A Brief History of Everything by Ken Wilber 0

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A Brief History of Everything 2nd Edition, Kindle Edition
by Ken Wilber (Author) Format: Kindle Edition


4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars (546)

“A clarion call for seeing the world as a whole,” this philosophical bestseller takes readers through history, from the Big Bang through the 21st century—now featuring an afterword with the writer-director of the Matrix franchise (San Francisco Chronicle)

Join one of the greatest contemporary philosophers on a breathtaking tour of time and the Cosmos—from the Big Bang right up to the eve of the twenty-first century. This accessible and entertaining summary of Ken Wilber’s great ideas has been expanding minds now for two decades, providing a unified field theory of the universe. Along the way, Wilber talks on a host of issues related to that universe, from gender roles, to multiculturalism, environmentalism, and even the meaning of the Internet.

This special anniversary edition contains an afterword, a dialogue between the author and Lana Wachowski—the award-winning writer-director of the Matrix film trilogy—in which we’re offered an intimate glimpse into the evolution of Ken’s thinking and where he stands today. A Brief History of Everything may well be the best introduction to the thought of this man who has been called the “Einstein of Consciousness” (John White).


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Integral Psychology: Consciousness, Spirit, Psychology, Therapy
Ken Wilber
4.7 out of 5 stars 229
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"In this 20th-anniversary edition of the bestselling work, Wilber takes readers on a journey from the Big Bang to the future, impressively synthesizing multiple fields of study. He organizes his material to fit its evolutionary nature, feeding off of what came before in order to provide a transformational 'unified theory' of history. Readers will gain new perspective on what they know, or think they know, about every possible discipline."--Publishers Weekly

"Ken Wilber is a national treasure. No one is working at the integration of Eastern and Western wisdom literature with such depth or breadth of mind and heart as he." --Robert Kegan, Professor of Education, Harvard University Graduate School of Education, and author of In Over Our Heads

"When Ken Wilber's thought walks through your mind, the door to the next higher level becomes visible. Anyone seeking to update the wisdom traditions of their lineage needs his reality and consciousness maps. The kabbalah of the future will lean on Ken's work." --Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi

"Ken Wilber is today's greatest philosopher and both critic and friend to authentic religion, a true postmodern Thomas Aquinas." --Father Richard Rohr, Center for Action and Contemplation

"In the ambitiously titled A Brief History of Everything, Wilber continues his search for the primary patterns that manifest in all realms of existence. Like Hegel in the West and Aurobindo in the East, Wilber is a thinker in the grand systematic tradition, an intellectual adventurer concerned with nothing less than the whole course of evolution, life's ultimate trajectory--in a word, everything. . . . Combining spiritual sensitivity with enormous intellectual understanding and a style of elegance and clarity, A Brief History of Everything is a clarion call for seeing the world as a whole, much at odds with the depressing reductionism of trendy Foucault-derivative academic philosophy. "--San Francisco Chronicle
About the Author
KEN WILBER is the founder of Integral Institute and the cofounder of Integral Life. He is an internationally acknowledged leader and the preeminent scholar of the Integral stage of human development. He is the author of more than twenty books, includingIntegral Meditation,A Theory of Everything,Integral Spirituality,No Boundary,Grace and Grit, andSex, Ecology, Spirituality.
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A Brief History of Everything
byKen Wilber

114 customer reviews

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From AustraliaI have no yet finished it yet but so far I am Impressed withKen Wilbur's ability to express clearly in reasonably simple prose some difficult scientific concepts. I think that his Q and A format is a part of his secret.

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Abdulqadir Al-Emad

5.0 out of 5 stars Five StarsReviewed in India on 2 December 2016
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Ken Wilber is great!

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Mercure

5.0 out of 5 stars OutstandingReviewed in France on 1 May 2016
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Among the several thousands books I have read over the past 36 years, NONE have as much clarity of writing, span and depth of reflexion.
This book makes a unique synthesis of philosophical and spiritual approaches, in which everything finds its right place and the whole looks utterly meaningful.
I believe it holds major keys, if not THE keys, to solving the problems mankind is faced with today.

2 people found this helpfulReport


Lorena Orive

5.0 out of 5 stars Ken Wilber es maravilloso, recomiendo ampliamente todos sus librosReviewed in Mexico on 6 April 2020
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Este es un excelente libro para comenzar a leer a Ken Wilber.

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Cliente Amazon

5.0 out of 5 stars Leitura Interessante e ActualReviewed in Spain on 31 May 2023
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Livro com muito interesse, para uma prospecção futura.
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Roger Curley

5.0 out of 5 stars 

Raise your consciousness to new and aspiring levels, help raise the collective world view to one of harmony & peace

Reviewed in the United States on 14 December 2014
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A must read for anyone that seeks enlightenment & is curiously frustrated with the 'average common denominator' ever so slow ability to 'Get it', He explains 

• mans struggle to evolve over the entire history of man, also explains 
• what factors needed to be in place before true transcendence to more 'adequate world views' could allow man to evolve to higher & wider levels of consciousness .

Explains our current resistance to previously Dominating social hierarchies like the mid Evil churches, which spowns sayings like 'question authority', & don't tell ME what to do or think.

As we slowly get beyound these mythical based dominating theologies & more toward mans new major Human Epoch - the Imformation age', this book helps identify the basic paths to the basic 'Truths' that will lead us all (in our own way) towards human Enlightenment....
But Don't worry, it's not going to happen with any instant hocus pocus...Sorry to those who feel that the only factor that holds us all back currently is Saturns position in the cosmos....:-O scary...
But it's all rather simple, you see...
"Man will get along Inteligently...ONce he's tried EVERY OTHER WAY :-o

Read this book & all of Ken Wilber works, you'll soon understand the common sense ways towards increasing Your consciousness, and at least have an understanding why so many struggle or are simply oblivious to the idea of evolving, transcending ...

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Nick Waldenmaier

5.0 out of 5 stars 

Attempting to encompass everything

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 17 December 2019

In Wilber’s ontology, the building blocks of reality are holons: wholes that themselves form part of greater wholes, all the way up and down. So for instance, atoms form molecules, which in turn make up cells, which constitute organisms, and so on – thus creating holarchies (hierarchies of holons). The emergence of consciousness, for Wilber, is not a particular problem, as he deems it already present in elementary particles, though much less so than in holons with greater “depth”: humans, for example. 

Moreover, holons have an inside and an outside, as well as an individual and collective aspect: thus one arrives at four quadrants, each with its own type of holarchy, or growth hierarchy – “I”, “We”, “It”, “Its”; with their respective lines of personal, cultural and scientific development. 

Spirit, which manifests as all four quadrants, is both the highest, all-encompassing stage as well as the very ground and being of everything. 

To grow beyond a given stage is to first differentiate from it, then to transcend and include it; if not, things are either stuck or take on a pathological form. It is central to Wilber’s “Integral Theory” that development needs to proceed in all quadrants and along all lines apace if real and healthy progress is to be made.

Wilber is a great categoriser and systematiser, and the explanatory power of his conceptual map does indeed prove itself in the illuminating way he analyses various pathologies that have arisen along the way, be it scientific materialism (the denial of the interior dimension), 

eco-romanticism (the reduction of the spiritual to mere exterior nature), or 

postmodern relativism and multiculturalism (the denial of growth hierarchies). 

Outlining the history of both cultural and individual growth, 

he throws in (among other things) superb summaries of the philosophies of Plotinus and Schelling, all along the way to the Nondual realisation.

To offer anything resembling an adequate critique of Wilber’s system would go entirely beyond this brief review, and I will not do so here. Just a few points: 

The distinction between interior and exterior, for example, does not in itself answer the deep philosophical question as to why reality is such as to motivate the distinction - it states it but does not explain it. 

As for the relationship between interior and exterior – between, for example, having a certain emotion and a certain brain state – Wilber says that they are “correlated”, but does not sufficiently explain how this is to be understood. 

His “integral vision” is meant to integrate at a higher level (“transcend and include”) what modernity differentiated but could not pull together: aesthetics, morals and science. But what that level would look like remains somewhat nebulous: 

“The general idea is simply that we need to exercise body, mind, soul, and spirit – and do so in self, culture and nature.” (p. 311) 

To be sure, he has written more on how this is to be done in later works; nevertheless, his vision seems to me to be more a promise so far than a reality.

Despite his relative fame, Ken Wilber has perhaps not been given the credit he deserves: 

Spiritual seekers tend to regard him as too obsessively focussed on theorising, 

while hard-headed theoreticians are suspicious of his spiritual outlook. 

And yet his achievement is precisely that he has pulled spiritual theory and practice together. He has dedicated a lifetime to sifting through, organising and synthesising vast amounts of material, from both East and West, and the result is a conceptual map which in its combination of clarity and comprehensiveness is probably unmatched by any other. 

Certainly I have benefited a great deal in clarifying my own thinking by reference especially to his various states and stages, to their characterisations and to the principles and pitfalls that govern the transitions between them – things that had been quite muddled in my mind.

