Ken Wilber

Ken Wilber is the "Einstein of consciousness studies," the doyen of "New Age" intellectuals, if such a category actually exists. He is a legend in his own mind and a particularly complex legend at that. He has written extensively and convolootingly tootingly about his maps of human consciousness and religious and spiritual systems. Like many such theorists he places his own beliefs at the apex of the spectrum and everything he proclaims is proclaimed with a marked lack of humility. He has caused some controversy by exalting certain problematic, if not downright psychopathic gurus and Masters, especially Chögyam Trungpa, Adi Da and Andrew Cohen for their "realizations" and their "crazy wisdom" though the chances of him accepting a subordinate role to any of these abusers is slim. He is beloved by those teachers in "New Age" circles who can't get no respect apart from their own followers and desperately want it. It is possible that some of the respect he has gained in these circles comes because he is 6'6" tall, bald and forceful.

Early in his career he promoted Aurobindo as as "India's greatest modern sage." and throughout his career has shown a penchant for proclaiming people he approves of as the "the greatest this" or the "greatest modern that." Later in his career he began to spruik his own realization rather than just defining others'. His crowning achievement is the Integral Insitute where others write papers demonstrating the highest form of flattery, imitation. That the Integral Institute seems to be developing into a cult of personality seems to have eluded his diamond sharp intellect but in a cult you kiss the Master's feet and give him your money and in a cult of personality you kiss the Master's arse/ass and buy his books.

Centuries ago William of Ockham had already shown the error of Wilber's ways: "Entities should not be multiplied unnecessarily."

References:

• http://www.kenwilber.com/ His personal website

• www.integralworld.net/ A critical web site
• Cult Education Forum Another critical web site
• The cult of Ken Wilber Another critical web site
• Stripping the Gurus often mentions Wilber

Bibliography:

• Wilber, Ken (1996), A Brief History of Everything (Boston, MA: Shambhala).
• Wilber, Ken (1995), Sex, Ecology, and Spirituality (Boston, MA: Shambhala).
• Wilber, Ken (1991), Grace and Grit: Spirituality & Healing in the Life & Death of Treya Killam Wilber (Boulder, CO: Shambhala).
• Wilber, Ken (1983b), A Sociable God: Toward a New Understanding of Religion (Boulder, CO: Shambhala).
• Wilber, Ken (1983a), Up from Eden (Boulder, CO: Shambhala).
• Wilber, Ken (1983), Eye to Eye (Boulder, CO: Shambhala).
• Wilber, Ken (1982), The Holographic Paradigm and Other Paradoxes (Boulder, CO: Shambhala).
• Wilber, Ken (1977), The Spectrum of Consciousness (Wheaton, IL: The Theosophical Publishing House).

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