Customer Reviews

Integral Consciousness and the Future of Evolution

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Mr. McIntosh does a superb job in refining what the integralists had previously written concerning the spiral integral. His prose is easy to read and his points are made very clearly. If you have ever been frustrated or confused with Cowan and Beck's explanations in Spiral Dynamics then please read this book. It explains and refines their model in a lucid and succinct style. If you have ever felt that Wilber's explanations for his AQAL model left you wanting then read this book as McIntosh lays it out and then builds on it beautifully.

What the author does exceptionally well, five stars in Amazon parlance, is layout a model where he cores the evolution of spiral integral theory to three main topics. Those topics are psychology, science and religion. He does the best job of all the integralists' writings to explain how the integral model evolved into existence on the psychology and science. Though he does not denigrate religion he does not explain the evolution for the third leg of the stool with the detail and deftness he delivers on the other two legs.

Mr. McIntosh should not be faulted for this as this flaw is one which all of the integralist theorists share. That is they play fast and loose with history, quoting events in time as it suits their arguments instead of adhering to the evolved model as they do with psychology, science, biology etc. This is somewhat ironic as the author dings Wilber for this in the book and then proceeds to replicate the same behavior himself in support of his arguments.

McIntosh departs from the integralist theorist peers in majoring in the explanation and refinement of integralist theory almost completely for the group spiral and not the individual. This is one of the factors which make his book much easier to understand than all the others. When walking through a theoretical landscape the switching between group and individual models makes complex theory much more difficult to follow. In fact I think it creates a mindset in most integral theorist writers to create identical symmetries between the group and the individual where few actually exist. The author escapes from this trap by staying on the group throughout and this is a fundamental reason why his book succeeds where others have not.

The reason the author is awarded four stars for such a wonderful refinement of integralist theory is because of he has not factored in any standard model for history. I will admit that while I do focus on the history of humankind in an effort to try and define a standard model, the integralists must understand that there is such a standard model analogous to the one being refined in physics. I would ask the author when he crafted his model for a three legged stool - who or what is sitting on that stool? The answer of course must be human history. Since McIntosh majors in the group it has to be our collective evolutionary history sitting on the stool. The failure to make this connection causes the author to make historical assumptions which skew the potential applicability in his projections for the future where he does spend time to carefully make integral consciousness operational. Therefore allow me a moment to layout but the briefest and barebones model for human history so that this point can be clearly seen by the integralists and their readers. Until this factor has been taken into consideration in their models there will be no adoption and refinement for their ideas in the academic community. This is not a minor issue.

For those integral theorist and readers out there, I must state categorically that there exists a standard model for the telemetry of human history in exactly the same as there is for psychology, physics and physiology. There has been only three economic ages for humanity: the hunter-gatherers age (200,000-12,000bce), the agricultural age (12000 bce-1770ce) and the industrial age (1770ce through the foreseeable future).

At the very moment in time when our ancestors had fully developed the modern sized mind (starting 30,000 years ago) we see world wide an explosion in what we today call art. What they depicted was their first worldview which can be historically catalogued because wherever our ancestors were they drew the same types of images (lethal wild animals, vortex symbols and the pregnant Venus figures). These were not their grocery lists or individuals expressing themselves but rather the start of our unique magic based human worldview in pictorial form as drawing is always the precursor to writing. This was humanities 1st historical Axial Age. The Mind in the Cave and Inside the Neolithic Mind are two excellent books written by David Lewis-Williams and David Pearce which have proven this and taken their model to an accepted academic standard.

Just as in the hunter-gatherer age, three quarters of the way through their agricultural age suddenly humanity rewrote (800bce) their inherited worldview to one which was human centric and no longer strictly a nature based magical model. They did this because they had moved into increasingly larger villages, towns, cities, city-states and some even empires and the old rules simply did not successfully regulate human interaction. The first written texts attest to the changing worldview from their inherited one of animal sacrifice to feed their gods and keep the world in balance. Over time the sacrifices become symbolic, though a majority of the inhabitants on earth still saw them in the same way that the hunter-gatherers had tens of thousands of years before. It was only by the end of the agricultural age that majority had switched over to this very ne worldview.

