The Spiral of Life and Wisdom
“The way of life winds upward for the wise…” (Proverbs 15:24)
By Tim King
[Editorial Preface: It is assumed that the reader has read and is familiar with the article “Components of Change: Life Conditions, Priority Codes, Beliefs and Behavior.”]
Introduction
The path of spirituality is marked with powerfully emergent concepts such as growth, maturity, transformation, renewal, and for Christians the overarching ideal of “putting on the mind of Christ.” In a healthy and vibrant life, the process of advancing in an upward trajectory of greater insight and wisdom should be a given. We learn. We grow. We change – especially in our walk of faith, depth of spiritual insight, and understanding.
Intuitively we know that the way of stagnation and inertia leaves us far short of what the apostle Paul frames as the upward call of Christ Jesus. The idea of such a call is nothing short of freedom – this is what the Kingdom of God is most about. At the conclusion of what is surely the apostle Paul’s most sophisticated allegory – the Ishmael and Isaac/flesh and spirit/bondage and freedom teaching in Galatians – he writes, “…we are children, not of the slave but of the free woman. For freedom Christ has set us free… don’t submit again to a burden of slavery” (Galatians 4:21-5:1).
So are we free? Have we made the journey out of egoic bondage and into the rewards of a life well-lived? Or have we become stagnant along the way?
Imagine someone claiming to be a spiritual person and yet never advancing beyond their first years of growth and learning—to have twenty years’ worth of first-year experience, wisdom and knowledge. It would be like an 18-year-old who had just completed twelve years of kindergarten. We probably would not want to promote such a person as a role model for developing a more robust spirituality!
This is why the wisdom teacher writes, “The way of life winds upward for the wise….” This is what an emergent spirituality does: it spirals upward, out of the soil of pain and toil, and takes us higher. And as we spiral upward we discover ourselves simultaneously expanding outward as we retain all the good that has come before while adding to it.
Such a process is indicative of the life of Christ. As the author of the gospel of Luke tells us, Jesus “… grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and men” (Luke 2:52).
We might imagine our own lives as a spiral increasing in size and circumference as it winds upward – small at the bottom and larger as it rises. This is not about elitism or viewing others as less worthy or valuable than us; we, like God, seek to be impartial in our judgments and indiscriminate in our love for others. No, what we’re talking about is a life full of humility and meekness, of love, joy and peace. Jesus grew in wisdom but he certainly was no elitist. With him as our example, we are called to embrace a similar way of life as we represent (or re-present) the divine to the world.
The upward growth of our lives is merely a testimony to how we have changed in the way we think and process the world. It is a testimony to an ever-expanding consciousness that allows us to see a bigger God, in an increasingly better story.
The Process of Change
Prior to dealing with the eight levels of our working model termed Spiral Dynamics, it will be helpful to make a few preparatory remarks. For instance, it is important to reflect on the process of change, e.g., what brings it about? What compels us to change, to grow, to reorder our worlds?
While certainly not exhaustive, I would offer six factors for consideration involved in transforming from one level of existence to another.
1. Brain Potential: As we would readily admit the complexity of a two-year-old and the world they perceive is not the same as a middle school child or an adult. This is why it is not such a good idea to allow an elementary student to do your taxes! Different brain—different level of complexity.
2. Existential Problem(s): As we mature, so do the difficulties of the world we are forced to navigate. While telling the teacher your dog ate your homework might have sufficed in third grade, your current boss may not be as likely to accept such an explanation for your having missed a critical deadline on a project at work.
3. Dissonance: By nature we seem to be creatures of habit. If it works, we keep doing it. But when life throws us a curve, knocking us off our foundations and kicking us out of our ruts, instinctively we know we must make changes. Life, or at least a certain aspect of life, has become unworkable. The general principle is that the greater the dissonance, the greater likelihood change will occur.
4. Environmental Barriers: Once sufficient dissonance takes hold, the next step in bringing about change is identifying or defining the nature of the barrier with which we’ve been confronted. We need to be able to assess at which point the barrier must be eliminated, bypassed, neutralized or reframed into something else.
5. Insight: Once we perceive that life is no longer working and we’ve identified the barrier confronting us, we begin exploring possibilities and solutions to help return us to some semblance of normalcy. When such insight occurs, change to a new order or way of being follows. How often have we experienced this in our wrestling with scripture? We discover a problem and work until we find a way of solving it, dismissing it or embracing a new way of seeing. What brings about such transformation? In brief: insight—a new way of seeing.
