Inside a growing spiritual movement built around awakening, ascension, and the search for something bigger

At a packed conference in Los Angeles, thousands of people gathered to explore a different way of understanding reality—through crystals, energy healing, and the belief that some humans didn’t originate on Earth.

They’re called starseeds: people who believe they were sent here from other planets to help humanity “ascend” to a higher dimension.

According to our guest RNS reporter Kathryn Post, it might sound fringe. But the deeper you go, the more familiar the underlying search begins to feel.

Because the people drawn to this world aren’t so different from anyone else. They’re looking for meaning, for purpose, for a way to make sense of suffering. And increasingly, they’re finding those answers online—through influencers, shared language, and communities that have no central authority.

But as these beliefs spread, they’re also evolving. In some cases, blending with conspiracy theories about hidden elites, cosmic battles, and the end of the world as we know it.

So what happens when belief becomes entirely personal—but still somehow shared?

And how do you tell the difference between a spiritual search… and something more dangerous?

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