Ancient times were an extremely brutal environment and the only way forward was to evolve a new golden rule centric worldview (do onto others as you would have them do onto you). That golden rule is at the core of all of the major religions which came into existence during the agricultural age to address this problem of human violence. The remainder of the farming age was spent in refining and codifying the rules for humanity which peaks in the middle Ages. This can be seen as late as the New Testament when Jesus throws the animals out of the Temple courtyard in one of his few recorded rages because even the symbolic act had become repugnant to the evolving worldview. Karen Armstrong lays out the change over magnificently in her book The Great Transformation, though her thinking is still not academically accepted as no scholar is willing to stake their career on the line against the current firewall that scholars have drawn in the sand between pre history (pre written history called prehistoric) and written history. Once that line is breached the progression from hunter-gatherer images traversing down through Sumerian, Akkadian, Egyptian and the ancient Hebrew scrolls will be self evident even for the causal observer in terms of the removal of animal and nature worship from popular worldview.

As we entered the industrial age the inherited worldview is coming under increasing review and will result in a 3rd Axial Age in the future (at two more long waves out by my reckoning). What the integralists such as the author must remember is that their philosophy will not be the trigger for this event. Their evolved worldview can serve to make the transition a less violent and difficult event than the previous Axial Age change was but will not likely serve as the tipping point. This can be seen clearly from the agricultural ages shift in worldview when there had been a broad spectrum in religious thinking from Archaic to Integral from a Spiral model perspective. What was codified was what the author references as the Traditional spiral. In other words the lowest common denominator for humanity was selected so that everyone could be brought onboard.

The major change in the industrial age is the rise of nations and the associated nationalism which comes with it at the group level. Nations will have to work through how they are going to successfully interact with one and other but this is not where integral thinking will be of effect as those rules will evolve from purely economic bulwarks. This is where the author's lack of factoring in the standard human history model reduces his thinking in his book. Integral thinking must occur as evolution does from the individual to the group. Multiculturalism will only grow from individuals and not by legal codes enforced at the end of a rifle barrel as all laws ultimately are. None of the previous Axial Ages were legislated into existence they simply grew organically out of the spectrum in evolving thinking.

Because Integral Consciousness has not been accepted academically the practice of playing with human history is an ongoing and ill-advised practice. However until a standard model is placed as the baseline for integral theory, it can never be accepted in the academic communities which serve as diffusion centers for all accepted human thinking. One can no more adjust the telemetry of human history than one could remove gravity from the earth. In other words the stool can't float to fit the theoretical models together but must be a foundational component of integral modeling theory. Therefore McIntosh and all the integralists must finish the work in building an academic quality model before embarking on political roadmaps such as the one the author proposes in his book. It is for this reason that it is four stars though to be honest this is not a flaw of the author by himself but is shared by all of the integral writers. McIntosh does further refine integral theory in his book but muddies it with premature moves to operationalize the excitement of the changes we are all now seeing in the world today.

Finally McIntosh clearly possesses a brilliant mind. What those of require who follow the evolution in integral theory is for the author to focus on completing the model to an accepted academic standard. There is where these philosophical giants can make their contribution to the world which our children will inherit. That is the application of integral consciousness which is required for the road ahead in my opinion.

Instructive, impassioned, and articulate, Steve McIntosh has gifted us with a provocative synthesis of integral thought and thinkers. Both historical retrospective and moral-evolutionary prognosis, Integral Consciousness and the Future of Evolution challenges us to test what we already know against what we hope may one day be possible.

Fans of Ken Wilber may have differing reactions to the fair-handed but discerning treatment of their intellectual hero that makes up a relatively small part of this book. In addition to his very thorough walk-through of integral thought and thinkers, McIntosh also provides fresh and original insights, especially with regard to integral politics and the actual real-time functioning of the inter-subjective realm of being.

As a life-long student of integral thought and thinking, I heartily recommend this book to anyone who wishes to continue including-yet-transcending the bounds of their own spiritual and philosophical inquiries.

