isn’t immune.
What is New Age Spirituality
New Age Spirituality is a spiritual belief system that emerged in the Western world in the late 20th century. It is characterized by a holistic view of spirituality that incorporates various spiritual and metaphysical practices, such as astrology, meditation, divination, and energy healing.
The movement emphasizes personal spiritual growth and the attainment of higher consciousness through self-exploration and self-realization. It has many influences from Pagan, Vedic, and Buddhist belief systems.
New age spirituality was born from a desire for a spiritual practice free from strict shame-based dogma. It’s a place where you can pick and choose what resonates with you and practice what you want.
But is New Age spirituality toxic? Is that why it can sound culty? We explore some of the issues in New Age spirituality in “The Problem with New Age Spirituality.”
Like language, it's not so black and white. There are always going to be people and organizations that take things too far or act maliciously. Still, for many, New Age spirituality is a freeing form of spirituality that allows them to have a spiritual connection without rigidity.
Spirituality vs Religion
Language plays a significant role in both spirituality and religion. The way religion has historically used language influences how we communicate in New Age spirituality and even in politics.
In religion, language tends to be more formalized and standardized, with specific terms and phrases used to describe various aspects of the belief — using regurgitated lines to demonstrate the person using this language is in the know. They are in the “in” crowd. And this is often accompanied by a tone of superiority.
When this kind of language rolls over into another spiritual practice, it gives us hard-core cult vibes because New Age terms with religious vibes could literally describe the beginnings of many horrible cults.
One thing people find culty from religions and new age cults alike is the rigidity of the practice.
Whether it’s a religion that otherizes and looks down on anyone who doesn’t adhere to its strict regulations or a cult, the feeling is the same. This is probably why young people are identifying as spiritual rather than religious more now than in previous generations.
Spirituality is often more personal and subjective, with the allowance to use their own language and vocabulary to describe their experiences and beliefs. There may be less emphasis on formalized language and more on individual expression and interpretation, which is something religion often rejects.
Spirituality may also incorporate elements of different cultural and religious traditions, leading to a more diverse range of language and terminology, making many spiritual spaces feel more inclusive and diverse.
The Power of Language
Words play a huge role in how the social reality is shaped. Language influences our beliefs, laws, decisions… everything! So, when language is used with the intent to control how you think and act, it can be dangerous. On the other side of that coin, language can empower, educate, and inspire.
In new age spirituality circles, some language feels culty because cults from the 1960s through today use many of the same terms and phrases and twist their meaning. For example, the term ‘twin flames’ has become completely different now, thanks to cults like the Twin Flame cult.
Other cults have used terms like high vibrations, past lives, and manifestation. But the problem is not so much the words they use as how they use language to manipulate their followers.
Language is a powerful tool humans use to communicate with each other. The words we choose and the way we speak can have a profound impact on those around us. However, this power is not always used for good, and it can sometimes be incredibly difficult to determine if these words are being used for good or not.
When you’re determining whether a New Age spiritual practice is for you or not, think about the intent and usage of the language more than the words themselves. The way and reason behind saying something make all the difference. That's why it's incredibly important to tap into your intuition and watch for some red flags.
Trust Your Intuition and Ask Yourself Some Questions
When you are looking at any spirituality (or anything for that matter), it's important to check in with yourself. We are conditioned to do what we feel we should do instead of listening to our own inner wisdom. This is especially true if you’ve been socialized as a female or grew up in a strict household.
The fact is, we have divine wisdom accessible within us at all times. Source, the Universe, God/Goddess, whatever you wanna call it, is part of us, and we are part of it. The most important question you can ask yourself when approaching a spiritual practice of any sort is, “Does this resonate with me?”
Tap into that deep inner wisdom and connect with your intuition. But trusting your intuition and knowing that it's talking to you is not easy right off the bat for many people. Keep practicing it, though, and you will be able to hone in on it, building that intuition muscle more and more.
Here are some more questions you can ask yourself when looking into any spirituality.
Do people treat one person or a spiritual group as infallible?
Often, a huge red flag is when the followers of a spirituality do not question iffy behaviors. This can be seen in politics, religion, and even Hollywood. Blindly following anyone is never an act made from your highest self.
What draws me to this particular spiritual practice?
This question is not so much for spotting culty red flags as it is for helping you enhance your self-understanding. Knowing that you're attracted to witchtok because believing in magic gives you hope or makes you feel more connected to the Earth is good information to have. It might lead to you doing more in nature to act more in alignment with something that resonates with you.
How empowering and inclusive is this spiritual space?
Often, culty groups otherize people not in their group. They invalidate people of other experiences and use shame to control their followers. If their spiritual space uses shame to otherize people who don’t believe the same thing, that's a red flag.
What is the intent behind the words?
As best as you can, try to determine the intent behind the words. Many New Age Spiritual cults use much of the same language as your favorite online tarot reader or astrologer. But it’s not the words so much as the intent behind the words. If they are implying that you should trust their wisdom over your own or seem to be using this language in a manipulative way, they might be worth passing on.
New Age spirituality can be incredibly freeing and empowering, but it’s also run by flawed humans who have learned how to communicate in potentially harmful ways. This is where that culty vibe can come in. Lucky for you, you have a powerful inner wisdom that can help you navigate this space and find the New Age community that resonates with you.