6. Consolidation: Once the previous five conditions for change have occurred, we move into a stage of consolidation and support. This is the stage when we begin, albeit often clumsily, to implement the needed change. It is the time of investing ourselves in a new way of being.
The Eight Levels of an Emergent Spiral
As we discuss each level of the spiral, beginning at the bottom and working upward, we will associate both a name and a color to each level. Don’t get hung up on the color system just yet – the usefulness of the colors will be seen throughout subsequent articles.
Likewise, each level denotes the way people see the world. Their view of self and society, of religion and politics, of ethics and morals and of family life are all consistent with their own specific level of being. Predictably, communication between levels can sometimes be tricky; even though we might be using the same language, the interpretation of such language differs greatly.
Furthermore, each level carries its own unique set of dignities and disasters. The goal of the spiral is to help each person embrace the health while jettisoning the pathologies of their thinking/being in the world.
Ultimately, each person has a right to be who they are – regardless of the pages and stages of their lives. While some discover life to be more workable by advancing to the next level up the spiral, others may choose to live happily-ever-after on the level on which they reside. Each way of being is acceptable.
First Tier Thinking
Level 1: Archaic (Beige)
The first level is all about survival – meeting today’s basic needs. On this level of consciousness our greatest desires are warmth, food, water and shelter, roughly corresponding to the lowest level of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. This survival mode is what we are born into and often return to in advanced age. It could also momentarily be triggered by a critical illness or accident, the loss of one’s job, family or community at large. During tragedies people often revert back to this state, requiring hands-on care and close attention until they regain themselves.
Mistakenly, people on this level (sometimes discovered in places such as South America, the African bush, and the Pacific Islands) are labeled as primitive and in need of advancement. Fortunately, over time we have come to learn the great dignities of such people, particularly regarding their close connection with nature. Not yet to the level of tribal, these bands of people form herds and learn to live off of the land in a day-to-day struggle for survival.
In the biblical narrative we may envision this level as the original Edenic home of humanity’s first couple, Adam and Eve.
Level 2: Tribal (Purple)
Once the archaic level is convinced that its daily biological needs will be met, the next level up on the spiral takes them into a tribal way of being in the world. With its more primal needs met, the archaic level now seeks to expand its social needs, and often does this by forming into clans or tribes.
This level of the spiral is about self-sacrifice for the sake of the tribe (family). Here we encounter communities overseen by the shaman, elder, patriarch or chieftain (think Abraham).
This level is very much about magic and superstition. Certain words may be unspeakable because of the power they hold or entity to which they point. It values ritual and custom and reveres the way(s) of those who have gone before, working to preserve such customs at all cost. This is the level of blessings and curses.
We might best recognize this level in Third World countries or even in gangs, athletic teams or, from a religious perspective, the denominational world of the church. The Tribal level is also seen throughout the Old Testament stories of clans such as the Israelites, Canaanites or the people of Jericho, etc.
Level 3: Warrior (Red)
When the life conditions of the tribe are such that they must expand their territory for the sake of their livelihood, this often leads to conflict with surrounding tribes. This is where the Warrior level takes hold.
Whereas the previous level (tribal) is more communal, the emergence of the Warrior level is often concomitant with a desire to be distinct from the tribe. At this stage we meet the powerful, impulsive, egocentric or heroic characters who live and die by an honor code (in Scripture, think Samson; in popular culture, think Klingons).
This is also the level of fiefdoms and feudal societies where lords protect underlings in exchange for their service, obedience and labor.
This is the stage where remorseless fighting occurs (think Books of Joshua and Judges, Kings…) and in a world of haves and have-nots it’s good to be a have! The perspective of the Warrior level is that life is a jungle where you only get what you can take—it’s a survival of the fittest world of winner-take-all. Survivors of Warrior-level conflict often are taken into slavery or carried away as proof of domination and victory.
Whereas the earth was revered on the Tribal level, the Warrior level views itself in contest with the world to climb the highest mountain, cross the widest river and navigate the densest of field and forest. It’s about self-expression and gratifying impulses now, taking what it desires and fighting for control at all cost.