-- Jordan Gruber, J.D., M.A.; CEO, Enlightenment.Com; Founding Member, Integral Institute; Producer of and Interviewer for: Speaking of Everything, the first-ever audio interview with Ken Wilber; The Practical Wordsmith and Ghostwriter-at-Large; Pioneer: ChiBounding.

My first note is: "the next step."

The two Appendices are, in my view, a better starting place for the book as a whole.

The author synthesizes natural sciences, developmental psychology, political thought, philosophy, and spiritual traditions. I have a note later in the book on "this helps to understand the DNA of the body-mind-soul."

The author tells us that integral philosophy can and should be used to design a world federation Constitution, and later on in the book tells us that philosophy should be the bridge between science and religion and later on suggests that philosophy, science, and spirituality (the opposite of rote religion) should retain their distinct values, and not be "blended" inappropriately.

The author is confident that a global self-governance network, while moving some powers up from the national level, will also result in moving many more powers *down* to the local and provincial levels, and this struck me as a point that needs to be developed further if we are to reunite the 27 secessionist movements in the US and the 5,000 secessionist and indigenous splinter groups around the world. That could be a second book in the making!

The author posits (and provides) a universal declaration of human rights, and suggests that tiered membership in a World Federation could start with the US, Europe, Australia, and Japan, and gradually absorb others who are at differing levels of consciousness.

If I had one criticism of the author's work, it is his ready confusion of American and European consciousness and the naked amorality of American policy-makers, including an abjectly dysfunctional and corrupt Congress, with the 50 million plus cultural creatives or the 80-110 million members whose parent organizations belong to Reuniting America. This needs more dissection and remediation.

He tells us that most institutions are artifacts, and this is consistent with the view in Conversations with God and other works about how religions as intermediaries have become false gods, while government and economic and media institutions have become corrupt and mis-representative.

The Wilburian distinction of the it, the I, and the we--nature, self, and culture--is helpful, and the author takes this a step further with his discussion of a cross-cultural spiral.

He provides superb tables and text describing each of the different levels of socio-cultural consciousness, and I now begin to see his view of how integral consciousness can embrace, welcome, and deconflict among differing levels of consciousness, including warrior consciousness among the Islamic fundamentalists, and the modernist and post-modernist consciousness of more developed societies (again, he neglects to address the sharp imbalance between the American people and their terribly retarded government).

He discusses cognitive intelligence, emotional intelligence, and values intelligence, and stresses that science without values is not complete. He acknowledges E. O. Wilson's contribution of Consilience, but does not cite John ... who gave us Voltaire's Bastards.

Importantly, he outlines how "what is truth" changes at each level of consciousness, and I find this to be among his most important insights. This is one of the author's most vital contributions, and one that future Administrations would do well to recognize: reality really is socially-constructed, and one must not only see reality as the other person sees it, but see it as a parallel universe that must be respected if one is to engage constructively.

The book works toward a conclusion by noting that integral politics transcends the schism between left and right, and here he cites Paul Ray's work reported out in 1995 on the distinctions in America between the traditionals, moderns, and cultural creatives. He says the degree of transcendence is determined by the scope of *inclusion* and that our challenge is to harmonize and integrate distinct cultures, not subdue them!

Integral consciousness finds *new* solutions via "vision-logic" centered in volition (good intention) rather than cognition, and this is very consistent with the spiritual literature that puts being (action) before planning (cognition). This is a 100-year path of value metabolism equal to the 100-year path since the last Enlightenment.

The author furthers my belief that religions should be rejected as we all adopt direct spiritual relationships with ourselves, others, our societies, and God expressed as the community of man. Beauty, truth, and goodness are the commonalities across cultures and consciousness, windows on the divine, and the place where we examine how values impact on evolution.

A rapid survey of past pioneers if offered:
* Hegel: dialectic of consciousness
* Bergson: intuition, unmediated knowledge
* Whitehead: philosophy as mediator between science and religion
* Teilhard de Chardin: evolutionary thresholds, physiosphere, biosphere, noosphere
* Gebster: coined term "integral consciousness"
* Baldwin: development psychology and genetic logic
* Graves: bio-psycho-social
* Habermas: founder of integral philosophy
* Wilbur: framer of integral philosophy, "big picture"
* McIntosh: need to distinguish, not blend, science, philosophy, spirituality

The author goes on to address the integral reality frame, the spiral of development, and the evolutionary goal of global (but not natural) governances. I was reminded of the "Salmon Nation" and wondered how species representation would play here.

