What is really worrying is that elements of this type of philosophy casually vindicate the driving market values that underpin so many 21st century approaches to social policy making. They tie in neatly with the downsizing of funding for health services, the increasing privatising of health care access, and the belief (albeit unexamined) that only those with wealth and power are deserving of what some consider to be at least one of a person's inalienable rights: the right to health.

They also justify the increasing gap between those who have and those who have not. They suggest that if you are doing well, it has been ordained by some unseen power that cannot be interrogated.

You need not worry about how others live, what the long-term consequences of a dissatisfied and disenfranchised underclass would be, or of the values being instilled into your children and grandchildren and what that might mean for the future. Education is subject to the same pressures. Gone is the idea of a universal system. Private academies and faith-based institutions are the shout of the day.

One can argue coherently that society should not be expected to provide the luxuries of life and consumer perks without asking that we make our contribution, that we show some initiative, or that we work for them. Health, and in a wider sense, well-being, is our right.

The New Age movement makes much of its belief in or a sense of a Universal Good. Yet it has proved itself skilled at positioning itself as arbiter of that good and then getting others to pay for it. It caters perfectly to those who already have all the basics. Now that you have two cars, a luxury home, and the twice-yearly holidays, why not add a little spirituality?

The Chopra Institute for Well-Being for example, currently offers "The Secret of Enlightenment", a three day course for a throwaway $4,575 if you register early; otherwise it will cost a mere snippet at $4,775. What about the five-day "Perfect Health Program" starting at $2,875 and rising to $3,475? Rest assured, an Ayurvedic spa treatment and two Ayurvedic lunches are thrown in.

It would be cynical to suggest that in the case of Deepak Chopra, had he practised what he trained for, he would probably be just another doctor wrestling daily with people's illnesses and misfortunes, that the lure of minor celebrity was just too much to resist. He would certainly have missed out on the poetry recordings with Madonna, Demi Moore, Sinead O'Connor, and Angelica Huston, plus the chance to author countless mystical-style books. He would also have passed up the opportunity to make many TV appearances, go into business with Richard Branson, and co-write the script of a yet to be seen film entitled Buddha. Perhaps this is his karma.