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A Thank-You Gift to My Dad: Illustrations Based on Olaf Stapledon’s Star Maker
No full textThis essay reflects on a series of etchings created as a personal tribute to my father, Allan Leslie Combs, and inspired by Olaf Stapledon’s Star Maker. Blending memoir, art, and cosmological imagination, the article explores creative gratitude, spiritual vision in science fiction, and the connection between art and consciousness.
Keywords: Allan Leslie Combs, Olaf Stapledon, Star Maker, consciousness and creativit
Allan Leslie Combs: Celebrating the Life of a Trickster and Pioneer in Consciousness Studies
No full textThe Journal of Conscious Evolution (JCE) is a peer-reviewed academic journal dedicated to exploring consciousness, conscious evolution, and transdisciplinary inquiry as they relate to human growth, transformation, and planetary well-being. Originally founded by Allan Leslie Combs (1942-2025), Professor Emeritus at CIIS, JCE highlights outstanding work from both students and professional scholars around the world. A distinguished author, teacher, and mentor, Combs devoted himself to the study of consciousness, authoring over 250 publications on consciousness and the brain, including Synchronicity, The Radiance of Being (which won the 1996 best book award from the Scientific and Medical Network) and Consciousness Explained Better. He founded the Society for Consciousness Studies and served on the faculties of several graduate programs, most recently as professor and director of the CIIS Center for Consciousness Studies in the Transformative Studies Department (TSD). Known widely for his exemplary and wide-ranging scholarship on consciousness, excellence in teaching, and mentorship of young scholars, Combs was a beloved teacher, mentor, and friend, whose magnanimous presence united diverse communities, as embodied in his deep understanding of several fields, making him what he called a “perennial philosopher.”
To celebrate the life and legacy of Allan Leslie Combs, the editors of JCE issued a call for papers relating to the life, legacy, and scholarship of Combs. The submissions in this special issue of JCE explore and reveal impacts from Combs on themes related to JCE and Combs’s own research interests. A variety of topics are explored and expressed through letters, poems, visual art, and essays. Please enjoy this celebration of Combs\u27s life and ideas
The Aperspectival Playfulness of Allan Leslie Combs
No full textThis commemorative article reflects on the work of the late Dr. Allan Leslie Combs, a pioneering scholar in consciousness studies and an influential mentor. The essay argues that his scholarly writing, characterized by profound openness, heartfelt compassion, and sharp wit, represents an embodiment of the integral consciousness he writes about. Through a close reading of his essays and a personal reflection on his mentorship, the article connects his playful style to Jean Gebser’s concept of aperspectival consciousness and frames his humor within Sri Aurobindo’s philosophy of divine “play” (lila), concluding that, for Combs, scholarship is an embodied practice and his manner is a sign of deep developmental attainment.
Keywords: Allan Combs, consciousness studies, integral consciousness, aperspectival playfulness, Jean Gebser, Sri Aurobindo, mentorshi
Transpersonal Education: A Glimmer of Light to Compulsory Education?
