One Taste

Rating:
Summary: Ken spills the beans
Review: An unconventional book for old baldie. Half of this book is very deep writing on the nature of reality and the other half is a description of Ken running around with his new girlfriend. Half the substance of this book has already appeared on the Shambhala website. Ken spills the beans that he does and has for some time experienced the ultimate non-dual state of consciousness.

Rating:
Summary: Don't make this your first KW book
Review: As someone who is only beginning to fathom the depth and scope of Ken Wilbur's thinking, I have to say that I wish this hadn't been the first book I had picked up by him. Not knowing how serious this guy's thought is, it did nothing for me to hear him blather about experiences of pure emptiness, or have him include his fawning fan mail in these pages. All this did was make me feel he was full of himself (or his non-self) and in need of a bit of a spanking. Fortunately I got A Theory Of Everything and began to realize this guy has a brain a mile wide. Sure would be nice, though, if someone less dry, technical, and academic would come along and write "Ken Wilbur For Dummies" or something. "One Taste" is not that book. It's a book that humanizes KW for people who think he's god. If you are new to KW, start somewhere else.

Rating:
Summary: Wilber Revealed
Review: Most of Ken Wilber's books do not reveal much about the man behind the work. For most academic writers that is fine. But Wilber's writing, though seemingly theoretical or academic at times, is in fact about the most intimate of topics: coming to know ourselves. Perhaps because his writing is so broad in scope and yet ultimately so intimate in its implications, Wilber thought his readership might be entitled to a peek at how he is doing with his own personal atman project. This book lets the reader peek away,and you may or may not like what you see.

This was the first Wilber book I read. I had known about him for years, but my reading list is long and I just didn't pick his work up, until a respected friend gave me a copy of One Taste, and I could no longer put it off. I have now read almost all of his published work. With that perspective, I offer these thoughts.

First, the part that may trouble some. KW does come off as pretty darn egotistical in this book. He seems to realize it and mentions in the introduction that these diary entries were (supposedly) not written with intent to publish, and therefore what may seem like boasting and namedropping were in fact just factual entries meant for himself. These now candidly published entries might to the outside reader seem a bit...immodest. This would be a trivial matter but for the nature of KW's work, which after all is ultimately about transcending the ego.

I found KW's disclaimers about that less than entirely convincing, but the fact that he may still personally be a spiritual work in progress in my mind does not diminish the brilliance of his work. I was electrified when I read this. I have been a serious student of philosophy and spiritual practice for 30 years, and I find KW's work among the most brilliant and, to me, practically helpful work I have seen. Some say he does no original thinking, but only synthesizes the work of others. Yes, he only synthesizes the work of an unprecedentedly enormous body of thought, writing and accounts of mystical experience in a staggering array of fields over millenia, in ways no one else has before. I think this would qualify as original thought. Some say he doesn't write well. I find that he explains the ideas of many great thinkers more understandably than they do themselves. He relates their work to that of other great thinkers in ways that I,and I suspect most, never saw before. His writing can be moving and inspirational as well.

I'm not sure I would recommend One Taste as the first Wilber book to read, although it worked fine for me. It is one of his most accessible books. One criticism of this book is that Wilber's references are too obscure. But, this being a journal, KW has taken less care than usual to explain all his references, because this was ostensibly originally written for himself. Readers already familiar with his other work will be less baffled, and this may be one more reason to start with one of his other books. One Taste has the advantage of being one of his more recent books. Because KW is constantly refining his thought, this gives the reader a look at his most current thinking. I give it four stars instead of five, because I wasn't interested in many of the boring personal details ("I went shopping today"), but the meaty parts are first rate. I find his work so personally helpful in my own practice precisely because it is a synthesis of so much other work. He links it together in ways I could never have myself and has helped me to take a more integral approach to what had before been disparate and disconnected elements of my practice and study.

