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Issue 36  /  April–June 2007
Searching For Utopia
Exploring humanity's timeless quest for heaven on earth

From the idyllic Garden of Eden to Teilhard de Chardin’s enlightened noosphere, our conceptions of utopia have changed dramatically over time. WIE takes a closer look at the evolutionary significance of humankind’s enduring impulse to make heaven into a place on earth.



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Andrew Cohen

The Utopian Propensity

An interview with historian Fritzie P. Manuel

Seen through the lens of utopian thought, five millennia of world history become the epic story of humanity’s unfolding hopes and dreams, offering a compelling perspective on the evolution of our consciousness.

by Jessica Roemischer


Prototyping the Future

Decades after the mass communal movements of the sixties, the utopian impulse continues to thrive in ever new forms. Here we present four contemporary communities, each inspired by radically different visions, all focused on one thing: the dream of a better world.

by Igal Moria, Maura R. O’Connor, and Carol Raphael


Atlantis in the Mountains of Italy

WIE visits one of the world’s most successful communal experiments—the Federation of Damanhur—to explore the ins and outs of esoteric spirituality, the secrets of time travel, and what the utopias of tomorrow have to do with yesterday’s golden age.

by Ross Robertson


Dreams of a Digital Utopia

First there were the flower children, then there were the computer geeks, then the internet changed everything . . . A personal exploration of the surprising connections between them and what it all means about the future of human evolution.

by Carter Phipps


This Revolution Will Be Digitized

The team behind Zaadz, the internet’s popular new alternative community, shares the inspiration behind their bold vision to become the first global brand of the integral revolution.

Interview by Carter Phipps and Andrew Cohen


 

THE GURU AND THE PANDIT

Creative Friction: Community and the Utopian Impulse in a Post-postmodern World

Andrew Cohen and Ken Wilber

In their latest recipe for conscious evolution, spiritual teacher Andrew Cohen and integral philosopher Ken Wilber begin with a critique of narcissism, add a dose of utopian idealism, simmer till the Authentic Self overflows, and rise into a vision of what life might be like in a world on the other side of ego.


 
PULSE: The buzz on global leaders, thinkers, teachers, and mystics

Riding the Gandhi-King Peace Train; Britpop gets integral; Duane Elgin wins Japanese peace prize; filmmaker Mira Nair revisits the Beatles in Rishikesh; and more.

by Igal Moria, Carter Phipps, and Tom Huston

 
Your 3-D Universe Is So Passé

A new way of looking at reality stretches the mind into multiple dimensions.

by Tom Huston

 
Global Governance: Fantasy or Future Reality?

New models are forcing pundits, theorists, and leaders to consider the viability of a world government.

by Maura R. O’Connor

 
The Headless Way

In Memoriam

A personal reminiscence on the life and work of Douglas E. Harding.

by Chris Parish

 
 

THE SPIRIT OF SCIENCE
Should Science Study Religion?
by James N. Gardner

INTEGRAL IDEAS
Horizontal Evolution and Collective Intelligence
by Allan Combs

MY GENERATION
If Iraq Is Gen-Y’s Vietnam, Why Aren’t We Protesting?
by Maura R. O’Connor

THE RAZOR’S EDGE
Everyday Advaita
by Tom Huston

 
 
 
Natural Selection

Reviews of books, film, and other media

 
HEALTH
Are Hormones the Fountain of Youth?

by Peter Ragnar

 
 
ENLIGHTENMENT FOR THE 21st CENTURY
How a New World Is Born

by Andrew Cohen