Inner Transformation for 21 st Century Futures:
The Missing Dimension in Higher Education
CHRISTOPH WOIWODE
BATH SPA UNIVERSITY & INDO-GERMAN CENTRE FOR SUSTAINABILITY
INTREPID KNOWLEDGE, FINAL CONFERENCE, 27TH TO 29TH MARCH 2019, LISBOA PORTUGAL
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“At present mankind is undergoing an evolutionary crisis in which is concealed a choice of its destiny; for a stage has been reached in which the human mind has achieved in certain directions an enormous development while in others it stands arrested and bewildered and can no longer find its way”
(Sri Aurobindo in Live Divine, 2005: 1090).
“The problem is not how to demonstrate … that Gaia is in desperate trouble. […] The real problem is how to get people to internally transform from egocentric to sociocentric to
worldcentric consciousness, which is the only stance that can grasp the global dimensions of the problem in the first place, and thus the only stance that can freely, even eagerly, embrace global solutions” (Ken Wilber in Sex, Ecology, Spirituality, 2000: 541; italics original emphasis).
INTEGRAL YOGA
INTEGRAL THEORY
Fundamental crises lead to existential questions of our existence
• E.g. Fritjof Capra, Thomas Homer-Dixon, Otto Scharmer, Ken
Wilber, Vedantic Scholars and Practitioners of Spiritual Traditions alike find similar answers:
“[Answers] can be given from a purely materialistic-deterministic
point of view, or …from a more holistic perspective that also includes the more subtle mental and intentional spiritual sources of social
reality creation.
…when looking at the global challenges of our time, we can recognize the call of our time to come up with a new synthesis among science, social change, and the evolution of self (or consciousness).” (Theory U, Scharmer 2009: 14, 15)
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Making the case for Interiority: a crisis in consciousness
Alienation (Roy Bhaskar)
spiritual-cultural divide (Scharmer)
A notion of a developmental or evolutionary perspective of human consciousness the key to inner transformation of the individual (self) and the collective (Self)! (like Aurobindo’s)
We must seek to step out of our (Western) mindset ‘comfort zone’ to overcome inherent limitations to develop a planetary consciousness
“We are in the midst of an unprecedented evolutionary crisis in which the fate of our species hangs in the balance. We are failing to adapt to our world. […] it is a crisis in consciousness, which is the real force behind all evolution. The consciousness that we have developed as a civilization is insufficient to meet the needs of our species or to fulfill our planetary role.”
(Vedantic/Yoga scholar Frawley 2006: 182)
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A co-evolutionary perspective on interior-exterior
Four Quadrant Model of Integral Theory
Development of the self and the Self
Reynolds (2006: 204)
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Tackling theory:
an example of integrating interiority with urban development/planningConceptual/theoretical area Sample authors
1. Integrative approaches/frameworks: Very diverse: among others
a) integral theory Ken Wilber
b) Critical Realism & philosophy of metaReality Roy Bhaskar c) Theory of relational and contextual reasoning
d) transdisciplinarity Helmut Reich
e.g. Basarab Nicolescu 2. Spirituality:
a) Sociology, anthropology and religious studies b) Global relevance and rise of spirituality
Very diverse: among others Tacey, Heelas &
Woodhead, Giri 3. Theory of communicative action &
postsecularism Jürgen Habermas
4. Deep and Integral
Ecology/sustainability/climate change Arne Naess, Jochen Kirchhoff, Esbjörn-Hargens &
Zimmerman, O´Brian, Hochachka 5. Indian philosophical traditions of integralism:
a) Vedanta philosophy (advaita=non-duality) various writings ancient and contemporary (e.g. Sri Aurobindo and other more recent sages)
b) Earth democracy/ecology Vandana Shiva
6. Management studies
Theory U Otto Scharmer
7. Urban planning practice and theories in relation
to integrative frameworks: Contemporary postmodernist approaches
(collaborative planning, complexity, fuzzy logic) and explicit integrative approaches (Marilyn Hamilton, Ian Wight), postsecular city (Baker &
Beaumont)
(Woiwode 2016)
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The emerging Field of Interiority
Integrating INTERIORITY/
SPIRITUALITY
POSTSECULARISM POSTMATERIALISM
(W)HOLISM
INTEGRATIVE NEO- THEORIES
PERENNIAL PHILOSOPHIES
(e.g. monism, Integral Yoga, Zen Buddhism)
Meta- theorising
TRANS- DISCIPLINA
RITY
Human global/planetary sustainable development
mapping the wider fields that
emerged in the past few
decades with an emphasis on (re-)integrating interiority with science, culture and nature
(Woiwode 2016)
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A Paradigm Shift - How can we get out of the cave to overcome maya (illusion/ignorance)?