Rating:
Summary: Wilber Revealed
Review: Most of Wilber's books do not reveal much about the man behind the work. For most academic writers that is fine. But Wilber's writing, though seemingly theoretical or academic at times, is in fact about the most intimate of topics: coming to know ourselves. Perhaps because his writing is so broad in scope and yet ultimately so intimate in its implications, Wilber thought his readership might be entitled to a peek at how he is doing with his own personal atman project. This book lets the reader peek away,and you may or may not like what you see.

This was the first Wilber book I read. I had known about him for years, but my reading list is long and I just didn't pick his work up, until a respected friend gave me a copy of One Taste, and I could no longer put it off. I am now reading my eighth of his books. With that perspective, I offer these thoughts.

First, the part that may trouble some. KW does come off as pretty darn egotistical in this book. He seems to realize it and mentions in the introduction that these diary entries were (supposedly) not written with intent to publish, and therefore what may seem like boasting and namedropping were in fact just factual entries meant for himself. These now candidly published entries might to the outside reader seem a bit...immodest. This would be a trivial matter but for the nature of KW's work, which after all is ultimately about transcending the ego.

I found KW's disclaimers about that less than entirely convincing, but the fact that he may still personally be a spiritual work in progress in my mind does not diminish the brilliance of his work. I was electrified when I read this. I have been a serious student of philosophy and spiritual practice for 30 years, and I find KW's work among the most brilliant and, to me, practically helpful work I have seen. Some say he does no original thinking, but only synthesizes the work of others. Yes, he only synthesizes the work of an unprecedentedly enormous body of thought, writing and accounts of mystical experience in a staggering array of fields over millenia, in ways no one else has before. I think this would qualify as original thought. Some say he doesn't write well. I find that he explains the ideas of many great thinkers more understandably than they do themselves. He relates their work to that of other great thinkers in ways that I,and I suspect most, never saw before. His writing can be moving and inspirational as well.

I'm not sure I would recommend One Taste as the first Wilber book to read, although it worked fine for me. It is one of his most accessible books. One reviewer thought his references were too obscure, but, this being a journal, KW has taken less care than usual to explain all his references, because this was ostensibly originally written for himself. Readers already familiar with his other work will be less baffled. One Taste has the advantage of being one of his most recent books. Because KW is constantly refining his thought, this gives the reader a look at his most current thinking. I give it four stars instead of five, because I wasn't interested in many of the boring personal details ("I went shopping today"), but the meaty parts are first rate. I find his work so personally helpful in my own practice precisely because it is a synthesis of so much other work. He links it together in ways I could never have myself (which, to my knowledge, no one else has done either) and has helped me to take a more integral approach to what had before been disparate and disconnected elements of my practice and study.

Rating:
Summary: Tasty reading.
Review: Of Shakespeare, Emerson wrote, "his mind is the horizon beyond which, at present, we do not see," and I think the same can be said of Ken Wilber. Written in 1997, just before Wilber's fiftieth birthday, this collection of "daily reflections" can be read as both a personal and philosophical journal. Observing him integrating "matter, body, mind, soul and spirit . . . the entire Great Nest of Being" (p. 58) in "the real world" of grocery shopping, paying bills, renting videos, promoting his books, "restaurant sampling, bar hopping, boutique shopping" (p. 89), and dancing while on vacation in Miami's South Beach, the territory beyond the horizon seems perhaps within reach. Whether Wilber is cooking his "world famous vegetarian chili" for friends (p. 259), or witnessing people in a shopping mall (pp. 77, 232), his journal reveals that integral spirituality is possible "through all states--waking, dreaming, and sleeping" (p. 51). "Yesterday I sat in a shopping mall for hours, watching people pass by," he writes in one entry, "and they were all as precious as green emeralds. The occasional joy in their voices, but more often the pain in their faces, the sadness in their eyes, the burdenous slowness of their paces--I registered none of that. I saw only the glory of green emeralds, and radiant buddhas walking everywhere . . . a paradise in a shopping mall" (p. 77).

