Integral from Non-Integral Perspectives

 While editing my book, Allsville Emerging: Creating and Experiencing a New Culture Together, I noticed that this below section seemed to match much of what Annie was articulating in her comment above. 

excerpt from Allsville Emerging: 

Door of the Journey and Flow: 

    Ironically, the flowing possibilities of the unknown, while creating anxiety, can actually improve, and cast light upon the known. For example, we can better appreciate the familiar and warm feelings of being home if we learn to see home as being a campsite instead. We may tend to take "home" for granted, but we are not so likely to under-appreciate a "campsite" that we only recently formed in the wilderness. We know we can't afford to take a passing thing for granted. 

    Just as a sense of journey may help us not to take home for granted, the journey sense can help in the realm of thought as well. When we think we know something, we feel at home with that "knowledge." But the home fires of knowing can, and often do, blind us to the truths that live beyond our known thoughts. We become slaves to the known (that is, what we think we know). Then the knowledge starts to atrophy from lack of connection to a larger truth. The rigidly-held "knowledge" first becomes a bit hollow, then strangely unfamiliar (like saying a word over and over again until it loses meaning). Then it becomes  suffocating or stifling. It eventually turns into a distortion that struggles to survive, despite a gnawing sense of inadequacy. 

   Unfortunately, an insecure mind that hasn't sensed its place in the universe, may not be able to accept this "passing" quality. The realization of the passing quality of desirable situations acknowledges too much of the unknown. 

   Unlike the insecure, nonintegrated, mind, a secure, integrated, mind doesn't fearfully equate "passing" with "fleeting." The campsite isn't a strange place. It has much of the stability and warmth of home, even though it isn't as heavily settled. One key to maintaining faith seems to be the understanding of this balance between the stable quality and the temporary nature of our campsites along life's journey.

    Cognitively reframing life experiences as being part of a whole journey also helps us see obstacles and failures as being learning experiences, rather than defeats. The "game" is not over. The journey goes on. If a person can take the long view, then he or she can see themselves as being a "work in progress," not a "failure." 

    Also, from the long view, even seemingly ugly events seem to fit in interesting ways that compliment the so-called "good times." The bad events somehow make the good times even better, similar to how the tartness of lemons compliments the sugar in lemonade. 

    The following mind experiments illustrate the use of identifying with the journey and with seeing self as part of flow:

end excerpt. 

Darrell

I kept my eyes open for you at the conference because I wanted to connect. Though much of the time I was shoved along blindly through the bustling corridors, or zoned out or inwardly from all of the stimulation, I knew what you looked like from 2008 and from your current iconic photo. I didn't see you. I went up to one guy with very short hair who I thought might be you, a follicularly razed version of you, but, doii, it wasn't. Intermittently, I looked for your lush reddish thatch, and didn't see it. Darn. Next time, be we so lucky.

There were a lot of seminars that I wanted to attend, like the one you mention, but was making a last ditch run for continuing education units and those determined a lot of my choices. (They were quite good. I came to appreciate Elliot Ingersoll even more than last time - he is a very knowledgeable, broadly informed and credentialed psychologist who seems to modestly meet people at their center of gravity. I so appreciated that. Clint Fughs was also an awesome force, displayed again in his tour d force on perspectives as primordial.) Did you enjoy the conference enough? Mixed? ...?

I appreciate what you are elaborating above in some of what that "downshifting" might entail. Thanks for your ongoing comments.

I'm staying at the moment where I have easy computer access and I'm spending more time online again than feels quite optimal. After five days taken up with getting to and being at the conference and preconference, I gotta go surfing - yesterday's dip was too brief as I tried to honor my somewhat delicate conditioning and stamina. Surfing, where the agape of technology (and other elements) meets the eros of liquid.

This is an interesting thread and you all make good points. I´d like to comment on the original article and the complex writing that the wonderful mind of Ken Wilber is able to present.  I believe the point was that it´s often difficult to digest and it sometimes stretches us beyond our ability to grasp.  It seems to me that the problem is solved with Integral Life Practice.  It´s simplified, almost like integral life practice for dummies (this is not said in disrespect but praise),it´s easy to follow, perhaps watered down but still embodies the essence of his philosophy.  Since thinking  isn´t the same as really grasping and completely understanding ILP gets us doing and on the path to becoming.

Ken states in Sex, Ecology Spirituality, 659-660, and I´m getting this from The Simple Feeling of Being, pg 163, that: ¨it (nondual realization) is every developmental stage leading to it, and then the ¨final¨ grasp of the Ground that is found in each and every stage, high or low: the hierarchy, having served its purpose as a ladder, having been long ago abandoned.¨

So we can ponder how different levels conceive an integral concept but frankly I don´t think they can.  Change and understanding don´t occur until it´s forced or it´s experienced personally in the ¨laboratory of our own awareness¨.  I think it might be more productive to ponder where we can go from here.  Ken has offered us a wonderful pinnacle to climb but says himself this isn´t the end.  Since evolution isn´t a static event but a never ending journey let’s ponder where we go from here individually and collectively. The more we do this, the more we affect the tipping point of mass consciousness and people that don´t understand the theory will understand when they see us in action.

