Spiritual Evolution and Spiral Dynamics

A.S. Dalal’s interpretation of the teachings of Sri Aurobindo posits that the psychological and spiritual evolution of humankind is inevitable but cyclic. Sri Aurobindo himself said, “In the history of man everything seems to point to alterations of a serious character, ages of progression, ages of recoil, the whole constituting an evolution that is cyclic rather than in one straight line.  A theory of cycles of human civilization has been advanced, we may yet arrive at the theory of cycles of human evolution, the kalpas [Sanskrit word meaning an aeon, or a long period of time in Hindu] and manvantaras [seven planetary rounds is equal to one planetary manvantara or kalpa, also known as a day of Brahmâ, which roughly translates to equal 4,320,000,000 years] of the Hindu theory.  If its affirmation of cycles of world existence is farther off from affirmation, it is because they must be so vast in their periods as to escape not only all our means of observation, but all our means of deduction or definite experience.” (The Supramental Manifestation and Other Writings, p. 229)  

The theory of spiral dynamics aims to describe the same phenomenon as Aurobindo dictates. Dr. Don Beck is the most prominent figure promoting this theory, but its roots go back to another scientist by the name of Dr. Clare W. Graves, a Professor Emeritus of Psychology at Union College, New York.   It was his very original thinking which resulted in a new paradigm of psychological understanding.  In his words, “The psychology of the mature human being is an unfolding, emergent, oscillating, spiraling process marked by progressive subordination of older, lower-order behavior systems to newer, higher-order systems as man’s existential problems change.” Graves developed a comprehensive model for this spiraling process which was baptized spiral dynamics, which is best summarized in the psychologists own words, “At each stage of human existence the adult man is off on his quest of his holy grail, the way of life he seeks by which to live. At his first level he is on a quest for automatic physiological satisfaction. At the second level he seeks a safe mode of living, and this is followed in turn, by a search for heroic status, for power and glory, by a search for ultimate peace; a search for material pleasure, a search for affectionate relations, a search for respect of self, and a search for peace in an incomprehensible world. And, when he finds he will not find that peace, he will be off on his ninth level quest. As he sets off on each quest, he believes he will find the answer to his existence. Yet, much to his surprise and much to his dismay, he finds at every stage that the solution to existence is not the solution he has come to find. Every stage he reaches leaves him disconcerted and perplexed. It is simply that as he solves one set of human problems he finds a new set in their place. The quest he finds is never ending.”

Dr. Don Beck and Dr. Christopher C. Cowan took Graves’ original theories and expanded upon them. As in Graves work, the levels of human evolution, the never ending quest which Graves so eloquently describes, are called memes.  Each meme is given a color code in order to easily distinguish it from other levels of evolution.  The memes represent certain perspectives and behaviors of humankind.  We do not progress through these memes in a direct path, but in a spiral manner, sinking lower first in order to develop the momentum to thrust forward into higher levels of awareness. The process can be compared to the meditative states one passes through in contemplative and yogic paths.  We must first sort through all the garbage that lies dormant within us in order to progress to a higher level of awareness.  This process is repeated again and again until we reach enlightenment, or infinite awareness. It is important tot note that within each meme or model, individuals and cultures are not confined to any one specific color.  Each person and culture embodies several levels or layers of these memes throughout their evolutionary process.  There is usually a dominate model defined within each person or culture, and subsequent memes that rule their thinking and behavior. Ken Wilbur calls these stages Holons, stating that each new level obtained must integrate and contain the one beneath it, so that the red meme, for example, is integrated and made whole before the blue meme will emerge, but once the blue meme emerges (for an individual or a culture) it will incorporate red values and add on blue values. Wilbur often says that each meme will 'transcend but include' when speaking of the process of advancing to higher levels of development. The memes which Graves describe are as follows:

Beige: Represents the semi-stone age (starting about 100,000 years ago) and is not generally active today, dominated by nature and basic survival instincts, acting much as other animals. People who are living at this stage of development result in loose, clan-based survival groups. Famine might result in large numbers of people arrested in this mode. This level includes newborns and the senile elderly, the mentally ill, the homeless, people in starvation, and late-stage Alzheimer’s patients. Only one percent of the population is functioning at this level. The general theme of this meme is ‘do what you can stay alive’, and acts as the lone wolf.