In this book, Wilber explains that even at the level of "One Taste" cosmic consciousness, you can still get cancer, still fail at a marriage, still lose a job, still be a jerk;" reaching higher levels of integral development does not mean that the lower levels go away (p. 129).

In the introductory note to his book, Wilber writes, "I am not a private person, in the sense of secretive; I'm just not a public person, in the sense of seeking the limelight. Nonetheless, as one who has written extensively about the interior life, it seemed appropriate, at some point, to share mine" (p. vii). Measuring his interior life with these journal entries, Wilber indeed seems more fully conscious, more constantly aware than most of us. Although he references former teachers and many spiritual friends, as a side note, Wilber's journal is silent on whether he has an ongoing teacher of his own, and whether he is actively engaged in any sangha in Boulder, where he lives.

Reading Wilber is exciting, and ONE TASTE is no exception. I would place it in the easy category of reading Wilber. This is a five-star book, worth tasting. I have given it four stars only when measured against several of his other books, including NO BOUNDARY and A THEORY OF EVERYTHING.

G. Merritt

Rating:
Summary: Revealing look at a seminal dilettante and his age
Review: Of Shakespeare, Emerson wrote, "his mind is the horizon beyond which, at present, we do not see," and I think the same can be said of Ken Wilber. Written in 1997, just before Wilber's fiftieth birthday, this collection of "daily reflections" can be read as both a personal and philosophical journal. Observing him integrating "matter, body, mind, soul and spirit . . . the entire Great Nest of Being" (p. 58) in "the real world" of grocery shopping, paying bills, renting videos, promoting his books, "restaurant sampling, bar hopping, boutique shopping" (p. 89), and dancing while on vacation in Miami's South Beach, the territory beyond the horizon seems perhaps within reach. Whether Wilber is cooking his "world famous vegetarian chili" for friends (p. 259), or witnessing people in a shopping mall (pp. 77, 232), his journal reveals that integral spirituality is possible "through all states--waking, dreaming, and sleeping" (p. 51). "Yesterday I sat in a shopping mall for hours, watching people pass by," he writes in one entry, "and they were all as precious as green emeralds. The occasional joy in their voices, but more often the pain in their faces, the sadness in their eyes, the burdenous slowness of their paces--I registered none of that. I saw only the glory of green emeralds, and radiant buddhas walking everywhere . . . a paradise in a shopping mall" (p. 77).

In this book, Wilber explains that even at the level of "One Taste" cosmic consciousness, you can still get cancer, still fail at a marriage, still lose a job, still be a jerk;" reaching higher levels of integral development does not mean that the lower levels go away (p. 129).

In the introductory note to his book, Wilber writes, "I am not a private person, in the sense of secretive; I'm just not a public person, in the sense of seeking the limelight. Nonetheless, as one who has written extensively about the interior life, it seemed appropriate, at some point, to share mine" (p. vii). Measuring his interior life with these journal entries, Wilber indeed seems more fully conscious, more constantly aware than most of us. Although he references former teachers and many spiritual friends, as a side note, Wilber's journal is silent on whether he has an ongoing teacher of his own, and whether he is actively engaged in any sangha in Boulder, where he lives.

Reading Wilber is exciting, and ONE TASTE is no exception. I would place it in the easy category of reading Wilber. This is a five-star book, worth tasting. I have given it four stars only when measured against several of his other books, including NO BOUNDARY and A THEORY OF EVERYTHING.

G. Merritt

Rating:
Summary: Wilber's vision is unique and important
Review: There are some people that suggest that Wilber has been too repetitive in his last few books. That he's simply been repeating the same basic refrain over and over again. I can understand that criticism, but I disagree with it. Wilber's theory of integration is both complex and important, and I find it incredibly useful to have new books in which he expands the examples of his theory. My own feeling is that the integral theory is a very important theory to understand, so the more in depth Wilber goes, and the various diffirent paths of exploration he goes at his thory from, the happier I am, as I feel like I have a greater grasp of what he's speaking about. As an aside, there is a wondeful novel called We All Fall Down by Brian Caldwell which seems to take quite a bit of Wilber's theory, and even mentions him several times in the book. The novel is a great example of a man caught trying to transform his life into something better, but who is able only to translate. It's about the frustration and difficulties in trying to move up to the next level of consciousness. Techinically, it's set in a Christian framework, but it elevates past that small structure and uses it to really bring home quite a few of Wilber's theories. It's a wonderful novel and I'd highly recomend it to any fan of Wilber.