Above all, whether he is quite right or not, he has surely made a significant contribution to pointing out the way towards the realisation of much higher potentials than we typically live up to, a challenge for us to get serious and grow up if we are not to destroy our planet and ourselves. I therefore think that anyone who strives for higher things would do well to be familiar, at least in outline, with Wilber’s thought, both as a fruitful theoretical framework and for its very practical implications. This book, a distillation of most of his system, is as good a starting place as any to becoming acquainted with it.

15 people found this helpfulReport

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From other countries

Table_for_5

5.0 out of 5 stars Astounding!Reviewed in the United States on 29 October 2007
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This book brings transcendentalism into its proper perspective. Ken's creation of the 4 Quandrants brings enlightenment to the very concept of enlightenment, making way for a clear mind to identify the all-inclusive reality of transceding the ego and returning back into the oneness of Spirit WHILE living healthily, honestly, and with understanding in this world of form. 

ALL who have seen the light of their true being, even if only a glimpse, MUST read this book.

 It not only serves as the proverbial "finger pointing to the moon," but it also points to the science behind the moon and the steps that must occur before one can get to the moon, plus what the moon is NOT. 

Spirit is not merely consciousness, but it also manifests as birds, rocks, water, hair, teeth, and hands: spirit is the source of all, seen and unseen. Ken brings this to light in a most enlightening way, and gives you a few chuckles in the process. He also demonstrates the dichotemy of truth and fallacy that many Eco-based transcendentalists' and Ego-based transcendentalists' philosophies and beliefs hold.

Buddhists, Taoist, Unitarians, Gnostic Christians, Spiritualists, Hindus, Sufis, Kabbalahists (more so you guys with the K than the Q) and a whole host of others will greatly appreciate Ken's years of research and practice that have culminated in this work. In short, READ THIS BOOK!

21 people found this helpfulReport


Tiffany Brown

4.0 out of 5 stars An Eloquent and Insightful Argument for a New and Necessary VisionReviewed in the United States on 7 January 2013
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I thoroughly enjoyed this book as it built upon an influential essay I once read by Richard Tarnas entitled "The Great Initiation," who has written on similar topics. I find Wilber's ability to stream together an integral vision fascinating. His research, understanding, and interpretation of historical figures, epochs, and philosophical thought is quite intriguing ... especially having taken several Religious Studies courses as an undergraduate. Overall, Wilber's ability to frame seemingly opposing ideas into a coherent and conceivable format is very convincing. 

While at first I was put off by the Q&A format, I quickly adjusted to the style as the book flowed well. While the book may be a thick read for some, this level of depth is the type of reading I most enjoy. Furthermore, I felt there were many takeaways from the book despite whether or not you agreed with the central message based on the lovely language coupled with the book's level of complexity. Wilber is undoubtedly one of the more brilliant minds in existence today, and highly worth the read. I look forward to reading more books from him in the future.

6 people found this helpfulReport


Akaash Rishi

4.0 out of 5 stars Hood and the mentality of the BlingReviewed in the United Kingdom on 15 April 2022
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Andrew Cohen had done this man some work that we have not found out yet. It would be good to get those Pundit and Guru claims for Indian title and land reviewed so that Oxford can track their test of nature and they nest eggs again.
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Tina B. Tessina

5.0 out of 5 stars Life-changing philosophy

Reviewed in the United States on 10 March 2003
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For any thinking person who's struggling with the schism between science, psychology and faith, this book has the answer. Mr. Wilber has an amazing mind, and in this book he simplifies his theoretical framework to make his brilliant thought easier to grasp. I disagree with the reader who complained about lack of references -- all the footnotes are available in his other works. This is the synthesis of his thought for those who want to understand, not those who want to nit-pick.
For me, it's a life-changing book, showing the way to order my own thoughts and experiences. Wilber is the only writer I've come across, other than James Hillman, who helps me reconcile all my disparate reading and experience.
In this book, he perfectly and succinctly outlines the growth process I see in my clients who are struggling to overcome dysfunction, find meaning in life and transcend their pasts.
I am grateful for this book's influence in my thought, and in my work as a therapist.

38 people found this helpfulReport




Laura Granville

5.0 out of 5 stars I ate it up!Reviewed in the United States on 1 March 2013
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Ken Wilber speaks to my mind and soul! It isn't light reading, but it is amazingly intellectual. I was a Liberal Studies major in college. I had a pulse on the essence, the truth of what he proposes, and explains. I am delighted to discover his works and ideas. They really speak truths that resonate with me. This was the first Ken Wilber book I have read. At the advice of a friend who turned me on to Ken I had listened to two of his books before reading this. It was excellent advice. Wade in the the pool before attempting to learn to swim. I listened to The Marriage of Sense and Soul and The One, Two Three of God before reading this. Now I am onto reading A Simple feeling of Being and listening to Kosmic Contagiousness. I must say 3 months ago I never read his stuff, but now if you ask me "who is the one person dead or alive you would like to meet and spend a day with? I would say make it a week and it is Ken Wilber!" A day just wouldn't be enough.

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Gary Moreau, Author

3.0 out of 5 stars 

Perhaps "Everything" is a bit too ambitious

Reviewed in the United States on 17 April 2021
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Ken Wilber is a famous American philosopher known for his work in Integral Theory. And what does this theory integrate? Well, judging from this book, virtually everything. Mind and nature, man and woman, virtually all periods of history since the Big Bang, Eastern and Western spirituality, religion and empiricism, ascension and descension. All of it.

He accomplishes this feat through the use of a four-quadrant mapping of everything from morals and integrity to data and science. On the left are the things we can’t touch (or locate), like integrity, and on the right are the things we can, like empirical data. The quadrants evolve vertically, each step in the evolution incorporating and transcending the prior. Ultimately, however, it is represented by the Big Three: “I”, “we”, and “it”.

Wilber is obviously a brilliant philosopher. It’s beyond my comprehension that one person could conceive of such an all-encompassing system of philosophy. And it encompasses not only everything, but everyone. His knowledge of all of the great philosophers of history is beyond compare in my admittedly limited armchair experience.

The problem, as I see it, is that the objective is just too ambitious. Everything, philosophically speaking, may be just too much. It is where we exist, but it is not where we live our lives. To tie a bow around it all requires a language that is both too jargonistic and too nuanced, leading to the philosophical equivalent of the proverbial split hair.

It’s not an easy read by any definition. 

“This is a profound integration of Ego and Eco, of Ascent and Descent, of transcendence and immanence, of Spirit descending into even the lowest state and ascending back to itself, but with Spirit nonetheless fully present at each and every stage as the process of its own self-realization, a divine play of Spirit present in every single movement of the Kosmos, yet finding more and more of itself as its own Play proceeds, dancing fully and divine in every gesture of the universe, never really lost and never really found, but present from the start and all along, a wink and a nod from the radiant Abyss.”

To be fair, not all of the prose is so exhausting. And there is a lot of good common sense, in common language, which I fully agree with. “So all meaning is context dependent, and contexts are boundless.” That truth alone may not explain everything, but it explains an awful lot.

I agree completely with his criticism of science as we currently think about it. And he’s spot on in his attribution of many of the problems of the modern world to the rise of the “it” to the near total exclusion of the “we” and the “I”. 

Said differently, things like morality and integrity, or even goodwill, are being obliterated by the quest for power using false truths dressed up as empirical fact and forever subverting the means of “we” to the end of shameless and exclusive self-interest.

Which is why he makes this extremely valid point about the internet.

 “What computer technology (and the Information Age) means is that the techno-base can support a worldcentric perspectivism, a global consciousness, but does not in any way guarantee it.” 

He goes on, “A great number of the Infobahn males are digital predators—egocentric computer warriors that couldn’t care less about intersubjective cooperation and mutual recognition.” 

And the reason: “Most people, alas, are still at preconventional and conventional modes of awareness, egocentric and ethnocentric.” As a result, “When worldcentric means are presented to less-than-worldcentric individuals, those means are simply used (and abused) to further the agenda of the less-than-worldcentric individual.” 

I get it and I fully agree.

In the end, perhaps my problem with this book is a problem inherent in my own worldview. I am intensely curious and truly enjoy philosophy, but I have long ago stopped trying to figure “everything” out. 

I don’t believe we will ever figure it all out, at least not in terms we can express through language. And I am confident that machines will never get as far as our own feeble minds will. I sincerely think of mathematics as beautiful, but I don’t believe it holds the keys to the universe. Patterns are everywhere, but they are only patterns: truth, which is valid, but not Truth, which is valid and complete.

I tip my hat to the author for his ambition. And I stand in awe of his brilliance. In the end, however, this book wasn’t for me. Perhaps me is the problem. I have no delusions of brilliance. I love books that make me think. But I like to come away from a book with a thoughtful melody I can hum. “Everything” may be beautiful philosophy, but you can’t hum it.

