Conspirituality

1. Conspirituality: A Fusion of New Age Spirituality and Conspiracy Theories

[Conspirituality] offers a broad politico-spiritual philosophy based on two core convictions, the first traditional to conspiracy theory, the second rooted in the New Age: 1) a secret group covertly controls, or is trying to control, the political and social order, and 2) humanity is undergoing a ‘paradigm shift’ in consciousness.

Defining the blend. Conspirituality is a rapidly growing online movement that synthesizes elements of New Age spirituality and conspiracy theories. It posits that a hidden, malevolent force controls the world, but simultaneously believes humanity is on the cusp of a spiritual awakening or "paradigm shift." This fusion creates a unique ideology fueled by political disillusionment and alternative worldviews.

Hope and cynicism. The movement marries the New Age focus on personal transformation, positive thinking, and spiritual evolution with the conspiracy realm's paranoia about global control, hidden agendas, and evil elites. Adherents believe that recognizing and resisting this hidden control is essential for achieving the promised spiritual awakening. It's a worldview that is both frightening and reassuring, magnifying evil while making it seem comprehensible.

Divine acceleration. Conspirituality often presents a narrative of divine acceleration, where political and spiritual conflict are seen as catalysts for world transformation. The perceived threat of a totalitarian "new world order" necessitates aligning with an "awakened new paradigm." This framework allows followers to interpret current events, from pandemics to political shifts, as signs of this unfolding spiritual battle and impending transformation.

2. Exploiting Distrust: Crises Amplify Institutional Betrayal

In hindsight, this very real social precarity and sense of institutional betrayal helped to foster an urgent desire for novel answers and individual empowerment.

Amplified by crisis. The COVID-19 pandemic significantly amplified conspirituality by exploiting existing distrust in public health institutions, government, and mainstream media. Inconsistent messaging, perceived hypocrisy, and the opacity of bureaucracy during the crisis fueled paranoia and validated pre-existing skepticism. This created fertile ground for alternative narratives to take hold.

Capitalizing on vulnerability. Lockdowns, economic hardship, and fear made many feel surveilled but neglected, managed but not heard. This sense of powerlessness fostered an urgent desire for individual empowerment and novel answers outside of conventional systems. Conspirituality offered a framework where the pandemic was not just a health crisis, but a ruse by "powers that be" to execute ancient plans for world domination, positioning adherents as uniquely insightful.

Disaster spirituality. Similar to "disaster capitalism" exploiting crises for profit, "disaster spirituality" leverages public catastrophes for spiritual and economic gain. A real crisis becomes the basis for an evangelical call to spiritual renewal, funneling attention and emotional commitment into monetized networks selling individual wellness and spiritual products, often at the expense of collective well-being and reality-based solutions.

3. Historical Roots: From Eugenics and Occultism to Modern Wellness

What awakened in 2020 were the sleeping values of a century before.

Deep historical currents. Conspirituality is not new; its roots trace back over a century, drawing from historical movements often overlooked in modern wellness. These include:

• Eugenics: The belief in improving human populations through selective breeding and physical culture, often intertwined with racial purity anxieties.
• Occultism: Movements like Theosophy and Anthroposophy, which introduced ideas of hidden knowledge, spiritual evolution, and racial hierarchies.
• Early Modern Yoga: Influenced by European physical culture and nationalism, sometimes carrying implicit body fascism and ideas of purification.

Body fascism echoes. The historical obsession with physical purity, discipline, and strength as indicators of moral and spiritual worth echoes in modern wellness culture's focus on idealized bodies, cleansing, and "boosting immunity." This can subtly reinforce discriminatory ideas about the disabled, women, and minorities, framing physical flaws as signs of moral failing or unprocessed trauma.

Hidden reactionary impulses. While modern wellness often presents as progressive, its historical underpinnings reveal connections to reactionary impulses. The romanticism of a pure, pre-modern past, distrust of science and modernity, and anxieties about racial or bodily "purity" link these seemingly disparate movements. Understanding this history is crucial to recognizing the subtle ways fascist-adjacent ideas can resurface in contemporary conspirituality.

