What became of the idealism and spiritual yearning that defined the Sixties – the spirit of the Sixties? Have the seekers of a higher path vanished into the noise of modern life?

Whatever happened to the flower children and their dreams of peace, simplicity, and spiritual awakening?

Where did the spirit of the Sixties go?

What happened to the idealism, the hunger for higher consciousness, and the dream of a more enlightened society? What became of those who once turned away from consumerism, simplified their lives, and set out in search of something deeper, something more meaningful?

Where is the spark of the Sixties—the longing for meaning beyond materialism, for a society rooted in consciousness and compassion?

By the 1980s, what began as a spiritual quest was branded, packaged, and sold as the New Age movement.

Today, the New Age movement is rarely referred to by that exact name, but its ideas and practices have evolved and merged into several modern trends and subcultures.

Some of the current terms or movements that reflect the spirit of the New Age include:

🌿 Modern Equivalents & Related Movements:

  1. Wellness Culture
    (A broad term encompassing mind-body health, yoga, meditation, alternative therapies, and self-care.)

  2. Spiritual but Not Religious (SBNR)
    (A growing demographic of people seeking spiritual connection without organized religion.)

  3. Mindfulness Movement
    (Focused on meditation, presence, and stress reduction—often with Buddhist or secular roots.)

  4. Conscious Living / Consciousness Movement
    (A focus on personal growth, ethical living, and raising individual and collective consciousness.)

  5. Transformational Festivals & Communities
    (Burning Man, Bhakti Fest, Wanderlust—spaces where music, art, spirituality, and new social ideals merge.)

  6. Metaphysical & Energy Healing Circles
    (Practices like Reiki, crystal healing, sound baths, astrology, and tarot are still thriving.)

  7. Psychedelic Renaissance / Plant Medicine Revival
    (The resurgence of interest in psilocybin, ayahuasca, and other consciousness-expanding substances for healing and self-discovery.)

  8. Eco-Spirituality & Earth-Centered Practices
    (Linking spiritual awareness to environmental stewardship and indigenous wisdom.)

Today, spirituality has become big business, and the marketplace for self-help, inner peace, and emotional healing is booming. Meditation retreats and wellness centers are popping up across the globe, offering everything from silent contemplation to guided visualization, for a price. People pay thousands to sit in stillness, to chase visions, or to clear their minds entirely. The promise?

Enlightenment. The reality?

Freedom isn’t free.

The seeds of this spiritual marketplace were planted decades ago.

In the 1960s and 1970s, seminars like EST introduced people to the idea of paying hundreds or even thousands of dollars for a sliver of insight, or tens of thousands to climb a rung or two on the ladder to higher consciousness. What was once a grassroots quest for meaning has, for many, become a transactional path to transcendence. By the 1980s, the New Age movement had become a thriving industry, with demand high and sellers in control.

The eager consumers drawn to this spiritual marketplace were soon labeled ‘cultural creatives’—individuals encouraged to see themselves as pioneers of social and cultural transformation. Following this new path meant being part of the vanguard of change, embracing alternative lifestyles, values, and beliefs.

Today, that legacy continues as people seek out fresh products, services, and experiences that reflect evolving priorities, often responding to marketing and messaging in ways that defy traditional expectations.

Cultural creatives are the primary consumers of the experience economy—an industry built on selling transformative moments rather than material goods. Instead of products, they invest in psychotherapy, weekend workshops, spiritual retreats, and a wide array of personal growth experiences, all in pursuit of insight, healing, and self-discovery.

One of the advantages of selling experiences instead of products is the lower cost of production—there’s no need for factories when transformation is the commodity.

Much of the booming self-help industry revolves around fixing something: your relationships, your soul, or your physical health.

It’s often framed under the banner of ‘holistic wellness,’ a concept that has become a fixation for many cultural creatives. Marketers recognize this group as the prime audience for psychotherapy, alternative medicine, and organic or natural foods industries, all rooted in the belief that mind, body, and spirit are interconnected.

Among them are many of the so-called ‘worried well’—people who are essentially healthy but hyper-focused on every ache, twinge, and bodily function. As a result, they tend to spend significantly more on all forms of health care, both conventional and alternative.” (Paraphrased from Lattin, “Cruising the Spiritual Marketplace”)

We are, by nature, a deeply religious yet persistently pragmatic people. For a growing segment of the population, spirituality has shifted away from traditional theology and moved toward personal therapy.

It’s less about moral virtue and more about emotional well-being, focused on stress relief rather than salvation. Who remembers the New Age Journal?

But let’s not leave it there. Let’s return to the joy, to the hope. Remember the hippies?

The idealism?

The children?

The dream that once lit the way?

Let’s hold onto that spark.

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