I had my first contact with the Ridhwan School and the Diamond Approach at the end of the 1990s when I read one of Hameed's (A.H. Almaas) books. What really touched and impressed me was the density, clarity and precision of the content and my intuitive knowledge of the truth of what was written there. I felt particularly drawn to the relationship of inner work to everyday life, to the "here and now" and to "being in the world, but not of the world". And the realization that I shouldn't have to be somehow different in order to enter into this inner work. That the current challenges, questions and problems, everything that is there right now or is emerging at the moment, are precisely the topics that can be explored (inquired into) now. And what I had read about first, I wanted to find out more about, in the truest sense of the word. I have been a student of the Diamond Approach since 2002, and since then I have been on an ongoing inner journey and development as a "human being".
There was and still is so much to learn and discover on this path.... infinite. For example the chanllenge, adventure and blessing of not knowing. What I 've really learned over time is to recognize and appreciate how much I don't know. About life, reality and the mystery of being. And that not knowing is at the same time the possibility of being curious again, wanting to know and follow this thread so that not knowing can become the start to an open-ended exploration/inquiry - of everything. And the doorway for true knowledge that can and will unfold within one's own experience. Because the wisdom of true knowledge is knowing by Being.
I’m really grateful to be part of this teaching and spiritual path. Which is a path that has a coherent body of teaching and underlying principles and their own order and logic of experience. With many experiences and realizations that open up and unfold along this path. I appreciate having many Diamond Approach (DA) teacher colleagues around the world and a range of practices like meditations, diasomatic work and Inquiry. Inquiry as a central practice which allows to explore where one is in the moment. Not trying to change the current experience, not trying to get rid of something, not trying to get some place but simply to find the truth of where one is. I’ve experienced for myself how it can become open-ended, and that the exploration carried me through all kinds of emotions, resistences, believes, fears, illuminations, revealations and awakenings. So It has deepened my understanding of myself and of reality.
As a teacher of the DA, I am delighted to be able to accompany other people on their inner path to themselves: to unfold the tangle of personal history, to arrive in the present moment, in one's own BodySoul and to discover essence as the true nature of the soul. To explore being on all levels, to discover and realize one's own inner potential as a human being and to be open to further unfolding and development. A path inwards in the middle of and into life. Being both, in the world but not of it.
The place where you are right now, with all its challenges, problems and demands, is exactly the right place to start your inner journey. There is no need to be someone or something else. A great treasure that this path offers is to explore the truth of your own experience and not simply believe someone else. An open and curious attitude towards what unfolds next along the way is very supportive. And great companions on this path are kindness, compassion and patience with yourself.