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Jay D. Smith

5.0 out of 5 stars Easy-to-read intro to Integral TheoryReviewed in the United States on 14 December 2018
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If you need an introduction to Ken Wilber’s work on Integral Theory, this, for me, seems the place to start. Though it goes into some necessary detail explaining the four quadrants and different levels, this book is more than just a summary, showing how evolution works in the quadrants of the individual (I and it) and the collective (us and its) in dealing with both exterior and interior states (stages) of evolution within social structures, communities, cultures and individualistic ideas and thoughts. I’ve not read a more comprehensive understanding of the “why” of our growth and progress as individuals and collective humanity. It answered a lot of questions I had regarding how a person or group can seemingly be at one stage of development within their belief systems and yet maintain a different stage of development in perspective or ideological system when they are often juxtaposed. 

I’m on to “Sex, Ecology, Spirituality” next. Thanks, Ken, for writing and for your work. I know I’ve barely scratched the tip of the iceberg.

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RK

4.0 out of 5 stars

 Thought provoking in some ways, but undertone of discomfortReviewed in the United States on 27 October 2003
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This is the first Ken Wilber book i have read. I read it because i had read somewhere else that this book espoused a viewpoint of how religions, societies, political systems, etc evolved. In fact, he does that. It is an interesting explaination. I get the sense however as i read this stuff that he is manufacturing this system. I almost feel that he is making up his own vocabulary, which generally gets in the way, to explain this.
When i was much younger, i read quite a bit in the existential and sociological works area. This refreshed my memory of that exercise. You have to really dig down and spend some time thinking about this stuff to have a chance at grasping it. 

The question becomes whether it is worth it? Is there a benefit from spending a great deal of time reading this guy's works? 

I do not have simple answer. I know very little about the man himself. I guess the first question would be whether he himself has risen to some higher level of conciousness as a result of his deep thinking here? I do see some applications of thinking about various social, societal, inter-personal interactions. I just am not sure yet whether i buy into this framework of thought.

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Alexei Tsvetkov

1.0 out of 5 stars 

Snake oil philosophy

Reviewed in the United States on 2 January 2002
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No, this is not philosophy as it is understood by the grown-ups, although it surely is a dumbed down strand of Hegelianism (what else could it be with such a cute title?). 

This is a kind of New Age chirping for people who prefer not to strain their brains excessively and to feel well with the least mental expense.

 How does one earn a reputation in these circles? Easy: by preaching ignorance to the ignorant.

Here are a few examples that should serve as a caution to everyone who might otherwise be taken for a ride, as I surely was. 

If you are a Hegelian, at some point you must introduce the �Spirit�. Wilber does it pretty early by discussing evolution. The wing, according to him, is useful only when fully developed � a half-wing is no good. 

Such a sophisticated instrument could only have evolved with the help of a supreme agency. This is an argument from a Jehovah Witnesses tract: the real science points out that even a quarter-wing (as well as a quarter-eye) is usually better than none if it gives the animal the slightest edge over the wingless. 

And it does: somebody should have shown Wilber a flying squirrel.

Introducing his theory of �holons� Wilber states that matter is infinitely divisible (and compounded). The real science, of course, has discovered otherwise: the string is the smallest element of matter.

The discussion of the Big Bang and of what could have �preceded� it is altogether laughable. 

What is missing throughout the book is an awareness that every proposition is worthless unless provable.
When mentioning the Axial Age with its saints and prophets, Wilber studiously omits every name connected with the Judeo-Christian tradition. 

One feels an agenda, but it is never stated explicitly. Sneaky.

Last but not least: the whole book is written in the form of a dialog, but the only purpose of the questioner is to suck up to the answerer; 

he never advances any intelligent objection, never mentions any contrarian authority with the exception of some feminists. This must be the easiest way of philosophical discourse.

I must confess that I picked up this book because its main thesis, the poverty of the reductionism, is close to my heart. 

But I would rather stay with the reductionists as long as they respect my intelligence.

145 people found this helpfulReport


Aleatory

4.0 out of 5 stars Deeply important subject matterReviewed in the United States on 6 January 2016
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As the first book I've read by the author, I found the subject matter extremely fascinating, but the delivery somewhat repetitive. In an era that is profoundly stricken by the dissociative dichotomy that exists between the logical/rational and the emotional/intuitive, Wilber's willingness to embrace a more unified and holistic perspective is both revolutionary and desperately needed. In my initial readings, I was somewhat shocked to find that this book had been published at the outset of the 90s. It seems that its time has yet to fully bloom in the collective mind, but to me, makes the content all the more important now.

Overall, this left me feeling like I understood the gist of Wilber's Integral Theory well enough to go back to explore his many other publications or leave them be while I took the time to more deeply integrate what I had read. By this, I mean there's just enough explanation to make sense of things without feeling too lost (at least having some prior exposure to Eastern spirituality, philosophy, psychology, etc.).

5 people found this helpfulReport


P. Gruhn

3.0 out of 5 stars I want to like this guy -- but I am not sure I canReviewed in the United States on 29 July 2023
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So, Ken Wilbur takes everything there is in the world of philosophy and theology and world religions and mixes them all up to create a framework and a new set of labels to make a one size fits all set of beliefs ... I have not finished reading the book yet ... I get excited about some of the ideas he presents - but them I am turned off by who he is as a person -- seems like he had a following - but isn't as relevant any more - I need to finish the book and see what parts stick.

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P. Leuenberger

3.0 out of 5 stars Take it with a grain of saltReviewed in the United States on 24 September 2010
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Yes, this book is interesting. Wilber introduces some interesting concepts and ideas, and does a good job at explaining and describing them.

However, it's also clear that despite his confident writing style, despite his broad knowledge about anything that may be related to personality and spirituality, he hasn't experienced all of these. 

So he writes as someone that read a book on skiing and he athletic enough to get an idea of how it must feel and what joy it must bring. But he doesn't know how it actually feels. And so, he writes in this manner about topics that I actually have experience with, and the way he writes shows clearly that it's not a difference of opinion that we are talking about here, but simply that he hasn't experienced it and as such, does not get it fully. The danger here is that he speaks as if he is an expert. Expert comes from experience, and that I can tell you he does not have on all the topics he writes.

So a good book to introduce many different concepts and show all the levels of complexity that makes the human mind. But no, Ken is not a genius. He is just a guy, very educated on many topics.

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Amazon Customer

4.0 out of 5 stars DENSE but enlighteningReviewed in the United States on 8 August 2018
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This was my introduction to the author. Packed with an enlightening theme, a really expansive way of looking at the world. 

This book forced/challenged my materialist rooted perspective and definitely makes me more curious about the spiritual side of things. While repetitive at times, I actually began to appreciate it because I found the ideas so dense, it was necessary to hear the ideas presented again in a slightly different way. 

It’s hard to read this book in electronic format and follow the diagrams. I’m probably going to have to read again and check out his other works, probably in paper form. Overall appreciated this work.

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J. Davis

5.0 out of 5 stars Abstractionist and pattern-finder extraordinaireReviewed in the United States on 17 January 2003
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Regarding Ken Wilber's 

A Theory of Everything, and 

A Brief History of Everything. 

Wilber's books are very interesting, in his synthesis of latest thinking from all over the spectrum of knowledge--evolutionary biology, economics, psychology, history, physics, etc., to name a few--and his building a unified framework or world view that is profoundly inclusive of ideas from all of these fields. 

He is a "mapmaker" of sorts, an abstractionist and pattern-finder, plotting out how things relate in the various spheres of knowledge, and hanging them together in a single richly-textured fabric--of categories, structures, hierarchies and relationships. 

Everything from religion to evolution to particle physics are fit within the framework. I have some questions about the validity of some of the premises on which he hangs some of his notions, but the quadrant system he presents--and the common patterns he observes in all of these various spheres of knowledge--is quite amazing. It is interesting and thought provoking reading, if you are interested in a synthesis of the latest ideas on how "everything" hangs together (the "theory") and how it has come to be this way (the "history").

14 people found this helpful


Curlybird

5.0 out of 5 stars Intelligent Spirituality

Reviewed in the United States on 5 November 2004
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In this work of incredible insight and brilliance, Ken Wilber lays out the basis for the development of all systems and how so many systems have become stunted in their growth by negating or omitting important developmental stages in the expansion to the higher levels of wholeness leaving them in the evolutionary dust of flatland. He speaks out fervently against the concretization of thought in the form of dogma of any type as, in essence, the lazy way out. 

His work challenges us all to use these wonderful minds in an ever expanding search for higher truth rather than relying on the trite, sound-bite phraseology of the tiny mind. He is very understandable in his descriptions of the growth processes and makes his key points both releveant and clear, however I suggest a basic comprehension of evolving systems theory, some knowledge of Buddhist philosophy and an understanding of history in addition to an open, questioning mind to assist in the absorption of this material. Then again, if you are ready and willing, read on.

