INTEGRAL MODEL COMPARISONS

Moving on to Integral, though Integral might value the developmental tasks of the Chela in the Light stage (like being of service, becoming more group conscious, undergoing advanced meditation practices, having a good motive, being critical in a heart-felt way), Integral does not have an actual stage that neatly fits with the Bailey one. And, though Integral agrees it helps to get in touch with a group on the physical plane who resonate to a similar level of consciousness as you do, they don’t discuss anything about an “ashram” existing on the inner planes, let alone the need to get in touch with one. Integral also does not emphasize the need to purify one’s body, emotions, mind and personality as requirements on the spiritual path. Rather, Integral treats these more as evolutionary processes that just emerge without seeing them as prerequisites. Finally, Intregral doesn’t suggest any “rules” that we ideally follow that will hopefully make our “birth process” of getting to the First Initiation (or enlightenment experience) easier to get through. Keeping this all in mind let’s look at Integral’s levels starting with Integral Teal.

INTEGRAL TEAL 

integral teal

As a reminder here are some quotes about what comprises Teal from Integral. “Higher principles rule relativism. Aware of system interrelatedness, interdependence. 4th person perspective expanded in historical time. Experience of enduring core self integrating multiple subpersonalities into coherent complex self identity and self story. Aware of current self as culmination of prior development.”

As we look at the Chela in the Light stage we do see the ability to mentally look at how various systems (especially of thought) are interrelated and interdependent. That is a big part of what the Chela in the Light is discovering. And, sure the Chela in the Light is in the process of integrating various parts of their self (or sub-personalities =  a word that was derived from Roberto Assagioli, a major student of Alice Bailey’s). So far so good in regards to the Chela in the Light stage and Integral’s Teal being in sync. The same can be said as we read more about Integral’s Teal below, showing that the Chela in the Light stage of Bailey pretty well covers this stage of Integral. Drawing from An Overview of Developmental Stages of Consciousness compiled by Barrett C. Brown, Integral Institute April 3, 2006 we discover:

Values: Bottom line: Qualities and responsibilities of being. Basic theme: Live fully and responsibly as what you are and learn to become. What’s important: The magnificence of existence (over material possessions); flexibility, spontaneity, and functionality; knowledge and competency (over rank, power, status); the integration of differences into interdependent, natural flows; complementing egalitarianism with natural degrees of ranking and excellence; recognition of overlapping dynamic systems and natural hierarchies in any context. Where seen: Peter Senge’s organizations; W. Edward Deming’s objectives; Stephen Hawking’s Brief History of Time; chaos and complexity theories; eco-industrial parks (using each other’s outflows as raw materials)

Self-Identity: Main focus: Linking theory and principles with practice; dynamic systems interactions Qualities: Comprehends multiple interconnected systems of relationships and processes; able to deal with conflicting needs and duties in constantly shifting contexts; recognizes the need for autonomy while parts of a system are interdependent; recognizes higher principles, social construction of reality, complexity and interrelationships; problem finding not just creative problem solving; aware of paradox and contradiction in system and self; sensitive to unique market niches, historical moment, larger social movements; creates “positive-sum” games; aware of own power (and perhaps tempted by it); seeks feedback from others and environment as vital for growth and making sense of world. How influences others: Leads in reframing, reinterpreting situation so that decisions support overall principle, strategy, integrity, and foresight

As with Integral Teal the Chela in the Light is learning to get a mental understanding of wholes, but we see in Bailey’s description of the Chela in the Light hwo the “fire of the mind” can squash the “fire of love” and how the fire of love needs to win out. That is why even if one is “comprehending multiple interconnected systems of relationships and processes” one has to be careful because is with the Chela in the Light it may be too much of a mental comprehension leading to a powerful intellect, while remaining disconnected from the eart. We also read how with Integral Teal one can become “aware of own power (and perhaps tempted by it).” The Chela in the Light has a similar difficulty. Integral states that Teal needs to seek “feedback from other and the environment as vital for growth and making sense of the world.” That is similar to what Bailey says about the Chela in the Light needing to stay humble and connected to those who may be more advanced than you to ensure that this kind of humility occurs.

We also see correlations in how Integral’s Teal is overcoming the tendency of the Integral Green stage to have a desire to love everyone, while lacking the skillful means to know how to love. Part of that desire to love everyone equally also causes Integral Green to throw out the notion of hierarchy. Integral’s Teal, as we have seen like Bailey’s Chela in the Light, is not as naive. Instead, Integral Teal is busy, “complementing egalitarianism with natural degrees of ranking and excellence; recognition of overlapping dynamic systems and natural hierarchies in any context.” You may also see some of the Teal difficulties Wilber talks about in his The Religion of Tomorrow book, where he claims that some Teal level people get so caught up in thinking holistically, they no longer leave room for the individual. Bailey’s Chela in the Light may have some of this, but we see the Chela making some steps to overcome this as they learn to recognize both the nondual (unmanifest) and dual realms.