VALUES are what link and nurture the inner and the outer, while making visible previously invisible structures of consciousness and culture across societies and civilizations.

Toward the end the author brings up the Koestner concept of holons, and the view that individual organisms and their social networks co-exist and help define one another in ways that cannot be isolated.

The bottom line: we are moving toward increased complexity and increased unity, and I would add that the author posits a new solution that addresses the reasons why complex societies collapse, when their institutional artifacts fail to rise to the higher consciousness and social network "community mind and soul" that is necessary to scale.

The general direction of truth is the way forward and the transcendent purpose, evolution is sacred (I am reminded of Michael Dowd).

My last comment: "WOW."

See also:
The Cultural Creatives: How 50 Million People Are Changing the World
The Tao of Democracy: Using Co-Intelligence to Create a World That Works for All
All Rise: Somebodies, Nobodies, and the Politics of Dignity (BK Currents)
One from Many: VISA and the Rise of Chaordic Organization
Escaping the Matrix: How We the People can change the world
The Radical Center: The Future of American Politics
Momentum: Igniting Social Change in the Connected Age
Democracy's Edge: Choosing to Save Our Country by Bringing Democracy to Life
Getting a Grip: Clarity, Creativity, and Courage in a World Gone Mad
Blessed Unrest: How the Largest Movement in the World Came into Being and Why No One Saw It Coming

McIntosh begins his book with some ambitious promises. Published in December 2007, Integral Consciousness is his first book and, in it, he spends 342 pages - in three parts - helping readers `wire up their brains' to adopt the `new' worldview of integral consciousness. He says that this worldview - or `higher state of consciousness' - creates a larger and more complex experiential awareness that means the reader will see things they didn't see before. And, that's not all: "more energy for life, more compassion for others, more personal power and strategic wisdom". And, before I forget, the ability to participate in a cultural revolution that is as profound as the Enlightenment was a few hundred years ago. Not bad for $26.95 and a couple of days of reading, huh?

I judge the success of the book like McIntosh's if it can `pace and lead' me to three things:
provide me with a different description of concepts I already know, in this case, the stages of consciousness and culture originally discerned by Clare Graves and refined into the body of work known as Spiral Dynamics by Don Beck and Chris Cowan;
explain and clarify ideas that I've formerly felt confused by. Here, McIntosh provides a very cogent explanation of the dialectical nature of the spiral of development. Also, for someone like me who's quarter-read several of Ken Wilber's books, McIntosh has done the hard work and provides helpful and clear explanations of holons, the AQAL model, and Wilber's conception of lines and levels of development.
create some a-ha! moments. For me, this occurred with McIntosh's work in linking the cognitive (objective), emotional (subjective) and moral (inter-subjective) in a way which completely transformed my conception of values-memes (although he writes the entire book without using the concept of the meme at all).

McIntosh has several agendas with this book and, to my mind, he succeeds with some better than others. He is an `independent scholar', a philosopher in the 18th Century style: those "gentlemen of leisure" whose curiosity took them rambling across the (then) ill-formed landscapes of what would become The Sciences. McIntosh traverses philosophy, history and philosophy of science, psychology, evolutionary biology and spirituality - and ends up firmly in politics. His PR agent advised him to focus the public attention for the book on his message that integral consciousness will (eventually) create a form of global governance (shrewdly topical in that McIntosh and his countrymen will be electing a new President shortly). He gives an entire chapter and an Appendix to this concept and has gone so far as writing a "Declaration of the Values of Governance". This is in keeping with McIntosh's (second tier) belief that we are on the cusp of a transcendent shifts in consciousness which will naturally play out in the political arena, just as the orange v-meme played out in the late 18th century in France, the USA and England.