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Amazon Customer

4.0 out of 5 stars Great condensation of the essential WilberReviewed in the United States on 29 March 2015
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Kibler's renown is unlikely and amazing, and this book is responsible for much of it. The self-interview style makes me wince sometimes -- no one can accuse Wilber of lacking confident self-regard -- but it does make for less dense prose. Do stay in the forest even if some of its specific trees, like the discussions of men and women contrasted, initially or even perpetually offend. This is a helpful, thought-provoking and very accessible book even if you only get the concept, and not the particulars, of his four quadrants. It's a very clear condensation of his work, and he is an engaging character (see "Grace & Grit," "One Taste").

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Emmanuel

2.0 out of 5 stars DisappointingReviewed in the United Kingdom on 24 April 2024
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I am not convinced by the book:
- It is more a sequence of statement rather than a demonstration by reason
- it is very anthropo-centered, one dogma is that human existence is not due to hazard
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Greg Skyles

4.0 out of 5 stars A good overview of Integral philosophyReviewed in the United States on 21 March 2015
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This was a very readable, concise introduction to Ken Wilber's work. And amazingly, it is without footnotes/endnotes! I'd recommend it to the person who is wondering, "What is all that Integral stuff about, anyway?"
He illustrates a lot of his concepts with examples from history along the way which helps make this less of a dry academic treatise and more of an enjoyable read. I also liked that he explains the varying conflicts of different schools of science, religion, philosophy, politics, ecology, etc., very clearly and simply inside the Integral framework. This made a whole lot more sense than any history course I ever took.

25 people found this helpfulReport


Trailwulf

5.0 out of 5 stars ExquisiteReviewed in the United States on 10 May 2014
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My colleagues quote Wilber often, so I finally succumbed and got a copy. To put it simply, this is one of the ten books I would try to save if there was a fire in my library. It is down to earth plain talk about the profound immensity of life. It posits the evolutionary nature of the universe and how that operates from the sub-atomic to the macro-whole of the cosmos. It helps one understand that evolutionary unfolding that has produced the self and the challenge that places on one's choice of life and vocational endeavor. You don't want to be guilty of ending your life without reading this book.

7 people found this helpfulReport


Mike "Spike" Behn

4.0 out of 5 stars Wilber in a NutshellReviewed in the United States on 1 November 2007
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This CD set exposes one to Wilber's ideas and theories in an understandable manner, in a relatively small package (6 CDs). Unlike "Kosmic Consciousness", it is not Wilber speaking (and he is quite the speaker!) and is a bit brief for such a complicated subject. If you want a real feel for Integral Theory and Wilber, highly recommend "Kosmic Consciousness", unabbridged. 

Otherwise, this is an excellent way to get your feet wet in a painless manner. Only reason for (4) stars and not (5) is that I liked "KC" SO much better.

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Hector Lasala

5.0 out of 5 stars amazed at wilber's ability to turn the dense lucidReviewed in the United States on 18 June 2008
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wilber is worth all the hype:
he is a true pioneer of
the emerging phase of planetary evolution.

this book is a great primer.

here he masterfully weaves multiple threads
from hugely diverse sources;
from science to mysticism,
from history to philosophy.

the result is stunningly precise thoughts
yet infused with moments of poetical flares,
and a myriad of insights!

at every page i found myself
amazed at his ability
to turn the dense lucid.

his writings lure us
into the sway of the mystic-
but this is a mysticism that is very earthy
yet always transcending our grasp.

8 people found this helpfulReport


dvegan28

5.0 out of 5 stars Must read for clear world visionReviewed in the United States on 1 August 2021
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This book changed my world view to understanding and peace with cycles and cohesiveness of society providing inspiration for visions of greater collective consciousness it’s a must read for every twenty something learning about the world or every late adult lost

3 people found this helpfulReport


Peter C. Mead

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing overview of the basic considerations we need to consider ...Reviewed in the United States on 16 September 2016
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Amazing overview of the basic considerations we need to move forward with our understanding of consciousness, nature and the process of evolution. This isn't the whole picture but attempts to rope in the vastness of human experience and make sense of where it is leading us. Even if you disagree with parts of this, it will sharpen your focus in working out your differences. I know this sounds vague and general, but it is hard to say anything briefly on this subject..

2 people found this helpfulReport


Utah Kevin

5.0 out of 5 stars Great, difficult book.Reviewed in the United States on 14 March 2016
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This is not an easy read. I found myself going back and forth to fully grasp what he is talking about. But, having said that, isn't everything in learning difficult especially when it comes to finding our true self and meaning? My Ego is resisting this process of self learning and self experiencing to the hilt. The Ego wants total control and this book is helping me to find a unity with Self and Ego. External and Internal.

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pinkygirl10

5.0 out of 5 stars OMG A great findReviewed in the United States on 26 September 2018
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Talk about big things coming in small packages! It's a great read. A little high brow in places but the author balances it out by being more relaxed, even playful, in other parts. This books truly is a brief history of everything...hold on and get ready for a cerebral, probably more spiritual, ride!

7 people found this helpfulReport


Anthony Q

5.0 out of 5 stars What a joy!Reviewed in the United States on 3 January 2014
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Ken Wilber makes a wonderful point in describing our situation as a result of our inability to think outside "the group". Simple, heh? If we can't see outside our own personal point of view with empathy, how can we evolve in a positive way?
We like to complicate and confuse issues to maintain supposed control. Thank you Ken Wilber for attempting to simplify such an important and uplifting message! We are all one!

One person found this helpfulReport


dr. j. lee jones

4.0 out of 5 stars ... would have given this 5 stars for Ken Wilber's brilliant scholarship, but since I could only follow it ...Reviewed in the United States on 21 March 2015
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I would have given this 5 stars for Ken Wilber's brilliant scholarship, but since I could only follow it at the three star level...I made it a four!

This is a once in a generation mind...if you want to dive into the deep end of the pool of intelligentsia!
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From other countries

Bokata

5.0 out of 5 stars Still trying to peel myself off the ceiling!Reviewed in the United States on 11 April 1999
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As a doctoral student in psychology, I can say in a clarion voice that Wilber is perhaps the most original thinker of the day. The book reveals a profound grasp of the broad sweep of philosophy - both East and West. The author also has and impressive, in-depth grasp of science and history as well. Aside from that, the book is engaging and highly entertaining. Having never heard of Ken Wilber prior to first reading his work in the last six months, I can say that he ranks among the foremost thinkers in the world today. I say this with more than a passing knowledge of philosophy. Rarely, since my first reading of Carl Jung, have I ever been so excited about someone's work. Read and find yourself on the ceiling!

12 people found this helpfulReport


Charles Geiger

2.0 out of 5 stars Das Audible-Hörbuch stimmt nicht mit dem derzeit verkauften Text übereinReviewed in Germany on 4 December 2021
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Das Audible-Hörbuch ist zwar gut verständlich und wegen dem Frage- und Antwortmodus des Buches auch von 2 Personen gesprochen, aber es scheint auf einer anderen Auflage zu basieren. Es fehlen einzelne Absätze. Wenn man das Hörbuch separat hört, nicht weiter ein Problem. Liest man aber den Text gleichzeitig mit dem Hörbuch dann IST das ein Problem. Deshalb nur 2 Sterne für die Audible-Version. Ich habe sie zurückgegeben.
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Jan Duran

4.0 out of 5 stars Deeply analyticalReviewed in the United States on 14 February 2014
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This is a book for a person who doesn't mind pulling out a dictionary once in a while to check the terms of various verbiage. Deeply intriguing and layered with intense insights, this book will keep you pondering life's mysteries and reevaluating your own place within its system.

4 people found this helpfulReport


Gudjon Bergmann

5.0 out of 5 stars A Very Readable Wilber

Reviewed in the United States on 6 October 2010
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In this book Ken Wilber covers the topics of Sex, Ecology and Spirituality, in a conversational and very readable manner. 

If you have been trying to read through some of the heavier Wilber material and would rather have a down to earth conversation with the author, read this book. I also recommend his audio program, Kosmic Consciousness, for the same purpose.

Gudjon Bergmann, author of Living in the Spirit of Yoga (2010) and The Seven Human Needs (2006)

One person found this helpfulReport


Thomas Neilson

5.0 out of 5 stars An accessible book by one of the greatest integrative thinkersReviewed in the United States on 29 May 2011
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Ken Wilber possesses an gift for integrative thinking that is unmatched in modern times. This book is a more accessible re-write of "Sex, Ecology, Spirituality", which is his magnum opus. He brings together an astounding mix of philosophy, science, psychology, and spirituality in a way that makes a great deal of sense and can be profoundly useful. This is a remarkable book, and worth reading if you are philosophically inclined.

2 people found this helpfulReport


Teri Murphy

5.0 out of 5 stars This book changed my lifeReviewed in the United States on 13 January 2013
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Wilber's big picture is bigger than any other I know. I first read "Brief History" at a time when I was drawn to two spiritual communities with opposite values: one New Thought and the other Fundamentalist with great music (as detailed in my book, "The Bishop and the Seeker). Wilber showed me that I was not backsliding but integrating, and my life has been juicier ever since.

