Transforming Self, Society, and the Spaces Between Us

Ken WilberCognitive, Integrative Metatheory, Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, The Ken Show, Video, World Affairs


Become A Supporting Member To Unlock The Full Episode

Get access to easy-to-use resources that help you learn big ideas quickly. You don’t need a lot of time to start changing your perspective and growing. Here’s what’s included:

Insight Maps
  • Full Videos & Podcasts: Experience enriching discussion that will expand your perspective
  • Key Questions to Reflect Upon: We prepared some thought-provoking questions designed for your personal reflection
  • Polarity Maps: Identify and understand this episode’s crucial tensions and polarities
  • Full Written Transcript: Get all the key information you need, available in PDF or EPUB formats for learning on the go
  • Illustrated Insight Map: Easily navigate through the core insights and takeaways
  • Guided Polarity Practices: Designed to help you integrate polarity thinking into your life
Get Full Access For $1 (30 days)* Or explore all membership plans → * Trial price for the first 30 days, then $20/month. Cancel or switch plans in 2 minutes at any time.

In this enlightening episode of The Ken Show, hosts Ken Wilber and Corey deVos embark on a profound journey through the multifaceted realms of systems theory, communication, and social evolution. They dissect the nuanced perspectives of “inside” and “outside” views in systems, delve into the transformative power of communication paradigms throughout history, and critically examine the influence of social media on the overall emergence of integral consciousness. The conversation ends with a powerful discussion on the symbiotic relationship between personal transformation and social transformation, advocating for a holistic approach to finding radical wholeness in an increasingly fragmented world. This dialogue serves as a beacon for those navigating the complex interdependencies of self, society, and the emerging global community.

Part 1: Introduction – Finding Radical Wholeness
The episode begins with a profound contemplation on the quest for radical wholeness, setting the tone for a deep dive into integral theory. Ken shares some details about his latest book, Finding Radical Wholeness, and the importance of embracing a holistic perspective that acknowledges the interconnectedness of all aspects of life, from individual consciousness to societal structures.

Part 2: Two Kinds of Systems Theory
In this segment, Ken Wilber explores the 8 zones of integral metatheory to articulate the distinction between the “inside view” and “outside view” within systems theory. The “inside view” refers to the subjective dynamics of members within a system, encompassing the internal relationships and dynamics that are felt and lived by groups of individuals. In contrast, the “outside view” is an objective analysis of the system from an external vantage point, focusing on how the system operates as a whole and interacts with other systems.

Part 3: Base and Superstructure in Diplomacy
The conversation explores the Marxist concept of base and superstructure, first explored in Ken’s essay, Revolutionary Social Transformation, applying these ideas to the Israel/Palestine conflict and the realm of diplomacy as a whole. The hosts discuss how economic and technological foundations (the base) shape and are shaped by the cultural and political superstructures, influencing international relations and global cooperation.

Part 4: The Evolution of Communication
Corey presents an engaging overview of the historical evolution of communication paradigms and their impact on human development (click the link to see the full map). From the emergence of language to the digital revolution, each shift in communication technology has profoundly affected how societies develop and interact, as well as how individuals perceive and interpret their reality.

Part 5: Integral in the Social Media Age
Here Ken and Corey explore the unique challenges social media has presented as a platform for the emergence of integral consciousness, especially its inherent resistance to big-picture views and greater social cohesion. Ken and Corey consider the potential of social media to both hinder and advance the development of a more integrated, aware, and cohesive global community.

Part 6: Personal and Social Transformation
The final segment of the episode emphasizes the importance of integrating personal growth with societal development. Ken and Corey argue that meaningful change requires a concerted effort that addresses both the inner transformation of individuals and the evolution of social systems and structures.

Produced by Corey deVos

Previous Episodes of The Ken Show

Putting the “Art” in Artificial Intelligence

Putting the “Art” in Artificial Intelligence

Ken Wilber
What is art, at its most fundamental level? This is one of those perennial questions that we have been asking and re-asking at every stage of the human journey, from the first cave drawings all the way to the emergence of sophisticated artificial intelligence algorithms like MidJourney that are once again blurring the lines between art, beauty, and perspective and forcing us to find new ways to answer this timeless question. Watch as Ken and Corey take a fun and fascinating look at the intersection between art, semiotics, and technology.
The Momentous Leap to Integral Consciousness