Now, for the things I like less about the book. There's a strong purposeful stance i.e., that evolutionary consciousness is directed toward something. To quote McIntosh, "Ultimately, I think there is a `unity of truth' about the real nature of spiritual reality, and as we ascend I trust we will all come to know this truth in its fullness" (p. 231). McIntosh is wisely guarded about his own spiritual views, although at one point confesses that the teachings of Jesus are those which appeal to him the most. I'm not convinced by McIntosh (or anyone else for that matter) that there are comprehensible `truths' out there, even when our consciousness has evolved beyond the post-integral stage. This position seems at odds with his otherwise well-formulated view of humanity's construction of reality based upon a dialectical spiral of consciousness and culture.

Almost as a footnote, I also question the structure of the book. While McIntosh provides sound justification for the two distinct parts and two Appendices, there's an ultimate failure of unity. There's just too much going on here, I fear. As a comprehensive summary (re-read the subtitle) perhaps that was his aim. I'd also have liked better footnoting and endnotes. But they're mere quibbles in judging a book that is very clearly the summit of McIntosh's labours over many years.

For anyone who has an interest in any of the topics he covers (spirituality, politics, integral theory, cultural evolution, developmental psychology) this is a well-researched, nicely balanced exposition of the key thinking in the world today - with useful original contributions from McIntosh himself. It certainly fulfilled the task of rewiring some segments of my brain, and refurbishing some existing - and decidedly dodgy - electrical work. And, over the coming days, weeks and months, I'll look for evidence of greater energy, power, wisdom, compassion as well!

McIntosh's book is really a fine piece of work and proof that the integral worldview is now emerging in history. It really integrates science and spirit in a powerful way, yet it is highly readable and kept my interest all the way through. The first half of the book was much easier to digest than the second half, but by the time I finished reading the first half I was ready to invest the time to comprehend McIntosh's original thinking, which is laid out in the second half. I've read a variety of books by Ken Wilber, but I liked Integral Consciousness better than anything I have read by Wilber -- McIntosh is less egocentric than Wilber and his writing is more clear.


I really think that this integral way of seeing things is going to change the world for the better. I highly recommend this book.

I've been perusing the Integral literature for about a year now. While I claim absolutely no level of expertise, I consider myself at least mildly intelligent, and I believe Mr. McIntosh's book to be an excellent introduction to this school of thought.

A little back-story--I first encountered Ken Wilber's work in the late '90s and found it enthralling. However, many powerful modern and post-modern influences in my life convinced me that it held no relevance to that which they considered pragmatic and purposeful. They had a great deal of money, were influential, and apparently "successful," so I believed them. I put his work down. At that point, I was still unable to think for myself.

Each of us has a "journey" or a story or sorts, and I found myself in dire need of some clarification and grounding about a year and a half ago. I began re-examining Teilhard's theory of complexity consciousness which led me back to what I now realize is Integral thinking. I came across Steve's book during some Google searches. Intuitively, I purchased it. I've been rewarded.

I believe his presentation and argumentation to be appealing in both simplicity and elegance. Sitting with this book helped me clarify many things--not the least of which was the evolution of my own thought process. It has helped me create what I hope is an integrally-informed business and a more ethical life.

I'm re-reading much of Wilber and the work of Don Beck and will soon be working through Gebser's "Ever Present Origin." I have much to learn and unlearn, I know. But Steve's book has helped change my life. I can't recommend it highly enough. For me, there is much Beauty, Truth and Goodness to be found in his work.

