Haidt, Sowell, Mooney, and Sri Aurobindo

The best book ever written on the underlying dynamics of cultural development, March 4, 2015 By Don Salmon "Don Salmon" - This review is from: The Human Cycle, Ideal of Human Unity, War and Self Determination

If you’ve explored spiral dynamics and are looking for something deeper, read this trilogy (as the other reviewer, Prem Sobel noted, this is actually a collection of 3 books that were written in a serialized format between 1914 and 1921 – still highly relevant today). If you’ve looked at the theories of Haidt, Sowell, Mooney and others, and still feel there’s something missing in your understanding of why people end up at different ends of the political spectrum, read this trilogy. Not just in understanding politics and government, but in the nature of human consciousness, Sri Aurobindo is, in my opinion, without peer.

Just last month, the extraordinary book, “Beyond Physicalism” was published. Aurobindo’s vision is implicit in much of that book. But for his work to reach a wider audience, I think it will be helpful for more people to study this trilogy and make an effort to apply his insights to the issues of today.

The entire book is available for free in PDF format at the Sri Aurobindo Ashram website, but it is much better to read it in book form – ebook or physical book. If you want to sample it before buying, look at the PDF version of the last chapter in “The Ideal of Human Unity”, “The Religion of Man”, particularly the end of that chapter. Look also at “The Coming of the Subjective Age” for some truly inspired writing. If you are familiar with spiral dynamics (or Ken Wilber’s writings, for that matter), you’ll be amazed to see how much light Aurobindo’s writing sheds on the understanding of psychological development. Permalink