Purple: Represents royalty and the first common dye.  This meme is dominated by magical and animistic thinking and begin about 50,000 years ago.  People who are operating from this meme predominantly believe they must obey the desires of the spirit being and mystical signs.  They show allegiance to their chiefs, elders, ancestors and clan (boss, and family).  All individual needs are subsumed by the needs of the group.  People of this meme often preserve sacred objects, places and events and often ascribe special attributes to them.  In order to survive in this meme, it is considered important to keep the spirits happy (to appease them) and ensure food, shelter, water, etc

Red: Represents hot emotional energy.  This meme began about 10,000 years ago. People operating primarily from this meme are impulsive and egocentric.  A man in a midlife-crisis driving a fiery red Ferrari is a perfect image to represent it.  A person from the red meme out-foxes others and tends toward aggressive behavior.  They command respect through aggressiveness.  They believe that the world is a jungle (or the city) and one must always watch out for threats and predators.  They believe they should enjoy life to the fullest with no consideration for others, without guilt or remorse.  The major theme of the red meme is be what you are and do what you want no matter what.

Blue: Represents the sky and heavens.  This meme is purposeful and authoritarian.  It began about 5000 years ago.  It believes in the law, regulations, discipline and the control of impulses through guilt.  The Catholic Church is a good representative of this meme.  The order enforces the code, no matter what.  The main theme of this meme is that life has meaning, direction and purpose with predetermined outcomes.  We must follow these absolute principles in order to sacrifice self for the transcendent cause. It externalizes a Godhead and is rather patriarchal in its views of the Truth. It believes that only hard work and moral discipline can build moral fiber.

Orange:  This is the meme of glass taking its form in a very hot fire. This is the meme of the autonomous self. This meme is only about 300 years old.  It involves strategy and achieving.  It is responsible for change and advancement.  It progresses the individual by learning nature’s secrets and using them.  It is optimistic, risk-taking and self-reliant.  It believes that societies prosper through strategy, technology, and competitiveness.  This meme believes that you should act in your own self-interest by playing the game to win. Modern Japan and China are very orange meme countries. People who operate from the orange meme believe that those who are optimistic and self-reliant deserve success.

Green: This is the meme primarily concerned with mother earth and ecology. It is the communitarian and egalitarian meme which started about 150 years ago.  It believes the human spirit only progresses once freed from greed, dogma, and divisiveness.  It believes that feelings, sensitivity and caring should supersede cold rationality.  It reaches consensus decisions and tries to bypass dogma.  It is concerned with bringing harmony to all situations, including science and spirituality.  Its main theme would be 'seek peace within in order to create peace everywhere.'

Yellow:  This is the meme of solar energy and life force. (It correlates to Beige as survival in complexity.) This is an integrative meme which began only 50 years ago.  It believes that life is flexible, spontaneous and fluid.  It accepts that differences can be integrated into the whole organically through natural hierarchies, systems and complex forms.  Spontaneity is very important to yellow meme people and organizations.  Its main concept is to live fully and responsibly as what you are and try to learn to become more. It understands that chaos is normal. The chaos theory posited by physics would fall into the yellow meme.

Turquoise: Views the planet from afar, and sees it as a global village (similarly to purple, but with differences).  This meme began in just the last 30 years.  It believes the world is one single, dynamic organism with its own collective mind.  The self is both a distinct entity and part of the larger whole.  Ken Wilber’s philosophy is greatly turquoise in its position.  It believes that everything is connected and is affected by all connections.  It is holistic and intuitive in its thinking.  It believes that energy and information permeate the entire earth – down to its soil. Its main theme is to experience the wholeness of existence through spirit, and not just the physical body.