In a way, it really difficult to write a review about such a powerful book. Any philosphy should always be related to one's life. The division that could be created between life and ideas can often times be characterized as violent and confused. This book is a fundamental step toward taking a lofty idea as integral consciousness and placing it into tangible form.
From my personal experience, human development is real. Many developmental scientists have observed and documented specific levels of awareness. We have tribal, warrior, traditional, modernist, postmodernist levels (or spheres) or consciousness, to use just one set of terms. These observations are as real as the invisible forces that physicists point to. Just because you can't see gravity doesn't mean when you drop a glass it won't be drawn toward the earth. The same is true for value systems, just because you can't place your worldview into words does not mean you don't have one. It is taken for granted, much like breathing.
Masterfully, Steve points this out. Words like awareness and consciousness and evolution are brought down to earth with definitions that (almost) anyone can understand. The future he projects is one of an integral conscousness, where those who understand this level of consciousness can better understand thier roles and the roles of the previous rungs of consciouness that human beings have climbed. It is finally a gigantic step toward a harmonious living that many people, perhaps even those in the world's universities, have given up for dead.
This hope is not dead. It is brilliantly animated by McIntosh. Because of where we have been on the spiral, this hope just looks differently than what we believed it would be. Instead of fairies and gods and demons all creating a hyper-integrative united nations of the world, we, human beings, have to create it. The impulse, the fuel for this revolutionary change, is integral consciouness.
If a positive worldview is something you have lost, if the world in its current state makes no sense, if you are burdened by the perspective you have now, integral consciouness is the cure. It is the answer to the question, where are we headed? It is a conscious survival mechanism for a world that appears to be living only between wars and suffering. It is that "higher calling" that so many of us have given up as illusion. It is a model and an energy source with as much room for understanding and mobility as the heavens have for stars, moons, and planets.
While the understanding presented in this book may not fit how you have currently believed the world to be, please, have patience. Once you've gone integral, there is no turning back. And once you turn back, you can smile, laugh, and love every step of the journey that has brought you here. This book should be read with the future of human consciousness in mind.
Thank you Steve.

Erik Dutilly. Boulder, Colorado.

Three cheers for Steve McIntosh. This book is an evolutionary milestone in the field of integral theory. I think it will help us make a big step in moving from our tendencies to hold integral theory (IT) as a "church of Ken" (which I have been an enthusiastic member of) to a more mature field of shared discourse.

A key tenet of IT (and Spiral Dynamics) is that every stage comes embedded with a set of challenges that push us to continue evolving. In other words, "with every great strength comes an equal challenge." Ever since reading Integral Spirituality, I've been fascinated by the question "what are the challenges that come with IT's great strengths?"

In providing a summary of the field that honors and includes Ken's work, while also being willing to question some of the core "integral dogmas", Steve provides the best exploration of this question that I have yet seen.

In particular, this book:
- Provides a historical context of integral philosophy, showing how Ken's work relates to and builds on the work of a number of integral pioneers.

- Offers a fresh view of IT that helps create the freedom to move from seeing Ken's writings as "the map" of integral philosophy to "a map".

- Illuminates a core challenge of IT which I call the "rational/trans-rational fallacy" - the tendency to conflate the level of mind/philosophy/noosphere with soul/spirituality/theosphere. The brilliance of how well IT extrapolates from the pre-rational in to the rational domains creates the temptation to think we can follow this as a straight line in to the realm of the trans-rational. But this realm is where Spirit transcends mind, so we find ourselves chasing our tail.

- Adds a number of powerful new ideas and concepts to the areas of integral philosophy, integral spirituality, and integral politics.

- Points out the challenges that come from Ken's religious beliefs being treated as one and the same with his philosophical beliefs, and shows how we can more easily create common ground with the great religious traditions, by better honoring the noosphere/philosophy/rational - theosphere/spirituality/trans-rational boundary.

In short, it makes a brilliant step forward in helping us transcend and include the current state of integral theory.

Namaste,
Brian (brian@corecoaching.org, www.integralcoaching.org)

Don't let the title prevent you from reading Part I of this small book. What a great job of letting us "commoners" in on one of the great secrets of the Universe. Seldom do I want to re-read a book. This one is worth it. You don't have to be an expert to grasp its significance.

Steve McIntosh has provided not only an extremely thorough and helpful introduction to the Integral worldview, but his in-depth analysis and original contributions carry this promising forefront of evolutionary development into new and expanded territory.

By giving prominence and priority to both the evolution of values and the value of evolution, he fires the engines of progress and helps to point the way forward.

His treatment of spirituality in relation to integral philosophy opens the door to expanded realms of personal discovery that are not limited by the preferences and theories of any particular author or current viewpoint.

His courageous exploration of the future potential for benign and legitimate global governance provides a critical counter-position to the justified fear of the only other alternatives: global despotism or unending conflict.