The Momentous Leap to Integral Consciousness

Ken Wilber
Ken Wilber and Corey deVos explore some of the unique challenges that come with the transition to Integral stages of development — “the momentous leap” as it is often called. Watch as Ken and Corey try to bring a little bit more light to this particular path of transformation, and maybe leave a few signposts for fellow travelers along the way.
No Boundary: Ken Wilber Goes Back to High School

No Boundary: Ken Wilber Goes Back to High School

Ken Wilber
Ken speaks with high school students to discuss his 1979 classic, No Boundary. What follows is a lively and deeply insightful exploration of integral spirituality, Ken’s personal practice, and the path of awakening that leads us to nondual realization.
In Pursuit of Wholeness: Making Room for Everything

In Pursuit of Wholeness: Making Room for Everything

Corey deVos
This notion of holons — the idea that the universe is fundamentally made of whole/parts within whole/parts within whole/parts, turtles all the way up and turtles all the way down — this isn’t just important in a theoretical or philosophical sense. Understanding holons also helps us make better sense of the world that we live in, and our inner worlds as well. And it helps guide our own growing up, waking up, and cleaning up process.
Integral Critical Theory: The 8 Zones of Racism

Integral Critical Theory: The 8 Zones of Racism

Ken Wilber
Ken and Corey continue their discussion of the 8 critical zones of integral metatheory, and apply them to the ongoing cultural conversation taking place around race, racism, and other kinds of bigotry that we continue to see in the world. This discussion is a great opportunity to not only learn more about these 8 primordial perspectives that are available to us, but also to see how they can be applied to social and cultural challenges and “wicked problems” such as these.
From the Big Bang to the Eight Primordial Perspectives

From the Big Bang to the Eight Primordial Perspectives

Ken Wilber
Ken Wilber offers a stunning introduction to the major components of Integral theory and practice — a guided tour that takes us from the very first forms to emerge in the universe, all the way to the eight primordial perspectives that all of our knowledge is constructed from.
Integrating Power

Integrating Power

Ken Wilber
Ken and Corey take an in-depth look at the multiple kinds of power we find in all four quadrants — interior and exterior power, individual and collective power — as they are expressed up and down the spiral of development.
The Science of Subtle Energy

The Science of Subtle Energy

Ken Wilber
In this episode of The Ken Show we take a look at Ken's "Comprehensive Theory of Subtle Energy”, which offers an elegant summary of how these energies might be accounted for by integral metatheory and integrated with our scientific understanding of the universe.
Ken Wilber Goes to High School: Sex, Ecology, Spirituality

Ken Wilber Goes to High School: Sex, Ecology, Spirituality

Ken Wilber
In this very special episode of The Ken Show we are joined by Aissatou Diallo, Zoe Tray, and Noah Delorme, students at Choate Rosemary Hall who have been studying Ken Wilber’s seminal book, Sex, Ecology, Spirituality for their senior year project. Watch as Ken, Aissatou, Zoe, and Noah unpack many of the core insights of SES and discuss the unique value Integral work holds for a new generation of thinkers, leaders, artists, and scholars.
Practice the Wound of Love

Practice the Wound of Love

Ken Wilber
Watch as Ken and Corey explore the ongoing unfoldment of love along the paths of Waking Up, Growing Up, Opening Up, Cleaning Up, and Showing Up. What follows is one of the most powerful, transformative, and touching conversations that Ken Wilber has ever recorded.
Marx, Mysticism, and Mathematics: Navigating Our Epistemic Collapse

Marx, Mysticism, and Mathematics: Navigating Our Epistemic Collapse

Ken Wilber
In this episode we continue our fascinating discussion about Integral epistemology, taking a look at the important but partial truths of Marxism, how we go about verifying and confirming spiritual experiences, and the involutionary/evolutionary nature of mathematics.
Integral Epistemology

Integral Epistemology

Ken Wilber
How do we know stuff? Like all of the great philosophical quandaries, it’s a fundamentally straightforward question that can lead us into an endlessly branching series of chicken-and-egg meditations on the nature of existence (ontology) versus the nature of knowledge (epistemology). In this fascinating episode of The Ken Show, we take a look at a dozen of the most popular schools of epistemological thought — idealism, pragmatism, empiricism, constructivism, etc. — noting their respective contributions and limitations, and how they can all be pulled together into a more Integral epistemology.
Awaken the Eye of Spirit

Awaken the Eye of Spirit

Ken Wilber
All of us possess three primary modes of perception that we use to disclose reality – the "Eye of Flesh", the "Eye of Mind", and the "Eye of Spirit". Watch as Ken and Corey explore these ideas and the many ways we perceive and interpret spiritual realities.
Integrating Shadow

