Waking up and growing up are distinct processes that can occur independently, with traditional spiritual teachings often neglecting the importance of growing up.
Behavior of enlightened individuals can vary due to their stage of growing up, highlighting the need for integration of waking up and growing up in spiritual practices.
Lack of comprehensive integration of waking up, growing up, and cleaning up in spiritual teachings can lead to challenges and negative consequences for individuals.
Determining levels of development in multiple lines of intelligence requires external assessments and models, as introspection alone is not sufficient.
Deep dives
Waking up and growing up are separate processes
Waking up, which refers to direct spiritual experiences, and growing up, which involves cognitive, moral, and emotional development, are two distinct processes. They can occur independently, with one being advanced while the other lags behind. Traditional religious teachings primarily focus on waking up, neglecting the importance of growing up. Waking up experiences can occur at any stage of growing up, and individuals at different stages may interpret these experiences differently. Growing up involves developing multiple lines of intelligence, such as cognitive, moral, and emotional intelligence, through different stages. These stages are not easily identifiable through introspection and can only be observed accurately through external developmental models. The lack of understanding and integration of growing up and cleaning up (working with repressed emotions) in spiritual teachings has led to imbalances and shortcomings in many spiritual paths.
The correlation between waking up and saintliness
The correlation between waking up experiences and saintliness is complex. Historical accounts of enlightened individuals show a range of behavior, from deep compassion and love to advocating brutal practices. This discrepancy can be attributed to the individual's stage of growing up, with lower stages being associated with ethnocentrism and prejudice. While individuals may have profound waking up experiences, their developmental stage dictates how they interpret and express these experiences. The lack of emphasis on growing up in traditional spiritual teachings contributes to the inconsistency in behavior among enlightened individuals. However, the integration of waking up, growing up, and cleaning up in spiritual practices shows promising results for a more balanced and comprehensive spiritual path.
The limited incorporation of waking up, growing up, and cleaning up
The majority of spiritual teachings and groups lack a comprehensive integration of waking up, growing up, and cleaning up. Traditional paths primarily focus on waking up experiences, neglecting the importance of cognitive, moral, and emotional development. Without the understanding and inclusion of growing up and cleaning up, individuals may face challenges and suffer negative consequences despite their waking up experiences. However, there is a growing recognition of the need for an integrated approach, with a number of spiritual communities incorporating all three aspects and reporting better results. This understanding is relatively recent, with the incorporation of growing up and cleaning up being discovered about a hundred years ago and gaining more attention in the past few decades.
Authority in determining levels of development
Determining levels of development in various lines of intelligence is a complex task. It requires external assessments and models, as introspection alone cannot accurately identify these stages. There are multiple models of psychological development, each with its own stages and criteria. No single authority can definitively determine an individual's level of development. Instead, the evaluation of multiple lines of intelligence through established models can provide a more comprehensive understanding of an individual's developmental stage.
The Evolution of Human Development
Humans have evolved through different stages of development over time, starting from archaic stages to magic stages and eventually reaching mythic and rational stages. Each stage brought about different kinds of intelligence, such as cognitive and emotional intelligence, and addressed specific questions and challenges. Individuals are born at the archaic stage and progress through various stages of development, with the potential for further growth. The current integral stage represents a high level of development, but there may be higher stages in the future.
The Importance of Integrated Development
Waking up to higher stages of consciousness does not necessarily indicate a holistic and comprehensive development. It is important to integrate waking up, growing up, and cleaning up in order to achieve balanced and complete growth. Each of these aspects, which involve deepening self-awareness, cognitive development, and addressing shadow aspects, contributes to personal and societal transformation. A comprehensive approach that includes all three aspects of development is needed to create meaningful change.
Understanding the Mystery of Ultimate Reality
Ultimate reality, often referred to as spirit or consciousness, is difficult to fully grasp or describe. It transcends the boundaries of language and concepts, and can only be known through direct experience or realization. Mystics across traditions have touched upon this ultimate reality, emphasizing its non-dual, all-encompassing nature. Attempts to describe or explain ultimate reality often involve metaphor and paradox, highlighting its ineffable and indescribable nature. Fostering direct realization through dedicated spiritual practices is key to experiencing and understanding this mystery.
Exploring Political and Cultural Shifts
Political and cultural shifts, such as the rise of figures like President Trump, can be traced back to deeper developmental stages. Different stages of development, from egocentric to ethnocentric to world-centric, shape individuals' values and perspectives. Cultural conflicts can arise when individuals at different stages clash in their ideologies. Understanding these stages of development can shed light on societal divisions and the complex dynamics at play. Overcoming these divides may require a more integral approach that addresses the values and perspectives of different stages of development.
With over two-dozen published books translated in nearly as many languages, Ken Wilber has created what is widely considered the first truly comprehensive Integral Map of human experience. By exploring and integrating the major insights and conclusions of nearly every human knowledge domain in existence, Wilber created the revolutionary AQAL Integral Framework. In short, the Integral Approach is the coherent organization, coordination, and harmonization of all of the relevant practices, methodologies, and experiences available to human beings. Wilber states: “You can’t [realistically] honor various methods and fields, without showing how they fit together. That is how to make a genuine world philosophy.” He is the founder of the nonprofit think tank Integral Institute, co-founder of the transformational learning community Integral Life, co-founder of Source Integral exploring the nature of Integral Society, and the current chancellor of Ubiquity University.
Ken's site: kenwilber.com
Some of Ken's many books:
The Religion of Tomorrow: A Vision for the Future of the Great Traditions
Integral Buddhism: And the Future of Spirituality
Integral Meditation: Mindfulness as a Way to Grow Up, Wake Up, and Show Up in Your Life
Trump and a Post-Truth World
Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group.
Transcript of this interview.
Interview recorded April 28, 2018.
YouTube Video Chapters:
00:00:00 - Welcome to Buddha at the Gas Pump
00:04:54 - From Graduate School to Writing a Book
00:10:43 - The Meditation Technique and Awakening Experience
00:16:03 - The State of Witnessing during Meditation
00:21:34 - The Witness and Radical Oneness
00:27:16 - The Illusion of Waking Up
00:32:41 - Overpowering Fear from Repressed Anger
00:38:16 - The Importance of "Cleaning Up" in Spiritual Practice
00:44:00 - The Role of Spirituality in Human Development
00:49:12 - The Three Major Groups of Development Lines
00:55:03 - The Different Levels of Growing Up
01:00:52 - The stages of moral development
01:05:50 - Honoring and Including Different Perspectives
01:10:54 - Expressing Authentic Enlightenment
01:15:57 - The Recent Discovery of Growing Up Levels in Spiritual Systems
01:20:35 - Development of Cognitive and Emotional Intelligence
01:25:31 - Different lines of development
01:30:57 - The need for waking up, growing up, and cleaning up in spiritual practice
01:36:40 - The Evolution of Spiritual Pursuit
01:41:39 - The Problem of Overthinking in Philosophy
01:46:27 - The Unity of Nirvana and Samsara
01:52:06 - Differentiating Relative and Ultimate States of Consciousness
01:57:23 - Dissolving into Oneness
02:03:03 - Working with Good Maps and the Importance of Spiritual Growth
02:07:07 - Aurobindo's Influence on Integral Yoga
02:13:38 - Spirit, consciousness, and the four quadrants
02:19:31 - Describing Ultimate Reality
02:25:19 - The Problem of Describing Ultimate Reality
02:30:58 - President Trump: A Sociocultural Analysis
02:37:36 - The Stages of Growing Up
02:42:14 - Exploring Ken Wilber's Books and Resources
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