In Praise of the We Space

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I orient from what we call the “upper-left” quadrant – I relate well to my own experience and at times neglect the “lower-left” communal support, the “we space,”  that nourishes me in a much different way than my own internal experience. That’s why, weeks later, I am so grateful for the Integral Spiritual Experience gathering.

By now many of us who attended have posted reflections about ISE 1. In fact, many people were posting during the event. So many in fact, that Integral Life was receiving requests for information about ISE 2 before ISE 1 was over! Clearly it had an impact on the 500 who attended.

Was it the chanting, the connections, the teaching, the dancing, the bonfire? Or was it the sunsets, the walks, the body work? All this and more made up the tapestry so carefully woven to create the whole event. As the experience has soaked into my being these last three weeks, one particular aspect continues to feed me . . . the “we space.”

The event was indeed a gathering of the far flung clan and we also felt the presence of many who could not attend. Greetings to the whole group arrived by phone and email. It was as though our numbers swelled in the virtual world. Perhaps most encouraging were the number of “new” people who accompanied friends or partners out of love as well as interest in this thing called “integral.” It was a pleasure to include them in what is now, clearly, a movement.

‘Tis true that some found the “rah-rah” energy, the cheering for “Integral,” a bit over the top. I get that, but I have a different perspective because as I sat in the crowd of 500, I could not help but think back 10 years. I remembered the feelings of isolation and loneliness I experienced before finally connecting to other “integralists” – the  glazed looks and the hostile comments I endured as I made my first clumsy attempts to talk about it. I remembered how my heart sang as I read Ken’s latest book, or the long phone conversations I enjoyed with the only other person I knew traversing this exciting terrain. And how welcome I felt at my first Integral Institute event. The sense of relief that others knew what I was talking about was palpable.

So it was with great pleasure that I sat among the ever widening clan and felt our collective commitment to realize our Unique Self as an offering to the world. As an Integral Coach, I know how important it is to develop strong competencies in each of the four quadrants. This time together with people committed to transforming the world was like getting “Lower-Left” intravenously. Each conversation, each meeting of eyes across the room, each time we sank into chants and the 500 voices became One, worked to gather me into the whole. I treasure those experiences and I suspect many others do as well. My perspective is we need the “rah-rah,” we need to recognize that it’s a difficult world out there, that it’s good for us to come together and receive the blessing of the “we space” so we remember we’re not alone as we go back into the world.