The Essential Ken Wilber: An Introductory Reader

by Ken Wilber

An introduction to the work of an esteemed American philosopher, whose integral approach to human consciousness blends Western psychology with Eastern spirituality

Ever since the publication of his first book, The Spectrum of Consciousness , written when he was twenty-three, Ken Wilber has been identified as the most comprehensive philosophical thinker of our times. This introductory sampler, designed to acquaint newcomers with his work, contains brief passages from his most popular books.

Ranging over a variety of topics, concepts include levels of consciousness, mystical experience, meditation practice, death, the perennial philosophy, and Wilber’s integral approach to reality, integrating matter, body, mind, soul, and spirit. Here is Wilber’s writing at its most reader-friendly, discussing essential ideas of the world’s great psychological, philosophical, and spiritual traditions in language that is lucid, engaging, and inspirational.

Genres: Philosophy, Psychology, Spirituality, Religion, Nonfiction, Science, Mysticism

208 pages, Paperback

First published September 14, 1998

About the author

Kenneth Earl Wilber II is an American philosopher and writer on transpersonal psychology and his own integral theory, a systematic philosophy which suggests the synthesis of all human knowledge and experience.

Reviews

[Jake · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ken Wilber is an incredible intellectual and author. He is a great source for those of us who enjoy exploring the crossroads between philosophy, science, and spirituality.

I don't think this book is really the essential Wilber. It is a summary of WIlber's early work on transpersonal psychology/spirituality. But it does not capture the depth of his later work.

[Giorgi Bazerashvili · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great compilation of brief passages from Ken's most popular writings. After reading it, you get a pretty good sense of the things that he is trying to convey in dozens of other books that he has written so far.

Having read a couple of Ken's books before, I'm still amazed by the ideas presented in these passages, and I'm very glad that I stumbled upon Ken during my research. I think he is truly the most comprehensive philosophical thinker of our times because he is one of the few who integrated western and eastern thinking in a very beautiful manner. His Integral Framework can change the world for the better if implemented correctly.

This book is also great for a high-level overview of the books Ken has written. At the end of it, there is a list of all of them with brief descriptions and it's very useful if you plan to read most of Ken's work.

So, if you are interested in topics like levels of consciousness, mystical experience, integral spirituality, meditation practice, death, the perennial philosophy, integrating matter, body, soul, and spirit, and so many more, delve deeper into his work.

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've been reading more of Ken Wilber's books because I am intrigued by what he's trying to do - integrate all of the world's major beliefs/theories/worldviews into one integral theory. But this is a collection of pieces from his other books, so it was duplicative of work I just read. No need to read this if you're reading his other books.

[A.P. Sweet · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a first time reader this is a perfect book to start. His views are not only intelligent but they are non-abrasive. He gives his views of the world in a manner that you feel they are correct. I would love to sit down and have a conversation with him. I'm sure I could be transformed in some way.

[Grant Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

What strikes me about Wilber -- and, I think, what irks so many of his critics -- is how he uses his writing not only to analyze or persuade but to transmit an experience of radical insight. Reading the excerpts in this book, you get the sense that he's speaking "above" the field of rational discourse, from a space of deeper knowing where the instruments of reason -- maybe language itself -- no longer function. You see this whenever he departs from his line of thought and sets off on a free-wheeling, rhapsodic meditation on the One Taste or the Spirit or the omnipresent Witness. He's proding you. Jostling you. He's spinning you around and forcing you to look back upon yourself, upon your own immediate experience, so that you might see the luminous emptiness there:

As Plotinus knew: Let the world be quiet. Let the heavens and the earth and the sea be still. Let the world be waiting. Let the self-contraction relax into the empty ground of its own awareness, and let it there quietly die. See how the Spirit pours through each and every opening in the turmoil, and bestows new splendor on the setting Sun and its glorious Earth and all its radiant inhabitants. See the Kosmos dance in Emptiness; see the play of light in all creatures greand and small; see finite worlds sing and rejoice in the play of the very Divine, floating on a Glory that renders each transparent, flooded by a joy that refuses time and terror, that undoes the madness of the loveless self and buries it in splendor.

[RT A]

This was an introduction to the writings of Ken Wilber. Ken Wilber often writes on the topic of transpersonal psychology (a field of psychology that integrates spiritual experiences with modern psychology). Through this introductory reader, I gained a deeper understanding on the topics of nondualism, Wilber’s integral framework of psychology, and “The Great Nest of Being” - a model of evolutionary development that closely resembles Beck and Cowan’s “Spiral Dynamics” model.

[Mckinley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overview of his work.

[Johnny O'toole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Popped the top off the black box of unifying theories for me.

[Paul Brooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful primer to the ideas of Integral Theory

[Stephschiff · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great place to start learning about Integral Life Practice and Integral Philosophy. Ken Wilber offers a framework for understanding the world, cultures, religions, politics, parenting, psychology, social work, and nearly anything else you can think of. I am not religious so please don't let the mention of it in this review turn you off - KW is a must read author whether you are a dedicated student of religion or an all out atheist.

This is especially helpful in psychology and social work - it can help you understand yourself and/or help others to get a better understanding of themselves, where they are, where they are going, and how to get there. There are plenty of teachers, social workers, psychiatrists, psychologists, sociologists, anthropologists, Buddhists, Christians, Jews, atheists, agnostics, Gnostics, professors, life coaches, philosophers, people looking to understand themselves and others. Anyone with an innate curiosity and wonder in the world around them will benefit from Kens work.

[Jean · Rating 4 out of 5]

THIS IS AN INTRODUCTORY TO KEN WILBER'S WORKS WHICH COVER A VARIETY OF TOPICS.IT IS AN INTERESTING READ FOR THOSE WHO ARE ENGAGED IN UNDERSTANDING EASTERN SPIRITUAL CONCEPTS, MEDITATION AND WHO ARE SEARCHING FOR DEEPER INSIGHT INTO THE TRANSPERSONAL.

[Greta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ken Wilber is a really smart guy. He definitely has a grasp of "the big picture". I like what he says and how he thinks. But if I said I understood everything he talked about in these mere snippets of his more in-depth work, I'd be lying.

[Sam Vanneman · Rating 1 out of 5]

atrocious writing!

[Carrie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Parts of this book are profound, but it's certainly not written for any layman to just come along and understand what the "hey" he's trying to say. Admitedly disappointed...

[Tone · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not sure if assembling snippets of his larger works helps communicate his ideas better.

[Mystical Dog · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh hey!

[Tonette · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's essential Ken Wilber. If you respect his path, this book is very thorough. I do think he is brilliant.

[David Weber · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best introductions to Ken Wilber

[Gary Klein]

This is a good overview of Ken Wilber's philosophy. I enjoyed it and now have a better understanding of integral thought.

[Michael Chan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book.

[Brendan · Rating 2 out of 5]

What is it with guys like this ?