Today we welcome Ken Wilber to the podcast. Ken is the developer of Integral Theory. He is also the founder of the Integral Institute, which was formed in collaboration with over 200 scholars and experts, specializing in education, politics, business, medicine, psychology, spirituality, law and criminal justice. His 25 books have been translated into 30 foreign languages, making Ken one of the most widely translated academic writers in America. At age 74, he is still very much active as a philosopher, author, and teacher, with all of his major publications still in print.
In this episode, I talk to Ken Wilber about his Integral Theory. Instead of trying to tackle it in all its complexity, Ken hones in on the application of his theory to intelligence, consciousness and transcendence. He believes that development in these areas follows a predictable path, such as in the case of enlightenment. Borrowing from Zen Buddhism, Ken talks about what it’s like to awaken to the truth of reality. We also touch on the topics of psychological research, diversity, artificial intelligence, and social media.
Website: https://integrallife.com/
Twitter: @TheKenWilber
Topics
03:17 Integral Theory and its applications
09:50 Components of spiritual intelligence
17:41 Maslow’s influence on Ken
21:41 Critique of stage theories
30:49 Spiritual narcissism
44:12 The process of enlightenment
48:42 Individual differences in unitive consciousness
58:09 Integral Theory research
1:03:44 Is society progressing?
1:09:39 Diversity beyond physical attributes
1:13:03 Improving modern-day psychology research
1:18:06 Is life just a test run?
1:22:22 What would an integral social media look like?
1:26:36 Addressing Integral Theory critiques
1:33:00 Does objective reality exist?
1:38:52 Development of artificial intelligence
1:43:08 Awakening to reality
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The New Landscape of Leadership || Jeffrey Hull
Build the Life You Want || Arthur Brooks
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Find the Potential in Change || Maya Shankar
Finding Spiritual Peace through Mindful CBT || Seth Gillihan
Find Freedom from Regret || Roberty Leahy
Cleaning Up Your Mental Mess || Caroline Leaf
Humanizing Bipolar || Gabe Howard
Meaningful Engagement with Life || Eric Zimmer
Find the Place in You that Isn’t Wounded || Niall Breslin
How Not to Get Scammed || Daniel Simons & Christopher Chabris
The Mindful Athlete || George Mumford
The Real Differences Between the Generations || Jean Twenge
The Journey of Leadership || Alisa Cohn
Meet Your Future Self || Hal Hershfield
Podcast Improv Jam || Dan Lerner
Why We Have Too Much Free Will || Ken Sheldon
How Minimalism Can Change Your Life || The Minimalists
Awakening from the Meaning Crisis || John Vaervaeke
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