What is Missing in Integral Theory?
In spite of the mythic stage, exoteric understanding of God, there was an esoteric understanding of God that can be seen as NEITHER post post modern NOR PRE MODERN. It derives from a combination of spiritual reason (a higher reason-intellect a la Buddhi) and of careful, logical rationality and -influenced by ancient Greek philosophers- was being developed in Medieval times by -for instance- also considering inputs from Platonism and Aristotelianism. This happened among unique mystical theological thinkers in Judaism, Christianism and Islam around that period, now simplistically understood by many "integralists" as "MYTHIC".
I think that Integral Theory (following Ken Wilber's orienting preferences) is doing a serious disservice to the possibility of a more advanced form of integration by minimizing or ignoring the high level of mystical-speculative knowledge about God that was being developed -for instance- in the Middle Ages, even alongside the 'Bearded Man in the Sky', exoteric and 'mythic' kinds of representation. This grave error needs to be corrected because, [b]in relation to this "principial" and genuine metaphysical knowledge, there's been a [b]deterioration, not an evolution[/b]. [/b] Both Hume and Kant -while dilucidating some important philosphical aspects- spoke with the sentiment of moderns, already out of touch with the "principial" metaphysical philosophical awareness.
In relation to a Buddhist preference associated to post modern and (supposedly) post post modern sentiments, the preference lies on the conundrum of understanding the dharma as revealing that there's NO ESSENCE. Nevertheless, there still survives a (once considered heretical and once politically persecuted and suppresed, centuries old "Buddhist alternative school," the JONANGPA or Maha Madhyamaka of the Zhentong doctrine (other than being extreme experts on the Kalachacra, now also sought after by the Dalai Lama) which affirms that all phenomena are empty of essence EXCEPT Essence itself. The so called 'Dharma Kaya' and Taathagathagarbha are Absolute Essence, as in the esoteric, mystical, semitic theologies and as in Vedanta. In other words, this particular Buddhist view is more compatible with the also ultimately non dual mystical 'theologies' of Vedanta, Catholicism, Judaism and Islam . See: Jonangpa Buddhism. http://www.jonangfoundation.org/
Integral Theorists capable of thinking beyond their normal postmodern academic context and ethos, would find more ways to 'integrate' all of these Non Dual and essentialist wisdoms only after being able to overcome their contemporary Postmodern sentiments along with their irrational preferences. The key is to return to this essential and "principial" wisdom that is the shared doctrinal esoteric 'sophia perennis' whose emergence has been insisted upon in different cultural time periods, a 'sophia perennis' which transcends the (more obvious) pre-modern, modern and post modern stages of [u]exoteric [/u]cultural development.
Giorgio
