ILP Entry Point

There was a thick fog yesterday. It swallowed the sun almost whole as I was sitting on the steps of our house, reading Tommyknockers.

When I was 18 years old I broke up with my first girlfriend. The ensuing months were arguably the most horrifying in my life thus far. I delved deeply in a personal crisis that turned to a full-blown existential, emotional and spiritual crisis. Now, some ten years later, I see that it was my Entry Point to a path of self-development, motivated by the very real pain I was feeling at the time.

What I call an Entry Point is the door through which we come to our practice. Usually the Entry Point is one single door, for example the door of human relationships. We experience so much pain that we are forced to resolve the human conundrum of suffering in a very personal level: how is this pain possible and how can I avoid it in the future. The Entry Point can be basically anything: problems (or revelations) with money, love, spirituality, philosophy or our physical body. Our very own and unique Entry Points are as numerous as we are.

The important this to remember is that the Entry Point is only the beginning. As we mature it soon becomes clear that as human beings all our parts are interconnected. This is the start of an ILP, Integral Life Practice. This is when we realize that no single path of practice is sufficient for us to live ever more liberated lives. By engaging in our own ILP we embrace the totality of being human in body, mind, shadow and spirit, and realize there is continuous work to be done - joyfully, mind - in all our aspects.

My Entry Point led in time to show the Entry Points of others, and how they were equally mine. If not not, later. As I am now working on my psychological shadows related to money and physical strength I see that this practice has many points of entry but no way out. It keeps on going, developing and liberating as it is evolving and that's how it should be, as Ken Wilber says, here "on the relative side of the street". On the Absolute side...well, I guess that is the Exit. To hold both in one timeless and time-bound human life is a noble thing indeed.

Personality Types and ILP

Today I slept late, as seems to be the fashion of the summer. No worries, though. Got to the gym later in the afternoon to do my program. The main point is that I have stuck doing my routines for more than four months now. For me, being an enthusiast who grows tired of routines fast, it is quite an accomplishment. For someone else it might actually be a hindrance to personal growth.

Take my friend, for example. He has a background in professional sports and during his time he used to train a lot. A lot. Sticking to a routine is more of a second nature for him.

The purpose of an ILP is to live a more balanced, integral life and to learn to manage our energy resources wisely so as to preserve our energy for conscious growth and happiness. Or something along those lines, at least. For some people being in balance means less control, more being in the moment. For others it means more future-oriented thinking and less being here now. My friend most definitely belongs in the first category while I belong most definitely to the latter.

Different personality types need to orient to an Integral Life Practice in different ways. An enthusiast needs structures, routines and long-term commitment. A worrier needs to learn to trust life and live in the moment. There is no ILP as such; there is rather ILP as it is tailored to meet each individual where they are at.

What is an Integral Spirit?

My ILP for today: sleeping too late, being groggy and doing just a few powerlifting movements at the gym to wake me up. I was about to write "wake my body up". That would distance me from my body and that would be less than integral. ;)

I started reading Stephen King's Tommyknockers. It's a good balancing act to do stuff just for one's own amusement. As I see it, Ken Wilber's Big Three is translated into everyday life as the balance between three perspectives: one's own; other peoples' and God's - however one may wish to conceive those. My take is that the Big Three of Life Integral is the balance between Work, Fun and Practice. That balance experienced and expressed simultaneously through Body, Mind and Heart gives rise to Spirit: one's life purpose. As expansive as it may be, it can - and should - be distilled into a simple sentence.

My purpose? To attain the Divine Function of Genuine Conscience through Evolutionary Enlightenment of the Authentic Self by means of my Integral Life Practice.

So Integral Spirit, then, is the unique expression of one's purpose in life prosessed through an AQAL lens. Integral Spirit is the honoring of my particular consciousness through valuable work that benefits all beings. Integral Spirit is the expression of the life's Big Three - Work, Fun and Practice - in head, heart and soma, all at once.

20 Books You Should Probably Read

A Brief History of Everything is now available in Finnish! I got a big box full of my translator's copies two days ago. It is beautiful!

To celebrate the grand opening of Integral consciousness finally reaching this hard land, I decided to put together a list of 20 books you probably should read. So here goes:

1. A Brief History of Everything. Naturally. A simplified version of majestic Sex, Ecology, Spirituality laying the groundwork for an integral, comprehensive and realistically holistic worldview.

2. Beelzebub's Tales to His Grandson. Gurdjieff buried the dog (not the bones, but the whole dog) so deep into his magnum opus that the patient reader might, after persistent digging, actually find the very good and very integral leather to buy in case he wants to make himself shoes.

3. In Search of the Miraculous. Ouspensky explains Gurdieff's amazing system of self-knowledge and self-transformation in a lucid manner. This book showed my the Way.

4. We're All Doing Time. Actually, this book showed me the way, ten years prior. Very good introduction to cultivating the finer things in inner life.

5. Dark Side of the Light Chasers. Everyone's got issues. If you think you don't, read this book, do the exercises and get to work.

6. Starting Strength. Everyone needs to lift a load every once in a while. Better be prepared. This is the finest introduction to the five basic movements of lifting stuff. Also, good philosophical

7. Getting Things Done. Everyone's got things to do. Better do them as efficiently as possible. GTD is arguably the finest method for getting your shit together. Worked wonders for me!

8. It's Not About the Money. Inside-out, sane and thorough approach to handling money, which everyone does.

9. Conversations with God. Great series, great conversations. Do not be put off by the title. It is awesome stuff. Seriously.

10. Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. With so much slacking, blaming and bumming, Stephen Covey gives some good old fatherly advice for living your life like a human being should: Be proactive, remember your aim and be nice to people. From dependence to independence to interdependence to continuous self-perfection, Covey says stuff I would love to say to many people (including myself).