Integrating Shadow

Ken Wilber
Ken and Corey offer a stunning overview of the psychological shadow. Ken describes several different kinds of shadow, how shadow can show up differently in all four quadrants, and the relationship between shadow, violence, and social transformation.
Coronavirus and a Course in Anti-Fragility

Coronavirus and a Course in Anti-Fragility

Corey deVos
Ken and Corey respond to the COVID-19 pandemic by suggesting a far more comprehensive approach to health and healing. Watch as we take a tour through all four quadrants of healthy living — a much-needed guide to integral anti-fragility in the 21st century.
The Four Quadrants: A Guided Tour

The Four Quadrants: A Guided Tour

Ken Wilber
Ken and Corey take a in-depth tour through one of Ken’s most well-known contributions to integral philosophy: the Four Quadrants. Watch as Ken shares his personal story about the origins of the Four Quadrant model — the day everything came together — as he weaves 3rd-person theoretical descriptions of the model with his own 1st-person experience and creative process.
Big Time: Integral Historiography and You

Big Time: Integral Historiography and You

Ken Wilber
Ken unpacks his own approach to integral historiography, helping us to better understand our own place in history — and history's place in us.
Integral Social Justice

Integral Social Justice

Ken Wilber
In this stunning 3 hour discussion, Ken Wilber offers his own views around healthy and unhealthy forms of social justice, praising the healthy and legitimate efforts to enact social justice over the generations while noting how much of today’s broken discourse around social justice is helping to perpetuate multiple forms of injustice.
Wicked Problems: Gun Violence

Wicked Problems: Gun Violence

Ken Wilber
In this exclusive series, Ken and Corey take an in-depth look at America’s ongoing struggle with gun violence, using the four quadrants to track many of the most critical and commonly-blamed factors, conditions, and causes that seem to be contributing to this terribly wicked problem.
Kosmos: An Integral Voyage

Kosmos: An Integral Voyage

Ken Wilber
Ken Wilber and Corey deVos ponder the evolutionary mysteries of the universe, speculating on how abundant life might be in the kosmos, why we haven’t met any of our galactic neighbors yet, and what might happen if a UFO landed on the White House lawn. It’s a fun conversation — and one that takes its subject matter more seriously than you might expect. Whether you are a true believer of UFO phenomena or an iron-clad skeptic, you don’t want to miss this fascinating and far-reaching exploration.
The Varieties of Integral Spiritual Experience

The Varieties of Integral Spiritual Experience

Ken Wilber
Watch as Ken and Corey explore the path of Waking Up — a guided tour through temporary states of consciousness that include everything from emotional states to chemically-induced states to the direct, immediate experience of timeless reality, revealing an infinitely renewable source of energy, resilience, and creative inspiration that rests at the very center of you.
The Many Ways We Grow

The Many Ways We Grow

Ken Wilber
Human development is uneven, which means that we are better at some things than we are at others. Some skills come more naturally to us, and others are more difficult to acquire. Watch as Ken and Corey explore each of these developmental capacities in detail, offering a powerful summary of human potentials, talents, and intelligences — a comprehensive map of the territory of “you” that will help guide your own ongoing growth and development.
Growing Up: A Guided Tour

Growing Up: A Guided Tour

Ken Wilber
In this episode of The Ken Show we explore one of the most central elements of integral metatheory: growing up through multiple stages of developmental maturity. Watch as Ken and Corey offer a guided tour through each of the major stages on the Path of Growing Up — an exploration of your own greatest, deepest potentials — and offer some simple practices to help you actualize those potentials.
On the Front Line of the Culture War — Give Me Some Real Examples, Not Just Theories!

On the Front Line of the Culture War — Give Me Some Real Examples, Not Just Theories!

Ken Wilber
Watch as Ken and Corey offer their views on some of the most controversial policy debates of our time, each of which has become a battle line in our constantly escalating culture wars.
Ken Wilber

About Ken Wilber

Ken Wilber is a preeminent scholar of the Integral stage of human development. He is an internationally acknowledged leader, founder of Integral Institute, and co-founder of Integral Life. Ken is the originator of arguably the first truly comprehensive or integrative world philosophy, aptly named “Integral Theory”.

Corey deVos

About Corey deVos

Corey W. deVos is editor and producer of Integral Life. He has worked for Integral Institute/Integal Life since Spring of 2003, and has been a student of integral theory and practice since 1996. Corey is also a professional woodworker, and many of his artworks can be found in his VisionLogix art gallery.