4 people found this helpfulReport


elliot c pinkney

5.0 out of 5 stars vital information!Reviewed in the United States on 6 October 2010
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This book is nothing short of incredible. There is so much stuff here that I think every one should know. This is an amazing read, and recommend it to anyone who is looking for some higher learning. A good friend of mine, Doc Barham, a Los Angeles Life Coach also known as Coach Hollywood, persisted that I read this vital information. This book has changed my way of thinking. Great Read, Enjoy!

One person found this helpfulReport


Tom

5.0 out of 5 stars Shifted My RealityReviewed in the United States on 19 March 2014
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Left/right, all four quadrants, ascending, descending, physiosphere, biosphere, noosphere, body, mind, soul, spirit, value/science, contemplation/community, flatland, levels of consciousness, horticulture to agrarian, enlightenment, industrialization, modern, post modern, informational etc. I got more from this reading than I am willing to take my time recount. Want to move on to my next Ken Wilber book.

One person found this helpfulReport


James A. Dalinis

5.0 out of 5 stars GreatReviewed in the United States on 30 January 2023
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Great
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Steve Robbins

5.0 out of 5 stars Just go ahead and read itReviewed in the United States on 28 November 2013
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Mr. Wiber offers us an updated map of the Kosmos. Expect exteremely windy roads and severely steep grades. Backing up and starting over will be required in several locations. Yet, if you have that nagging aspiration toward upward and ahead this is probably your best bet. I hate to sound melodramatic but I think perhaps our survival depends upon it.

2 people found this helpfulReport
=====

HSTbRY EVERYTHING

"Integrates the partial visions of specialiSfS Into a new understanding of the meaning and significance of life"

David Lorimer

History of Everything

Ken Wilber

=== 

Contents

Foreword by Tony Schwartz xi

A Note to the Reader xv

Introduction 1

PART ONE I Spirit-in-Action

1 The Pattern That Connects 17

The Kosmos 18

Twenty Tenets: The Patterns That Connect 19

  Agency and Communion 21

Transcendence and Dissolution  

Four Drives of All Holons 23

Creative Emergence 24

Holarchy 27

The Way of All Embrace 30

2 The Secret Impulse 31

Higher and Lower 32

Depth and Span 33

Kosmic Consciousness 38

The Spectrum of Consciousness 40

3 All Too Human 44

Foraging 45

Horticultural 48

Agrarian 50

Industrial 53

4 The Great Postmodern Revolution 57

The Postmodern Watershed 58

Two Paths in Postmodernity 61

On the Edge of Tomorrow 64

Transcendence and Repression 66

5 The Four Comers of the Kosmos 69

The Four Quadrants 71

Intentional and Behavioral 75

Cultural and Social 77

An Example 80

The Shape of Things to Come 82

6 The Two Hands of God 84

Mind and Brain 85

The Left and Right Hand Paths 87

The Monological Gaze: The Key to the Right Hand Paths 88

Interpretation: The Key to the Left Hand Paths 90

What Does That Dream Mean? 91

Social Science versus Cultural Understanding 95

Hermeneutics 97

Ali Interpretation Is Context-Bound 98

Nonhuman Interpretation 99 Spiritual Interpretation 101

7 Attuned to the Kosmos 105

Propositional Truth 106

Truthfulness 107

Justness 112

Functional Fit 114

Conclusion: The Four Faces of Spirit 118

Contents vii

8 The Good, the True, and the Beautiful 120

The Big Three 120

The Good News: Differentiation of the Big Three 123

The Bad News: Dissociation of the Big Three 126

The Task of Postmodernity: Integration of the Big Three 130 

The Spiritual Big Three 131

PART Two I The Further Reaches of Spirit-in-Action

9 The Evolution of Consciousness 137

Higher Stages of Development 138

Ladder, Climber, View 140

Basic Structures: The Ladder 141

The Self: The Climber 142

A Fulcrum 143

New Worlds Emerge: Changing Views 145

Pathology 148

Stages of Spiritual Unfolding 150

Flatland Religion 152

Freud and Buddha 154

10 On the Way to Global: Part 1 157

The Primary Matrix 158

Birth Trauma 160

The False Self 160

Fulcrum-I: The Hatching of the Physical Self 162

Fulcrum-2: The Birth of the Emotional Self 163

Fulcrum-3: The Birth of the Conceptual Self 168

Every Neurosis Is an Ecological Crisis 169

Early Worldviews: Archaic, Magic, Mythic 172

Fulcrum-4: The Birth of the Role Self 174

Paradigm Shifts 175

Satanic Abuse and UFOs 177

11 On the Way to Global: Part 2 180

Evolution versus Egocentrism 180

Fulcrum-4 (Continued): Life's Social Scripts 182

Fulcrum-ff. The Worldcentric or Mature Ego 185

Diversity and Multiculturalism 188

Fulcrum-6: The Bodymind Integration of the Centaur 190

Aperspectival Madness 192

On the Brink of the Transpersonal 193

12 Realms of the Superconscious: Part 1 197

Where the Mind Leaves Off 198

The Transpersonal Stages 199

Fulcrum-T The Psychic 202

Deep Ecology and Ezofeminism 204

Enneagram and the Basic Skeleton 207

Fulcrum-8: The Subtle 211

Jung and the Archetypes 212

13 Realms of the Superconscious: Part 2 Z 19

Fulcrum-9: The Causal 220

The Nondual 226

The Immediacy of Pure Presence 232

Enlightenment 236

PART THREE I Flatland

14 Ascending and Descending 243

A Brief Summary 243

The Great Holarchy 2.47

This-Worldly versus Otherworldly 249

Wisdom and Compassion 253

God and Goddess 254

Two Different Gods 256

The Descended Grid 258

15 The Collapse of the Kosmos 260

The Dignity of Modernity 261

The Disaster of Modernity 264

Instrumental Rationality: A World of Its 265

The Fundamental Enlightenment Paradigm 269

No Spirit, No Mind, Only Nature 270

Irony: The Mood of Modernity 271

The Voice of the Industrial Grid 273

16 The Ego and the Eco 278

Ego versus Eco 278

The Flatland Twins 279

The Ego's Truth 281

The Ego's Problem 283

The Ego and Represssion 284

The Re-enchantment of the World 285

Back to Nature 286

The Eco and Regression Paradise Lost 289 287

The way Back Machine 293

 The Great Battle of Modernity: Fichte versus Spinoza 29 

17 The Dominance of the Descenders 297

Evolution: The Great Holarchy Unfolds in Time 298

Evolution: Spirit-in-Action 301

Glimmers of the Nondual 303

Always Already 304

The Fading of the Vision 305

The Dominance of the Descenders 308

The Internet 309

The Religion of Gaia 311

18 The Unpacking of God 312 

The Writing on the Wall 312

The Superman Self 314

The Wonderful Great-Web Gaia Self 317

Beyond the Postmodern Mind 321

World Transformation and the Culture Gap 324

Environmental Ethics 328

The Basic Moral Intuition 335

Good-bye to Flatland 336

 

 

Foreword

SIX YEARS AGO, IN 1989, I set out across the country on my own search for wisdom. In the course of my travels, I interviewed and worked with more than two hundred psychologists, philosophers, physicians, scientists, and mystics who claimed to have the answers I was after. By the time I wrote What Really Matters: Searching for Wisdom in America, it was clear to me that Ken Wilber was in a category by himself. He is, I believe, far and away the most cogent and penetrating voice in the recent emergence of a uniquely American wisdom.

It has been nearly twenty years since Ken Wilber published Tbe Spectrum of Consciousness. Written when he was twenty-three, it established him, almost overnight, as perhaps the most comprehensive philosophical thinker of our times. Spectrum, which Wilber wrote in three months after dropping out of graduate school in biochemistry, made the case that human development unfolds in specific stages that extend beyond those ordinarily recognized by Western psychology. Only by moving successfully through each developmental stage, Wilber argued, is it possible first to develop a healthy sense of individuality, and then ultimately to experience a broader identity that transcends—and includes—the personal self. In effect, Wilber married Freud and the Buddha—until then divided by seemingly irreconcilable differences. And this was just the first of his many original contributions.

The title of this book is deceptively breezy. A Brief History of Everything delivers just what it promises. It covers vast historical ground, from the Big Bang right up to the desiccated postmodern present. Along the way, it seeks to make sense of the often contradictory ways that human beings have evolved—physically, emotionally, intellectually, morally, spiritually. And for all its breadth, the book is remarkably lean and compact.

Indeed, what sets A Brief History of Everything apart both from Spectrum and from Wilber's eleven subsequent books is that it not only extends the ideas advanced in those earlier works, but presents them now in a simple, accessible, conversational format. Most of Wilber's books require at least some knowledge of the major Eastern contemplative traditions and of Western developmental psychology. A Brief History is addressed to a much broader audience—those of us grappling to find wisdom in our everyday lives, but bewildered by the array of potential paths to truth that so often seem to contradict one another—and to fall short in fundamental ways. For those readers who want still more when they finish this book, I recommend Wilber's recent opus, Sex, Ecology, Spirituality, which explores many of the ideas here in more rigorous detail.

