Changes

I.  ==QUADRANTS==

==QUADRANTS==

From the beginning Wilber collected hundreds of bits of truth, wisdom, and theory from every imaginable source and struggled to make sense of it all.  Many of the concepts in his collection were mutually contradictory.  Then one day he was struck with a sudden flash of insight.  The result was a map of reality he calls “AQAL“ (all quadrants, all levels) which I will attempt to illustrate below.  Basically, the idea is that all existential reality lies in four coterminous dimensions even though we typically remain unconscious of those dimensions in the same way that a fish remains unaware of water.  For present purposes I will limit this discussion to the quadrants as they relate to human consciousness-events.  These are the quadrants:

From the beginning Wilber collected hundreds of bits of truth, wisdom, and theory from every imaginable source and struggled to make sense of it all.  Many of the concepts in his collection were mutually contradictory.  Then one day he was struck with a sudden flash of insight.  The result was a map of reality he calls “AQAL“ (all quadrants, all levels) which I will attempt to illustrate below.  Basically, the idea is that all existential reality lies in four coterminous dimensions even though we typically remain unconscious of those dimensions in the same way that a fish remains unaware of water.  For present purposes I will limit this discussion to the quadrants as they relate to human consciousness-events.  These are the quadrants:

   

   

II.  ==STAGES==

==STAGES==

The second key concept is stages.  A stage is essentially a paradigm.  It is a well established mode of being through which we interpret reality.  The time we spend in a given stage is typically measured in years.  Over time stages eventually collapse into a new stage.  This collapse is a slow process but may appear sudden when the final shift occurs, or it may not be consciously noticed at all.  Two (or more) stages will often overlap for a period of time before the new stage becomes fully established.   

The second key concept is stages.  A stage is essentially a paradigm.  It is a well established mode of being through which we interpret reality.  The time we spend in a given stage is typically measured in years.  Over time stages eventually collapse into a new stage.  This collapse is a slow process but may appear sudden when the final shift occurs, or it may not be consciously noticed at all.  Two (or more) stages will often overlap for a period of time before the new stage becomes fully established.   

III.  ==STATES==  

==STATES==  

State means “state of consciousness.”  There are ordinary everyday states of consciousness, and special states of consciousness that Wilber calls "transpersonal."  In spite of the mystical sound of the word, there is nothing magical about a transpersonal state.  It simply refers to a temporary suspension of your normal mode of experiencing everything exclusively through the lens of your individual self.  We all have such moments.  For example, a transpersonal state could arise while interacting with an animal, say your cat, and you have a transforming experience in which you realize that you and the cat are co-participants in an identical existence—a common quest for food, sex, companionship, shelter—and suddenly you are sharing consciousness and your normal sense of separate identity seems to dissolve as you are absorbed into the other for a brief moment.  In this case you have transcended the merely personal which is all that “transpersonal” means.   

State means “state of consciousness.”  There are ordinary everyday states of consciousness, and special states of consciousness that Wilber calls "transpersonal."  In spite of the mystical sound of the word, there is nothing magical about a transpersonal state.  It simply refers to a temporary suspension of your normal mode of experiencing everything exclusively through the lens of your individual self.  We all have such moments.  For example, a transpersonal state could arise while interacting with an animal, say your cat, and you have a transforming experience in which you realize that you and the cat are co-participants in an identical existence—a common quest for food, sex, companionship, shelter—and suddenly you are sharing consciousness and your normal sense of separate identity seems to dissolve as you are absorbed into the other for a brief moment.  In this case you have transcended the merely personal which is all that “transpersonal” means.