Also formalized during these years was a focus on comparative Philosophy and Religion, which engaged the unity and diversity found with in the major traditions of the East and the West. Students in the M.A and Ph.D. programs today continue to develop an appreciation of human responses to the ultimate questions of life and nature. After Dr. Chaudhuri's death in 1975, Bina Chaudhuri, along with dedicated staff, faculty and students, carried on his vision. To assist in making this difficult transition, Frederic Spiegelberg, the original director of the American Academy of Asian Studies, returned to the institution he had helped to found 25 years earlier, and became the second president of the California Institute of Asian Studies, serving from 1976-1978. The Institute's use of the term integral stems from the integral yoga of Sri Aurobindo, who appreciated both Eastern and Western intellectual and spiritual traditions, and from Dr. Chaudhuri's integral philosophy, which was profoundly influenced by Aurobindo.
Integral studies seek and express a unifying vision of humanity, nature, world, and spirit.
In January 1999 the Institute moved to its new home at 1453 Mission Street.