Rating:
Summary: One Taste - but I hope we get more!
Review: This is the first book by Ken Wilbur I have read and now I will read others. It is a book in which the man behind the theories reveals himself as real, unique and human. He could be the guy next door (if the guy next door writes voraciously and entertains our major thinkers). I have had the experience of reading a theoretical work and then finding out the that the actual life of the author is really at odds with his or her writings, leading to a feeling of disillusionment. I have long avoided his books because they seem, well, so long. However, now, after getting a sense of who he is, what he loves, watches on TV and reads, I'm willing to read (some of) his other books. I put together a book list for myself from his suggestions and I felt as if he would be a good mentor in this respect. His descriptions of his own meditation practices are inspirational and engaging. It is true that he writes repeatedly in the book about his almost daily experience of bliss and rapture but his enthusiasm is one more thing that makes him so interesting and down to earth. I hope he writes more in this vein.

Rating:
Summary: Brilliant and Inspiring!
Review: This is wonderful book that gives us a rare glimpse into Ken Wilber's personal life, he writes this book in a much more relaxed and fun manner. It's a great introduction to his works, there are many brilliant insights and summaries of many concepts. I would recommend this book to anybody interested in a spiritual path. Read everything this man writes, it will change your life!

Rating:
Summary: Bland & uninteresting...stick to his prior books
Review: Today I read One Taste by Ken Wilbur. Well, I read through it - couldn't finish it. Quite frankly I didn't understand what all the buzz was about. Nothing revolutionary. In fact, disappointing.

I really enjoyed some of his earlier publications, and continue to be inspired by the Holonomy book he edited: The Holographic Paradigm and Other Paradoxes. I definately recommend it, or better yet, Reenchantment of the World by Morris Berman.

But One Taste is supposed to give us a small taste of his inner thoughts via his private daily journal. Al Gore and Bill Clinton were both seen carrying it around, I guess to give us the impression that they are philosphically and spiritually contemplative. Reviewers called it: profound, dizzying, epiphanic, multi-dimensional, "expansive talk of higher states of being"...and I don't get it.

Most of the questions he was asking were things we studied in Philophy 101 and 201, and dare I say, it bored me then as much as it bores me now. Things like, whether or not there is one primal force behind all religions (an Eliadean quest); how religion can be proved "objectively"; uniting psychology and other disciplines with spirituality (without substantial elaboration); if the New Age movement and postmodernism are just fads (a term which he didn't bother to define); how dualism is bad (again, without substantial elaboration); whether truth is subjective or objective, etc.

Not to mention, downright boring in parts - I don't really care what TV shows he watches, his shopping habits, etc. And at parts, self-absorbed. Lots of name dropping. Lots. And lots. Name dropping on almost every page. It's hard to criticize a person's private thoughts, but it kinda sounds like a yuppie boomer with some middle-age crisis questions. It's amazing what some people consider profound.

Want radical? Progressive? Compelling? Why not question the notion of middle class, the addiction called money, the concept of "career", the US economic system as myth...and check out The Way We Never Were, by Stephanie Coontz. I just started it, and love it's challenges to our concept of reality, the myths that we are conditioned to accept as "objective history", and the way most of us organize our lives.

Here Wilber mostly stays in the philosophical /theoretical realm, which is ironic, given that his contributions in Holonomy discuss the disembodied self, and that he considers himself an activist of sorts. But I don't see Wilber doing anything practical with this thought - it comes off as reflections mixed in with some marketing appeal to the so-called intellectual and class elites.

Stick to his prior books.