Following these eight initial memes developed by Dr. Graves, Don Beck and others describe new memes which have been assigned new colors.  They point to further stages of human evolution that only those who have witnessed transcendent states have been able to describe.  Much like the yogis and sages who told us that we could not understand reality with our limited minds, a person operating from a ‘red’ meme cannot possibly conceive of the same world that someone operating from a ‘turquoise’ meme operates from. Dr. Graves believed that the first eight memes were sort of a first tier of evolution and that thereafter there was something coming which would be an entirely different “tier.” Dr. Graves expected his work to go on after his death and knew that it would evolve even further than his studies of data in the 60s and 70s.  He said, “What I am proposing is that the psychology of the mature human being is an unfolding, emergent, oscillating, spiraling process, marked by progressive subordination of older, lower-order behavior systems to newer, higher-order systems as man's existential problems change.” He also did not view one stage as being “better” than another, but necessary stages in the existence of humankind.  Would you say a baby is less “good” when it is learning to walk than a small child who already has? Dr. Graves explained, “I am not saying in this conception of adult behavior that one style of being, one form of human existence is inevitably and in all circumstances superior to or better than another form of human existence, another style of being. What I am saying is that when one form of being is more congruent with the realities of existence, then it is the better form of living for those realities. And what I am saying is that when one form of existence ceases to be functional for the realities of existence then some other form, either higher or lower in the hierarchy, is the better form of living. I do suggest, however, and this I deeply believe is so, that for the overall welfare of total man's existence in this world, over the long run of time, higher levels are better than lower levels and that the prime good of any society's governing figures should be to promote human movement up the levels of human existence.”

Similarly, people like Ken Wilber, Rudolph Steiner and Carl Jung see human evolution as a series of five moral standpoints. One is referred to as Me-centrism, then chauvinism, then anthropocentrism followed by biocentrism followed by pancentrism, the last of which sees everything that is as Divinity. This is the same stage of spiritual enlightenment that yogis and sages have taught us of in thousands of years of history. There seems to be a seismic shift about to occur as we collectively transcend one stage of awareness and embark on another. As far back as the Paleolithic age, the goddess worshipping cultures told us of our impending meeting with an understanding beyond our rational intelligence. Graves knew also, that our evolution would swing back around to an opening of consciousness.

In the yoga of Vashishta, an elaborate book of yoga sutras consisting of 32000 verses and 64,000 lines, the spiritual evolution of Sri Rama is described. Six chapters outline Sri Rama’s spiritual awakening. In the very first chapter called Vairagya Prakarana, Sri Rama experiences a very deep and intense dispassion and distaste for all worldly objects and pleasures. Dr. Graves called this the “search for peace in an incomprehensible world.”  Sri Rama had worked through the stages of material wealth and found them empty, just as graves predicts many of us will on our evolutionary spiral forward. The second chapter of Vashishta, called Mumukshu Prakarana, speaks of Sri Rama’s intense desire for Self-realization.  This is the same longing Graves describes.  In a paper by Graves published in the Futurist, he describes humankind throughout history, stating that “most people have been confined to the lower levels of existence where they were motivated by needs shared with other animals.

Now, Western man appears ready to move up to a higher level of existence, a distinctly human level. When this happens there will likely be a dramatic transformation of human institutions.” Graves told many of his peers, including Don Beck that he believed we were growing past our human level to yet another level which he did not yet have the data to support from a scientific perspective.  He hoped that Beck and others would carry his work forward so that this new level of evolution could be written about.  Graves would probably be quit pleased to know that this spiritual evolution is indeed occurring, as more and more people find ways, through yoga, meditation, and contemplative studies, to see that they are part of an integrative whole, a part of the entire organism of the earth, living, breathing and evolving into a holistic union with the Divine.  Instead of a complete moral breakdown, Graves, and later other social scientists, spiritual masters and psychologists, point to a higher level of awareness.  Graves told us, “My research indicates that man is learning that values and ways of living which were good for him at one period in his development are no longer good because of the changed condition of his existence.”  We are indeed learning to develop values which are effective for this time of great change.  Our continued existence depends upon this.  The theory of spiral dynamics is just one more way to confirm the prophecies and teachings of millennia-old shamans and yogis:  we are evolving into the spiritual beings we have always been.

Christina L. Sarich (first published on macroyoga.com) (C) 2008 all rights reserved.

YOGA HALE

Yoga: Sanskrit Word Meaning, to Yoke Oneself to God    Hale: Hawaiian Word for House