The Great Transformation
(WBGU 2011) The Great Transition
(greattransition.org, Raskin 2002&2016)
The Great Turning
(Macy & Johnstone 2012) The Great Mindshift
(Goepel 2016) Transmodernity (Ghisi 2008)
Cultural-spiritual paradigm shift (Scharmer 2007)
(Image by Theresa Knott, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=52263458)
The long path of renewal (Papa Francescu 2015)
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A Global Transformation of Values?
Transformed humankind?
Evolving new worldview is changing our cosmology (Western/Westernized perspective)
“integral“, “transmodern“, “post-industrial“
Holarchic, holistic and systemic
Conscious effort to re-integrate with nature and kosmos (cosmos)
Significant departure from (post-)modern condition
(Post)Modern Condition
The modern and alienated Human
Estranged from nature
& cosmos
Logical, rational,
intellectual, reductionist
Transmodern Condition
The integral, planetary Human
Consciously evolving &
recreating our connections with Nature & kosmos
Post-rational, trans-rational,
transformed consciousness (Gidley 2006)
(Gidley 2007, Goerner 1999, Wilber 2000)
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Glancing into the future:
More spiritual but less religious?
Report to the Club of Rome in 2013
, forecasting developments to the year 2052 Sarah Severn:
The youth is becoming more
spiritual: recent discoveries in the fields of quantum physics, human consciousness, and noetic science will be mainstream;
“We live in turbulent times and the search for meaning in life is
becoming a powerful driver”
Dag Andersen: “The next cultural step”
Real core of the old paradigm that will be dying in 2052 is idea that physical material is the only real reality
New religiosity, self-development, healing increasing in importance
Next step is transformational change – people “… perceive self-
development as important in order to have a good life…the
development of consciousness has become a goal in itself.”
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The ‘new spirituality‘
in the ‘West’ a (re-)emergence of spirituality characterized by a change in its meaning
many people spiritual but not religious, rejecting the dogmatic framework of established religions (Bucher 2007)
‘popular spirituality’ (Knoblauch, 2009)
‘alternative spirituality’ (Mohrmann, 2010)
‘secular spirituality’ (Benedikter and Molz 2012)
the core of spirituality is the personal experience of transcendence,
practices of personal growth and transformation through the development of mind and consciousness, the essence of “to know thyself”
“The relationships in art are not necessarily ones of outward form, but are founded on inner sympathy of meaning”
(Wassily Kandinsky, 1914, The Art of Spiritual Harmony)
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(“aatmaanam viddhi”, Sanskrit)
“know thyself”
(English)
“nosce te ipsum” (Latin)
“erkenne Dich selbst” (German)
γνῶθι σεαυτόν (“gnothi seauton”,
Greek)
‘Practical Spirituality’ and Transformation
“Practical spirituality also emphasizes on transformative practice which leads to self-transformation, cultural transformation and world transformation”
(A. K. Giri, Practical Spirituality and Human Development, forthcoming, p. 3)
spirituality rooted ‘in-this-world’
conscious action in the quotidian world situated in the ‘here-and-now’
revitalisation of spirituality in many Western societies embraces ‘engaged spirituality’ (Tacey, 2003) or
even ‘green yoga’ with an ‘eco-yogic’ practice (Fürch, 2009; Brenda and Georg Feuerstein, 2007)
Pioneers
Intentional communities (e.g.
eco-villages)
Transition Movement Yoga movement,
Slow Food movement, Faith communities, etc.