4. Psychological Appeal: The Lure of Secret Knowledge and Belonging

People are drawn to both marginal spiritual communities and conspiracism because 1) they are attracted to the idea of knowing something necessary for survival, 2) that no one else knows, and 3) that they can share with other kindred spirits.

Meeting core needs. Conspirituality appeals to fundamental human needs for epistemic certainty, existential meaning, and social connection. It offers adherents the sense of possessing vital, secret knowledge that is necessary for survival in a world perceived as dangerous and deceptive. This knowledge is often stigmatized by mainstream society, which paradoxically enhances its perceived revolutionary value.

In-group identity. Sharing this hidden truth with others creates a strong sense of community and belonging among "awakened" individuals. This shared identity, often forged in opposition to the "sheeple" or "normies," provides validation and reinforces the belief in their unique insight. This dynamic is reminiscent of cult recruitment, where tightly scripted ideologies and charismatic leaders offer protection and purpose.

Empowerment epistemology. In a world of overwhelming complexity and uncertainty, conspirituality offers "empowerment epistemology" – the idea that one can manage helplessness by simply choosing to believe what feels empowering, regardless of evidence. This allows individuals to feel in control and uniquely capable, even when their beliefs are based on fantasy, providing a false sense of agency in a world where they feel powerless to effect real change.

5. Economic Engines: Monetizing Belief Through Online Networks

As an online religion, conspirituality today is not just a set of ideas that people come to value in their quiet and humble hearts. It is generated and circulated by virtual churches, revival meetings, and séance sessions in the form of small-group courses and mastermind Zoom meetings.

Seamless e-commerce integration. Conspirituality thrives as an online religion deeply intertwined with e-commerce. Influencers leverage social media, email marketing, and websites to sell books, courses, supplements, and event tickets to passionate followers. The line between virtual worship and the economic engine driving it is often indistinguishable.

MLMs and affiliate marketing. Multi-level marketing schemes (MLMs) and affiliate marketing are particularly effective tools for spreading conspirituality. MLMs exploit aspirational dreams of financial independence, often recruiting within wellness communities and turning every interaction into a sales opportunity. Affiliate marketing allows influencers to cross-promote each other's content and products, creating lucrative networks that amplify misinformation.

Gamification of attention. The online environment gamifies attention through likes, shares, and view counts, rewarding controversial and sensational content. This incentivizes influencers to escalate their rhetoric and embrace more extreme ideas to maintain engagement and income streams. The more radical the content, the more it can be monetized through subscriptions and product sales.

6. Flawed Solutions: Leveraging Valid Critiques with Dangerous Pseudoscience

Conspiritualists are right enough—and enough of the time—to provoke emotional connection, and wield moral gravity.

Exploiting legitimate grievances. Conspirituality often resonates by tapping into valid critiques of modern society and institutions, such as:

• Disillusionment with conventional medicine (brief appointments, focus on symptoms, cost).
• Distrust of corporate power (Big Pharma, Big Ag).
• Concerns about government overreach and corruption.
• Anxiety about social fragmentation and ecological ruin.

Pseudoscience as a substitute. Instead of offering evidence-based solutions or engaging in political action, conspirituality substitutes pseudoscience and magical thinking. It promotes unproven remedies, dismisses germ theory, and frames complex issues like pandemics as spiritual crises solvable through personal belief or alternative practices, often with dangerous consequences for public health.

Bypassing complexity. This movement bypasses the messy details of science, policy, and social issues by reducing them to simplistic narratives of good versus evil, awakening versus sleep. It offers a false sense of empowerment through individual action (cleansing, meditating, "doing your own research") while discouraging collective, evidence-based approaches to real-world problems.

7. Charismatic Leaders: Blending Mysticism, Bullshit, and Political Agendas

Charisma is not something a person has so much as something that swirls around them, like weather.

The power of charisma. Conspirituality leaders often possess significant charisma, a social phenomenon that makes them appear superhuman and capable of revealing hidden truths. This charisma is a relational feedback loop, magnified by social validation, that can obscure the leader's true intentions or lack of expertise.

