When Spiritual Leaders Fall, What Do You Follow?

A lot is swirling around right now. If you’ve glanced at a headline lately, you’ve probably seen the chatter about big names, big scandals, and even a few spiritual leaders caught up in the noise. In moments like these, we are reminded that having money, power, or influence doesn’t mean you have all the answers or are even a good person.

We live in a time when anyone with a microphone, a ring light, or a large following can position themselves as a guide. Some of them are genuinely doing good work. Some are simply charismatic. And some build entire empires on the idea that they know something you don’t and that they hold the key, the method, the lineage, the secret sauce you must keep coming back for.

That’s where things get dangerous.

If someone — a spiritual teacher, healer, coach, influencer, astrologer, or wellness guru — makes you feel like you need them to stay aligned, to stay healed, or to stay enlightened, they are creating dependency. And dependency is the opposite of growth.

You don’t need a hierarchy to access your intuition. You don’t need a “chosen one” to translate your own soul to you. You don’t need someone to sit on a pedestal so you can kneel at the bottom of it. You came into this life already connected.

A good teacher helps you remember that connection, not reroute it through them. They walk beside you, not ahead of you. They may offer tools, frameworks, or language that clarifies what you already feel, but they don’t claim ownership over your path. And they definitely don’t suggest that your progress depends on staying within their orbit. Here’s the truth we forget because it sounds too simple: You’re allowed to trust yourself.

Spiritual hierarchy crumbles the moment you realize that intuition doesn’t come with a certification. Your inner voice doesn’t require permission. Wisdom is not hoarded at the top of some invisible ladder. Rather, it’s distributed, widely, quietly, generously, among all of us.

So yes, the news cycle is loud right now. And yes, some people who built entire brands on being enlightened are being re-examined. But you don’t have to wait for a scandal to remember what’s real.

Pay attention to the people who empower you, not the ones who collect your dependence like currency. Follow those who teach you how to tap into your own power and walk away from anyone who insists you can only access it through them.

Because the path was always yours, you just needed to see it again.