No one I've met has described the path of human development— the evolution of consciousness—more systematically or comprehensively than Wilber. In the course of my journey, ran into countless people who made grand claims for a particular version of the truth they were promoting. Almost invariably, I discovered, they'd come to their conclusions by choosing up sides, celebrating one set of capacities and values while excluding others.

Wilber has taken a more embracing and comprehensive approach, as you will soon discover. In the pages that follow, he lays out a coherent vision that honors and incorporates the truths from a vast and disparate array of fields—physics and biology; the social and the systems sciences; art and aesthetics; developmental psychology and contemplative mysticism—as well as from opposing philosophical

movements ranging from Neoplatonism to modernism, idealism to postmodernism.

What Wilber recognizes is that a given truth-claim may be valid without being complete, true but only so far as it goes, and this must be seen as part of other and equally important truths. Perhaps the most powerful new tool he brings to bear in A Brief History is his notion that there are four "quadrants" of development. By looking at hundreds of developmental maps that have been created by various thinkers over the years—maps of biological, psychological, cognitive, and spiritual development, to name just a few—it dawned on Wilber that they were often describing very different versions of "truth." Exterior forms of development, for example, are those that can be measured objectively and empirically. But what Wilber makes clear is that this form of truth will only take you so far. Any comprehensive development, he points out, also includes an interior dimension—one that is subjective and interpretive, and depends on consciousness and introspection. Beyond that, Wilber saw, both interior and exterior development take place not just individually, but in a social or cultural context. Hence the four quadrants.

None of these forms of truth, he argues in a series of vivid examples, can be reduced to another. A behaviorist, to take just a single case, cannot understand a person's interior experience solely by looking at his external behavior—or at its physiological correlates. The truth will indeed set you free, but only if you recognize that there is more than one kind of truth.

A Brief History of Everything operates on several levels. It's the richest map I've yet found of the world we live in, and of men and women's place in it. In the dialectic of progress, Wilber suggests, each stage of evolution transcends the limits of its predecessor, but simultaneously introduces new ones. This is a view that both dignifies and celebrates the ongoing struggle of any authentic search for a more conscious and complete life. "No epoch is finally privileged," Wilber writes. "We are all tomorrow's food. The process continues, and Spirit is found in the process itself, not in any particular epoch or time or place."

At another level, Wilber serves in A Brief History as a demystifier and a debunker—a discerning critic of the teachers, techniques, ideas,

and systems that promise routes to encompassing truth, but are more commonly incomplete, misleading, misguided, or distorted. Too often we ourselves are complicit. Fearful of any change and infinitely capable of self-deception, we are too quick to latch on to simple answers and quick fixes, which finally just narrow our perspective and abort our development.

Wilber's is a rare voice. He brings to the task both a sincere heart and a commitment to truth. He widens his lens to take in the biggest possible picture, but he refuses to see all the elements as equal. He makes qualitative distinctions. He values depth. He's unafraid to make enemies, even as he is respectful of many voices. The result is that A Brief History of Everything sheds a very original light, not just on the cosmic questions in our lives, but on dozens of confusing and unsettling issues of our times—the changing roles of men and women; the continuing destruction of the environment; diversity and multiculturalism; repressed memory and childhood sexual abuse; and the role of the Internet in the information age—among many others.

I cannot imagine a better way to be introduced to Ken Wilber than this book. It brings the debate about evolution, consciousness, and our capacity for transformation to an entirely new level. More practically, it will save you many missteps and wrong turns on whatever wisdom path you choose to take.

TONY SCHWARTZ

A Note to the Reader

IN DOUGLAS ADAMS'S HITCHHIKER 'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY, a massive supercomputer is designed to give the ultimate answer, the absolute answer, the answer that would completely explain "God, life, the universe, and everything." But the computer takes seven and a half million years to do this, and by the time the computer delivers the answer, everybody has forgotten the question. Nobody remembers the ultimate question, but the ultimate answer the computer comes up with is: 42.

This is amazing! Finally, the ultimate answer. So wonderful is the answer that a contest is held to see if anybody can come up with the question. Many profound questions are offered, but the final winner—the ultimate question to which the ultimate answer is "42"—is: How many roads must a man walk down?

"God, life, the universe, and everything" is pretty much what this book is about, although, of course, the answer is not quite as snappy as "42." It deals with matter, life, mind, and spirit, and the evolutionary currents that seem to unite them all in a pattern that connects.

I have written this book in a dialogue format—questions and answers. Many of these dialogues actually occurred, but most have been written specifically for this book. The questions are real enough—

A Note to the Reader

they are the questions I have most often been asked about my books in general and my most recent book in particular (Sex, Ecology, Spirituality). But there is no need whatsoever to have read that or any of my books: the following topics are interesting in themselves, I believe, and the dialogues demand no previous or specialized knowledge in these areas. (Scholars interested in references, bibliography, notes, and detailed arguments can consult Sex, Ecology, Spirituality.)

The first chapters deal with the material cosmos and the emergence of life. What drove chaos into order? How did matter give rise to life? What currents are afoot in this extraordinary game of evolution? Is there a "spirit" of ecology? Does it really matter?

The middle chapters explore the emergence of mind or consciousness, and we will follow the evolution of this consciousness through five or six major stages in human development, from foraging to horticultural to agrarian to industrial to informational. What was the status of men and women in each of those stages? Why did some of those stages emphasize the male, and some the female, gender? Does this shed any light on today's gender wars? Are the same currents at work in human evolution as in the cosmic game at large? How does past human development relate to today's human problems? If we do not remember the past, are we condemned to repeat it?

We will then look to the Divine Domain and how it might indeed be related to the creative currents in matter and life and mind. How and why did religion historically give way to psychology? Used to be, if you were inwardly disturbed and agitated and seeking answers, you talked to a priest. Now you talk to a psychiatrist—and they rarely agree with each other. Why? What happened? Do they both perhaps have something important to tell us? Should they perhaps be not feuding but kissing cousins?

In our own lives, to whom do we turn for answers? Do we look to Adams's supercomputer for ultimate answers? Do we look to religion? politics? science? psychologists? gurus? your psychic friend? Where do we finally place our ultimate trust for the really important questions? Does this tell us something? Is there a way to tie these various sources together? to have them each speak their own truths in ways that balance and harmonize? Is this even possible in today's splintered world?

A Note to the Reader I xvii

The last chapters deal with flatland—with the collapse of the richly textured Kosmos into a flat and faded one-dimensional world, the bleak and monochrome world of modernity and postmodernity. But we will do so not simply with an eye to condemning the modern world, but rather in an attempt to discover the radiant Spirit at work, even in our own apparently God-forsaken times. Where is God, and where the Goddess, in these shallow waters?

How many roads must we each walk down? There might be an answer to this after all, for wonder continues to bubble up, and joy rushes to the surface, with release in the recognition and liberation in the awakening. And we all know how to wonder, which speaks in the tongues of that God within, and inexplicably points home.

K.W.

Boulder, Colorado

Spring 1995

 

 

Introduction

Q: Is there any sex in the book?

Kw: With diagrams, actually.

Q: You're kidding.

Kw: I'm kidding. But yes, sexuality is one of the main themes, and especially its relation to gender.

Q: Sex and gender are different?

KW : It's common to use "sex" or sexuality to refer to the biological aspects of human repr()duction, and "gender" to refer to the cultural differences between men and women that grow up around the sexual or biological differences. The sexual differences are usually referred to as male and female, and the cultural differences as masculine and feminine. And while male and female might indeed be given biologically, masculine and feminine are in large part the creation of culture.

Q: So the trick is to decide which characteristics are sex and which are gender.

K w: In a sense, yes. The sexual differences between male and female, because they are primarily biological, are universal and crosscultural—males everywhere produce sperm, females produce ova, females give birth and lactate, and so on. But the differences between

I 

masculine and feminine are created and molded primarily by the different cultures in which the male and female are raised.

And yes, part of the turmoil between the sexes nowadays is that, while male/female differences are biological and universal—and therefore can't really be changed very much—nonetheless masculine and feminine are in many ways the product of culture, and these roles can indeed be changed in at least some significant ways. And we, as a culture, are in the difficult and tricky of trying to change some of these gender roles.

Q : For example?

K w: Well, while it's true that, on average, the male body is more muscular and physically stronger than the female, it does not follow that masculine therefore must mean strong and assertive and feminine must mean weak and demure. And we are in a transition period where masculine and feminine roles are being redefined and re-crew ated, which has thrown both men and women into a type of rancorous sniping at each other in various types of gender wars.

Part of the problem is that, whereas masculine and feminine roles can indeed be redefined and refashioned—a long-overdue and muchneeded refurbishing—nonetheless male and female characteristics cannot be changed much, and in our attempt to level the differences between masculine and feminine, we are dangerously close to trying to erase the differences between male and female. And while the former is a fine idea, the latter is impossible. And the trick is to know the difference, I suppose.

Q: So some of the differences between men and women are here to stay, and some need to be changed?