Magpies and plagiarists. Rather than being original visionaries, these charismatics are often "magpies," borrowing and blending existing ideas from various sources (occultism, self-help, conspiracy theories) to create compelling narratives. Their content is often derivative, but their charismatic delivery makes it feel unique and authoritative, keeping followers engaged and dependent.

From apolitical to radicalized. While many wellness spaces historically discouraged political engagement, the pressure of social crises and the dynamics of audience capture push influencers towards increasingly radical political stances, often aligning with the right-wing. Their initial "apolitical" stance makes them vulnerable to adopting extreme ideologies that offer clear villains and a sense of righteous purpose.

8. The QAnon Gateway: From Wellness to Extremist Ideology

The distance between the morbid cruelty of QAnon and the pastel anxieties of conspirituality is only a matter of degree, and defined by social acceptability.

Porous boundaries. The line between the "pastel anxieties" of wellness-flavored conspirituality and the "morbid cruelty" of QAnon is fluid and easily crossed. Both movements share core beliefs in hidden control, secret knowledge, and impending transformation, making conspirituality a potential gateway to more extreme QAnon ideologies.

Shared narratives. QAnon's mythology, with its focus on a satanic pedophile Cabal and a prophesied "Great Awakening," resonates with conspirituality's themes of hidden evil and spiritual transformation. Influencers often blend QAnon jargon and narratives into their wellness content, normalizing extreme ideas for a broader audience.

Exploiting trauma. QAnon's focus on child sex trafficking tragically exploits the real trauma of abuse survivors, offering a distorted framework for understanding and seeking justice. This allows QAnon to gain traction within communities already grappling with issues of abuse and institutional betrayal, blurring the lines between legitimate concerns and dangerous fantasies.

9. Real-World Harm: Conspirituality's Impact on Health and Relationships

We believe they are wrong—that conspirituality is a powerful and intoxicating socioreligious movement that can ruin families, disrupt public health measures, and encourage civil unrest.

Tangible consequences. Despite its often abstract or spiritual language, conspirituality has significant and harmful real-world impacts. These include:

• Health risks: Promoting unproven or dangerous alternative treatments, discouraging evidence-based medical care (like vaccination), leading to preventable illness and death.
• Damaged relationships: Dividing families and friends as individuals adopt radical beliefs and reject those who disagree.
• Social disruption: Fueling anti-mask and anti-vaccine protests, contributing to civil unrest and distrust in essential public services.

Exploiting vulnerability. The movement preys on vulnerable individuals, including those with health issues, trauma histories, or those seeking community and meaning. It offers false hope and simplistic answers that can lead to financial exploitation and further isolation.

Erosion of trust. By constantly undermining trust in institutions, experts, and consensus reality, conspirituality erodes the social fabric necessary for collective action and well-being. This leaves individuals more isolated and less prepared to face shared challenges.

10. Navigating the Landscape: Empathy, Skepticism, and Rebuilding Trust

We believe this is a position that more and more of us will have to confront.

Walking the tightrope. Navigating the era of conspirituality requires a delicate balance of empathy and skepticism. It means understanding the human needs and legitimate grievances that draw people in, while critically evaluating the dangerous pseudoscience and harmful ideologies they adopt.

Prioritizing relationships. For those with loved ones drawn into conspirituality, maintaining connection is crucial, even across ideological divides. This involves listening with empathy, setting boundaries where necessary, and offering consistent, unconditional care that influencers or cults cannot provide. Rebuilding trust begins at the interpersonal level.

Promoting critical thinking and media literacy. Countering conspirituality requires promoting critical thinking skills, media literacy, and a nuanced understanding of science and history. It means making evidence-based information accessible and engaging, and fostering trust in reliable sources without demanding blind faith.

Strengthening institutions and community. Ultimately, addressing conspirituality requires addressing the underlying societal issues it exploits. This includes advocating for accessible, humane healthcare, fostering genuine community connections, and working to rebuild trust in democratic processes and institutions. It's a long-term project that requires collective effort and a commitment to the common good.

Last updated: May 2, 2025