This is an interesting thread and you all make good points. I´d like to comment on the original article and the complex writing that the wonderful mind of Ken Wilber is able to present.  I believe the point was that it´s often difficult to digest and it sometimes stretches us beyond our ability to grasp.  It seems to me that the problem is solved with Integral Life Practice.  It´s simplified, almost like integral life practice for dummies (this is not said in disrespect but praise),it´s easy to follow, perhaps watered down but still embodies the essence of his philosophy.  Since thinking  isn´t the same as really grasping and completely understanding ILP gets us doing and on the path to becoming.

Ken states in Sex, Ecology Spirituality, 659-660, and I´m getting this from The Simple Feeling of Being, pg 163, that: ¨it (nondual realization) is every developmental stage leading to it, and then the ¨final¨ grasp of the Ground that is found in each and every stage, high or low: the hierarchy, having served its purpose as a ladder, having been long ago abandoned.¨

So we can ponder how different levels conceive an integral concept but frankly I don´t think they can.  Change and understanding don´t occur until it´s forced or it´s experienced personally in the ¨laboratory of our own awareness¨.  I think it might be more productive to ponder where we can go from here.  Ken has offered us a wonderful pinnacle to climb but says himself this isn´t the end.  Since evolution isn´t a static event but a never ending journey let’s ponder where we go from here individually and collectively. The more we do this, the more we affect the tipping point of mass consciousness and people that don´t understand the theory will understand when they see us in action.

This is an interesting thread and you all make good points.  I´d like to comment on the original article by stefano and the complex writing that the wonderful mind of Ken Wilber is able to present.  I believe one of the points was that it´s often difficult to digest and it sometimes stretches us beyond our abitlity to grasp. It seems to me that the problem is solved with Integral Life Practice.  It´s simplified, almost like integral life practice for dummies (this is not said in disrespect but praise), it´s easy to follow, perhaps watered down but still embodies the essence of his philosophy.  Since thinking isn´t the same as really grasping and completely understanding ILP, it gets us doing and on the path to becoming.

Ken states in Sex, Ecology, Spirituality, 659-660, and I´m getting this from  The Simple Feeling of Being, 163, that: ¨it(nondual realization) is every developmental stage leading to it, and then the ¨final¨ grasp of the Ground that is found in each and every stage, high or low: the heirarchy, having served its purpose as a ladder, having been long ago abandoned.¨ Afterall we´re just uncovering what´s already there in the first place, we´re just releasing more and more of our illusions.

So we can ponder how different levels conceive an integral concept but frankly I don´t think they can, until they get to that level.  Change and understanding don´t occur until it´s forced or it´s experienced personally in the ¨laboratory of our own awareness¨.  I think it might be more productive to ponder where we can go from here.  Ken has offered us a wonderful pinnacle to climb but says himself this isn´t the end.  Since evolution isn´t a static event but a never ending journey let´s ponder where we go from here individually and collectively.  The more we do this, the more we affect the tipping point of mass consciousness and people that don´t understand the theory will understand when they see us in action.

This is an interesting thread and you all make good points.  I´d like to comment on the original article by stefano and the complex writing that the wonderful mind of Ken Wilber is able to present.  I believe one of the points was that it´s often difficult to digest and it sometimes stretches us beyond our abitlity to grasp. It seems to me that the problem is solved with Integral Life Practice.  It´s simplified, almost like integral life practice for dummies (this is not said in disrespect but praise), it´s easy to follow, perhaps watered down but still embodies the essence of his philosophy.  Since thinking isn´t the same as really grasping and completely understanding ILP, it gets us doing and on the path to becoming.

Ken states in Sex, Ecology, Spirituality, 659-660, and I´m getting this from  The Simple Feeling of Being, 163, that: ¨it(nondual realization) is every developmental stage leading to it, and then the ¨final¨ grasp of the Ground that is found in each and every stage, high or low: the heirarchy, having served its purpose as a ladder, having been long ago abandoned.¨ Afterall we´re just uncovering what´s already there in the first place, we´re just releasing more and more of our illusions.

So we can ponder how different levels conceive an integral concept but frankly I don´t think they can, until they get to that level.  Change and understanding don´t occur until it´s forced or it´s experienced personally in the ¨laboratory of our own awareness¨.  I think it might be more productive to ponder where we can go from here.  Ken has offered us a wonderful pinnacle to climb but says himself this isn´t the end.  Since evolution isn´t a static event but a never ending journey let´s ponder where we go from here individually and collectively.  The more we do this, the more we affect the tipping point of mass consciousness and people that don´t understand the theory will understand when they see us in action.