Online Spirituality / Guru Red Flags

1. 1.Does the teacher or community claim to offer unique, exclusive knowledge or methods that cannot be found anywhere else?
   No; they openly acknowledge drawing on many traditions and teachers.They claim a distinct approach but acknowledge the broader field.They frequently emphasise that their path is uniquely powerful or superior.They teach that their knowledge is the only path and discredit all alternatives.
2. 2.Are significant financial commitments (high-cost courses, donations, retreats, merchandise) emphasised as necessary for true growth or access?
   Core content is freely available; financial transactions are optional and proportionate.Paid content exists but is clearly optional; free access provides genuine value.Significant financial commitment is consistently framed as essential to progress.Financial escalation is systematically built into the programme; deeper access requires ever-larger payments.
3. 3.Are members who have achieved a certain level celebrated publicly while those who question or leave are ignored or criticised?
   All members are treated with consistent, appropriate regard.Some celebrating of progress but nothing that feels manipulative.A clear hierarchy of status exists based on compliance and spending.Public praise and shame are used systematically as control tools.
4. 4.How does the teacher or community respond to critical reviews, academic scrutiny, or investigative journalism about them?
   They engage with criticism thoughtfully and transparently.Some defensiveness but they do not suppress or attack critics.Critics are labelled as jealous, spiritually immature, or part of a negative force.Critics face organised online harassment or legal action; members are instructed to attack or ignore them.
5. 5.Is the teacher presented as having special spiritual powers, divine connection, or extraordinary insight that places them beyond ordinary questioning?
   The teacher presents themselves as a fellow learner; their fallibility is acknowledged.The teacher is respected but presented as human and fallible.The teacher is presented as uniquely spiritually advanced; questioning them is discouraged.The teacher claims divine authority, supernatural gifts, or a uniquely chosen status that places them above critique.
6. 6.Does the community pressure members to recruit friends and family, or to publicly promote the teacher on social media?
   No recruitment pressure; sharing is entirely voluntary.Sharing is encouraged but clearly optional.Regular calls to recruit; members feel social pressure to bring in others.Recruitment targets exist; status within the group depends partly on bringing in new members.
7. 7.Have you noticed that relationships or interactions in this community make you feel dependent on the teacher or the community for your emotional wellbeing?
   No; the community has strengthened my existing relationships and independence.Some positive dependence on the community, similar to any supportive group.I find myself looking to the teacher or community to regulate my emotions more than I used to.I feel unable to cope with everyday life without the teacher's content or community validation.
8. 8.Is accurate biographical and professional information about the teacher independently verifiable?
   Yes; credentials and background are independently confirmed.Most background checks out; some claims are unverifiable.Credentials are largely unverifiable; the teacher's narrative is self-reported.Claimed credentials or background have been demonstrably exaggerated or fabricated.
9. 9.Are community members encouraged or required to reduce time spent on other interests, communities, or relationships outside this group?
   No; outside interests and relationships are actively celebrated.Involvement runs high but outside life is respected.Subtle pressure exists to prioritise the community above outside commitments.Outside relationships or interests are framed as distractions from spiritual growth.
10. 10.Does the teacher or community frame current events, mainstream science, or mainstream medicine as corrupt, dangerous, or spiritually compromised — while positioning themselves as an alternative authority?
    They engage with mainstream knowledge respectfully and critically.Some scepticism of mainstream views but not wholesale rejection.Mainstream institutions are frequently portrayed as part of a corrupt system.Members are taught to reject mainstream science, medicine, and institutions in favour of the teacher's authority.
11. 11.Have you or others you know experienced unexpected emotional crises after following the teacher's advice or practices?
    No; practices have been broadly stabilising and positive.Minor emotional disruption that was supported and resolved.Some members have had significant emotional difficulties attributed to intensive practices.Serious psychological crises have occurred; the community typically blames the member rather than the practice.
12. 12.Is the teacher transparent about how community fees and donations are used?
    Full financial transparency is provided.General information is available but detailed accounts are not.Financial information is opaque; the teacher's lifestyle appears lavish.No financial accountability exists; significant concerns have been raised by former members.
13. 13.Overall, does your involvement in this community make you feel more free, more yourself, and more connected to the broader world — or more dependent, more fearful, and more isolated?
    Clearly more free, more myself, and more connected to the world.Mostly positive, with some areas where I notice dependency.A mixed experience; genuine benefits alongside feelings of dependency or anxiety.I feel significantly more fearful, more isolated, and more dependent than before I joined.

Answer all 13 questions to see your result.