The Role of Multiple Intelligences in Consciousness Development

One of the most helpful insights regarding our inner development is to realize that our consciousness consists of multiple parts that combine together to create the whole. Each of these parts or aspects of consciousness has its own ''intelligence specialties'' as well as carrying with it a particular sense of self, a particular set of value judgments, sense of aesthetics, perception of truth and so on. By dividing our consciousness up into these different individual parts or units we can then go onto develop the functional intelligence of each of these individual units so that, when we put them all together again they will function in a much more effective, happy, strong, healthy and balanced way than they did before. This in turn leads us to experience ourself in a much stronger, healthier light, thus we are empowered to lead happier, more integrated and enlightened lives.
What I am going to do in the next few articles on the Transpersonal Psyche blog is to give nine examples of individual intelligences that we can develop within ourselves, outline what they are, what they need for growth and give practical advice as to how we can start working on improving them within ourselves.

Intelligences 1-4: Our Inner Family
The first four are a group that I call the ''Inner Family''. This consists of our child intelligence/self, our youthful intelligence, our mature or parental intelligence and our old or wise self/intelligence. Here are brief working descriptions of each:
1. The Child Intelligence - The spontaneous, joyful, creative, emotionally based self, lacks maturity therefore needs guidance and nurturing, otherwise becomes a victim and/or totally influenced by environment.
2. Young Adult/Youthful Intelligence - The initial development of the ego, distinguishing self from others, appetite for life, career/life goals, sexuality and romantic relationship awareness, willingness to keep learning new things
3. Mature Adult/Parental Intelligence - Mature ego, able to bear responsibilities in life, to plan for future, to nurture and protect the lower levels of self (child and youth), balances firmness and love in daily management of self.
4. Wise One/Old Self Intelligence - Gives greater perspectives on life, advises parental intelligence, takes in the bigger picture due to close proximity to death. Like the Grandfather/Mother of the inner family.

Intelligences 5-8: Body, Emotions, Mind and Spirit
The next four are created simply by dividing our being into its physical, emotional, mental and spiritual aspects to create four intelligences as follows:
5. Physical body Intelligence - Ability to listen to and manage our physical and vital bodies' energy and needs. Overall physical healthcare, diet, exercise, environmental awareness
6. Emotional Intelligence - Ability to generate and hold positive, blissful radiant states of emotion such as wonder, joy, appreciation, love, compassion, whilst at the same time managing temperamental, chaotic or negative feelings as and when they arise. Emotional connection to others and environment.
7. Cognitive/Mental Intelligence - Ability to be aware of and mange information and thought structures in our mind effectively. Maintain positive perspectives on what we are going through. To analyze and assess objectively without repressing our emotional self/intelligence.
8. Spiritual Intelligence - Ability to access stable trans-rational (ie: beyond cognitive/rational) states of mind. Maintain unity/oneness consciousness with others and our environment. Ability to see self in expanded way, as the world, the planet, the universe etc...Ability to intuit guidance for ourself as the personality from Higher Sources.

Intelligence 9 – Integrated Intelligence
This final or ninth intelligence I will define for now simply as the ability to integrate or combine two or more of the above eight intelligences together in our daily life in a practical, harmonious and effective manner. A simple example would be combining the cognitive intelligence's ability to plan with the physical intelligences ability to act.

So, in the next article I will be outlining a but more about intelligences 1-4 the Inner Family, and then go on to talk about the development of the child intelligence/self.
For now one thing that I would like to point out is that, of the nine intelligences outlined above, only one, the spiritual intelligence works directly with meditation as a method to develop it. Different meditation forms can calm and expand the mind and thus help facilitate the other intelligences, but integrated development of our consciousness requires that we work on multiple levels to solve the particular challenges of different aspects of self on the level that they are functioning on.
In general, using the model of the nine intelligences above we can start to create a lifestyle that integrates activities to help all of these intelligences develop simultaneously. For example by creating time for relaxation, play and creativity we nurture the child intelligence, by creating time to plan our life we nurture our cognitive intelligence, by creating time for meditation we nurture our spiritual intelligence, and so on...This series of articles will include ideas for how to start to nurture each of these intelligences in our daily life on a practical level.

© Toby Ouvry 2009 please do not reproduce without permission.