K W : Something like that. As we continue to investigate the differences between men and women, related to both sex and gender, there are indeed certain differences, even in the cultural domain, that crop up again and again across cultures. In other words, not only certain sex differences, but certain gender differences tend to repeat themselves cross-culturally.

It's as if the biological sex differences between men and women are such a strong basic platform that these biological differences tend to invade culture as well, and thus tend to show up in gender differences also. So, even though gender is culturally molded and not biologically

I 3

given, nonetheless certain constants in masculine and feminine gender tend to appear across cultures as well.

Q: Even a decade ago, that was a rather controversial stance. Now it seems more commonly accepted.

K W : Yes, even the radical feminists now champion the notion that there are, generally speaking, very strong differences between the male and female value spheres—that is, in both sex and gender. Men tend toward hyperindividuality, stressing autonomy, rights, justice, and agency, and women tend toward a more relational awareness, with emphasis on communion, care, responsibility, and relationship. Men tend to stress autonomy and fear relationship, women tend to stress relationship and fear autonomy.

Carol Gilligan's and Deborah Tannen's work has been central here, of course, but it's amazing that, in the span of just a decade or so, as you say, most orthodox researchers and most feminist researchers are now in virtual agreement about certain fundamental differences in the male and female value spheres. This is also central to the new field of study known as "evolutionary psychology''—the effects of biological evolution on psychological traits.

And the tricky part now is: how to acknowledge these differences without using them, once again, to disenfranchise women. Because as soon as any sort of differences between people are announced, the privileged will use those differences to further their advantage. You see the problem?

Q: Yes, but it seems the opposite is now occurring. It seems that these differences are being used to demonstrate that men are rather inherently insensitive slobs and testosterone mutants who "just don't get it." The message is, men should be more sensitive, more caring, more loving, more relational. What you call the male value sphere is everywhere under attack. The message is, why can't a man be more like a woman?

KW: Yes, it's a certain amount of "turnabout is fair play." Used to be that women were defined as "deficient men"—"penis envy" being the classic example. Now men are being defined as "deficient women"—defined by the feminine characteristics that they lack, not by any positive attributes that they possess. Both approaches are

1 

pretty ridiculous, not to mention demeaning and degrading to both genders.

The tricky part, as I started to suggest, is how to do two very difficult things: one, to reasonably decide just what are the major differences between the male and female value spheres (A la Gilligan), and then, two, to learn ways to value them more or less equally. Not to make them the same, but to value them equally.

Nature did not split the human race into two sexes for no reason; simply trying to make them the same is silly. But even the most conservative theorists would acknowledge that our culture has been predominantly weighted to the male value sphere for quite some time now. And so we are in the delicate, dicey, very difficult, and often rancorous process of trying to balance the scales a bit more. Not erase the differences, but balance them.

Q: And these differences have their roots in the biological differences between male and female?

K W : In part, it seems so. Hormonal differences, in particular. Studies on testosterone—in the laboratory, cross-culturally, embryonically, and even on what happens when women are given testosterone injections for medical reasons—all point to a simple conclusion. I don't mean to be crude, but it appears that testosterone basically has two, and only two, major drives: fuck it or kill it.

And males are saddled with this biological nightmare almost from day one, a nightmare women can barely imagine (except when they are given testosterone injections for medical purposes, which drives them nuts. As one woman put it, "I can't stop thinking about sex. Please, can't you make this stop?" ) Worse, men sometimes fuse and confuse these two drives, with fuck it and kill it dangerously merging, which rarely has happy consequences, as women are more than willing to point out.

Q: And the female equivalent?

K w: We might point to oxytocin, a hormone that tends to flood the female even if her skin is simply stroked. Oxytocin has been described as the "relationship drug"; it induces incredibly strong feelings of attachment, relationship, nurturing, holding, touching.

And it's not hard to see that both of these, testosterone and oxytocin, have their roots in biological evolution, the former for reproduc-

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tion and survival, the latter for mothering. Most sexual intercourse in the animal kingdom occurs in a matter of seconds. During intercourse, both parties are open to being preyed upon or devoured. Brings new meaning to "dinner and sex," because you are the dinner. So it's slam-bam-thank-you-ma'am. None of this sharing feelings, and emoting, and cuddling—and that about sums up men. Mr. Sensitive—the man, the myth, the weenie—is a very, very recent invention, and it takes men a bit of getting used to, we might say.

But the sexual requirements of mothering are quite different. The mother has to be constantly in tune with the infant, twenty-four hours a day, especially alert to signs of hunger and pain. Oxytocin keeps her right in there, focused on the relationship, and very, very attached. The emotions are not fuck it or kill it, but continuously relate to it, carefully, diffusely, concernfully, tactilely.

Q: So Mr. Sensitive is a gender role that is at odds with the sex

K w: In some ways, yes. That doesn't mean men can't or shouldn't become more sensitive. Today, it's an imperative. But it simply means men have to be educated to do so. It's a role they have to learn. And there are many reasons why this role should be learned, but we have to cut men some slack as they grope toward this strange new landscape.

But likewise for women. Part of the new demands of being a woman in today's world is that she has to fight for her autonomy, and not simply and primarily define herself in terms of her relationships. This, of course, is the great call of feminism, that women begin to define themselves in terms of their own autonomy and their own intrinsic worth, and not merely in terms of relationship to an Other. Not that relationships should be devalued, but that women find ways to honor their own mature self and not merely resort to self-abnegation in the face of the Other.

Q: So both men and women are working against their biological givens?

KW : In some ways, yes. But that is the whole point of evolution: it always goes beyond what went before. It is always struggling to establish new limits, and then struggling just as hard to break them, to transcend them, to move beyond them into more encompassing

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and integrative and holistic modes. And where the traditional sex roles of male and female were once perfectly necessary and appropriate, they are today becoming increasingly outmoded, cramped and crumpled. And so both men and women are struggling for ways to transcend their old roles, without—and this is the tricky part— without simply erasing them. Evolution always transcends and includes, incorporates and goes beyond.

And so, males will always have a base of testosterone drivenness— fuck it or kill it—but those drives can be taken up and worked into more appropriate modes of behavior. Men will always, to some degree, be incredibly driven to break limits, push the envelope, go all out, wildly, insanely, and in the process bring new discoveries, new inventions, new modes into being.

And women, as the radical feminists insist, will always have a base of relational being, oxytocin to the core, but upon that base of relational being can be built a sturdier sense of self-esteem and autonomy, valuing the mature self even as it continues to value relationships.

So for both men and women, it's transcend and include, transcend and include. And we are at a point in evolution where the primary sex roles—hyperautonomy for men and hyperrelationship for women—are both being transcended to some degree, with men learning to embrace relational being and women learning to embrace autonomy. And in this difficult process, both sexes appear to be monsters in the eyes of the other, which is why a certain kindness on both sides is so important, I think.

Q: Now you said that our society has been male-oriented for some time, and that a certain balancing of the books seems to be in order.

K W : This is what is generally meant by the "patriarchy," a word which is always pronounced with scorn and disgust. The obvious and naive solution is to simply say that men imposed the patriarchy on women—a nasty and brutal state of affairs that easily could have been different—and therefore all that is now required is for men to simply say, "Oops, excuse me, didn't mean to crush and oppress you for five thousand years. What was I thinking? Can we just start over?"

But, alas, it is nowhere near that simple. There were certain inescapable circumstances that made the "patriarchy" an unavoidable arrangement for an important part of human development, and we are just now reaching the point where that arrangement is no longer necessary, so that we can begin, in certain fundamental ways, to "deconstruct" the patriarchy, or more charitably balance the books between the male and female value spheres. But this is not the undoing of a brutal state of affairs that could easily have been otherwise; it is rather the outgrowing of a state of affairs no longer necessary.

Q: Which is a very different way of looking at it.

Kw: Well, if we take the standard response—that the patriarchy was imposed on women by a bunch of sadistic and power-hungry men—then we are locked into two inescapable definitions of men and women. Namely, men are pigs and women are sheep. That men would intentionally want to oppress half of the human race paints a dismal picture of men altogether. Testosterone or not, men are simply not that malicious in the totality of their being.

But actually, what's so altogether unbelievable about this explanation of the patriarchy is that it paints an incredibly Nattering picture of men. It says that men—who according to feminists are so hyperindependent they shouldn't be able to agree on anything anyway— nonetheless managed to collectively get together and agree to oppress half of the human race, and more amazingly, they succeeded totally in every known culture. As a man, I'm very flattered that some women think we can do this; it's the nicest thing a feminist has said about men in quite some time. Mind you, men have never been able to create a domineering government that lasted more than a few hundred years; but according to the feminists, men managed to implement this other and massive domination for five thousand—some say one hundred thousand—years. Those wacky guys, gotta love 'em.