11. How to Win Friends and Influence People. I read this book when I was 18 and got a huge kick out of how to behave more nicely with people. Can't say I learned it, though.

12. Anna Karenina. The whole of human life contained in a novel.

13. Zorba the Greek. The right attitude towards living contained in a novel.

14. Anything by Osho. Pure genius by the modern self-confessed spiritually incorrect mystic.

15. Power of Now. Clear introduction to the great perfection of this moment. Like Sailor Bob said, what's wrong with right now unless you think about it?

16. Power of Full Engagement. Unassuming little book that shows you how to manage you energy in an intelligent way.

17. Four-Hour Work Week. Encouraged and enabled me to make the move to live on a paradise island for a year. 'nuff said.

18. Flow. Like a handbook for living a good life. Shows the components of the optimal experience, flow, though dozens of great examples from factory workers to Italian shepherds.

19. Authentic Happiness. Living life is a fine art. Here's how to do it with a smile.

20. Why You're Dumb, Sick and Broke...and How to Get Smart, Healthy and Rich. Randy Gage tells it like it is. Hilarious stuff. Great read even if you don't agree with him.

Oh, and my ILP for today? Bicycling for 25 minutes and listening to Great Integral Awakening podcast + watching four Integral Coaching videos from Integral Life.

The Finnish Ken Wilber

My ILP this morning: bicycle ride across the island a few times while listening to The Great Integral Awakening podcast. Great stuff. The first episode featured Micheal Murphy, the godfather of the Human Potential movement. Very good to combine cardio exercise with podcasts. One of my favourite ways to learn, actually.

Island is getting more lively by the day. Lots of tourists are beginning to roll (or should I say sail) around, taking pictures and ooohing and aaahing our mode of transport.

My Finnish translation of Ken Wilber's A Brief History of Everything will hit the shops next week. I am so looking forward to it! If the gods of wind are on my side, I might even get my copies of the book by tomorrow.

Beautiful weather, beautiful life. This island is a perfect place to drink one's morning coffee.

Fishing, Eating, Listening

Everything looks a little crooked when you're at sea. We went fishing this morning. I've been a vegetarian almost half my life, so it was a challenge for me. A challenge that was as successful as it was tasty, I might add.

CCR has been good to me lately. Bayou Country (1969) somehow seems to fit the hot summer air. Career Renegade, though, was a bit of a let-down. Today I started reading Brent Kessler's It's Not About the Money. It seems to be a lot more interesting with its inside-out approach to financial intelligence and awareness. More on that later.

After the Fog

The sun has come out. It is very hot during the daytime. Better to stay in and read.

Andrew Cohen wrote in his blog:

When two or more individuals have awakened to that Authentic Self, and crossed what I call the 51% threshold so that that spark becomes their driving motivation, and then begin to relate with each other, intersubjective friction occurs at the highest level. This is experienced as the liberating emergence of spontaneous inspiration, ecstatic creativity, and passionate commitment. This does not occur at the level of the flesh or the personal heart, but only at the level of the soul and the Authentic Self. This is when Spirit meets itself as the creative impulse.

This is how it feels like playing in a band, when everybody's rockin' as they should. This is the reason why I keep on playing, to find this place and be immersed in it, forever for a song.

Deadlifts and Frozen Vodka

Midsummer weekend was sunny. Our guests arrived on Friday afternoon and after that everything was right. We had a flatfish picnic on the rocks by the sea. We played the banjo on the front porch. We had cold beer, chilled wine and frozen vodka while grilling good food. We drank cups of coffee and listened to great music. We went to see two art exhibitions, which is something remarkable on an island with a population of 50 people. We saw a snake eating a frog. And we loved the weather, the world, each other and damn near everybody else.

This morning begun with deadlifts, however. Back to the grind, another day in paradise. The mist has cleared from the island and the sun is shining again. Think I'll have a cup of coffee and start reading Career Renegade. I am going to become one, after all.

Flatfish Heaven

I started the morning by weightlifting. That is something I try to do three times a week. It is a very sage advice that if you eat a frog first thing in the morning, the rest of your day will be wonderful. Squatting with a heavy barbell does precisely the trick. After that, everything is easy.



During our morning walk we noticed a fisherman smoking flatfish. A few hours later we saw a sign advertising fresh smoked flounder.




I went in, of course, and bought some. The view from his inside his boat house was lovely.




The fish were sold by an ingenious method: pick a fish, pay at the box.





I heard another buyer say: "This is a paradise on earth!". I couldn't agree more.


Today is the Midsummer eve. It is a big celebration all around the country. The island band will play tonight as well. I'll be the guitarist and the mandolin man. Very neat! We don't have a web page, by the way. But I guess you already knew that.

A Leisurely Stroll

The island was quiet this morning. I started my day by listening to a Philosopher's Note on Happy for No Reason. Great, enlightening, inspiring stuff. After that I took a leisurely stroll through the island with my son. Almost no one was in sight, just an old fisherman washing his nets at the pier. We stopped by the shop and saw a cart just like ours lying around. They are very useful for carrying groceries and kids around. Also adults, on occasion.

First Post

In March 2009 our family moved to a lighthouse island. It was a major dream for us and we are glad to have made it happen.

My main reason behind the move is to deepen my Integral Life Practice during the year we have intended to stay on the island. Integral Life Practice means working concurrently with body, mind, spirit and emotions. They are thought to be the four most important sources of energy for humans.

So here's to getting more energy, using it in an enlightened way and sharing my experiences with you! Hope you enjoy reading about my journey. I also hope you will get enthusiastic about making your own dreams become a reality.