Skip to main content

16 Dimensions

As stated here on many occasions my integral approach to development is largely based on holistic mathematical consideration of 1-dimensional, 2-dimensional, 4-dimensional and 8-dimensional interpretation in development.

However it may help a little to say a little in this context about my Stages of Development approach.

Overall I include 7 Bands in development (each of which comprises 3 main Levels, comprised of a unique holistic mathematical structure). So we have 21 main Levels in all.

The first Lower Band is largely concerned with overcoming confusion with respect to the three central polarities in experience. L3 (Lower 3) relates to initial differentiation of the diagonal polarities (form and emptiness); L2 then entails additional differentiation with respect to the vertical polarities (whole and part); finally L1 relates to further differentiation with respect to horizontal polarities (internal and external).

Then with preliminary successful differentiation having taken place with respect to the three polarities the next Band is concerned with specialisation of linear (1-dimensional) interpretation (where the three polarities are clearly separated in experience).

As we have seen this is the very approach that characterises conventional scientific understanding.

In truth development largely plateaus with the Middle Band in Western culture.
However where authentic contemplative awareness unfolds, further Bands are required.

The third Band (Higher Band) relates to the unfolding of circular (intuitive) awareness.

The first level (H1) is concerned with 2-dimensional interpretation (where both internal and external aspects are now seen as dynamically complementary - and ultimately identical - in experience) The positive aspect is associated with periods of illumination whereas the negative (where substantial dynamic negation of phenomena occurs) is associated with corresponding periods of purgation!

The second level (H2) is concerned with the unfolding of 4-dimensional interpretation. Here whole and part in any context are qualitatively distinguished enabling their proper integration in experience. This leads to the realisation that all reality is properly complex (in holistic mathematical terms) with both real (analytic) and imaginary (holistic) aspects.

The third level (H3) relates to 8-dimensional interpretation (where now both form and emptiness are eventually united). This requires a very subtle form of appreciation where form is equally interpreted with respect to real and imaginary aspects (which has an alternative empty expression as null lines!)


For some time my mapping of development largely culminated at this point. Though I did include a later Radial Band, it was largely for completion purposes without being fully integrated with the earlier Bands.

However gradually I came to realise - that just as linear understanding has its own specialised expression with the Middle Band - that circular understanding has its own specialised expression with a further 4th Band (that I sometimes refer to as the Higher Middle Band). As well as allowing for a further refining in spiritual contemplative awareness, this Band also addresses a typical imbalance as between form and emptiness. Frequently the drive to unity is driven by the transcendent spiritual aspect in the desire to achieve emptiness (beyond all form). However the immanent aspect is equally important as the desire to see such emptiness as inherent in all form.

Once again a holistic mathematical appreciation of the Riemann Zeta Function led me to the realisation that the completion of this Band (with immanence and transcendence in equal balance) coincides with 16-dimensional development. This would also perfectly equate with the inclusion of immanence and transcendence as two additional fundamental polar opposites in experience.

So Radial Development proper only commerces in a mature sustainable manner (with 16-dimensional development). In my latest work, I include three additional Radial Bands (so that we have 21 main Levels in all).

To see a fuller explanation of this model, dealing in detail with the structures and states characteristic of each main level
See Stages of Development; Chaps 8 - 12.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Number 137

The number 137 has raised considerable interest. Its reciprocal (1/137) approx. is referred to as the fine structure constant in physics and is related to the probability of electrons (or other particles) emitting or absorbing particles. Much has been written regarding the "mystical" properties of this number. Indeed some years ago my attention was drawn to its significance through correspondence relating to Jungian archetypes. And just recently an interesting article by Giorgio Piacenza has been published on Frank Visser's Integral World web-site. Without wanting to claim too much for the "mystical significance" of this number, I would like to initially broaden the topic to highlight some important general properties of prime numbers (of which 137 is a specific example). From one perspective prime numbers can be viewed as the basic building blocks of the natural number system (which we literally view in a linear manner as stretched out on a strai

Higgs Boson or Higgs Illusion

I was looking at the BBC Horizon programme last night on the Higgs Boson which proved quite interesting. As was widely reported in the media late last year, a determined attempt has been made to find convincing experimental evidence for the existence of the Higgs Boson which if verified would help to complete the standard particle model of physics. One outstanding problem with this model is that it had yet to provide a convincing explanation as to how particles acquire mass. And as this requirement is crucial for explaining the existence of all phenomena, the issue is of great importance. It had been proposed in the late 60's by Peter Higgs that what gives mass to particles is related to a seemingly invisible field viz. the Higgs Field. And as all fields are associated with corresponding particles, it was postulated that if this supposition of the existence of a new field was correct that it should in principle be possible to detect its associated particle. However the tech

Special Relativity - a new perspective

In his famous 1905 article where he introduced his "Special Theory of "Relativity", Einstein successfully challenged our conventional notions of space and time. This world view maintained that measurements of space and time were absolute for all observers. For example, if one carefully measured the length of a car, then this distance would remain the same for all observers (irrespective of movement). So for example from this viewpoint as a car accelerated, its length would remain the same (despite the increase in speed!) However Einstein convincingly demonstrated that such understanding is in error and that the actual distance crucially depends on the relative movement of what is measured. Though we do not notice such differences at speeds significantly less than that of light, they do exist. For an object travelling at 87% of the speed of light, measured length would be just half of that registered in static terms. Such differences equally apply to time with a moving ob