But the really gruesome problem with the "imposition theory"— men oppressed women from day one—is that it paints a horrifyingly dismal picture of women. You simply cannot be as strong and as intelligent and oppressed. This picture necessarily paints women basically as sheep, as weaker and/or stupider than men. Instead of seeing that, at every stage of human evolution, men and women co-created the social forms of their interaction, this picture defines women primarily as molded by an Other. These feminists, in other words, are assuming and enforcing precisely the picture of women that they say

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they want to erase. But men are simply not that piggy, and women not that sheepy.

So one of the things I have tried to do, based on more recent feminist scholarship, is to trace out the hidden power that women have had and that influenced, co-created, the various cultural structures throughout our history, including the so-called patriarchy. Among other things, this releases men from being defined as total schmucks, and releases women from being defined as duped, brainwashed, and herded.

Q: You trace the five or six major epochs of human evolution, and you examine the status of men and women in each of those stages.

K W : Yes, one of the things we want to do, when looking at the various stages of human consciousness evolution, is also to look at the status of men and women at each of those stages. And that allows certain obvious conclusions to stand out, I believe.

Q: So this approach involves what, exactly? In general terms.

K w: What we want to do is first, isolate the biological constants that do not change from culture to culture. These biological constants appear very simple and even trivial, such as: men on average have an advantage in physical strength and mobility, and women give birth and lactate. But those simple biological differences turn out to have an enormous influence on the types of cultural or gender differences that spring up around them.

Q : For example?

K W : For example, what if the means of subsistence in your particular culture is horse and herding? As Janet Chafetz points out, women who participate in these activities have a very high rate of miscarriage. It is to their Darwinian advantage not to participate in the productive sphere, which is therefore occupied almost solely by men. And indeed, over 90 percent of herding societies are "patriarchal." But oppression is not required to explain this patriarchal orientation. The evidence suggests, on the contrary, that women freely participated in this arrangement.

If, on the other hand, we fall into the naive and reflex action, and assume that if women in these societies weren't doing exactly what the modern feminist thinks she should have been doing, then those women must have been oppressed, then off we go on the men-are-

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pigs, women-are-sheep chase, which is horribly degrading to both sexes.

Nobody is denying that some of these arrangements were very difficult, gruesome even. But what we find is that when the sexes are polarized or rigidly separated, then both sexes suffer horribly. The evidence suggests, in fact, that the "patriarchal" societies were much harder on the average male than on the average female, for reasons we can discuss if you like. But ideology and victim politics don't help very much in this particular regard. Trading female power for female victimhood is a self-defeating venture. It presupposes and reinforces that which it wishes to overcome.

Q: So you said we want to do two things, and the first was look at the universal biological differences between the sexes.

K w: Yes, and second, to look at how these constant biological differences played themselves out over the five or six stages of human cultural evolution. The general point is that, with this approach, we can isolate those factors that historically led to more "equalitarian" societies—that is, societies that gave roughly equal status to the male and female value spheres. They never equated male and female; they balanced them. And thus, in our present-day attempts to reach a more harmonious stance, we will have a better idea about just what needs to be changed, and what does not need to be changed.

So perhaps we can learn to value the differences between the male and female value spheres. Those differences, even according to the radical feminists, appear to be here for good—but we can learn to value them with more equal emphasis. How to do so is one of the things we'll want to talk about.

The Scope of These Discussions

Q: The human stages of development are part of a larger project of looking at evolution in general. This is what you did, for example, in Sex, Ecology, Spirituality. So what we want to do is to go over some of the major points, but in a simpler and briefer fashion, and see if we can make this thing more accessible.

Kw: We could start with the rather amazing fact that there's a common evolutionary thread running from matter to life to mind.

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Certain common patterns, or laws, or habits keep repeating themselves in all those domains, and we could begin by looking at those extraordinary patterns.

Q: You have also looked at the higher stages of consciousness evolution itself, stages that might best be called spiritual.

Kw: Yes. This takes up various themes suggested by Schelling, Hegel, Aurobindo, and other evolutionary theorists East and West. The point is that, for all of these nondual approaches, evolution is best thought of as Spirit-in-action, God-in-the-making, where Spirit unfolds itself at every stage of development, thus manifesting more of itself, and realizing more of itself, at every unfolding. Spirit is not some particular stage, or some favorite ideology, or some pet god or goddess, but rather the entire process of unfolding itself, an infinite process that is completely present at every finite stage, but becomes more available to itself with every evolutionary opening.

And so yes, we can look at the higher stages of this evolutionary unfolding, according to the world's great wisdom traditions—the higher or deeper stages where Spirit becomes conscious of itself, awakens to itself, begins to recognize its own true nature.

These higher stages are often pictured as mystical or "far out," but for the most part they are very concrete, very palpable, very real stages of higher development—stages available to you and to me, stages that are our own deep potentials. And looking carefully at these stages in the light of evolution helps us to understand just what they are disclosing, and helps us to ground their claims and make concrete sense of them.

And these higher stages—which in the past have been achieved by the few, the rare, the elite, the gifted, the ahead-of-their-time—might actually give us some hints about what collective evolution has in store for all of us tomorrow.

Q: You found that the world's great spiritual traditions fall into two large and very different camps.

K w: Yes, if we look at the various types of human attempts to comprehend the Divine—in both East and West, and North and South for that matter—what we find are two very different types of spirituality, which I call Ascending and Descending.

The Ascending path is purely transcendental and otherworldly. It

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is usually puritanical, ascetic, yogic, and it tends to devalue or even deny the body, the senses, sexuality, the Earth, the flesh. It seeks its salvation in a kingdom not of this world; it sees manifestation or samsara as evil or illusory; it seeks to get off the wheel entirely. And, in fact, for the Ascenders, any sort of Descent tends to be viewed as illusory or even evil. The Ascending path glorifies the One, not the Many; Emptiness, not Form; Heaven, not Earth.

The Descending path counsels just the opposite. It is this-worldly to the core, and it glorifies the Many, not the One. It celebrates the Earth, and the body, and the senses, and often sexuality. It even identifies Spirit with the sensory world, with Gaia, with manifestation, and sees in every sunrise, every moonrise, all the Spirit a person could ever want. It is purely immanent and despises anything transcendental. In fact, for the Descenders, any form of Ascent is viewed as evil.

Q: One of the things we want to discuss is the history of the "war" between the Ascenders and the Descenders. They are each the devil in the other's eyes.

K w: Yes, it's at least a two-thousand-year-old war, often brutal and always rancorous. In the West, from the time roughly of Augustine to Copernicus, we have a purely Ascending ideal, otherworldly to the core. Final salvation and liberation could not be found in this body, on this Earth, in this lifetime. I mean, your present life could be okay, but things got really interesting once you died. Once you went otherworldly.

But then, with the rise of modernity and postmodernity, we see a complete and profound reversal—the Ascenders were out, the Descenders were in.

Q: You call this "the dominance of the Descenders," which is another major topic we will cover. You point out that the modern and postmodern world is governed almost entirely by a purely Descended conception, a purely Descended worldview, which you call "flatland."

K w: Flatland, yes, the idea that the sensory and empirical and material world is the only world there is. There are no higher or deeper potentials available to us—no higher stages of consciousness evolution, for example. There is merely what we can see with our senses or grasp with our hands. It is a world completely bereft of any

sort of Ascending energy at all, completely hollow of any transcendence. And, in fact, as is always the case with mere Descenders, any sort of Ascent or transcendence is looked upon as being misguided at best, evil at worst.

So yes, welcome to flatland, a purely Descended world. We moderns and postmoderns live almost entirely within this purely Descended grid, the flat and faded world of endless sensory forms, this superficial world of drab and dreary surfaces. Whether with capitalism or Marxism, industrialism or deep ecology, consumerism or ecofeminism—in all cases, your God, your Goddess, is one you can see with your eyes, register with your senses, wrap with feelings, worship with sensations, a God you can sink your teeth into, and that exhausts its form.

Whether or not we consider ourselves spiritual, we flatlanders worship at the altar of the merely Descended God, the sensory Goddess, the sensational world, the monochrome world of simple location, the world you can put your finger on. Nothing higher or deeper for us than the God that is clunking around in our visual field.

How and why that is so is something we can discuss.

Q: You point out that the great Nondual traditions, East and West, attempt instead to integrate both the Ascending and the Descending paths.

K W : Yes, to balance both transcendence and immanence, the One and the Many, Emptiness and Form, nirvana and samsara, Heaven and Earth.

Q: "Nonduality" refers to the integration of Ascending and Descending?

K w: Yes, basically.

Q: So that is another major point we want to discuss—the currents of Ascending and Descending spirituality, and how those currents can be integrated.

K w: It's important, because both the mere Ascenders and the mere Descenders, in tearing the Kosmos into their favorite fragments, are contributing to the brutality of this warfare, and they simply try to convert and coerce each other by sharing their diseases and waving their wounds.

But it is in the union of the Ascending and the Descending currents

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that harmony is found, and not in any brutal war between the two. Only when Ascending and Descending are united, we might say, can both be saved. And those who do not contribute to this union not only destroy the only Earth they have, but forfeit the only Heaven they might otherwise embrace.

 

 

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