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Revamping Learning & Research
Level Individual Organisation HE/Research
Institutions First-Order-
Learning/Change
Achievement/
competition Learning by
adaptation
Efficiency/operative controlling
Mode 1-Science
‘Efficiency gap’/
linear logic of excellence
Second-Order- Learning/Change
New lifestyle
designs, reflexivity of individual values and orientations
Change of goals/strategic
controlling, reflexivity of cooperative/
organisational action strategies
Mode 2-Science/
Science for sustainability
Transformative Learning/Change
Wisdom/
presencing, awareness about
own relational embeddedness
New models of
meaning/organizational change in reflexivity of
social transformation
Transformative/
Mode 3-Science
(source: adapted from Schneidewind and Singer-Brodowski 2013: 80; translation from German by C. Woiwode)
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Integral paradigm: postformal- integral-planetary pedagogies
(Gidley2009, 'Educating for evolving consciousness: voicing the emergency for love, life and wisdom' in de Souza et al. (ed.)
Education for compassion, love, care, embracing each others’
perspectives/empathy, mercy
Wisdom, creativity
“we are drowning in information while starving for wisdom”
(Worldwatch Institute, 2018 State of the World Report ‘EarthEd’: Rethinking
Education on a changing planet) (Gidley 2009: 558)
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Example: 16
Swadharma – Auroville
Swadharma = ‘the work governed by one’s own nature
Learning objective is intended to be two-fold:
Inner development
Outer manifestation Learning process is:
Self-referential - finding the inner guide
Self-directed - choices based on inner guidance
Experiential - learning by doing
Immersive - residential, full-time
Integral - touching all parts, wholesome
Pedagogy simultaneously enables the learner to be:
In harmony with one’s inner nature
In harmony with one’s outer work
In harmony with the larger whole of which the individual is a part
Source: www.swadharma.auroville.org/swadharma
Module: Sustainability and Inner Transformation International Master Programme in Environmental Studies and Sustainability Science
aim of the course
to critically assess the potential role of inner transformation for sustainability
specific objectives of this course are threefold:
1. to develop a critical understanding of the potential interlinkages between inner
transformation and sustainability
2. inner transformation theories and practices are assessed in relation to a specific sustainability field
3. to engage and critically reflect on the nature of inner transformation and its salience to
sustainability science and learning
Wamsler 2018; www.lumes.lu.se/about/programme-outline/3rd- semester/sustainability-and-inner-transformation
Example: Lund 17
University Centre for
Sustainability Studies
Competencies for an integral vision for urban development practice and practitioners
(source: http://english.iihs.co.in)
Example: A new ‘urban practitioner’?
Proposal by Indian Institute for Human Settlements (Bangalore)
builds on a century-long tradition of integral education pioneered by Tagore, Aurobindo, Krishnamurthy, Ambedkar, Azad and Gandhi
The Core ‘module’ a series of engagements with:
• The s/Self
• Society and Environment
• Professional practice
Agency is the essence of urban practitioners who also see themselves as collective actors in co-
evolving socio-cultural, political and institutional landscapes
(Woiwode 2012, Urban Development and Spirituality, in TRIALOG)
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Conclusions
Swanson (2009) urges humanity to “re-learn Being”: education for sustainable development would require a global ethical reorientation with learning focusing on ethics, creativity and critical thinking in transdisciplinary projects
Finding one’s calling or vocation to unlock creativity and ‘know thyself’ (who am I? why am I here?)
Immersion: learning in projects, real-world/living labs
Learning must consider both knowledge AND wisdom
The inner dimension underscores and helps develop ethical frameworks and constrains
Transformational learning requires transformational practices at personal and collective levels
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Thank you
“It is evident […] that the fate and well-being of modern civilization will be shaped significantly by
the balance (or lack thereof) between the two opposing developments of technological progress
and spiritual wisdom”
(Capra and Luisi 2014: 276)
