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Introduction

In
the contemporary West we find ourselves in a world in which the soul or self,
the world or cosmos, and Being or God, are understood to be separate aspects of
reality. They are so understood in two senses: first, in the scientific,
religious, and philosophical discourses of the day, and second, in the actual
experience of the modern person. Regarding the latter, the actual experience,
some part of the alienation of the self from Being, and the sense of being a
separate entity in a world of entities, is a result of ordinary egoic
development. It has been argued in many places, however, that the alienation
from the sense of Being or the divine is particularly prevalent and
thoroughgoing in the modern Western world, and that it is due to the rational,
scientific, and materialistic worldview that dominates in the modern West, in
conjunction with the end of a more or less universally assumed context of
belief in God. In this book we try to show that it is more accurately due to a
worldview that not only separates the areas of self/soul, world/cosmos, and
Being/God, but almost universally does not question or investigate such
separation in the spirit of truth that has been such an important part of our
cultural history.

The
orientation of this book moves toward a living understanding of the fundamental
unity of reality. We believe that it is possible to communicate a vision of
reality that heals the current prevalent dissociation of self, world, and
Being. We also understand that the alienation of the self from Being is a
source of much suffering and hardship in the world, and hope to contribute to
alleviating that suffering through this new understanding of the nature of the
human being and the path to reclaiming our connection to Being. Our approach is
not a theoretical one based on an externally defined discovery of unity, as for
instance the whole-systems approach that is so significant and valuable in some
current scientific discussion. Although these discussions are important and
resonant with our understanding (see appendix E), our discoveries come from a
systematic investigation of the nature of reality starting with the direct
knowing of the nature of self or soul. This revelation inevitably leads, as is
known in all authentic spiritual and philosophical traditions, to an
understanding of the nature of the cosmos and the nature of Being or the divine.

The
present book has two main elements: first, mainly in the first half of the
book, is a detailed discussion of the nature of the self or soul, which
understanding has developed in the course of several decades of systematic
research and investigation of personal experience, the practice of traditional
spiritual methods, and research and application of modern psychological
understanding. Our investigation has culminated in a largely original
description of the soul, involving a detailed description of the actual
phenomenological nature of the soul as well as a description of how the soul's
development creates the structures that come to be known as the self. In the
endnotes and appendixes, we connect this understanding with detailed
comparisons and references to modern and traditional notions of self and soul.

The
second element of this book, largely in the second half of the book, is a
simple overview of the path of the soul's journey to the realization and
embodiment of Being, as developed in the Diamond Approach, and again referenced
to the best of our knowledge to various traditional and psychological sources.
Here we explore the essence of the soul, her true nature, its aspects,
dimensions, and integration into the soul. In the second half of the book, the
exploration of the essence of the soul develops into an explication of the
inner journey as it reaches and integrates the ultimate true nature, the final
ground of all existence. We discuss this journey in terms of five coemergent
boundless dimensions of Being, clarifying our understanding of both normal and
enlightened awareness, and how they relate to each other. We refer to the inner
journey discussed to this point as the journey of ascent, in which the soul
ascends the various subtle dimensions of Reality.

To
complete the story of the soul's path we discuss the journey of descent, in
which the soul integrates the ground of true nature, with its five dimensions,
into everyday life, which brings the soul to a realization of nonduality. This
takes us to a discussion of mature and complete human realization, in which the
human being becomes not only a microcosm and mirror of Reality, but its agent,
organ, and servant. We end with an exploration of how the three facets of
reality—the triad of soul or self, God or Being, and cosmos or world—are
related to each other in enlightened awareness, and unfold our vision of
Reality as it is revealed in the inner journey of this particular path of wisdom.

This
book presents the larger view of the Diamond Approach, its metaphysical
underpinnings, its overall structure, and its metapsychology. This will clarify
its logos, which structures its methodology and which in turn is grounded in
the articulated understanding of the five boundless dimensions of true nature.
The reader will notice that certain segments of the view are discussed in
detail while others are described only briefly. This is because we have
discussed many subjects in detail in previous publications, so we only refer to
them in this book, giving the appropriate references. Thus this book can be
used as the central organizing presentation of the Diamond Approach. The
elucidation of the path of the Diamond Approach appears in many previous books,
to which we refer readers for more detailed discussion of various aspects of
the understanding of the Diamond Approach.

Since
this book is a presentation of the structure of the path of the Diamond
Approach, the main body of the book does not refer to other teachings, and does
not quote other authors. This is true of all chapters. Quotations and
cross-references are left to the endnotes and appendices. Hence, the reader can
approach this book in two different ways. The reader can read only the body of
the book, learning about the Diamond Approach in and of itself. Or the reader
can read the body of the book and the endnotes and appendices as they are
referred to in the main body, learning about the Diamond Approach within the
context of other teachings and sources. The choice will obviously depend on the
reader; if he or she wishes to understand the Diamond Approach purely and
independently from other sources, and see it as it is without regard to its
relationship to other teachings and writings, then reading only the main body
of the book is the preferred option. But some readers prefer scholarly
references, and connections with other teachings and sources; for such a
reader, reading the endnotes and appendices in the order given in the text will
be the preferred option. Our suggestion is that the reader read the book twice,
once with and once without the endnotes and appendices.

The
extensive endnotes fulfill several functions, including:

1. To
elaborate in more detail some points and questions that are not in the main
theme of this book, but are related to it.

2. To
substantiate some of the ideas and findings through quotations from other more
established teachings, or from scientific and psychological sources.

3. To
show how and where the Diamond Approach uses, integrates, modifies, and
develops findings from other sources, both spiritual and psychological.

4. To
relate some of the concepts, ideas, and observations of the Diamond Approach to
other teachings and fields of research. This may help the reader to understand
them more accurately or completely by situating them in different and perhaps
more familiar contexts.

5. To
demonstrate that the Diamond Approach is similar to many well-known wisdom
traditions in its general outlines, but also to illustrate differences.

6. To
situate the Diamond Approach and its vision and view within the larger context
of the wisdom tradition, as a particular path for human integration.

7. To
demonstrate that even though the Diamond Approach expresses a particular
approach to inner transformation and liberation, similarly to all other wisdom
teachings, it is particularly an expression of the specifically Western
tradition of seeking inner truth.

The
book contains several appendices. Some develop ideas in the book and endnotes
in more detail and with greater technical precision. Some address questions and
themes that are tangential to the main body of the book but nevertheless
amplify and develop its meaning. Some apply the Diamond Approach to other
fields or areas, and some attempt to relate our understanding to other fields
or cast it in the language of other fields or teachings.

Like
other publications of the author, this book is not a rigorous philosophic
treatise or an attempt to prove any theory or idea scientifically or logically.
Even though the book utilizes philosophic discussions, logical reasoning, and
scientific findings and procedures, it presents a teaching that developed
experientially, as the expression of an inner transformation of consciousness
that the author has undergone, as have some of his associates and many students
who have participated in the teaching.

As
a human individual I am the author of this book, but not the source of the
teaching presented in it. The real source of the teaching is the true nature of
Reality, the essence of our soul and what ultimately we are, the elixir that
alone can transform our consciousness and life. By writing and publishing this
book, and the others before it, I am fulfilling a facet of my personal function
as a discriminating and expressive organ, and an appreciative servant, of this
wonderful and magnificent truth of Reality.