INTEGRAL TURQUOISE

integral turquoise

Moving onto comparisons with the Integral Turquoise level, you start to see in the phrases that describe this level above how they match with the Chela in the Light stage. For example, the Chela in the Light  most certainly experiences the existence of wholeness through mind and spirit as Integral Turquoise does. And, the Chela is living from both the individual and trans-personal Self, or the “Soul and the personality” as Bailey calls it. This process will continue into the next phase of Accepted Discipleship, which takes place more rigorously especially in regards to the Technique of Fusion. The Chela in the Light also tends to have a cross-historical, global view, though I did not mention this specifically in this chapter. And, yes, the Chela in the Light sees the world as “alive and evolving” and is “holistic and kosmo-centric.” But, as anyone who is trained more deeply in the Bailey model knows, that view of the world as alive and evolving means the Chela in the Light has a mental conception of what is called the Planetary Logos, which is the name given to the “alive and evolving” world we live in.

Also drawing from Wilber’s book The Religion of Tomorrow, he learn how Wilber suggests that a pathology at the Integral Turquoise level is one of having a “mild insecurity” because it is “right next to the 3rd tier, or the first stages of a genuine amount of direct transpersonal awareness.” (Kindle version location, 6441). The Chela in the Light may experience this as well because in the Bailey model the Chela is about to go

through the First Initiation, or first direct experience of “transpersonal awareness,” or experience of the Soul.  As we will see though in the Bailey model the Chela in the Light goes beyond what Integral Turquoise is about since Turquoise is only at the threshold of this experience, whereas the Chela in the Light crosses over it. Wilber also says of Turquoise that it is starting to experience “some degree of death to its own individual self-sense” (The Religion of Tomorrow, Kindle version location, 6448). That is very much the same as the Integrated Personality starting to feel the death to it’s “individual self-sense” as it begins the process of becoming the Soul. Or, as Wilber puts it, “awakens to a higher identity (causal Higher Self, or turyia True Self, not to mention ultimate Suchness)” (The Religion of Tomorrow, Kindle version location, 6448). Again, at least for now that Higher Self or True Self is the Soul for now in the Bailey model.

INTEGRAL INDIGO

Indigo

Which brings us to Integral’s Indigo stage, which as we will see has a lot to do with the Chela in the Light’s experience of the First Initiation. Again I will describe that process more in the following chapter. Though Wilber’s Integral model goes up a few more levels (Violet, Ultraviolet, and Clear Light), they don’t have as very much to say about what they think these levels entail. To date the most extensive writings on these higher levels are within Wilber’s latest book The Religion of Tomorrow. As for the realization of Oneness, that is essentially what the First Initiation reveals, so a correlation exists there. Though, as Wilber himself is starting to explain, what the “Oneness” is that is revealed is something to think more deeply on, which is precisely what Alice Bailey talks about and I will explain a lot more in the chapter on the First Initiation to come. As a reminder, Bailey has nine such initiations. So we already see a major problem here between these two models since Bailey goes much farther than Integral goes from this point forward.

As for the charts on Indigo listed here, much of wording is so vague it could be said to relate to Bailey’s First through at least Fifth Initiations. That makes the statements described in these charts not very helpful to make comparisons. One thing Wilber’s book The Religion of Tomorrow speaks about is how at the Indigo level the idea of a unified system of Oneness, has to go from an idea to a “direct feeling of this unified system” (Kindle version location, 7091). Wilber also goes on to say at this level that “it is important to have a healthy, fully functioning, highly developed, conventional or finite self (the “I”) in place as a healthy vehicle through which the Witness or transpersonal Self (the “I-I”) look and communicates” (The Religion of Tomorrow, Kindle version location, 7098). Again that totally fits with the Bailey model up to this point, which stresses a great deal how “purification” of the personality is essentially, precisely for these same reasons Wilber speaks of. One final comment about Integral Indigo. In the Integral model Indigo is said to emerge after their 3rd Tier. I used to think that the Integral tiers matched the First, Second, and Third initiations of Alice Bailey. Now it is clear to me that they don’t. However, Integral’s 3rd Tier does match Bailey’s First Initiation. Of that I am fairly confident at this point.

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