The Evolving Nature of Non-Duality: A Journey Through Spiritual Traditions

Ep. 155 (Part 1 of 3) | Integral polymath Sean Esbjörn-Hargens is the first comparative scholar to undertake differentiating the myriad varieties of nonduality. A longtime spiritual practitioner within several nondual traditions, Sean wanted to find out how we can understand the relationship between reality, consciousness, and practice. He decided to delve into a comprehensive study of nonduality and was surprised and excited by what he found: 40 distinct nondual traditions, ancient and new, from East and West, fascinating in their differences, their similarities, their uniqueness, and their depth. Sean’s hope is that his comparative analysis of nondual traditions will open the door to a global, cross-tradition dialogue that will supersede centuries of misunderstanding and conflict among people arguing that their realization is the best and/or only correct interpretation of reality and allow nondual traditions to enrich and empower one another.

Enthusiasm and excitement flow throughout the conversation as Sean reveals provocative patterns he has uncovered in nonduality's history and the distinctions he has mapped so far. It becomes clear that nondual realizations evolve in a way similar to developmental models in terms of subject/object relationship, psychology of self, and taking new perspectives, and that they will continue to evolve. As Sean puts it, “the ontological floor keeps dropping out as the endpoint of spiritual realization.” “What will our nondual traditions look like in a thousand years? In two thousand years!” Sean wonders. Hang on to your hats for a thoroughly enjoyable and eye opening ride through a goldmine of information about the many faces and potentials of our nondual traditions. Recorded September 12, 2024.

“How do we understand the relationship between consciousness, reality, and practice?”

(For Apple Podcast users, click here to view the complete show notes on the episode page.)

Topics & Time Stamps – Part 1

• Introducing Sean Esbjörn-Hargens, author, Dean of Integral Education & Integral Noetic Sciences Program Director at CIHS, founder of MetaIntegral (00:59)
• How was Sean drawn to exploring the topic of nonduality? (05:03)
• There are over 40 distinct nondual traditions on the planet (07:31)
• When you say nonduality, what do you mean? (11:02)
• Advaita Vedanta’s “not two”; there’s only Self, only divine awareness (11:43)
• 3 major nondual ultimacies: nondual oneness, nondual tantra, nondual union (12:49)
• In nondual traditions, does divinizing the self lead to the same experience as annihilating the self? (17:43)
• The I-sphere of nonduality, the we-sphere of nonduality, and the it-sphere of nonduality (19:51)
• Ken Wilber’s notion of emptiness + view: emptiness doesn’t change but view does, so nonduality evolves (22:00)
• Varieties of nonduality emphasize different qualities: emptiness + omnipresence, emptiness + bliss, emptiness + luminosity, emptiness + embodiment (23:33)
• Nonduality is developmental in terms of states: each realization is a deeper, wider experience of nonduality (25:45)
• Realization is just going to keep going; there is a way in which all views are equal and a way in which some views are better than others (29:41)

Resources & References – Part 1

• Sean Esbjörn-Hargens, Dean of Integral Education & Integral Noetic Sciences Program Director, California Institute of Human Sciences (CIHS), founder of MetaIntegral, a global transdisciplinary social impact organization
• Sean’s course coming up in January 2025: Varieties of Nonduality: A 10-Week Course in a Metaintegral Analysis of 10 Contemplative Traditions
• Sean Esbjörn-Hargens & Michael Zimmerman, Integral Ecology: Uniting Multiple Perspectives on the Natural World*
• Roy Bhaskar, Sean Esbjörn-Hargens, Nicholas Hedlund, Mervyn Hartwig, Metatheory for the Twenty-First Century: Critical Realism and Integral Theory in Dialogue*
• A. H. Almaas’ Diamond Approach, see also Deep Transformation podcast’s A. H. Almaas Wisdom Series (also available on YouTube)
• David Loy, Nonduality: A Study in Comparative Philosophy*, Nonduality in Buddhism and Beyond*, see also Deep Transformation podcast Growing from Bodhisattva to Ecosattva with David Loy
• Advaita Vedanta
• Kashmir Shaivism
• Meister Eckhart, German Catholic priest, theologian, philosopher & mystic
• Ken Wilber, No Boundary: Eastern and Western Approaches to Personal Growth*
• Shingon Buddhism
• Tiantai Buddhism
• A. H. Almaas, Runaway Realization: Living a Life of Ceaseless Discovery*

* As an Amazon Associate, Deep Transformation earns from qualifying purchases.

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Varieties of Nonduality*

by Sean Esbjörn-Hargens

A 10-Week Course in a Metaintegral Analysis of 10 Contemplative Traditions

Beginning January 2025

* Sean Hargens has kindly offered a $100 discount to Deep Transformation podcast listeners who sign up for his course! To take advantage of Sean’s offer, simply email him at sean@metaintegral.net, with the following coupon code in the subject line: NONDUALITY2024DT, and request one hundred dollars off the January to March Varieties of Nonduality course. Sean will then send you a PayPal invoice with the reduced rate of $395.

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Sean Esbjörn-Hargens, Ph.D. has spent his life developing “metaintegral” approaches to the fields of ecology, mixed-methods research, psychology and consciousness studies, philosophy of science, holistic education, and post-capital models of measuring social impact. He has been a long time serious meditator and practitioner within several nondual traditions: Tibetan Buddhism, The Russian Orthodox Church (Christianity), A. H. Almaas’ The Diamond Approach, The Ceile De Celtic tradition, and the Hermetic tradition. He is the Founder and Program Director of the MA/PhD program Integral Noetic Sciences at the California Institute for Human Sciences in Encinitas, CA.

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Podcast produced by Vanessa Santos and Show Notes by Heidi Mitchell