As with each level of the spiral, the Warrior level has both its potentials and pathologies. It is the level to which we might revert to protect friend or family, or to experience the adrenaline rush of skiing or mountain climbing. The energy, passion, and honor of the Warrior level are often channeled in the service of social stability in our armed forces or police. On the negative side of the equation it can be deeply pathological, as exemplified in warlords and inner city gangs. Other examples of this level are the Spartans (the ancient Spartans, not Michigan State) and the Vikings. In the time of Jesus we see this level at work in border skirmishes in the Roman Empire, and even within certain sects of Judaism seeking to overthrow their Roman oppressors.
Level 4: Traditional (Blue)
As the violent and unruly life conditions of the red/Warrior level become dominant, the emergence of the Traditional level is birthed in an attempt to introduce a greater degree of civility and normalcy.
The Traditional level is all about rules and regulations, policy and procedures – in short, law and order. On this level religion flourishes as it seeks to enforce its own brand of right and wrong, identifying good and evil and leveraging tools such as shame, guilt and fear to hold people accountable in order to keep the community in line.
Salvation at this level is seen as the fruit of obedience, faith and self-discipline. The pathology of this level is best seen in its displays of rigidity and intolerance, dogma, fanaticism and self-sacrifice for the greater good of the whole.
Its structure is often that of a dictatorship or a heavy “top-down” management style bent on command and control, often carried out via an intricate bureaucratic system of underlings and overlords.
The Traditionalist level of life finds its meaning by being overseen and led by a higher power. Often this power expresses itself through social hierarchies, is paternalistic and seeks conformity to the rules at all costs. Those who break the rules are subject to disciplinary actions and even public humiliation.
The healthy side of the Traditionalist level is that it forms the glue that holds societies and communities together. From this aspect the Traditionalist level is a critical element to both family and religious life. When properly expressed, the Traditionalist (blue) level provides a safe and beneficial community for its members to find belonging and acceptance. Societies at blue, and the blue level within societies, is often what it takes to keep red at bay, much as the Romans (for a time at least) were able to maintain order in the ancient world.
Neither individuals nor societies are at one level in every facet of life. By way of example, a power-oriented leader within a traditional church might be described as “red/BLUE,” where the lowercase letters indicates a less active (but very present) inclination and the uppercase letters indicate the dominant level. Such a person might tend toward the power side of the equation while majoring in the religious intolerance of the Traditionalist system. In reverse we might describe another person as RED/blue meaning that they are primarily bent on control first and structure second.
As we move up the spiral, it is not uncommon to have a mix of levels simultaneously at work within us as we navigate our own seeing and being in the world.
Level 5: Modern (Orange)
When the life conditions of the Traditionalist level become too restrictive, a transcendent move to the Modernist level usually results. Whereas the Traditionalist level is about, well, tradition, the Modernist level is about creativity and an entrepreneurial spirit seeking new and inventive ways of prospering in the world.
Modernism best asserts itself when people seek out better living conditions, higher standards of living or improved social position. The Modern level of the spiral is about achieving wealth, status and the good life. It seeks progress through harnessing the power of science and technology, through striving and driving for all that represents a new and improved standard of excellence.
In its search for upward mobility, the Modernist stage exhibits its own set of pathologies such as nihilism, exploitation (of people and environment) and often expresses itself in ways that are unscrupulous, greedy and selfish.
Most recently in the U.S. these pathologies have been witnessed in the unscrupulous activities of Wall Street, the banking and mortgage industries and companies putting profit ahead of people and planet.
The organizational structures most often arising from the Modern level are democratic capitalism as well as dominant or oppressive corporations and global strategic alliances for the sole purpose of leveraging capital and wealth, often at the expense of others.
With reference to its religious life, whereas the Traditional level values long-held practices like the singing of hymns and places a high priority on order, the Modernist approach seeks to break free with the creation of mega-churches complete with stage bands, lights, visuals, film clips, spontaneity and impressive building projects that testify to the wealth, prestige and success of its membership. In the Modern world “bigger is better”—and the world of modern religion sings right along.
Level 6: Postmodern (Green)
The movement evolving out of the Modernist level is that which is most often referred to as a “postmodern” approach to being, one that is more sensitive toward others and more in tune with their value as individuals. When the Modernist level has run its course, emptiness and destruction is often what is found in its wake. In response to the exploitation of others, institutional corruption and shallow materialism, the Postmodern level seeks a greater inclusion of those previously marginalized.