No full textArguably transpersonal education is still in its infancy in relation to defining the area and from this, implementing into practice. While broad themes exist, such themes tend to apply to graduate or postgraduate education. The purpose of this article is to revisit definitions of transpersonal education in relation to compulsory schooling (elementary school through to the end of secondary school). From this, a series of principles and practices have been identified and presented to educators and students for validation purposes. Although a range of transpersonal practices are discussed, the implementation of a martial art inspired ‘Mindful Movement Program’ is introduced as an accessible, inclusive transpersonal practice. Results indicate statistically significant findings for enhanced state and trait self-esteem within an experimental group compared to a control group
The Nondual Realization of Advaita Vedanta Does Not Support a Psychological Theory of Consciousness
Full text linkAdvaita Vedanta is seen as something of an authoritative source for nondual philosophies and theories of consciousness that postulate a pure featureless awareness at the base of mental experience. These approaches deviate from both the lineage-based teachings of Advaita Vedanta and the necessary standards of science, constructing compromises that fall short of traditional fidelity and psychological rigor. Dialogues between psychology and Advaita Vedanta need to delineate clearly between a sensate phenomenology of experience and spiritual interpretations that may be implicit within experiential descriptions
A History of Individuation: Aristotle, Jung, Simondon and the Vital Impulse
No full textThis paper theoretically situates transformation as a biophysiological process specific to information transfer in and throughout a multicellular organism, conceptualized as the epigenesis, morphogenesis, and formation of the self in the unfolding process of individuation. The self will be ascribed, not merely as the Jungian definition of something to be realized through individuation, but rather, as a twofold operation: (a) As a conjunction within the process of individuation that extends into, as part of, the possible future process of individuation; to account for this phase in the operation of the unfolding of the self, the paper refers to Gilbert Simondon’s ontogenetic operation of individuation to complement and further Carl Jung’s original conception, which implies an immanent vital force in the individuation process; and (b) The operation of individuation distinguishes a conjunction between organism and environment, whereby, the body as organism and the environment inform one another in the organism’s continued development. To account for this phase in the development of the organism, the paper will introduce a rhizomatic structure of self-organization explicated through autopoiesis; the self-organization of an organism takes place chemically, biologically, and psychological, which is further developed through the neurophenomenology of intersubjectivity. Accordingly, through this twofold operation, this paper suggests that transformation is a process of systems in relation which is organized chemically, biologically, physiological, and psychologically through the process of individuation that is operationalized via a vital quality, the self
Leslie Combs and His Life in Chaos
No full textThe purpose of this contribution is to review what Leslie Combs described as his “Life in Chaos” and our interaction over the years. Beginning with our meeting at the founding of the Society for Chaos Theory in Psychology in 1991, this tribute traces his journey from early educational challenges to his emergence as a pioneering theorist in consciousness studies. It highlights our decades-long collaboration in the study of dreams, creativity, and the evolution of consciousness, celebrating his enduring legacy as both a brilliant psychologist and a cherished friend.
Keywords: Allan Leslie Combs, Stanley Krippner, chaos theory, systems theory, consciousness studies, dreams, integral theor
An Open Letter to Leslie
No full textThis article celebrates the life and work of dear friend and mentor, Allan Leslie Combs, acknowledging his continued presence in my life. Interweaving stories of our relationship with his insights on integral consciousness, Bateson’s concept of aphanipoiesis, Varela et al.’s notion of autopoiesis, and using narrative, storytelling, and autoethnographic methodologies, I tell a tale of becoming that troubles and haunts my past. The sticky tendrils of Ancestral trauma and its transhistorical epigenetic inheritance, once acutely troublesome, are shifting due in large part to the contents of this letter. Woven together, these conscious, intersecting, and interactive lenses show how Leslie has been an aphanipoietic phenomenon in my life, aiding and abetting my potential. The letter is written in two tenses and first person, stretching academic boundaries and taking liberties with the rigor of APA.
Keywords: Allan Leslie Combs, autoethnography, integral consciousness, aphanipoiesi
Leslie Shines
No full textThis poem serves as a tribute to a beloved colleague of consciousness studies, Allan Leslie Combs, celebrating his neurodivergent brilliance, boundless compassion, and enduring energetic presence.
Keywords: Allan Leslie Combs, poetry, tribute, consciousness studie
Process-Oriented: A Creative Approach to Transformative Learning
No full textIn this intrinsic case study, the author explores the value of creative expression as a process-oriented approach to transformative learning through her experience of designing and facilitating a graduate art-therapy studio workshop. The author grounds her teaching in a humanistic view of creativity and transpersonal, transformative learning theories pertaining to expressive ways of knowing. Excerpts from one group of students’ responses to the course in terms of its impact on their personal-professional identity were grouped under four major themes: Purposeful Encounter; Authenticity; Expressive Mediums for Self-Care; and Shared Discovery. Conclusions from this case may be relevant to other educational settings in which transformative learning aims to strengthen students’ preparedness for their upcoming caregiving careers