In the face of so many interconnected challenges today, sometimes described as a ‘meta crisis’, what relevance does integral wisdom have today? Here are four reasons why it matters, and how these relate to courses available on this platform.
Perspective
Integral Wisdom provides a far bigger picture of the nature of reality – helping us transcend the limitations of many divided and limited world views. It embraces what ancients called ‘the Above’ and ‘the Below’, or the realms of consciousness and matter, and how these relate. The ancient Hermetic axiom says: “As Above, so Below. As Below, so Above, to achieve the miracle of the One Thing.” Anne Baring brings an integral perspective to her course called The Dream of the Cosmos: A Quest for the Soul, which emphasises the urgency of consciously reuniting the Above and the Below, in discovering new solutions to current challenges.
Purpose
Integral Wisdom helps provide a purpose and meaning for why we are here – critical in these times of existential anxiety. An integral perspective helps make sense of who we are, where we have come from, and our ultimate purpose. It gives meaning and significance to the soul’s journey, the trials and struggles along the way, as well as moments of awakening and realisation on the path. Murray Morison explores the soul’s adventures through his courses on Myth, Mind and Magic, and Understanding the Myth of Theseus, through the lens of integral mythology and symbology.
Pathways
Integral Wisdom has many paths of liberation, such as universal religion and spirituality, ideal philosophy, integral science, integral art, as well as paths of mystical union. Anne Baring’s course The One Work: The Journey to the Self, is an example of a universal religious or spiritual approach. In it, she explores the underlying universality of world religions, which she expresses as the re-union of the conscious human self with the divine ground of being. A course on Walking the Path of Living Beauty by Elizabeth Medler outlines a pathway via the Ideal of Beauty.
Practices
Techniques for expanding and elevating the consciousness have been investigated and described for millennia. They are known within every tradition and include practices like prayer, meditation, contemplation, worship, and ritual. The course Mindfulness & Compassion in a Turbulent World, led by Jean-Paul and Sally Jeanrenaud, provides embodied mindfulness and compassion practices to help us reconnect to our deeper selves, to others and nature, in the context of today’s challenging world.