The downside of Postmodernism is its contempt of all that has gone before it on the spiral – specifically regarding the Traditional and Modernist levels. Together, these three levels constitute what is often labeled as “the culture wars.”
The Traditionalist level seeks to govern by rules and morality, the Modernist level seeks to break free of most, if not all, restraint in search of new and better ways while the Postmodernist level attempts to deny all truth but its own, all hierarchical forms of organization—and is so bent on equality that it often says much while accomplishing little.
Second Tier Thinking
Up to this point we have seen how people operate and translate life primarily through one of the six previous stages. While there may be traces of previous states of being present (i.e., our example of a dominant traditionalist church leader we depicted as lower case red/warrior and upper case Blue/traditionalist), nevertheless, in first tier thinking people typically are level-specific.
Once we enter into second tier thinking this begins to change. Second tier thinking is much more integrated as it learns to make use of each of the previous six states of being, melding them into a balanced and beautiful symphony of life. Second tier thinkers understand the necessity of each level of the spiral and the need for the dignity of each to be present in various degrees in most, if not all of our endeavors.
For instance, there is a need for a healthy Purple (Tribal) expression of family. Likewise there is a need for a strong Red (Warrior) in keeping the peace within our communities as well as a strong Blue (Traditional) in our faith and civic expressions, just as there is a place for a strong Orange (Modern) movement in assisting others to excel, create, develop and strive for a better way of living. And certainly there is a need for the dignities of Green (Postmodern) that seeks to respect the value and dignity of both people and planet.
Second tier thinking is aware of the consciousness present at each level of the spiral and seeks a way to ensure that each level is as healthy in its contribution to the whole as possible.
Level 7: Integral (Yellow)
The Integral level is about competency, knowledge and personal growth. It tends to be more individualistic rather than communal. Rather than striving to have or do, the ideal of the Integral level is to continue maturing and developing along the natural path of life as we expand our horizons via an ever-increasing consciousness.
At the Integral level we are flexible enough to go in and out of the worlds of the previous six levels of the spiral. We can be at home within the three levels often at odds with one another – the Traditional, Modern and Postmodern – understanding the nature and dignity of each; in doing so we understand the diverse interactions of people, societies and organizations and can be an effective voice in restoring order and bringing about needed change.
Conceptually, Integral (Yellow) thinking is always learning, seeking new trends and the latest information regarding any number of issues, dipping down into the previous levels to access the most appropriate way of being based on the challenge (life conditions) at hand. If a strong Blue (authoritarian) approach is required for a particular task, then the Integral thinker will seek a healthy Blue. If the situation demands more of an egalitarian Green to be present, then the Integral thinker will operate out of Green and so on.
In second tier thinking we seek the places of disconnect and attempt to find ways of bridging together the various systems of the lower levels. Integral thinkers are masters at solving complex and systemic problems because they understand and can coordinate the disparate voices often responsible for such break down.
Integral thinking is just that – integral.
Level 8: Holistic (Turquoise)
Level eight introduces us to the “whole” or “macro” level of being. It understands that everything is a part of a greater whole, that we are citizens of the world not just of particular nation-states. Holistic thinkers understand and utilize the flow of energy present within both people and systems. This level is concerned with broad movements and global earth issues often dealing with abstract and conceptual matters comfortably.
The Holistic level unites feeling with knowledge as it embraces the complexity of multiple levels of being as interwoven into one conscious system. Universal order is not based on external rules (Blue/Traditionalist) nor group bonds (Green/Postmodern), but on the grand unification of all things in all places.
The Holistic level of being is comfortable in working to bring about the emergence of a new spirituality, one based on inclusion and embrace – one aware of the cutting-edge ideas of both the physicist and the spiritual mystic.
Conclusion:
When properly understood, the workings of the spiral can be of great assistance in addressing the complexity of our world today. Whether it be biological, psychological or social systems, the principles of the spiral prove helpful in creating a common language and understanding in addressing the necessary issues that must be addressed in creating a better world.
These ways of relating help better nuance the dynamics at work within our families, businesses, politics and spiritual communities at large. And as we shall see in future articles, they also help us understand the expansion of our consciousness as we continue evolving (spiritually) toward “the mind of Christ.”